US citizen applying for UK fiancee visa - help!

[maarmie]

I just got back from a six-week trip in Scotland to visit my fiance. He was born in England but now lives in Scotland. I found out two days before I was to fly back to the USA that I am pregnant, and I want to get back over there so we can be together and married during my pregnancy.

I live in Florida and have read on the Internet that I apply (on-line application) to the British Embassy in New York City for the fiance visa. I want to work once it is legally alright for me to do so (I have a college degree and good work experience), but I am concerned about the part of the application having to do with my fiance's finances.

I understand that I would be considered a dependent once I move there and until I can get a job. Now, however, my fiance is a full-time nursing student (graduates in a year) who receives a bursary and works a few shifts a month at a hospital. He has an apartment I can live in with him.

The question is this: My fiance already has a young son who lives with the mother. They were never married and have never been to court for child support, so no official documents as such exist. Since no documents exist and since he is not currently paying support, do we have to list that he already has a dependent on the application? Obviously, this would hurt our financial case, and we would rather leave it off if we legally can considering it has little to no bearing on his final monthly income.

Also: Is anyone aware what the timeline is for the issuance of a fiance visa for an American going to the UK? I am under the impression that once all the supporting documents are received, it takes just five days for the decision to come back. Does anyone know the steps/timeline involved?

We want to get married Sept. 29. Is it currently June 22. Are we fooling ourselves?

[John]

Firstly consider the following. Why apply for a fiancée visa? Why not slightly alter the plan with your fiancé flying to the States, the two of you getting married there, then you applying for a spouse visa!

Why might this be better? Because it means that you would be legally able to work in the UK as soon as you arrive in the UK. Compared to ... the holder of a fiancé(e) visa is not allowed to work ... well not until after the marriage has happened ... and not until the fiancé(e) visa has been converted into a spouse visa in the UK.

Getting married in the States and then getting spouse visa there also cuts out the need to make that application in the UK .... to convert the fiancée visa into a spouse visa .... cost of that application would be £395 by post or £595 in person at a Public Enquiry Office.

Either way .... it needs to be shown that you will not need to claim certain Public Funds, and also that the accommodation you will occupy is "suitable" and certainly not overcrowded. But he is just a student. Is his income sufficient to show that you will not need to claim certain Public Funds? Does for have any family members, for example his parents, who would be prepared to act as an additional sponsor, to ensure that it is clear that you will not need to claim Public Funds?

Do you or your fiancé have any savings? If so, roughly how much are we talking about?

You mention a flat. Post more about that. Does he currently have sole occupancy of the flat or is it, like much student accommodation, shared with other students?

The child? He is paying nothing. I don't think it is necessary to even mention the child.

Timeline for visa applications in the States? Ordinarily just a week or two, but it is not worth applying unless all the required supporting evidence has been compiled, so that you can forward that evidence as instructed on screen when you file your application online.

[yankeegirl]

Hi!

The fiance visas are processed pretty quickly in the US. If applying by post, most people seem to get everything back within 2 weeks.

Have you looked into what is required for marrying in Scotland? I think you need to register with the registry office prior to getting married (maybe a couple weeks before? I'm not really sure for the rules pertaining to Scotland) and also you have to make sure that date is available where ever you are planning to marry. Also, another option would be to marry in the US and then apply for the spousal visa, which then would allow you to work right away.

I'm not sure about your partner's child. My feeling would be that since he is nor required to pay child support, and hasnt been, then the child wouldn't be considered a dependant. But, I don't know the UK laws about this so hopefully one of the experts could give you some clarity on that.

[maarmie]

Would he need some kind of visa for us to get married in the U.S.? I just figured that since I need a finace visa for us to get married in the UK that he would need something similar the other way around. We never looked into that.

He has his own apartment. A one bedroom. The landlady told him only he could live there initially, but he is prepared to call and ask her if I can move in for a while and to get a letter from her stating that.

I have savings totalling roughly 14,000 usd everything combined (savings, retirement account). He doesn't make much (about 1,000 pounds a month total) but he makes enough to pay the rent there on his own, plus I have the savings. He has no savings. Perhaps he could look into getting a letter from his mother as a backup, but we wouldn't need public funds whatsoever.

We were going to marry in England (his whole family lives there) so we would have had to do something in scotland and then register in a specific location in England and then get married in his family's town. Supposedly, to get married in England (even though he's from there and is a lifelong British citizen!) he has to show that he's been a resident of england for 7 days before the wedding. They said it would be OK for his mom to write a letter stating that he has, and she has agreed to do it. The web site for civil ceremonies in England says that he can move anywhere else after he has registered to marry in England. So, I was going to fly over to Scotland in the beginning of September, go down immediately to register at the office in England and then there's a month before the wedding was to take place giving them enough time to do what they have to do (typically 2 weeks).

Getting married in Scotland would cut down all that hassle, but we really want his family to be there.

Please tell me anything you know about him coming here for us to marry in the U.S. That definitely seems a more sensible thing to do if he isn't required to have any sort of visa for us to register to marry and considering I would only have to get a spouse visa to go over there for good (instead of getting a fiance visa first). It's very expensive!

[John]

Him getting married in the US? I think he can just travel to the US using the VWP (assuming he is not disqualified from using that) and then get married.

But I don't have to tell you that each State has its own marriage laws so you will need to ascertain exactly what are the requirements in your State.

Of course a simple wedding could happen in the States, followed by what is commonly known as a "wedding blessing" somewhere in the UK.

