Wanting to Stay (and keep working)

[seek]

Having met each other in 2004 while traveling, I have now moved over to the UK to be with my boyfriend who is a British Citizen. I am here from Canada on a 2 year Working Holidaymaker visa and plan on staying indefinitely. Applying for British Citizenship is the next step, which brings me to my questions:

How far in advance can I apply? I know that in order for our relationship to be classified as common law thus making me eligible for application, we need to be living together for at least 2 years. This will be exactly the day that my current visa expires (June 19th, 2007). Will I be expected to leave and wait for the processing in Canada? I've heard that it can be quite time consuming.

Also, one of the stipulations of my visa, which unfortunately came into effect just prior to my departure, is that I can only work for one of the 2 years. My occupation doesn't enable me to apply for Work Permit but I would really love to work the entire time. I'm sure it's probably a long shot but does the fact that I plan on applying for indefinite stay give me any leverage with this issue? I'm at a loss where to start.

Thank you very much for your time. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

[ppron747]

Having met each other in 2004 while traveling, I have now moved over to the UK to be with my boyfriend who is a British Citizen. I am here from Canada on a 2 year Working Holidaymaker visa and plan on staying indefinitely. Applying for British Citizenship is the next step, which brings me to my questions:

How far in advance can I apply? I know that in order for our relationship to be classified as common law thus making me eligible for application, we need to be living together for at least 2 years. This will be exactly the day that my current visa expires (June 19th, 2007). Will I be expected to leave and wait for the processing in Canada? I've heard that it can be quite time consuming.

Also, one of the stipulations of my visa, which unfortunately came into effect just prior to my departure, is that I can only work for one of the 2 years. My occupation doesn't enable me to apply for Work Permit but I would really love to work the entire time. I'm sure it's probably a long shot but does the fact that I plan on applying for indefinite stay give me any leverage with this issue? I'm at a loss where to start.

Thank you very much for your time. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Actually, your next step isn't to naturalise as a British citizen, I'm afraid - it is to achieve indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in the UK - ie to become a permanent resident.

For naturalisation, if you're married to a British citizen (or - in same-sex relationships - in a civil partnership with one), you need to reside in the UK for three years, and to have ILR on the the day you apply for naturalisation.

If you are not married to a BC (or in a civil partnership) the residence requirement is five years, and you need to have had ILR for one year.

"Common law" relationships may be recognised in some fields - eg immigration into the UK - but nationality law takes no account of them - you're either married (or in a civil partnership), or you're single.

Others may wish to comment, but I don't think it is possible to switch from WHM within the UK - you'll need to return to Canada and apply there.

I hope you won't mind my saying that I don't think the idea of the WHM scheme is that you work for 12 months continuously. It is supposed to be a total of up to 12 months, spread across 24.... That's why it is called what it is

[seek]

Thank you very much for your quick reply.

Looks like we're at the start of a long road. This is such unfamiliar territory for the both of us and it's hard to know where to start. I have been going through websites and making phone calls but can't seem to get out of the starting blocks.

When my visa is up in June 2007 and I have to return home, what steps do I take to help me return as soon as possible? I've been looking up applying for ILR but somehow I don't think that what I've been reading applies to me just yet. Is this what I'd be applying for once I've returned the second time? Is there something I need to achieve first? I've read something about entry clearance. Is this what I'll be applying for when I return home? I've attached the link to what I've read: http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/ind/en ... ation.html

For naturalisation, if you're married to a British citizen (or - in same-sex relationships - in a civil partnership with one), you need to reside in the UK for three years, and to have ILR on the the day you apply for naturalisation.

If you are not married to a BC (or in a civil partnership) the residence requirement is five years, and you need to have had ILR for one year.

We plan on staying together but have no plans for marriage just yet. Any further advice can be based on the assumption that we'll be taking the longer, single status route. That being said, will the two years that I will have been here count towards that total five years of residency requirement? Or does the nature of my WHM visa not allow that time to be recognized as time spent living here?

I'm so unsure of what to do next. There's still 14 months left on my visa but is there anything that I can be doing to get a head start on this obstacle course? I appreciate your responses very very much.

Thank you.

[ppron747]

My understanding is that, when the times comes for you to apply for a settlement visa, you will need to show pretty good evidence that you have been living together in a relationship akin to marriage (their words, not mine!) for two years. So in answer to your question about what to do next, start assembling the evidence, and keeping it carefully...

You might find this page on the UKVisas website helpful

As I understand it, your time on WHM won't count towards your getting ILR - the two year clock on that will start when you return to UK on your settlement visa. But it will count towards your residence requirement for naturalisation as a British citizen. (Five years if you're still unmarried, three if you cave in and say yes...)

HTH

[seek]

Again, I thank you for your quick and useful advice. It is a thing of beauty

I can't help but try to look for other possibilities; dig for other any other options out of this situation. I know it may be pointless, but at least I can follow the set course a little more easily knowing I've scanned all directions.

Which brings me to my next question for you. Come the end of my 12 working months, there will be 9 months left on my WHM visa (I didn't begin working until approximately 3 months after my arrival). Would it be possible for me to go home at this point and apply for a settlement visa? And if so, would I have to remain in Canada during the waiting period for the response or could I return to the UK for the duration of this current visa? I know I'll have to send in my passport for it.

Also, could you tell me if part time work is equivalent to full time work towards that total 12 working months of my WHM? Or is it based on a standard 40 hour week? I ask because I was part time for the initial 2 months once I began working.

