Unmarried partner visa from brazil / spouse visa

[RobBowring]

Hello everyone, I'm interested in finding out of my partner would qualify for the unmarried partner visa in the uk. We are not yet married and have been living together for more than 2 years but the documentation in proving this is difficult. We don't have a joint account and my name is not on the tenancy here where we live in Brazil. We have together a Uniao Estavel (Stable union partnership) which we completed in September 2017 in order for us to continue to live together in Brazil after my tourist visa expired (the uniao estavel i similar to a civil partnership in the uk but im not sure if there is equivalence). We dont have a joint account or joint bills. I've payed the gas bill here for the last 12 months and this has our address on. My immigration documents in brazil have our old address on and we have the apostiled living together agreement but im unsure as to whether we'd qualify at this moment in time.

Part of my confusion comes from knowing that i'd need to earn the yearly 18,600 pro rata over 6 months to qualify, i can do this, but it would mean living apart for 6 months of course and then i wonder how this effects the idea we're meant to be living together for 2 years in order to qualify? I have a permanent family visa here in brazil linked to our and my partners name is on the visa registered as my partner.

Of course we have masses of correspondence between us since we met in 2015 and also since we started to live together in May 2016, we have photos etc but im unsure if these would be helpful or not.

Maybe it would just be worth getting married? Neither of us are massively hot on the idea of doing this just to influence a visa process though.

Any thoughts or help you could provide would be really welcome!

[linaeaton]

Hi Rob, I’m brazilian too.

I believe you and your partner do qualify for a spouse visa. Get as many documents as possible as a proof that you live together (including letters from family and friends, any bills or documents, pictures, etc). I think the fact that you have a visa in Brazil will also serve as a proof of the relationship.

I am not sure if these potential 6 months in the UK to qualify for the financial requirement will make any difference in the fact that you did live together for 2+ years and you can explain the time apart. I don’t think this should be a problem.

Or maybe you partner could come in with a visitor visa for as long as she is allowed to?

[RobBowring]

Hey Linaeton, thanks for your reply!

I have the same hope, i mean the thing is I have gas bills and many official brazilian government paperwork in my name at both of our addresses, we have a family visa already in Brazil and a living together agreement which was done with a notary public in the UK and then legalised by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office there too. We have reams of letters we wrote to each other here, hundreds of photos, letter and cards send to me from the UK to here in Brazil, transcripts from years of whatsapp conversations, video calls etc etc.

The concerning thing is that we don't have things like a joint tenancy, life insurance, joint bank account or things like this as they say on the website which Im concerned might be the problem. I'm fairly certain that the UK isnt looking for excuses to turn people away at the moment and this is the ssue at the back of my mind. Someone said get married at a cartorio here and its essentially just signing some paper, but if there's an alternative i think id prefer it.

You've had experience of going through this process yourself or for another visa? Thanks again for your message, its much appreciated

[linaeaton]

Hi Rob,

There is not need to have any document on both of your names (joint account, life insurance, etc). What you will need is 6 documents on your name and 6 documents on your partner’s name (12 in total) spread evenly through 2 years. So I think you should be fine. Make sure you also provide tons of pictures of both of you and letters from family/friends confirming the relantionship.

Make sure all the documents in Portuguese are translated by a Tradutor Juramentado in Brazil. There is no need to be married to get the visa if you can prove that you have been living together in a relantionship for the last 2 years.

I have just received my first extension (2nd visa), so have been through this process twice. Please let me know if you need any help