from student visa to spouse visa but insufficiant proof of

[elv15]

Nancy i was in a similar case to your husband and i have just been granted the spouse visa in country, my case was worse because i only studied for 10 months in 2005 and i have been working full time ever since. i had a 6 year student visa which was due to expire in october just before we applied
My story should give you hope that can do it. Click Link below for my full story.

http://www.immigrationboards.com/viewto ... 057#488057

[nancy2011]

Wowsers!
That is amazing. I really can't believe that. My hubby was not working and you were for all that time? It goes to show that its all down to the officers discretion.

Our solicitor was very suprised when we told him we were refused. We had seen him for a consulation beforehand and he had said we didn't need his services as it would be straight foward. When we came back to him he was very suprised and said that the grounds they refused him on was bullshit I. E it was just the breach of his student visa.

We are due in court in 2 weeks. Your story does give me hope. Thank you so much for sharing your experience. I just want it over and done with now. Its been an emotional and expensive year. We r praying it goes in our favour.

Will keep you posted as soon as I find out.

[elv15]

Yes i think it goes down to the discetion of the case worker, we initialy thought we would be refused then fight at apeal, or maybe we would get discretionary leave to remain, but i was shocked when i was granted spouse visa. We told them the whole truth about me not studying and working, then he requested letter from my employer, proof of paying tax ie p60 for 2 years, 12 months payslips, 6 months bank statements etc, i didn't even stop working during my application. Do you have any kids? If you can afford then i suggest you hire a good immigration solicitor to represent you at appeal, the one i used is known to win such cases at appeal. Stay strong and keep praying. Im surprised your solicitor said it was straight foward because there are many pple here and on the other forum who have been refused for breach of student visa, its in the rules that you must have not breached the conditions of your visa, before i used my solicitor a i had consulted about 3 (with respect) asian immigration specialists who told me my case was straight foward and i should NOT mention anything about work and not studying (and thats deception if caught), but with the research i had done i knew very well that it wznt straight foward coz many pple have been refused because of that.
Goodluck at your apeal.

[nancy2011]

I think he said it was straight foward as he has done a few cases similar and they went the same wayyours did.

We were also very honest throughout our application. My husband completed his biometrics and english test. Its just so annoying coz I have had to pay for everything and now these extra solicitor costs.

I do have a child but from a previous rlationship. Does this matter? Our solicitor says it will support as they have said I should go back with him to apply. My son is 6 and in school and I work. Its rediculous how they can suggest I drop my life to go and make an application a million miles away only to provide the same information and pay all over again.
By Gods grace we will win the appeal and put this all behind us. Our solicitor is representing us in court. Fingers crossed.

[elv15]

Goodluck, i really hope you win, keep praying coz God is great.

[nancy2011]

morning,

wanted to update you on whats happened any just in case there is anyone else in my shoes.

we had our hearing yesterday. we had a fantastic barrister who actually sits a an immigration judge elsewhere. the judge deciding our case suggested that if he was in agreement of our argument he would send our application back to the home office to be reassessed.

we waited ages, we went over the questions that would be asked, the home office lawyer was absent so it was even a better, what we all would have said was a done deal.

i was asked to wait outside whilst my husband give his statement. when i went in i was asked about my buisness. very shocked as i had not disclosed any information about my buiness beacsue it is sooooo minute its not worth mentioning. ithas only been registered since last april (and i have yet to reregister) and i have made no money whatsover.

turns out the judge had asked my husband what he has been doing since he left school and instead of him to tell the truth and say hes been at home supporting me with my son, hes gone and said hes been supporting me with my business doing trade fairs with me and manageing my account

the irony is i dont have an account to manage and ive only done 1 trade fair! i was sooo mad. he basically panicked and thought that saying that would make him sound useful, instead its potentially worked against him.

innitailly the judge was in agreement that he had not breached his visa as the conditions were not to work more than 40 hrs or to claim benefits. the judge stated that being involved in a business is work. our barister who had not heard anything about this untill that very moment tried to think on her feet and say that helping me set up equipment is not work as he is not paid for it but the judge said its new evidence to him and he will have to consider it.

so now even though the home office had made the wrong decision based on the information they had, my husband has provided new and false information which will be considered giving the home office new and sufficient grounds to refuse him again.

our barrister and solicitor were sooooo mad at him. they have said that the outcome could be that the judge still sends it back to the home office for a reassesment but with notes to suggest new evidence of business. in which case they have new grounds for refusal and its an appeal all over again or they give no rights to appeal and he has to apply from his home country.
or that the judge refuses it himself and tells him to apply from his home country
or that the judge sends it back for reassessment over looking the new (but false) evidence that was given
or that the judge feels that its long winded, accepts that helping me is not technically work and grants him his 2 year spouses visa

but for the next couple of weeks we just dont know.

