British Citizen requires settlement visa

[amitchar]

Hello, I am Dr Amit Char. I am a British Citizen by birth and since 1990 i have been in India. I am now 29 years old and want to go back to the UK.
I have been married to an Indian citizen for the last 5 1/2 years. She is a college lecturer in English and is pursuing her phd. I have just finished my medical studies too. I want to return to the UK with my wife, that is i want her to return with me.
As i have just finished my studies and she also is doing hers, we dont have much finances to show the ECO.
My question is ; is it ok to show funds transferred from my mothers a/c to mine?
How much is required?
also my friend will be showing his accomadation as suitable for us, is that ok?
unfortuately there is no hope of me showing a job offer till i come to the uk
pls help as i dont want to be separated from my wife

[amitchar]

please answer my query as i am quite desparate

[John]

I suspect that no one has answered you because this topic has come up so many times on this Board. Please spend an hour or two looking through this section of the Board. The answers to your questions are clearly there.

[amitchar]

i could not find a post for a british citizen who wants to return with his indian citizen wife to the uk and has not been to the uk since as a small child and therefore does not have an idea as to how to get a settlement visa for her

[John]

Use the search facility ... restrict search to just this section of the Board ..... search on say .... Indian spouse ... eight pages of hits produced.

The information is bound to be there. A good start might be this topic. Not exactly your circumstance but a good start, and excellent as a checklist of evidence that will help the application.

There are other aspects you might want to check out. You are an Indian trained Doctor? How to get that qualification recognised in the UK, for example.

[amitchar]

thank you vwery much john. very useful link
do you think it is better i go to uk and get a job first or if i have sufficient funds can i apply fromhere for my wife?
i have to pass the plab exam first to get a medical job but am sure i can get a non med job immed

[John]

If you have sufficient funds to show that your wife will not need to claim certain Public Funds in the UK then your wife should apply while you are still in India.

However if there is some doubt about the financial aspect then you should come here first and get a job, then your wife should apply.

[amitchar]

thank you very much john, this forum is excellent and i wish there was a way to thank you more personally. may Jehovah God bless you and your collegues

[amitchar]

also is possible to apply for permanenent residency at the BHC as we have been married for 5.5 years, or do we have to apply for a settlement visa and then go to the uk and before it expires apply for ILR. also as i am abritish citizen can she apply for naturalisation after 3 years of being in the uk; ie 1 year after obtaining ILR and including 2 years spouse visa.

One more query....i have a hindu marriage certificate not a civil one, is that sufficient for spouse visa? in kenya bhc a post on this site--spatel107 said that he got a spouse visa but for permanent residency it had to be a civil certificate, is that so for chennai(madras) bhc

so should i get a civil marriage, according to the above post spatel did that and for perm resid they counted years of marriage from the day he got remarried.

so if we get civil marriage here in india and then get the spouse visa for my wife
and go to the UK when we apply for perm resid will she be rejected as we would then have been married for just 2 years from our civil marriage

also if the ind says spouse of british national can directly apply for perm residency if they have been married for at least 4 years why is the bhc remover perm resid applic form from site and an email from then said the only way was to fill form vaf 2 -spouse visa

[John]

also is possible to apply for permanenent residency at the BHC as we have been married for 5.5 years, or do we have to apply for a settlement visa and then go to the uk and before it expires apply for ILR.

Actually, in a sense, neither of those two alternatives. The application needs to be for a spouse visa but they should issue ILE .... indefinite leave to enter .... the variety of ILR that is issued outside the UK.

However not all British Missions around the world are up to speed on the ILE possibility, although it was introduced as long ago as 01.04.03. So it will do absolutely no harm submitting a covering letter with the application pointing out that you and your wife have lived together outside the UK for over 4 years, and accordingly the visa, when issued, can be ILE rather than a standard 2-year spouse visa.

also as i am abritish citizen can she apply for naturalisation after 3 years of being in the uk; ie 1 year after obtaining ILR and including 2 years spouse visa.

Yes the 3-year rule applies. If ILE issued abroad then there will be no need to apply for ILR in the UK in order to make the Naturalisation application after she has been in the UK for 3 years.

One more query....i have a Hindu marriage certificate not a civil one, is that sufficient for spouse visa?

This is actually quite technical but nevertheless the guiding principle is quite clear. Under the terms of the UK's Foreign Marriages Act 1892 the UK recognises as legally valid any marriage that is considered as a legal marriage in the country where the marriage ceremony took place.

So I don't know the answer to your question, but can ask a specific question back. In the country where the Hindu marriage took place, is the marriage considered to be a legal marriage? If the answer to that is "yes" then the UK recognises it as well, but if the answer is "no" then the UK does not recognise it.

Marriage laws around the world differ considerably. In the UK it is possible to get legally married either in a civil ceremony in a Register Office or other approved place, or alternatively in a Place of Public Worship registered as a place approved for marriages. In either case the same style of marriage certificate will be issued.

My wife and I married in Thailand where a totally different marriage law applies. There a religious ceremony ... of whatever religion, that is unimportant .... is not a legal marriage ... in the eyes of Thai law and accordingly the UK also, they decline to recognise a "mere" religious marriage ceremony as a legally valid marriage. In order to get legally married in Thailand the couple need to go along to an Amphur ... the Register Office ... and register their marriage. As that is recognised as a legal marriage in Thailand, it is also considered as a legal marriage in the eyes of UK law.

So Amitchar, all you need to do now is consider the marriage laws in the country where your Hindu marriage took place. Over to you.

[amitchar]

thank you so much john for all the info, i really appreciate it
once my prob is solved and i come to the uk i would like to contribute to this forum and help others with my unique experience