Hello!
Sorry I did not update sooner, been so busy with post-wedding stuff, its never ending.
The wedding all went to plan, massive thunderstorm in the morning that thankfully cleared up in time, and more importantly all my documents were in order!
Had to get certificate of no impediment from local register office in UK, cost £30 takes 21 days to get and in Albania is only valid for 31 days from date of issue. Got full UK birth certificate (£7) then went to Albanian Embassy in London and got certified translations of both, cost £30 for each document and takes 3 days. The register office in Tirana wanted the originals of all these documents 12 days before the wedding (found this out very late in the day) but I was only flying out two days before. I scanned them and e-mailed them over to my husband and luckily they accepted these until I arrived with the originals. My husband had to get a notary to certify that the originals were the same as the copies sent (day before the wedding!!) and then he was finally able to properly book a day and time for the wedding, although they had penciled us in!!
Got married in Tirana in April, friends and family all flew out and everybody had a fantastic time and all loved Albania, some are even planning return trips! Had a lovely honeymoon on the coast before heading back to Tirana to start the visa application process. My husband and I visited the British Embassy in Tirana and read all the guidance on the notice board about applying for his visa before we made his application just to double check, they had advice in both English and Albanian. Here it said I only needed to hand in 3-6 months of my bank statements and 3-6 months payslips, which was less than I had expected but as i'm self employed I decided to put in 12 months worth just in case. The only additional information was to photocopy all documents and hand photocopies in at the same time as his application.
I decided to fill in the employment section of his application form with my own details as I am registered self employed. I included 12 months payslips/invoices/contracts, a calender of employment and a breakdown of my earnings for the past year. This was backed up with 12 months bank statements. I decided not to include any documents from my accountant as they were all for the previous year, the tax year 2004-2005 having only just finished. I also included a CV.
I wrote a statement outlining my education, work experience, future prospects, earnings, accommodation, my husbands work experience and prospects and how and when we met. Everything I wrote in my statement I backed up with relevant documents including letters from friends and relatives, photographs, cards and correspondence, and all the financial stuff. I got my landlord to write a letter stating that my studio flat had been assessed by the local council as fit for two people to reside in and that he was not opposed to an additional occupant and he also sent me the original tenancy agreement to include. Also handed in wedding invitation and photos, my birth certificate, and a photocopy of the certified translation (register office had kept the original), our certificate of no impediment, our marriage certificate, a certified copy of my passport which I had got at a solicitors office (£5) in the UK, my husbands passport, his birth certificate, two passport photos of my husband and his letter from the Home Office from his original asylum application with his ref. number on.
For section 7 of the VAF2 he answered 'yes' for questions pertaining to being required to leave the UK, 'no' to questions about being refused a visa before. He filled in the 'further details' section with details of when he first applied, when he was refused and when his appeal was refused, also filled in his reference number. As you can see, this is not a straight forward process by any stretch of the imagination.
We went to the British Embassy first thing in the morning to find we were at the end of a very long queue. Strange process in Tirana where you speak to a man in a box outside who looks at applicants passport, writes down name, asks whether you have photocopies of all documents and are they seperate, has quick flick through application form and, in our case, told us we would be able to hand in his application that day but it would probably be about an hour.
Were called inside, woman behind the counter complained that we had too much stuff, didn't want wedding video or big wedding album
(wouldn't fit through the post office like counter), took all the rest of the stuff, had a quick flick through application form and husbands documents. We waited outside for a decision, there were only two or three other applicants for a settlement visa while we were there but all were asked to provide more information such as their marriage certificates or mortgage documents, or told they would be contacted for an interview, we were told my husbands application was all in order, they gave us back his passport and all our photos and cards/correspondence. We were told that they would call us once they had contacted the Home Office in the UK to check that his case was closed and there was nothing outstanding against him. They said this could take up to three weeks but as long as the Home Office didn't object his visa application was straightforward. This was on the Thursday, the following Tuesday he got a phone call to say they had contacted the Home Office, everything was fine and he should return the following day with his passport to get his visa. Three working days!! I was amazed.
So now we are both back in the UK after a six week holiday, and he is finally here legally, cannot explain the relief!
I'm sorry I have written in so much detail about what we did but thought it might be of use to some of you out there. After going through this experience I think my best advise is to plan ahead as much as possible, find out from the main register office in the country you wish to marry what they need and when, I ended up getting two CNI's as the original one I got while trying to be extra organised was way out of date for their 31 day limit. Planning a wedding in this country is stressful enough without all the additional requirements of getting married abroad. Look up phone numbers for overseas register offices and phone ahead. As for the Visa application process I would recommend the same, do your homework beforehand and include everything they ask for. My situation was a bit different as i'm self-employed and thought this could be a negative factor in our case so included a years worth of financial documents, but its always better to be safe than sorry. Probably a good idea to photocopy all documents and include photocopies as well even if not requested.
The people I met while in Tirana who had problems were the ones who thought they could just go, get married and apply without really delving into what is needed. It is so much easier to get all the documents together while you are here rather than trying to get them faxed over at a later date.
It is a complicated process to go through and when I was here, working, making my wedding dress, organising my family, and sorting out all the documents for the wedding and visa application I thought it would do me in, but we survived, and had a lovely wedding in the process.
Now just have all the problems of my husband sorting out a proof of address, which seems impossible as everyone wants a proof of address before they will give you anything that can be used as a proof of address. AGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!
Have to say a big thank you to Kayalami without whose invaluable advise would never have attempted the whole process and would still be here dreading the day my lovely husband was to be found out and sent home to Albania.
xxxx
