Unmarried Partner Visa/ILR - but married before visa receive

[CAR01]

Hi
I am writing on behalf of my sister in law, a South African. She applied for an unmarried partner visa in January 2008 (8 year relationship with my brother, a BC). Visa was declined and they appealed. They tried to circumvent rules and thought if they got married they could get to UK via Ireland. Got married on 4 July 2008. Unmarried visa issued 21 July 2008 after appeal etc. in maiden name South African passport. They did not inform ECO that were now married. New married name South Africa passport received in August 2008. Departed South Africa on 4 September 2008 using maiden name passport. Visa due to expire in July 2010 and she wants to apply for ILR, but now doesn't know which passport to use (two SA issued passports also illegal and married name passport should have automatically cancelled her other passport) as her visa and everything in the UK is in maiden name and not even her employer is aware that she is married. Home office has still not been notified that they are married. She is worried that she is now going to have a problem either extending her visa or applying for ILR as she has been married since before arriving in UK and relationship status different to the visa that was issued, i.e. unmarried partner.
If she goes back to SA to apply for spousal visa to come back to UK, the problem is that her married passport and date of marriage is all before her initial arrival in the UK on 5 September 2008.
Please can someone assist or advise what is the best for her to do.
Many thanks
CAR

[mochyn]

This is going to be very difficult to do without specialised help.
You really need the help of a solicitor.
Had they done it the easy way,going back to South Africa getting married and applying for a spousal visa, the process would have been straightforward but trying to circumvent the rules has led to a lot of complications

[CAR01]

Hi, thank you. they did get married in South Africa as I forgot to mention that my brother has dual SA / UK citizenship. they lived in SA for full duration of their relationship, got married just after unmarried visa app but before outcome of appeal and visa was issued, married passport issued after visa was issued. I have told her that she needs to get in touch with HO to get advice but she is scared that they send her back and ban her. they were told by ECO that as it is an unmarried partner visa they could get married after visa was issued but that it can only be done once in the UK and COA process has been done, then they could have switch visa while in the UK. They had asked, hypothetically, when the visa was issued, what the process would be if they got married before they arrived in the UK and they were told that they would have to apply for a new spousal visa. Is seeking professional assistance the best way to go??? They also have limited income and are trying to save for the ILR, but not sure what they must do now and my brother is very stubborn and hard headed and loses his temper easily, which will only make matters worse for my sister in law. I told them that their best route would be to approach HO and be totally honest about the situation and the sequence of events.
Regard
CAR

[mochyn]

The problem as I see it is that she was granted an unmarried partner visa which is now invalid as they are now married.She now needs to be issued a spousal visa which will be issued in South Africa.
Hopefully someone with more experience will offer better advice

[CAR01]

Thanks. That is what i thought, however, as her marriage date is 2 weeks prior to the issue date of the unmarried partner visa and her married name passport was issued 1 month after the visa in 2008, will this not potentially create a problem when she applies for a spousal visa, as it will then be obvious from the documentation that she was in the UK on an invalid visa for just under two years.

[BLK235]

Technically she entered on invalid visa and invalid passport. What view UKBA will take of this I don't know. It well could be there are some alleviating factors.

You would want help of reputable immigration advisor with relevant experience. I would perhaps approach immigration advisor that is very active on the boards.

[CAR01]

Hi. I thought I would let the advisors on my topic know that I have contacted the visa agent at First Contact Visas (SA) that did my UK Ancestry visa and his reply to my sister-in-laws problem is as follows :

With regards to your query, the difficulty lies in that the ECO was not informed. This essentially means that she entered the country under false pretenses. This poses a legal problem since pertinent information was withheld from the authorities. Her maiden name passport should have been handed in or made null and void.

Regardless of which option she chooses to follow, she will still be faced with the dilemma of being in the UK on an unmarried partner visa while she is married. Essentially this means that she is contravening the requirements of her visa. I would advise that she contact a solicitor immediately so as to avoid deportation. The UKBA do not take kindly to people entering the UK under false pretenses. I wish I could be of more assistance but this issue is a very sensitive one, especially given the UK’s strict rules around immigration.

I have relayed all the responses to my sister-in-law and await her decision on what she will do.

I would like to thank everyone for their comments and advice.

Kind regards
CAR