That's all for now. Many thanks.

[lynn132]

You seem a little confused on how this all works, so please do not take offense if I try to clarify for you. You will need to get a visa on your own unless you get married. Your options are workpermit, HSMP, student, SEGS, Fresh Talent etc. See the complete variety of schemes on the HO website. With any of these, you get entry clearance in your home country to come back to the UK (however, there are some categories you can switch into while on WHM, check website for the list, as it changes from time to time). After the initial period of leave is up (one year or more, depending on visa) you then apply for further leave to remain. After another period of FLR, you become eligible after a total of five years for indefinite leave to remain (i.e. settlement). The only faster route to settlement is marriage/partnership, in which you get an initial two years and can apply for ILR/settlement after two years.

Good luck!

[ppron747]

Hello Seek....

I'm hoping someone else will chime in at this point, because it's getting a bit specific for my talents! BUT before they do, I'll venture the opinion that you might have lost sight of the fact that, if you're not married, you need to have been in a relationship "akin to marriage" in order to come as an unmarried partner. I thought the clock started on that when you arrived here on your WHM visa,didn't it? So I can't see that there's anything you can do at the 15-month point...

On your final question, (and this is IMO only) I suspect the answer will be that if you're working, you're working, and that in this context that fact that some of it might have been part-time and some full-time won't make a difference. You must not work that 366th day, if you want to remain "legal" - and it is crucial to to wish to live here that you remain "legal" at all times.

[sophiedb]

hi seek, and welcome to the wonderful world of immigration shenanigans

I'm in the same boat as you, just a little further along the line, but as everyone else has said there is a lot more to it than simply going from a WHV to citizenship.

My other half came to the UK on a WHV in 1999 and we got together in 2000. In 2001 his visa ran out, but obviously we didn't have proof of 2 years cohabitation so I got a 1 year WHV for Australia. In the end we stayed there for 3 years (I got an unmarried partner visa), then got hitched in 2004 and came back to Blighty with a 2 year settlement visa for him. We're now about to apply for indefinite leave to remain, and a year after that he should be able to take his Britishness test and become naturalised (his initial 2 years on the WHV do not count towards the 3 years IND require).

The moral of the story is that there's no way round the 2 year cohabitation rule, and even when you've got that the passport is at least 3 years away. We chose to do it by leaving the UK *lol* but I wasn't embroiled in a career and had been planning to travel in any case.

How you achieve those 2 years in entirely up to you as a couple, but you do have the option of staying in the UK on that WHV for another year - just remember that they'd pick your finances apart for even a sniff of cash-in-hand employment. I don't think they'll waive the 12 months work limit for part-time work either - the idea of a WHV is that you can top up your funds during an extended holiday, with the clear implication that you're meant to be travelling around Europe rather than home to work each day, however many hours you work.

I hope some of that helps, even if it is a labyrinth!

Soph

[seek]

Paul, Lynn & Sophie: thank you for your time and helpful information. It was especially nice, Sophie, to hear from someone going through the same thing. Good to know there is a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel.

I think you've given me a good idea of where to begin the lengthy route to Naturalisation. Can I just get this clear first? *ahem* (clearing throat and deep breath in...)

First, it's back to Canada to apply for a Settlement Visa. I then wait for approval and eventually make my return to the UK. After 2 years of living with my partner (the minimum time required to qualify as an Unmarried Partner and gathering proof all the while - thanks for that helpful tip) I can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain. After another years or so, depending on my visa, I then apply for Further Leave to Remain. Once I've achieved the 5 years residency requirement (given that I don't cave in and say yes, in which case is only 3), having ILR for at least one of those years, I can then apply for Naturalisation.

Are there any details that I've confused? There are so many terms with specific order that I've practically needed a flow chart to get them straight. I've got a feeling it's still a little muddled.

My most immediate worry is trying to find a way to keep working legally. If you remember, I'm here on a Workingholiday Maker and am only qualified to work for one of the 2 years that I'm here. Lynn had written

there are some categories you can switch into while on WHM, check website for the list, as it changes from time to time

but I'm having trouble finding this info.
Something to mention is that I don't seem to have any skills which are in demand here, according to what I have read on the website. I am neither doctor, nor dentist; a highly skilled worker of no kind, it pains me to type. Applying for a Work Permit seems out of the question. Is there a bit of reading that I'm missing? A few terms were in the response that I'm not familiar with (i.e. SEGS, Fresh Talent) so I must be missing something.

Paul had mentioned that he didn't think it was possible for me to switch to another visa while on UK soil. Can someone confirm if I'm able to switch into another visa but have to first return to Canada to do so?

I realize now that coming here on a WHM probably wasn't the best option. At the time it seemed appropriate. Damn you Retrospect for always turning up late...
Is there any way I can remain and keep working for the remaining year of my WHM before I head back home to apply for a Settlement Visa?

You seem a little confused on how this all works

...
No truer word has been uttered Lynn.

Thanks again for the guidance everyone.

[lynn132]

Fresh Talent is a Scottish program for foreign graduates of Scottish universities. Info on it is available on www.scotlandistheplace.com.

I know it seems very overwhelming, but where there is a will there is a way! Best of luck!

[seek]

Does any one know the answer to the following question?

If I were to head back to Canada halfway through my working holiday maker visa to apply for a settlement visa, is it possible for me to return to the UK while I wait for approval (fingers crossed)? I realize that my passport will need to be sent in with the application so I'm wondering if travel is still possible.

Thanks for the help.