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I think that is the standard. As long as she doesn't breach that she should be ok. The biggest thing would be for her to be able to show ties to the US. Return ticket, letter from employer, things like that. As far as visiting other countries, as long as she can satisfy to the immigration officer that she will be leaving within the allowed time she should be ok. I know of quite a few people who come to the UK to visit, and then say take a weekend holiday to France, Ireland or wherever and then return to the UK to get their flight home.However, one official that i spoke to at UK immigration suggested that my girlfriend would only be able to remain in the uk for six months of every twelve. He also said that entry is granted at the discression of the Imigration Official at the point of entry.
And empty pockets! Welcome to the Club!It seems i'm in a similair situation to a lot of people on here - international relationship breeds immigration hell!
Oooh, dangerous....For the moment my girlfriend (who is US Citizen) plans to visit me for the third time in the UK on a visitor visa.
Basically a VV is NOT a settlement visa, as soon as one IO in a mood sees that she using it that way and wonders how anyone can spent so long 'visiting' without settling is gonna mark her passport - which would mean possible refusal of entry and certainly the needto formally apply for a VV to UK in the future.Does anyone know or have any experience of how often immigrations officials are prepared to issue visitor visas? The actual legislation does not specify any time limits and does set a maximum limit of entries on a visitor visa.
That's a good rule of thumb, although I'd not even go the full six months.However, one official that i spoke to at UK immigration suggested that my girlfriend would only be able to remain in the uk for six months of every twelve. He also said that entry is granted at the discression of the Imigration Official at the point of entry.
Can't see an issue, except she might need visas for EU countries? I dunno if US has visa waivers with other EU statesIn addition to this, i would like to know how dangerous it is for me to travel within the EU with my girlfriend during her stay as a visitor? Presumably she will have to reapply for a visitor visa when she returns, giving the immigration officials another chance to deny entry?
U can marry her in US or third country and she can enter on Spouse visa nd work straight away.With regards to marriage, which seems like the only option for her to actually be able to work in the uk (since she does not qualify for HSMP), does she actually have to be here on a fiance's visa in order to get married, or does this merely preclude the need to travel back to the US once wed in order to apply for her spouses visa?
Student visa? Expensive tho.....Finally, is there any other way of getting my girlfriend in a situation where she can live and work in the uk without marrying her? I love her and i do want to spend the rest of my life with her without question, but i am loathe to marry her in a rush merely to satisfy the governments draconian immigration policies!!
I recently married my wife ( from Bali ) in a Church of England service. If I remember correctly - you DO need a Fiancee visa to get married in the C of E, as this was part of the Churches requirement for it to be lega for you to marry. After the marriage we applied for FLR at Croyden.As far as marrying, I believe you could marry in the CoE without needing a fiance visa
If these are the only visits she made, I do not see a problem. Yes, she has been here for 5 months during the last year, but she will never have more than 6 months in any 12 months, as the first visit "expires" bit by bit starting at the end of september. Another obvious solution would be to go on holiday in continental Europe for a few weeks.dan_N wrote:tit seems that the guidelines (not the legislation) states that my girlfriend can only spend two more months in the country if she comes to visit on september fourth, when the plane ticket is booked for.
she has been in the uk
between 28th sept and 28th nov, and
between 24th mar and 19th june.
If you Fiancee applies for a Fiancee visa then I think she wont have a passport to come here in the meantime as they have the passport with the application - the visa has to go into it .............if we apply for a fiances visa is it ok for my girlfriend to visit the UK whilst we are waiting for the visa to be processed?
Yes, my wife successfully got hers in Indonesia and married me here in the UK this May in a Church ceremony.has anyone had any experience applying for a fiance visa?
No idea, I doubt you can speed up the process, just make sure you send in as much evidence of the relationship and supporting documentation in original form as you can both find, then find anything else to do with the relationship. The guidance notes for the application list what is required. Go overboard on the evidence - in this case more is better !do you how long the visa will actually take to arrive and is there any way to speed up the process?
You cant ensure it will be granted, but do as above.do you have any tips or recommendations on how to ensure the visa will be granted?
Easy - yes, we went to Croyden and applied for FLR, very straightforward and the lady that saw us was friendly and congratulated us on our new life together. Appointment at 09.00, the 'interview' process took about 10 minutes and then 2 hours waiting to recieve the passport / visa / paperwork back.am i right in thinking that it is easy and inexpensive to convert a fiance visa to a spousal visa once we get married?
I can vouch for that - it happened to us!VictoriaS wrote:One other thing - if she says that she is only staying for two months then stays for six, if they find out then it will be detremental to her when she next tries to come in - even though she will have technically not broken any rules.
Victoria
do you have to pay £500 for the fiance and then another £500 for the spousal visa?pyromaniac wrote:Plus loads of money - it is not inexpensive !!
Victoria: i'm aware that there's no rule but do you think they would actually notice that? as far as i could see she only has to declare when she expects to leave verbally?VictoriaS wrote:There is no law which says that a visitor can only be in the UK for 6 months in every 12 (unless she is on a multiple entry visit visa). The simple fact is that it is up to the Immigration Officer. If he thinks that she is using the visitor rules to actually settle here, then he will refuse her entry. if he believes thatshe is only visiting, he will let her in. The more she visits, and the less time there is between visits, the more suspicious he will be.
