Appeal - can people travel?

[Slothface]

My wife and I have recently applied for a spouse visa, she is from the US. I think we are going to have the application rejected and so we are deciding in advance if we should appeal and my question is if we do appeal, can we appeal with her in the UK (on a tourist visa) and are people who are appealing able to travel or would she be stuck in the US for months on end until it was decided?

[Casa]

An appeal is likely to take 12 months or more to be heard.

Why do you believe the application will be refused?

If you have submitted insufficient documents you should be aware that any evidence that wasn't available to the ECO in the original application won't be considered at an appeal.

There is a slim to zero chance of a visitor visa being granted following a recent refusal of a spouse visa and when an appeal is pending.

Neither is it possible to appeal a refusal on an application submitted outside of the UK, while here as a visitor.

[Slothface]

Thanks for the info, that all seriously sucks. The reason I think it will be refused is because we received the email saying it is unable to be processed within their targets, 60 days, and it seems most people that receive that don't get their visa granted. Also, Immigration keep emailing us requesting documents that we already submitted and stating that there have been omissions for things that we know we submitted. The fact that they still have paper applications is outrageous because they can make anything up that they like. We also didn't submit any photos or skype records, only plane tickets, joint bank account info and a description of how we met and fell in love. Not sure that will be enough. I think we've decided to withdraw the application and have her just come for 6 months on a visitor visa until we can afford to reapply, rather than risk a refusal, do you know how we go about getting her passport back so she can come over, as can't hold out much longer?

[Casa]

The letter advising the application can't be processed within the published guidelines is fairly standard and isn't necessarily an indication of a refusal.

It might be preferable to hold fire until you get a decision as you should be aware that the settlement application (although withdrawn) would remain on record and may well affect entering as a visitor.

I'm aware that as a non-visa national there is no requirement to pre-apply for a visitor visa, but there would be a risk of being bumped by the IO at the point of entry.

[Slothface]

Goodness, I'm really regretting entering into this whole process now. The other issue is that she doesn't have anywhere to live over there and is staying with a friend, we lived together in Aus prior to coming over here as I'm a dual citizen. We were only anticipating this taking a few weeks on a priority application. Do you think if you get that email, it means it's likely to take a long time? Assume it means a lower level officer has assessed it and escalated it to a more senior officer, who prob has a back log?

[Casa]

The anticipated delay could be due to any number of things.

[Slothface]

Thank you, it's worth considering. If they say they can't process it within the 60 days, does that mean they definitely won't or it's unlikely they will? We paid for priority service but that doesn't seem to mean much to them.

[Casa]

Much may depend on the assessment of documents they've requested. At least they've given you the opportunity to address any issues, which isn't the case for many.

You say you've applied for a spouse visa but you haven't mentioned whether you're married or applying as unmarried partners.

[Slothface]

We are married and a same sex couple, but we applied as spouses not for the same sex couple (unmarried couple) visa. We were only asked to submit a copy of my passport, which is weird because that's not on the list of requested documents. They said we had omitted this but how can it be an omission if's it's not a usual requirement? they also said in the email that we had omitted the contents page, which is not true. A couple of weeks ago the accused us of omitting something else which was also included. It's all a bit weird and unnerving.

[CR001]

It is mandatory to submit a copy of the sponsoring spouse's passport.

[Casa]

By the way, you're confusing 'unmarried partners' with civil (same sex) partners.

[Slothface]

Yes, either way though we applied as spouses so same sex category shouldn't be relevant. Do you know which document from immigration specifies requiring spouses passport copy? In any case I sent it to them so hopefully they won't penalise us for its omission. If they only asked for that, is that an indication that they don't need anything else? Thanks again for your help and information.

[KatieWills]

Its in the "guide to supporting documents".

https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... form-vaf4a

[Casa]

https://www.gov.uk/join-family-in-uk/do ... to-provide

And then 'guide to supporting documents' link

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... lement.pdf

Admittedly, the Home Office websites aren't renowned for their clarity or ease of applications.

Edit: Pipped at the post by KatieWills

The page hasn't even been updated. The UKBA was disbanded way back in March 2013 due to being 'unfit for purpose' and superceded by the UKVI

[Slothface]

I've seen this, however it says above the table with that listed

'If you do not need to meet the ‘Financial Requirement’ then you may wish to provide some of the following documents to help to show your sponsors circumstances in the UK'

But we do meet the financial requirement, so why would we need to supply this?

[Casa]

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... lement.pdf

Evidence of your sponsor’s
immigration status/ permission to be in
the UK
This could be copies of:
 bio-data pages from their passport or Travel Document
 valid UK visa or UK stamp from their passports
 Home Office letter confirming their permission to stay in the UK

[Slothface]

It says this above the table though:

If you do not need to meet the ‘Financial Requirement’ then you may wish to provide some of the following documents to
help to show your sponsors circumstances in the UK.

Evidence of your sponsor’s current
employment, studies or other means of
support and total monthly income after
tax.
This could include a variety of any of the financial documents outlined above in
the finances section. Details of annual taxable income in the UK is normally
found on HMRC form P60
Any details of study should also be provided.
Evidence of your sponsor’s
immigration status/ permission to be in
the UK
This could be copies of:
 bio-data pages from their passport or Travel Document
 valid UK visa or UK stamp from their passports
 Home Office letter confirming their permission to stay in the UK

[Slothface]

We just got this email, does this mean it's been denied?


A decision has been made on your UK Visa application. Your application will be dispatched shortly from the Decision Making Centre in Sheffield, UK. If anyone contacts you advising that your application is still under consideration or that they can influence the outcome of your application in any way, they cannot - please report any such approach to VisaSheffield@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk.

Applications submitted at a Visa Application Centre (VAC) will be returned there for you to collect in person unless you have opted for a courier return service.

You will receive a separate notification from the Visa Application Centre advising you that the decision has been received there and that your passport is ready for collection. Please do not attend the Visa Application Centre until you have received this notification.

If your visa has been issued after a successful appeal please go to the VAC 5 days after the receipt of this email to collect your passport. The VAC will not contact you regarding this.

You should not expect to receive any further notification from this office unless you have made your application in the USA and submitted a pre-paid courier envelope for your documents to be returned directly to you. If so you will also receive a further email with the courier tracking reference.

Kind regards,

Sheffield Visa Section


This is an automated message – please do not respond to this email address as incoming mail is not answered. UKVI contact details can be found at www.gov.uk/contact-ukvi-outside-uk

[Casa]

It's a standard and neutral notification. You won't know the outcome until the passport has been collected as the decision (either way) is never given in an email.

One early indication of a refusal is often the refund of the NHS surcharge.

[Slothface]

Oh ok that's a bit more hopeful then because my wife seemed to she'd read on this forum that there were two different types of email, one for when they refused and different if they grant it (she said something about the refusal one not saying anything about picking up biometrics in the UK?)

[KatieWills]

She probably means collection of the British residence permit (BRP) which is collected after arriving in the UK. You would have selected a post office from which to collect it during the application process. This information is included in a letter which is returned with the passport and documents not as an email.

[Slothface]

I asked her for the link and she sent me this. Our email sounds a lot more like this person's wife's email, where it was refused rather than theirs, which was approved http://www.immigrationboards.com/uk-tie ... 54264.html