Post
by Jackson2004 » Sat Aug 17, 2019 12:51 pm
My wife is from Cambodia and I started speaking to her on a dating app a year ago. She is well educated and has a good job in Cambodia, and I have am a Senior Software Engineer from the UK. I’m 30 and she is 32.
We maintained regular contact over a three months then I decided to visit in January. During this time we spent a few weeks traveling and I went to visit her family. I fell in love with her in so many ways so when I visited again in March I proposed and by late April we married in Hong Kong and were spending our honeymoon in the Philippines.
During this time we have been in constant daily contact. We got married in a Hong Kong registry office due to the complications in a foreigner marrying in Cambodia. Her brother, parents, aunts and a few cousins joined us.
We have both shared expenses of the wedding, brought regular gifts for one another, have photos of the few months this year we have spent together. We have been supported of one an others ambitions and I feel for her in a way I havnt felt for anyone.
In July I was let go from my job at the end of probationary period. It was the first time I had lead responsibilities and I don’t think I was quite ready for it. At this point my wife had just finished doing her IELTS English language test so we were making progress towards a UK visa.
I applied many job opportunities in London, Manchester, Dublin, and Belfast as those where the primary spots for software development job opportunities. Ireland made sense because I wanted to become a contractor which I wouldn’t have been able to do if I wanted to meet financial evidence requirements for a UK visa application but my main concern was just finding a job at that time.
I failed a job interview in London, and a telephone interview in Manchester and Belfast before accepting the first job offer in Dublin that was extended to me. Which was a well paid contract position.
Before starting my contract I spent another month at my wife’s house during this time we prepared an application for excersising our EU treaty rights. Which included a cover note from each of us, employmer information, marriage certificate, and a passport. We did not include photos or evidence of durability because we did not believe these where things that needed to be established when excoriating treaty rights when married.
I started work and 6 weeks later we had a visa rejection letter on the following groun’s that the decision maker had sernious concerns that we are a abusing our EU treaty rights. The following points where noted
- The original marriage certificate is not proof of marriage in itself but has to be certified by the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I believe they have made a mistake on this. Why would a Hong Kong marriage certificate need the be verified by a Cambodian government department. And I was under the impression that as the marriage certificate was issued by a former uk colonie signed up to The Hague convention and that the certificate was issued in a government registry office that was proof of marriage on its own for visa purposes to internationally accepted standards
- That we havnt provided evidence of durability. This is extremely concerning as we were under the impression that the durability test was only applied in the case of Eu treaty rights if we were not married. Even though we have been in constant contact, are married, visit as often as we can and have developed a loving relationship the test usually involves having lived together for two years.
- That we have provided no evidence of me having stated work on the date specified in the application. The start date was actually pushed back a week which I didn’t notify them off but provided as much information as necessity for them to contact the employer, agency etc. I was told that they had been in contact with my employer and confirmed that I was indeed working.
-That I have provided no evidence of having searched for perminent accommodation. When I got to Dublin I had no idea just how difficult it was to find somewhere. I have been looking for somewhere left right and centre as I will obviously need to find somewhere before my wife puts in her notice but it is proving difficult when 1 property gets 100 applicants and I’m working 9-6. I didn’t know that this evidence was nessesery.
Furthermore at no point was any extra evidence ever requested.
I am really sure what I do / need to provide to mitigate there concerns. I’m beginning to believe that it will be difficult to establish durability which really puts us in a difficult situation because I love my new job and want to settle in Ireland but will do anything to be back with my wife and I don’t believe the same two year living test is applied in the UK to establish a genuine and subsisting relationship where the couple is married.
I will be seeking legal help but any preliminary advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks