Overstayed my visa and will be marrying

[nakirai2007]

Hi
I was given a 2yr mutiple entry visa and came to the UK twice. I successfully applied for another one in 2005 and was given another one for 2yrs from May 2005 - May 2007. I came twice and the third time I have now overstayed.

I met a lovely Zimbabwean woman in the interim in church (when I used to come and go back) and we only got close in November last year just 2 days after she gave birth as I was informed she had given birth. I returned to my country after 3 weeks and came back again in April this year. Her son is now 8months. I have been living with her since I last came in April this year. She holds down a job and has got Indefinite Leave to Remain. She has visited my country with her son and spent 2 weeks with my family in May though I was here as she needed to also verify if I was really single. I have met her family here and they all wish us well including her mother.

We have now arranged to marry in September this year in my country(Nigeria). I need to know what I/we need to do and as I have overstayed what my chances are. Basically what the law states considering I overstayed. She also claims single working tax credits to top up her respectable earnings. Will this also affect as I have been living with her.

[VictoriaS]

The overstay will affect the application, I don't think her claiming benefits will.

Victoria

[jimquk]

Hi

I am a bit new to this game, but will venture a response as you haven't had many replies.

In my opinion, your chances of being approved for a Certificate of Approval to register your marriage are very slight, because you are an overstayer. In any case, marriage would not give you an automatic right to remain in the UK.

I think you should arrange to return to Nigeria as soon as possible, and hope that your expired visa is not noticed at the airport. If you are lucky, there will then be no evidence of your overstay, and you can apply to return on a fiance visa.

[nakirai2007]

.Thank you once again for your reply.
If my partner has satisfied all the necessary requirements e.g 1.accomodation as she rents a 1bedroom flat though she has a baby, Will provide letter from Landlord and tenancy agreement to say I can live there
2.works annual salary of 15000.Can provide a letter from employer
3.Payslips for 6mths and Bank Statements that have never been overdrawn
4.P60
5.She has already met my family (visited Nigeria May 2007 with her son though I was here) have loads of photos
6.I have met her family - Have married her the traditional way in England (photos to prove) as it is customary to do this first before the legal wedding
7.if it would help at all her mother was once married to a Nigerian and her brother and sisiter are therefore half- Nigerian

What other documents(evidence) will they need from us.Please bear in mind I have already overstayed by 3months but we will be travelling to Nigeria in Sep for the legal wedding. Do I need to provide documents that I was leaving with her in England from April till Sep. If so we have the phone bill in my name. Do you think its a wise move? If not what type of evidence is there to show I was actually leaving with her during April to September this year.

I await your response

[nakirai2007]

To save time, if you can peruse through my first post you will have background insight to what my situation is.

I would like to find out what other supporting documentation that I live with my partner would I need to provide to the Immigration Officer in Nigeria. The fact that I only KNEW her well in April this year and then moved in with her (visa expiring in May 2007) and her baby in April will they think it was all orchestrated. The truth is we really love each other; she went through a devastating erstwhile relationship.

We have also thought to include photos of nursery staff I had taken with her son as I constantly leave her son at Nursery whilst she goes to work and I also take her son from work. There is a form she filled in allowing me consent. Just a thought!!!!!!!!

I have also done some IT professional exams and passed - can I include this as supporting evidence that I am a professional and will not be claiming benefits when I return e.g showing am valuable to the economy etc(Does the fact that i sat exams on a visitors visa count against me?)

There is the phone bill in my name since May 2007. Can I also include this as supporting evidence that I live with her or it will serve to implicate me.

Please please advise on any other evidence besides the one I have listed in this post and in my other post that will serve to strengthen our case for a spouse visa.

Regards

[John]

There is the phone bill in my name since May 2007. Can I also include this as supporting evidence that I live with her or it will serve to implicate me.

Well you are of course going to complete the VAF2 application form truthfully, so it will be obvious that you have been in the UK after the expiry date of your visa. So why not include that telephone bill, if it tends to show that there is "evidence of contact" between you and your fiancée.

But the best advice I think is this ... get out of the UK ... stop being an overstayer ... as soon as possible. You have no right to be here .... you are committing a criminal offence. You are getting married in Nigeria next month so it is not as if the time apart will be long.

[Beny]

jimquk has said exactly what you need to do...

PLUS

...make sure you conduct your wedding in a RECOGNISED marriage registry.

....Letter from employer clearly supporting your application will help..

.......1 bedroom flat may cause a problem, ...2 Bedroom flat will be more favourably seen as family accomodation.

........strong evidence of the relationship will help.... A joint bank accout for example...or at least any evidence that can proof that the relationship
is genuine...

...evidence of your good financial standing will also help.

Best of luck !

[nakirai2007]

Many thanks for all your comments.

I was also wondering about the nursery issue(evidence to show I was in a genuine relationship- dropping my partners son and picking him up from nursery) whilst my partner went to work. There is a form from the nursery my partner filled consenting I could pick him up and the fact that I did some IT qualifications whilst I had overstayed my visitors visa. Will these 2 issues serve to strengthen my application or implicate me. I seem not to have been replied on this matter.

I have to be honest and say I occassionally worked and partially used my name e.g my name is Tom Jones then when I worked I would use Jones Peter. However the payslips arrived at my partners address. Is this something I should reveal or not on my application or during my interview.

Does anyone know if they have the resources to actually check or am I being paranoid.