[maarmie]

John,

Do you know about spouse visas? Are we required to be married for a certain length of time before we can apply for one?

Thank you much for your information so far.

[John]

You can apply for a spouse visa as soon as the marriage has happened. My own wife had her spouse visa in her passport about two weeks after we got married. In the States it could be even quicker.

[yankeegirl]

My husband is Irish and we married in the US a couple of months ago. He just entered on a visa-waiver. When they asked if it was a business or pleasure trip, he just said pleasure. I think the US fiance visa is for if he was coming to marry you with the intention of settling in the US after the marriage.

You can send in your application and documents as soon as you get your marriage certificate, there is no need to wait any amount of time before applying.

[maarmie]

Many thanks to everyone who responded. We will pursue the idea of getting married in the states. Again, thanks to you all!

[maarmie]

Many thanks again to all who offered advice/information. I received my visa five days after the application and documents were submitted, and I head off to my new home at the end of October! Yay!

[John]

Congratulations! But which visa did you apply for? Fiancée or spouse? That is, has the marriage already taken place?

[maarmie]

Spouse visa. We got married July 21 in Tallahassee!

[John]

Congratulations!

When you do get to Scotland you need to register promptly with the NHS, especially as you are pregnant. You will be entitled to use the NHS as soon as you arrive. Your husband should take you along to his GP's surgery and register you as a patient there. You should take your passport along, with its spouse visa, as proof that you are indeed entitled to use the NHS.

[SYH]

Him getting married in the US? I think he can just travel to the US using the VWP (assuming he is not disqualified from using that) and then get married.

But I don't have to tell you that each State has its own marriage laws so you will need to ascertain exactly what are the requirements in your State.

Of course a simple wedding could happen in the States, followed by what is commonly known as a "wedding blessing" somewhere in the UK.

\


Congrats on your approval for a visa

For future info, one should get fiance visa, if you enter on the VWP and then get married, it could be considered as fraud since VWP is for visiting not marrying

Other info to be aware of is
"the petition is that, if granted, it will allow your fiancé to enter the country strictly for the purpose of marrying you. The visa that is granted to your fiancé is only good for 90 days and cannot be extended. The marriage must take place within 90 days. Some people have difficulty getting the timing right and they file their petition too soon or too late.

The advantage of a fiancé petition, versus marrying first and completing the immigration process later, is that once your fiancé enters the U.S. and marries you he or she can remain in the U.S. and apply to become a Lawful Permanent Resident. He or she does not need to return to their home country to wait for further processing."
Nachman Associates

[JAJ]

For future info, one should get fiance visa, if you enter on the VWP and then get married, it could be considered as fraud since VWP is for visiting not marrying

VWP is ok as far as I know if the intention is to get married in the U.S. and live in another country afterwards.

[ChrisSmith]

John, you've been a great help in your postings, many many thanks.

It's a pity some other members can't stay on the topic at hand and like to post comments to increase their own ratings.

[John]

The advantage of a fiancé petition, versus marrying first and completing the immigration process later, is that once your fiancé enters the U.S. and marries you he or she can remain in the U.S. and apply to become a Lawful Permanent Resident.

That is the point, isn't it ... here there was no intention for the person to remain and live in the US. They merely got married and then returned to their own country.

[SYH]

John, you've been a great help in your postings, many many thanks.

It's a pity some other members can't stay on the topic at hand and like to post comments to increase their own ratings.

Excuse me, don't be so presumptous

[ChrisSmith]

A direct quote from you, SYH

"How many posts do you need to get to the next level?"

conducted whilst offering obviously lame, moralistic, useless 'advice' to a poster in trouble.

Anyhoo, our application was successful, despite worries of a financial nature. I presented them with a 'household expenditure' breakdown, which showed that we would be living with at least the same level of income as if we were a married couple claiming state benefits (and it was only slightly more) and it was all fine. My wife also did a great job in presenting all our 'evidence' in a well organised and structured way, which I think helped us too.

[SYH]

A direct quote from you, SYH

"How many posts do you need to get to the next level?"

conducted whilst offering obviously lame, moralistic, useless 'advice' to a poster in trouble.

Anyhoo, our application was successful, despite worries of a financial nature. I presented them with a 'household expenditure' breakdown, which showed that we would be living with at least the same level of income as if we were a married couple claiming state benefits (and it was only slightly more) and it was all fine. My wife also did a great job in presenting all our 'evidence' in a well organised and structured way, which I think helped us too.

Take it out of context and distort it
First of all I am at the next level so I don't need an errant post
Second that was in response to another member whose objective was to reach the next level, why don't you bring up your objective to him?
So get off your judging of me

[maarmie]

John,

I certainly will register with a doctor when I arrive in Scotland. The process went much smoother than I ever thought it would, thanks, in large part, to information learned off this message board. What a great resource!

One interesting note: Because of fears that the process would be much more difficult than it was and fears that I needed more help than I did to get the visa, I called a supposedly well-known immigration lawyer in London to see about getting help from him. Not only was he going to charge me thousands of pounds for his help, but he was completely arrogant and dramatic about it taking months and months for an application to go through (not true) etc. And when I mentioned applying to the British Consulate in New York he acted like he had never heard of a British Consulate in New York and that that's NOT where I should apply and that I was on the totally wrong track. He was this completely arrogant American jerk who was trying to instill even MORE fears in me, I suppose, so I'd use his services.

I never called him again.

Just a little "beware" story about immigration lawyers.