Earliest travel date after fiancé visa approved

[Stokie]

Hi all,

My fiancé was just granted her fiancé visa but the start date is early December as that's what we put as the intended date of travel in the application. We didn't expect the visa to be approved so quickly!

My question is - can she come in early November and stay with me as a tourist before the start date of the fiancé visa in early December? She does not need a visa to visit as a tourist.

Thank you!

[CR001]

She needs to come between the dates it has been granted.

She would need an entry stamp on the visa sticker in her passport.

If she tries to come as a tourist, she does risk being refused entry as she is obviously not a tourist.

If she does manage to enter the uk, she would have to leave and then come back on the date her visa is valid from in her passport.

[Stokie]

She needs to come between the dates it has been granted.

She would need an entry stamp on the visa sticker in her passport.

If she tries to come as a tourist, she does risk being refused entry as she is obviously not a tourist.

If she does manage to enter the uk, she would have to leave and then come back on the date her visa is valid from in her passport.

Thank you for the response.

I’ve consulted with a few other forums and family visa groups, and the general consensus seems to be that she would not be doing anything wrong/illegal by coming before her visa start date, but doing so carries some risk as the decision would be at the discretion of the immigration officer upon entry.

Personally, I don't see a strong reason why she would be refused entry, given that she already has an approved visa—albeit with a later start date. The only potential issue I can imagine is that they might perceive it as an attempt to extend her stay beyond six months (but even then, she is coming here with the aim of marrying and staying indefinitely!).

I also spoke to UK Visas and Immigration, who confirmed that it should be fine, but they emphasized that they don’t handle border control decisions, so it would ultimately come down to the immigration officer's decision on the day she arrives.

I was really hoping she could come a month earlier since both our birthdays are in November, and it would mean we could finally be together to celebrate for the first time. But, I don’t want to run the risk of her being turned back, or worse, jeopardizing her visa status or future applications.

[vinny]

30C.

[Ticktack]

Depending on what nationality she has, she might not even be able to leave her home country. Airlines might decline to board her, as they get fined for not doing their due diligence.

Visa isn't active until start date!

Visa issued doesn't mean it's valid yet. Schengen visas are a typical example of this.

If she's a non visa national. note as previously warned that her Fiance visa wouldn't be active yet if allowed in the country. The only way to activate it would be at the Border. That means she needs to exit and re-enter. So she might not be able to change to a spouse visa in-country later. I fear you risk messing things up big time.

There are many more birthdays to be celebrated. Ultimately, we can only advise, the choice is yours.

[Casa]

In addition to the advice given in previous posts, you weren't actually speaking to a UK visas and Immigration employee during your telephone conversation.

The 'Home Office 'helpline' service is outsourced, and operated by an agency with staff who have limited training, and frequently give incorrect advice, even on the simplest of immigration rules. Neither will they accept any responsibility for the impact of their errors.

If you have clicked on Vinny's link to 30c of the Immigration Rules, you will see the official guidance regarding early entry.