im so mad it him.

will update you on the outcome.

does anyone know if it is possible for him to apply back home without me? i cant leave my son, my job. my life is here. we tried to argue that case that if i was to return with him it would be an interuption to my life here. the judge did say that as a british national born here this is my home so i would not be returning, my barister clarified and said ok escort or acompany him.

i dunno if that ment he felt for me. maybe he'll see b y my occupation that im an honest and well credited citizen and he'll let his human side decided the outcome.

fingers crossed and bibles open. we're gonna need all the prayers you can offer

[ElenaW]

Hey Nancy, so sorry about what happened.

Just to answer your question, you don't need to go back with him if he has to apply from his home country. He can go on his own.

[Greenie]

innitailly the judge was in agreement that he had not breached his visa as the conditions were not to work more than 40 hrs or to claim benefits.

Students can usually only work a maximum of 10 or 20 hours a week during term time. I don't know where the judge got the 40 hours a week from.

[nancy2011]

Thanks. So am I. Still gutted but a lot better than I was yesterday lol. Do you kw how long we should expect to hear the determination? I heard it was 2 weeks but I'm not sure. I hope the judge allows the appeal not not dismiss it over this 'new' evidence. Its my husbands bday 2mw and we can't even celebrate (
Even if the judge allows the appeal and sends it back the ho can still appeal to the upper tribunal if they are told about his alleged support in my buisness. Can I tell them that he's not and that his words were taken out of context? I have all the documents to proove that it has only been registered since 2010 in my name only and that I have not done anything since the 1 trade show in december 2010. My husband is such a doughnut ( I'm in strong belief that he will win overall but its the potential headache and money spent that worries me.

[Greenie]

if the appeal is allowed then the UKBA can apply and be granted permission to appeal to the upper tribunal if there is a material error of law in the determination.

[nancy2011]

Yes I know. I have thought of all the worst case scenarios and that to be honest is the most likely outcome if thee judge includes this new material. I'm hoping he will not but I iamgine he will. If the uk border to appeal to the upper courts then our solicitor will include true evidence to suggest that this evidence was over exaggerated and that he is not in fact involved in my business. Lol it sounds like I have millions but more like I lost millions.
Its a small clothing label which is not even up and running. I did the clothes show in december last year and that was it. My husband made it out like it was this big deal coz he wanted to sound like he was really responsible n useful. What he shoulda was the truth that he's been at home helpn me with my son.
Anyway. We just have to wait now. The question is how long does the judge take to get bk to us with a decision?

[Greenie]

usually within 4 weeks.

[elv15]

Your hubby made a mistake, always tell home office the truth, i hope the judge decides in your favour but i would suggest you have a plan B in place. In your case i think if refused this time then its gona be harder to get it incountry. You might have to send him to apply from Nigeria, your solicitor can comply all the relevent documents for you and if everything is in order im sure he will get a visa from there. If refused by judge then to keep appealing is going to be costing you a lot and will cost you time. I wish you all the best.

[nancy2011]

Trust me I know. Lol I'm pretty sure he knows too. So u reckon the judge can refuse himself witout even giving the application back to the HO? Would it be better then to appeal to an upper tribunal on the grounds that his so called involvement with my business was exaggerated. I have the documents to prove this as I have not even renewed my buusiness registration. I'm thinkn in terms of costs in solicitors fees will surely be cheaper than a flight to nigeria, costs of applying and a flight back to the UK. Also nigeria have a horrible habit of delaying applications for the fun of it. The time apart is unpredictable.

I guess we can just wait and pray now. Hopefully the judge will rule in our favour and case closed. If not we will try a higher tribunal. Returning to Nigeria is like the very last result.

Let the coutdown begin!

[nancy2011]

Afternoon. Just wanted to update you on the latest. Today we recieved a call from our solicitor with good news. He said the judge has approved our appeal and asked for the HO to reconsider their decision. He did point out that the judge had mentioned my husbands 'involvement' in my business but that this was good news overall. The HO now have 5 days to put in an appeal. We're praying they dont.
Will keep you updated but for now its good news. )

[elv15]

woow thats good news, im praying for you, as always keep us updated.

[nancy2011]

Thank u. We are estactic. It hasnt yet sunk in coz im @ work n just trying to get on with things but the thought that this nightmare is potentially over and that we can start living a normal life and enjoy being married is just great. It has been so hard not beinG able to plan anything and living on 1 income. All your prayers help so pls remember us in them.
I will definately keep you posted. Fingers crossed by the end of the week we'll know that they havent asked for a appeal.

