Relationship and Visa

[individual]

Hi there,
Can anyone out there please give me some info regarding this:
I have been corresponding with my bf for about 2 years. I'm a Malaysian and he is English (staying in London). We have met before and are very serious about each other. Initially, I was planning to obtain a job (thus a WP) so that I can work in UK before deciding on a marriage. However, after trying in vain without any sponsorship from any companies, we both decide that marriage will be more practical. For us to register a marriage, how does it work? What are the documents needed? And how do we prove our relationship since we have been on a long distance all these while? Will the immigration question this (probably suspect that this is a fake relationship or something)? My bf is an average income earner and myself a graduate (working for several years).
I will deeply appreciate any advice from you guys.
Thanks!

[ppron747]

I'm sure others will chime in with more "tailored" advice, but you might like to look at the UKVisas website in the meantime.

[John]

For us to register a marriage, how does it work? What are the documents needed?

Where do the two of you plan to get married? In Malaysia? In the UK? Or where?

And how do we prove our relationship since we have been on a long distance all these while?

OK, so the two of you have known of each other for two years. How many times have you met? How much time have you spent together?

[individual]

Where do the two of you plan to get married? In Malaysia? In the UK? Or where?

- In UK

OK, so the two of you have known of each other for two years. How many times have you met? How much time have you spent together?

- Twice. Each time for one month.

In any case, will the time spent together be an issue for us? Do we need to provide the phone bills, emails and letters during the course of our correspondence?

Deeply appreciate your input!

Thanks you!

[John]

OK, now we have established where the two of you plan to get married, what you need to apply for is a fiancée visa. You will do that at the British High Commission in Kuala Lumpur. If you click here you will link to the visa section of their website. You will see, for example, the application fee for a fiancée visa is 1872 ringgit.

The VAF2 form is the one to use and your application needs to be supported by information showing that :-

• your fiancé is a British Citizen or otherwise settled in the UK
• financial test ... financial evidence to show that you will not need to claim certain Public Funds
• accommodation test ... that the accommodation you will occupy is "suitable" and certainly not overcrowded
• "evidence of contact" ... not just to show that the two of you have met but also that the relationship is real. That is, prove it is a real relationship rather than a "marriage of convenience" (or would be after the marriage).

Reading the INF4 guidance will be useful to you.

Once you have your fiancée visa in your Malaysian passport you are free to move to the UK. After arrival the two of you will need to go along to the Register Office and give Notice of Intention to Marry. After that notice is posted publicly for 15 days a document confirming entitlement to marry will be issued, and once you have that then the marriage can happen. Clearly you will want to plan the marriage during the validity of the six-month fiancée visa.

After the marriage has happened then you will need to convert the fiancée visa into a spouse visa ... in the UK.

Do appreciate that a fiancée visa does not entitle you to work in the UK ... but a spouse visa will let you work.

[individual]

Thank you very much for your information, John!

Ok, so I will need to provide more information to prove myself.

Financial Test: What are the documents required? Any properties I own (car, fixed deposit) in Malaysia can be used or must they be liquid assets like cash in bank?
Accommodation Test: What if it is a rented premises?
Evidence of Contact: What would you suggest - all personal correspondence be declared?

What is the time frame for conversion of a fiancee visa into a spouse visa?

Please do enlighten me.

Thank you once again. Your answers have been most helpful )

[Chedz]

Is your boyfriend/fiance going to act as your sponsor for your settlement application? If yes, then "he" has to provide the documentation showing evidence that he can support you prior to your marriage. this should include bank statements, wage slips, credit card statements and the like. John (moderator) also gave me sound advice to produce a monthly expenditure statement showing your fiance's income against his regular monthly outgoings. This will then show the funds he has available to support himself and you prior to your marriage.

Rented accommodation is no problem. Just get a letter from the rental agency stating that, in their professional opinion, the premises are suitable for the two of you to live together in, and are not over crowded.

Evidence of relationship - include all emails (but be careful about including emails where the two of you have discussed the Visa). I included all itemised telephone and SMS mobile bills for the last 6 months. You should also include photo copies of his passport and the stamps showing times you have been together. You will be asked a number of questions at your application interview by the ECO in order for them to be convinced of the depth of your relationship. So if you don't know his favourite food, music, hobbies then make sure you find out before the interview

[individual]

Hi Chedz,

Thank you very much for the details. It is really great to be aware of all these. At least, we know what are relevant and what are not. We will try to work things out and hopefully the interview will be smooth-sailing.

By the way, I am curious about the employment market in UK. Will it be difficult for me to get a job since my skills are not on the shortage list?

Thanks!!!

[Chedz]

Firstly, you are very welcome.

As for work, you cannot work until after you are married. After that the employment market in the UK is pretty good, but then it depends what you want/can (to) do. Unemployment is relatively low here. I have never been unemployed in 22 years of working and I have no special skills.

Anyway, best of luck and I hope everything goes smoothly for you.

Chedz

[John]

As for work, you cannot work until after you are married.

Indeed you cannot work in the UK on a fiancée visa. You not only need to get married but also convert, in the UK, that fiancée visa into a spouse visa before you can work.

What sort of work do you do? What part of the UK will you be living in?

[individual]

Hi John,

Yes, I am aware of that

Anyway, I am currently working in Malaysia in Program Management in the manufacturing sector. So my job specialisation is mainly customer service/projectmanagement/marketing/business.

If everything goes well, then I will be living in London...

[John]

Given your clear English language skills, and your job description, I would not expect you to have a big problem getting a job in the UK.

And especially in London .... big city .... lots of potential employers.

[individual]

Thank you John.

Prior to making any rash decisions, we both agreed that I will try applying to some jobs in big companies in UK for another 6 months. If there is no positive response, then I will visit UK for about 3 months as a familiarisation visit, after which we will take the plunge and get engaged!

This will be a drastic change for myself. Very nervous but we both feel that all these will be worth the while.

Do wish me luck!

p/s: I cannot tell you guys out there how much I appreciate the advice and comments that you all have provided. This forum has indeed been very helpful and supportive!