Questionable Source of Income in Support of Spouse Visa

[Harmonica]

My wife (who is Chinese and currently residing in China) is preparing to apply for a spouse visa to come to the UK. We are going to submit the application in June as we plan for her to come in September. I am certain that we meet all the criteria and can prove everything (we have had a relationship for four years and can prove that, we have accomodation here that is more than adequate and rent-free, she has never been turned down for any visa before etc) but I fear we may slip up on the question of income.

The problem is that I am currently a student (I graduate in a few weeks) and consequently have not been working. I have been supporting myself (and saving) through buying and selling on ebay, so of course cannot provide any wage slips. I can provide bank statements showing how much money goes in and out of my account (and it's quite a lot) but the only evidence of where that money comes from would be print outs from ebay. Do people think this is likely to scupper our application? If so, is there a way round it? For example, would it be better to get a letter of support from my parents stating they would be willing to support us financially? (They would be more than happy to do this).

We both have places to study for Masters degrees in September (at UK universities) and I did wonder if it might be better to apply for a student visa to start with but worry about the no-switching rule.

Any advice anyone has on this would be gratefully received.

[Wanderer]

You CAN switch in-country from a student visa to spouse visa.

[OL7MAX]

As you may know HMRC is keen on investigating ebay traders. If you're a regular trader then it may be only a matter of time before they get around to investigating you - unless you currently declare ebay income and submit self assessments. If you do then you have the documentation. If you don't then I wouldn't suggest you provide bank statements showing income from ebay. There is no evidence that the HO shares info with HMRC but it's becoming increasingly likely.

There's another reason not to show bank statements. It's easy to shift money in and out of accounts. Large volumes of money movement do not necessarily prove income. You could be disclosing a lot of confidential information without any discernible gain.

If it's a matter of only a few weeks I would suggest you graduate and get a letter of employment. Almost any job should do for the moment. Or go down the student route if it's easy to switch.

[Harmonica]

Thanks for the replies.

I haven't been declaring my income from ebay and am looking into that now. I can provide evidence of the amount spent and the amount items were sold for, and virtually all my money goes through paypal so I can get statements from there showing where the money comes from.

Anyway, your idea about the job made me think of something. I can obtain a job offer and contract of employment from a company here - the only thing is, it would be my father's company. Does that look too suspicious?

Also, a friend who has been going through this process told me that providing letters offering financial support (from my parents for example) is not a good idea as it demonstrates that we don't consider ourselves capable of providing for ourselves. Would you agree or disagree with that?

[OL7MAX]

If it's an LTD company and the letter of employment is signed by someone with a different surname does the HO check ownership of the company to detect any connections? I believe not.

That said, do actually do the job for a bit. Leave your fingerprints: sign for deliveries, get a business credit card and make some small company purchases, use a company email address in your name to exchange emails with colleagues ... otherwise it's fraud.