[Greenie]

Afternoon. Just wanted to update you on the latest. Today we recieved a call from our solicitor with good news. He said the judge has approved our appeal and asked for the HO to reconsider their decision. He did point out that the judge had mentioned my husbands 'involvement' in my business but that this was good news overall. The HO now have 5 days to put in an appeal. We're praying they dont.
Will keep you updated but for now its good news. )

i don't understand what you mean - that the judge has allowed the appeal and asked the HO to reconsider their decision.

On what grounds was the appeal allowed? if the appeal was allowed under the immigration rules, i.e. the judge found that your spouse meets the requirements of the rules for leave to remain as the spouse of a settled person then it is not that the HO is then asked to 'reconsider their decision'. If the appeal is allowed on the immigration rules, and UKBA do not challenge the decision, then they have to implement it and grant your partner leave to remain.

Was the appeal allowed on other grounds - for example, that the decision was not in accordance with the law - and it has been referred to the UKBA to make another decision?

[nancy2011]

Well to be honest i didnt think it mattered too much so far as the appeal was allowed! The judge said 'there is nothing in the evidence to indicate why that application should be refused and it is significant to respondant did not follow her own instructions•••' He also goes on to say that the appeal is allowed and the matter remitted to the secretary of state to consider the application before her. Basically the HO had very weak grounds for refusal talking about not submitting information on finances and accomodation. The juge clearly states that i provided substantial information of both. After reading his decision i almost feel like the refusal was simply for targets. We have to work in a similar way. Only thing is if u have no grounds it comes bk to you.
I hope this is the end of it.

[Greenie]

Well to be honest i didnt think it mattered too much so far as the appeal was allowed! The judge said 'there is nothing in the evidence to indicate why that application should be refused and it is significant to respondant did not follow her own instructions•••' He also goes on to say that the appeal is allowed and the matter remitted to the secretary of state to consider the application before her. Basically the HO had very weak grounds for refusal talking about not submitting information on finances and accomodation. The juge clearly states that i provided substantial information of both. After reading his decision i almost feel like the refusal was simply for targets. We have to work in a similar way. Only thing is if u have no grounds it comes bk to you.
I hope this is the end of it.

this may well be the end of it, but it does make a difference what grounds the appeal was allowed on.

If the appeal had been allowed on the grounds that the decision was not in accordance with the immigration rules then unless the UKBA successfully appealed the decsion they would have to grant your husband his leave to remain.

As it has been allowed on the grounds that it is not in accordance with the law, this means the UKBA could simply remake the same decision (i.e. refuse it) but make sure they follow the correct procedure this time. From what you have said, it sounds like the judge has effectively said that you do meet the rules, which means UKBA may find it hard to refuse it again.

[nancy2011]

Yes. The ukba rufused on the grounds that he did not meet the criteria or something but he had 8 months remaining on his visa before certificate of approval was granted. That was their entire argument. They said that he breached the conditions of his visa but the judge found that he did not as the conditions were not to claim benefits and neither to work over 20 hrs which he did not. We provided all of this evidence and the judge clearly states that they were wrong in their decision to refuse. Thats why our solicitor said it was good news as in it was rufused on grounds that they have little argument to appeal against. I do hope so because it has all just been a nightmare. I guess we just have to wait and see and keep praying. But from the sounds of it the judge felt the refusal was BS.

[vinny]

Great news!

[nancy2011]

Hello all. Sorry I have been quiet things have been quiet here up untill now. We were informed by our solicitor that the home office have requested my husbands passport 2 recent photographs as well as documents to prove we are still living together eg letters and stuff as well as wedding photographs.

Does anyone know what this means? They have given us 28 days to respond. Our solicitor has sent it all today.

I really hope this is the last of it and they issue his visa.

Has anyone read the new proposal for changes to family migrants? Things are going to be very different from next april if it gets approved.

[vinny]

They are probably just checking that your circumstances haven't changed.

[nancy2011]

today y hubby went to collect his documents from the solicitor and returned with a copy of this letter:

dear sirs, i am returning the enclosed documens which your client provided in support of their application. your clients biometric residence permit will be sent to you under seperate cover. if you have not already recieved it they should reach you shortly. you should recive your clients permit within 7 working days.....

the biometric residene permit is a residence permit which holds your clients biographic and biometric information and shows their immigration status and entitlements while they remain in the united kingdom.


im over the moon. its no in our hands yet but the 7th working day is this thursday. im sure you can appreiate the cartwheels.

thanks to all who rmained positive with me. just goes to show their grounds or refusal were innitially wrong as he actually completed the biometrics in early march!!! several months and hundreds of pounds later, we are finlly at the end of what has been a horriic rollercoaster.