One other thing - if she says that she is only staying for two months then stays for six, if they find out then it will be detremental to her when she next tries to come in - even though she will have technically not broken any rules.
Victoria
My gf came here on a six month visa - she is a visa-national - spent three months here. The second one was granted but with a warning from the consulate that this time she shouldn't spend so long here on it this time or she won't get anymore. Told us a visit is two/three weeks not three months. I dunno if they have the rights to say that but they did.
@ wanderer - what were the circumstances you experienced this in?
both Jo and I are starting to feel pressured about the whole thing now - it seems pretty unjust that we have to go through all this BS and actually marry each other in order to spend any time together?! i understand the need for rigorous immigration laws but the process, fees and legislation and ridiculous!!
hey ball1333 thanks for your response. first of all let me say that i certainly do not want to break it off with her! what you're sensing isn't reticence for the relationship or the girl, but quite the opposite! i really would have liked it if we could do the whole marriage thing perfectly and normally, but as someone said a little further up in this thread - international relationships don't play out in a standard way!ball1333 wrote:hi Dan,
A British friend's brother married his American wife earlier this year. They decided after researching all the options that it was easiest for the guy to travel to the US and marry the American in an American civil ceremony. Then the two of them were able to travel to the UK, with the American on a UK spouse visa.
They are having a "real" wedding later this year, but (as they would have been living together anyway) are living together now in Durham. They would have preferred to get married just once, in the UK, after more planning and "properly" -- but desperate times/desperate measures and all that. If you really really want to be with your other half, you may just have to suck it up and marry her.
If you don't want to be with her badly enough to marry her, be honest for both your sakes...
Hi Dan, the people I mentioned before got married in New York, where the gal's family is based. Given all the effort you're putting in to sort out a UK-side solution, could you ask your gf to do some legwork regarding her state's marriage laws? I should think it will be easier for her to access the information.dan_N wrote:do you know any of the details as regards paperwork and process that are necesary to get married in the US? presumably it varies from state to state?
ah, cool - that sounds fairly simple! was your husband in NYC on a standard visa waiver?yankeegirl wrote:Ball is right, it varies from state to state (sometimes even county to county). In NYC, all hubby and I needed were our passports to apply for the marriage license. We got married 24 hours later in City Hall in Manhattan and received the marriage certificate immediately after the ceremony. We brought our birth certificates and my divorce decree to be on the safe side, but they didn't need it. In which state does your partner live?
Good idea! Will get her on the case. I've been doing a lot of the legwork since it costs a bomb to discuss any british immigration issues in the US!ball1333 wrote:Hi Dan, the people I mentioned before got married in New York, where the gal's family is based. Given all the effort you're putting in to sort out a UK-side solution, could you ask your gf to do some legwork regarding her state's marriage laws? I should think it will be easier for her to access the information.
Yep. We had all of his job info, lease etc for my visa application, confirmation of appointment with the UK embassy and so on to show US immigration that his intent was not to settle. As it happened, we didn't need it. They asked if he was on vacation and he said yes, and they they didn't ask any more lol. It's perfectly acceptable to go to the US to marry on a VWP as long as you can satisfy the IO that you are not intending on settling in the US after the marriage.ah, cool - that sounds fairly simple! was your husband in NYC on a standard visa waiver?
Right. Then I can tell you straight away that if she tries to enter as a visitor she is more than likely going to be refused. Immigration are not likely to grant entry as a visitor to a girl with a boyfriend int he UK and no return ticket.dan_N wrote:
jo has a one way ticket to the uk on september 4th.
i'm not sure that it is to be honest!VictoriaS wrote:Right. Then I can tell you straight away that if she tries to enter as a visitor she is more than likely going to be refused. Immigration are not likely to grant entry as a visitor to a girl with a boyfriend int he UK and no return ticket.dan_N wrote:
jo has a one way ticket to the uk on september 4th.
I think maybe getting the fiancee visa now would be the best idea. That will cost £500, and then when married the switch to spousal is another £395.
Victoria
yes! As long as she switches her ticket to a return.dan_N wrote:
the option i think we're plumping for at the moment is that jo come to the uk for another two months or so (with a return ticket and a letter from her employer in seattle indicating she will start work late october / early november). During this time we will get all the paperwork together required for a spousal visa. Before Jo's six out of twelve months is up we will travel to the US, get married, submit the visa application, and when it is granted both return to the uk to finally start living a stable life together!
do you think this would work out?
Applications made in the US are much quicker than this - often same day.dan_N wrote:
and additionally have you any idea how long the visa application would take to be processed? the uk home office says it 'aims' to process all the applications within 90 days - is this realistic?
No problemit would be good to be able to talk to you about things as we go along if that's ok with you.
can anyone confirm that i will be ok to get married whilst in the US on a visitors visa?! if not i need to sort this out soon!!yankeegirl wrote:It's perfectly acceptable to go to the US to marry on a VWP as long as you can satisfy the IO that you are not intending on settling in the US after the marriage.