Please assist

[nakirai2007]

I am checking daily to see if one mayhave kindly thought to advise

I need to know if they will know I was working in this country though i partially changed the name but anyone with hallf intelligence would know it was me. The payslips arrived at my partners house. I was a visitor and have currently overstayed by 3 months.Will be leaving for the spouse visa in Sep 2007.
Please reply including the question in my prior post

[jimquk]

In my opinion you should not mention anything about working here if you can avoid it. It in no way strengthens your case for a spouse visa, but it does implicate you in serious dishonesty - not only working when you weren't supposed to, but far worse working under a false identity. This would possibly suggest that you are not a truthful person and that anything else in your application could also be made up.

On the other hand, I suppose it could be argued that as you are now making a clean breast of it, they could overlook the matter. See what other responses you get, but I really think this is a no-no. However, if it is inevitable that they would find out, from your bank statements for example, then maybe better to volunteer the information. I suppose it depends what there is to link you to this other identity. I wouldn't expect the Home Office to automatically search for evidence of other people registered as working at your address, you'll most likely get away with it. But it was really not a smart thing to do, and could come back to haunt you.....

[nakirai2007]

I have a child with my fiancee who is 8months old.The problem is I have overstayed in this country and we plan to get married in Sep in my country. Ther reason however why I was unable to say the child is mine is because when the child was conceived I was according to my passport in my own country.

I was actually in Uk and living with her but I sent over my passport to my country and they backdated it(corrupt Immigration officials) that is. I left UK after 3 months with a new passport(was not rigorously checked) so I could collect my real passport in my country. As my real passport was backdated meaning upon arrival I would be able to say I left UK 12 months previously and only stayed 3 weeks and as that would show on my passport the immigration official would not know I had in fact overstayed my visitors visa.

Now the problem is as we plan to marry in September I can only admit to having overstayed from May - Sep 2007 as my multiple entry visitors visa expired in May 2007. I have shot myself in the foot as I can no longer provide as evidence my own son's birth certificate as accompanying evidence amongst other evidence of course of a sustainable marriage. A friend has advised they do not always stamp on arrival (human error) and if this can be true could you please advise if I can submit my son's birth certificate amongst other evidence we have compiled. This would certainly strenghten our case that our r/ship is genuine.

If not I would be telling the ECO when I am interviewed that I only knew my fiancee(wife) when i came twice to the UK, and when I was in Nigeria there is no evidence of communication e.g phone bills or emails as you may have guessed I was actually in this country. This will certainly appear to be a marriage of convenience. According to my passport when my child was conceived I was in my own country.

Please please assist we are planning a nice wedding and this relationship is genuine.

Regards

[jimquk]

Ummm.... with the greatest of respect, you've made a real mess of this.

If I've followed this all correctly, I think you would have no choice but to be truthful about your overstay, and seek to explain the passport issue any way you can - that Nigerian immigration made some bizarre error, that you actually made mor than one return trip, I don't know....

You guys may need to think about what's really important to you; would you be prepared to live together in Nigeria/Zim? I'm afraid it may come to that. Get some good professional advice, and good luck.

[John]

It is not clear from what you post ..... are you named as the father on the child's birth certificate?

[SYH]

Yeah I don't get it and I am no slouch but did you not get a birth certificate when the child was born so irrespective of what your passport says your child appears to be ok?

[nakirai2007]

I am not currently named as the father as this section is 'unknown'. We have enquired and been advised we can change the birth certificate as long as the father can come along to the Registry office. We plan to do that if that would result in us having to produce evidence of our relationship.

Thanks for all your professional comments.

[Docterror]

Thanks for all your professional comments.

I hope you know that we are not professionals and are just some very knowledgable individuals ( or masquerading as such) with a wierd hobby and a compelling addiction to help sort such matters out, free of charge, for reasons I still don't know why.

[nakirai2007]

Is it the case that upon arrival at Heathrow or Gatwick they have your name on record to state you entered or they only stamp on passport. Are they cases of human error sometimes that they can forget to stamp. Need to know so I am able to say I was in Uk when my fiancee became pregnant.

Those following my case would understand why I am stating this.

Please please assist.

Regards

[nakirai2007]

will keep this short:Already have all the details in the first and second post

I am planning to marry my fiancee in Sep and we have a child together together. Because my passport shows I was actually not in UK when he was conceived we cannot present my son's birth certificate when I apply for my spouse visa. I know its confusing but I was in Uk and I sent my passport back and was stamped in my home country that I had left UK so as not to overstay my visitors visa. I went back and collected it and came back to the UK as I had a multiple entry visitors visa.

My question is I have 2 choices I don't know if there are more:

1.) to say when I came I met my fiancee she already had a child from her previous r/ship(birth certificates states father unknown but that can be rectified if need be) and we met fell in love decided to marry (duration of r/ship April 2007 - Sep2007) my visitors visa expired in May 2007. April 2007 start of the r/ship because thats the last time I entered Uk. It however beggers a question of a marriage of convenience???

2.) to say I have been in Uk since 2005 and am actually an illegal entrant. That way I will at least not need to produce my former passport but a new one as I came illegally. I will now be able to produce proof of my r/ship with my fiancee from 2005 when we met - till date and that would include my son's birth certificate(My name can be registerd have enquired)/ DNA test if need be, letters from her family residing here, bills, letter from vicar at the church we attend, letter from Nursery, photos, ( all evidence of a sustainable r/ship), wedding photos and receipts etc The downside for all I know is I came illegally and as such am was an illegal immigrant. It will however dispel the idea of this being a marriage of convenience.

Am confused and really need advise. Please assist.

[avjones]

I'm sorry, but you are asking our advice about which lies to tell on top of all the other lies you have already told. Not prepared to help you lie, and I would advise anyone else to consider whether it is wise to aid and abet someone to try to obtain leave to enter or remain by deception.