Fiance vs Spouse visa from Turkey

[Shuvie]

Hello all and might I first say what a great resource this site is!

My fiance and I have spent some time reading the threads here and the information on UKBA, but I still have a few points I would like clarification/advice on if possible please.

Our situation is: I am a UK national living in Wales and he is a Turkish national living in Turkey, we are both over 21. We met online about 18 months ago and have maintained a long-distance relationship since then. I am travelling to meet him in a few weeks and we want to apply for him to come to the UK and settle here with me and my 3 children. There is no doubt for either of us that we intend to marry and here is my first question: given that our relationship has been almost exclusively long-distance-would this affect the decision of either a fiance or spouse visa in a negative way? We can prove the relationship is genuine via emails we have sent and received and chats on Skype, I am just curious as to whether one visa generally has more chance than the other to be approved for people in our situation. We have a small concern about the fact that he would not be able to work for 6 months on the fiance visa, but if it seems this is our best chance of success then it's not a huge problem. We have also briefly looked into the Tier 2 option-he has a Chemistry degree and has recently worked as a freelance translator (Turkish>English), Programmer and Instructor (language/sciences/IT). However, the main reason we want to make this application is to be a proper couple, so Tier 2 seems less appropriate. (Unless anyone else knows otherwise?)

My second query is regarding benefits, more specifically my receipt of them. I work part time and claim Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit (no other benefits). Now, the rules as I understand them are that I will still be entitled to claim these in my name and for my children, but my partner and I would not be entitled to make a joint claim in both our names, nor would he be entitled to claim benefits in his own right. Have I got that bit right? Also, this part of the rules:

"you have adequate accommodation where you and your dependants can live exclusively and without needing public funds."

as sponsor, is the WTC and CTC part of my income included in the calculation of maintenance? If yes, there is a shortfall of about £7.00 pw after mortgage and Council tax are deducted between what is left and what is asked for. Are they likely to refuse based on such a small amount? There is adequate accommodation available for us all.

Also, if we applied and got the fiance visa and married in the UK after a short time period (a few months)-is he able to apply to switch his visa from fiance to spouse without having to go back to Turkey? (I have read so much I got confused over this point.)

As far as we can see we meet all the other requirements-he will need to arrange for the English language test, but that won't be a problem as his English is fluent.

Thanks for taking the time to read my post-I am happy to provide more detail where needed. Thanks in advance to anyone who can help with my queries.

[geriatrix]

Have you two met in person?

[Shuvie]

Hi sushdmehta, no we haven't met in person yet, my trip to Turkey in a few weeks will be the first time for us.

[STLewis]

Hi Shuvie,

Just so you know, whilst he is not able to claim any benefits/public funds once here on a spouse/fiance visa, you are required to submit a joint claim for tax credits. This is because whilst you alone are entitled to them, they have to take into account the fact he lives wiht you, and may earn a salary. You will not be given any extra tax credits as a result of him living with you, but you have to apply jointly, as to not advise them is a criminal offence. There is some good information regarding this in the Claiming Benefits section on a "sticky".

You need to be able to prove to the ECO that you can sponsor him financially, meaning that after your rent/mortgage, council tax and any loans, you need to have £105.95 left each week. This is the threshold that must be met. I do not know for sure whether they would refuse an application if you down by £7.00, but presumably the threshold is there for a reason.

If you are successful in a fiance visa then as you know he is unable to work, but he is able to switch to spouse visa from within the UK after the marriage. You may want to bear in mind the additional visa fee in doing this.

It is also a condition that your relationship is genuine and subsisting, and that the parties have met. The ECO needs to be completely convinced that this is a genuine relationship and see evidence of the same It is slightly concerning that you have never met him, yet know you want to get married to him. I don't mean to sound judgmental whatsoever, but I want you to be aware that ECO's are very cautious in scenarios siimilar to this. It might be beneficial for you to visit him a few times before marriage, keep flight tickets etc, have photos, meet his family, etc. All of this is evidence which will help to satisfy the ECO of your relationship.

Hope this helps a little and I hope you have a great time in Turkey!

[Shuvie]

Hi STLewis and thanks for your reply.

Thanks for the clarification regarding tax credits, I realize I would have to update my claim as his living here would come under the "change in circumstances" regulations.

With regards to the sponsorship does WTC and CTC count as part of my income or are my wages the only thing considered? Thanks for the info regarding the threshold, I am sure family members would be happy to make up the shortfall in that case.

Thanks for the info with regards to switching, yes we are aware there would be 2 fees to pay but this is preferable to having a possible spouse visa refused if I was to marry him when I visit Turkey.

I completely understand what you are saying about your concerns and thanks for pointing out how it looks to the ECO. I believe that the volume and content of our emails is proof that we are genuine, but we just don't have evidence of visits, photos etc as we are yet to meet-mainly down to my work/family commitments. It's not practical/possible for us to arrange lots of visits before applying either, so I guess our best chance is to apply for the fiance visa and marry in the UK?

Thanks for your kind wishes.

[Casa]

Your calculation also needs to allow for £62.33 weekly for each child in addition to the £105.95 for a couple. If you intend to submit an application showing 3rd party financial support, you will need to include a letter from the sponsor with bank statements showing they have sufficient finances to do this.
I'm afraid I agree that one visit may well not be sufficient. ECO's will generally accept this due to religious reasons, but an internet relationship with only one meeting will be considered as a weak application.
With this lack of personal time spent together, a fiance visa may be even more difficult to obtain.

[STLewis]

Casa's right - I never even thought about the additional funds required regarding your children, so you will need £292.94 available after mortgage council tax and loans, so based on what you've already advised, its looks as though you will need third party financial support for your application.

I personally believe that a fiance visa is more difficult to obtain....but thats just my opinion based on me talking with others who have applied previously.

Bear in mind that the application form does specifically ask "How did you meet?" and "When did you last see each other", and whilst thousands of people use the internet to maintain contact after having met initially in person, ECO's are not big fans of people "meeting online initially". Meeting up a few times, I feel, will only strengthen your application.

Good Luck!

[Shuvie]

Thanks for both replies folks.

I guess I should clarify that I had taken the children into account when making the calculation, so the shortfall that would need 3rd party support would still be £7.00.

I guess I can understand the skepticism on the ECO's part, our relationship is far from conventional but still genuine. I would just ask for further clarification if I may (as we all know what happens to those who assume): you have both said that you believe a fiance visa may be "more difficult to obtain"-do you mean more difficult than a spouse visa in our case? Or something different?

[STLewis]

yes, i think generally a fiance visa may be more difficult than spouse visa, but that is entirely my personal opinion from posts Ive read and the research i did myself when we applied.

Keep us posted!

[SoHopeful]

Hi there,

I met my spouse online in 2009, 2.5 years and one marriage later we still have yet to apply because there are things i would like to iron out before applying. I have been to stay with my spouse five times over the course of 2 years. As mentioned before fiance visas appear to be harder to obtain and that is why after 18months we made the decision to go for the spouse visa rather than fiance. I would really suggest that you try to visit your partner atleast 2-3 times before applying to strengthen your application.

With regards to your income, i will be using similar sources as mine and to be on the safe side, i am ensuring i can met the income requirement for us as a couple with my salary. The rest can be to show i can support my child. So basically im saying with child benefit and CTC that will automatically be enough for your children, so just make sure your wages and WTC can cover the amount you will need as a couple after the mandatory expenses.

I would really advise you to hold tight and work on strengthening your situation before applying.

Best of luck x