I am happy to share the news that my dear beautiful wife had her spouse visa approved today, after an interview at the British High Commission in Islamabad.
The following are the details of our application. I will include as much detail as possible, because I know that I had many many questions when I came to this (wonderful!) site and I was desperate for every little piece of information I could glean.
We got married in the first week of January 2007 and applied on the 12th of that month.
Whilst I had been working for my employer for two years, this was mostly in America. In January I relocated back to England, transferred my job (same company, different location) and got married. As such, I did not include any bank statements or pay checks in the original application as I didn't think American documents would be of any use.
Documents we submitted with the original application;
1) Certified copy of marriage certificate.
2) Engagement and Walima photos.
3) Walima invitation.
4) Original letter from my employer offering transfer of employment, starting in January 2007.
5) Original UK employment contract.
6) Certified copy of my British passport.
7) Passport of my beautiful wife.
8 ) Letter of sponsorship from me, stating my salary and my intention to relocate to England and settle down with my beautiful wife.
9) Original letter from my employer to High Commission, saying that they will transfer me to England.
10) VAF2 + Fee
On the 7th of March, my beautiful wife received an interview letter asking for 6 months of my bank statements (as well as the original marriage certificate). Unfortunately, I lost my bank statements during the move. Luckily I was in America for a quick visit when she got her interview letter, so I was able to get copies certified by my US bank manager.
The following is what my beautiful wife took to her interview in Islamabad today;
1) Original marriage certificate (in English).
2) More pictures from engagement, Nikah and Walima.
3) Bank certified copies of my statements from America, with original pay checks.
4) Mini-statements printed from my UK bank branch, with original pay checks.
5) Original US employment contract.
6) Original UK voter registration.
7) Original documentation from my moving company.
8 ) ALL of the original evidence that was returned with the interview letter.
My wife said that she was interviewed by a British lady who asked her which language she wanted it to be conducted in. My wife chose English, even though this was not her first language. I get the impression that this had some positive bearing on the way she was treated.
She said that the interviewing official was very pleasant and polite with her. Occasionally, they tried to pressure her with minor details and tell her that she had given a wrong answer (my wife could not remember how long I had worked in America, or what my new office address was). My wife was firm and tried to answer as best she can (even when she was being told she was wrong), and referred the interviewer to the supplied documentation. It turned out that my wife's answers were nearly right, so the interviewer gave her the benefit of the doubt.
Questions that were asked;
1) Are there any mistakes or inaccuracies in your application? (First question!!!)
2) How were you introduced?
3) When did you last speak with your husband?
4) Where does he work? How long has he been working there?
5) How old is your brother in law? What does he do?
6) Where will you live? How many people will live there?
7) When did you get married?
8 ) When did you last see your husband.
9) Where/when did you meet?
At the end, after conferring with a colleague, she told my beautiful wife that her application was approved. The interviewer was smiling and asking how she felt. She even said "Allah Hafiz" to my beautiful wife
My wife now has an approval letter from the High Commission. She has to take this to her local Gerry's FedEx office in Lahore, where she will be able to pick up her stamped passport in 72 hours time.
Other notes;
1) Apparently, they kept my bank statements, pay checks and certified passport copies. I don't know if I will ever get those back. Luckily, I scanned them before I posted them to Pakistan. I would suggest making copies of anything submitted to them.
2) The only way to get to the High Commission, is by a bus service from the Islamabad Convention Center, run by the Capital Police. There are numerous checkpoints along the way. I believe that only interviewees will be allowed to go. My wife arrived at the center one hour before her interview time. This seemed to be early enough.
3) The whole interview (from leaving the convention center, to her return) took about 3 hours.
4) Traveling by train to Islamabad is not always a good idea. My wife was supposed to arrive at 10PM last night. She arrived at 2AM today. She only got an hour or two of sleep before her interview. I hear it's far better to take a Daewoo bus instead.
5) I reminded my beautiful wife at every opportunity to be calm and as honest as possible during the interview. I told her that they might try to pressure her, but that this is just part of their job and it's not personal. I don't know if this was the reason my beautiful wife remained unflustered and was successful, but I would strongly recommend this advice to everyone who finds themselves in a similar situation.
6) If you are called for an interview you MUST take along all of the evidence which was submitted with the original application and returned with the interview letter.
I hope that all of the above, can be of some help to those of you who are hopefully waiting for a successful outcome.
I have found this site very helpful and informative and I would like to thank the Administrators here for their hard work, as well as the many people who were kind enough to answer my questions. I intend to stick around on this forum, in the hope that I can also assist in a similar manner, those who have yet to reach this point.
Regards,
MC