FLR(M) from Tier 2 General In Person

[uk21411]

Hi everyone, we recently got married (my wife is a British citizen and I am from India). I am working here on a Tier 2 visa which is valid till August 2017. However, I plan to switch to UK spouse visa (from within UK using FLR(M)). Both of us are employed. I have checked all the fees required including the premium service and NHS charge and it comes to be nearly GBP 1500.

I have seen / heard about some bad experiences with applications or non-responsive staff at UK home office. Would any one please share if they used an immigration adviser who accompanied them for their appointment and also checked their documents. From what I can see such advisers can charge up to GBP 1000 (or more). I have been thinking if I should go for this option for peace of mind.

Please share your experiences. Thanks !

[CR001]

You don't need an advisor and it will make no difference to your application if you have one with on the day. The caseworker will not speak to an advisor if you are there and they need to ask anything. In my opinion, if your case is straightforward, you will only be poorer for using someone who effectively is only a form filler.

Not sure what you mean by 'non responsive staff'? The caseworkers follow the rules, you have to meet the rules, if you don't meet the rules, your application is refused. HO do not based their work on 'emotions'. So what you might have 'heard', is likely very different depending on migrants personal visa circumstances, i.e. discrepancies in previous applications for example.

You can can most, if not all your queries answered on this forum, free of charge, if you wish to. Many 'immigration advisors' don't always give accurate 'advice' and often get things wrong, to the detriment of applicants.

[Casa]

Bear in mind that visa fees are increasing in April. A FLR(M) application submitted in person at a PSC will be £1311 (+ £500 NHS surcharge) = £1811

[uk21411]

Thanks both for your kind replies. A friend of mine who recently went through the exact same process told me that the advisor did not contribute much although it was good to have peace of mind that they were not missing out on any details. Today an advisor sent me a quote of £1200 for this service, additionally he would only go to Solihull and not to Croydon (I live in London).

I would go through the entire form and post questions here if any. Hopefully should be able to apply soon. Thanks again !

[CR001]

Yup, happy to answer any questions you have. £1200 is ridiculous just to complete a form basically and they do also get it wrong sometimes.

[uk21411]

Thanks, yes £1200 is a a huge amount and I don't think any one to accompany me to the appointment. However, he also offered a service to check all my documents for £350.

I am slowly going through the form and gathering all that I might need.

1. My wife got her UK visa last year and now she is a dual citizen (Russia)

2. I have a got my EU masters degree (taught in english) verified by UK NARIC

3. We have been living together since September 2014 but do not have any letters jointly addressed to us except one letter from the council regarding registration of our wedding.

4. I do have bank statements for each month I have lived with her. We have statements delivered to the same address. I also have few letters from HMRC and NHS

Questions-

1. Regarding cohabitation, we don't have jointly addressed letters. Would it be ok to use separate letters which are addressed to the same address ? Also would I need to use a separate kind of document for each month of cohabitation ?

2. I am working on a tier 2 with the same company since September 2014 and have all my salary slips. I took Pearson English language test in July 2014. Would the scores be still valid ? Alternatively I think I can use the NARIC comparison (I applied for both english language and degree comparability certificates from NARIC)

3. Do we need to show travel documents for any travelling we did together and photographs ? We do have loads of these

Thanks in advance for any comments / replies to the above !

[CR001]

1. My wife got her UK visa last year and now she is a dual citizen (Russia)

What do you mean by 'UK visa'?

You said in your first post that

my wife is a British citizen

Russia does not allow dual citizenship and it is a criminal offense since 2014 if she has not declared this.

http://rbth.com/society/2014/08/12/hidi ... 38929.html

I will answer your other questions when you clarify the above.

[uk21411]

Sorry about the confusion

1. She is a British citizen. Got her passport* last year.

2. She has registered this in Russia.

[CR001]

1. When did you get married and start living together? Individually named documents for cohab is fine, but you will need more than just a couple.

2. If you have NARIC, use that. PET is no longer on the accepted English list.

3. No

[uk21411]

Started living together in September 2014

Got married two weeks back

Thanks !

[CR001]

Submit cohab docs for last two years then, spread out evenly for every 3/4 months.

[uk21411]

Had my appointment today. All good, got the confirmation letter. Now hoping to get the BRP card soon. Anyone knows how long that might take ?

[CR001]

The letter you got would say within 10 days. Some people get it within 2 or 3 days, others get it after 2 weeks.

[alialee2015]

Had my appointment today. All good, got the confirmation letter. Now hoping to get the BRP card soon. Anyone knows how long that might take ?

Congratulations Aj1788. Our appointment is next week. Can you please let me know what documents you gave to the case registration person? Did they ask you any question? How long did you wait to get the decision?

Thanks
Ali

[Wanderer]

1. My wife got her UK visa last year and now she is a dual citizen (Russia)

What do you mean by 'UK visa'?

You said in your first post that

my wife is a British citizen

Russia does not allow dual citizenship and it is a criminal offense since 2014 if she has not declared this.

http://rbth.com/society/2014/08/12/hidi ... 38929.html

I will answer your other questions when you clarify the above.

I know this is bit old but Russia does tacitly allow dual citizenship, in the sense it always considers it's citizens and Russian irrespective of any others they hold.

What did happen late last year is the Duma passed a law requiring all dual nationals to officially register their dual-nationality on pain of fine and community service. Then it was quietly dropped and it's no issue, my Russian partner is Russian and British and has travelled home many times since..

[uk21411]

Had my appointment today. All good, got the confirmation letter. Now hoping to get the BRP card soon. Anyone knows how long that might take ?

Congratulations Aj1788. Our appointment is next week. Can you please let me know what documents you gave to the case registration person? Did they ask you any question? How long did you wait to get the decision?

Thanks
Ali

Hi Ali, we submitted bank statements, pay slips, letter from employer, english language certificate.

No questions asked. Decision was made in 3 hours.