so glad this board is still going strong - such a great resource!!
I have a few queries regarding my wife's UK visa.
My wife and I have been living together in the UK for almost two years now, so she is due to go through the process for ILR (i am a UK citizen).
We were planning to stay in the UK, get the ILR, then do some traveling once my wife completed her current employment contract. However, my wife's contract has ended early, and we're now left weighing up our options.
Our ideal plan would be to go to stay with my grandparents in Italy for a few months (she would be on a visitor visa), then head out to the USA for three months (her country of origin) to celebrate xmas with her family.
We are not sure whether we will settle for the time being in the UK or the USA, once it comes to time to acquire visas.
This raises a few questions which i hope you guys can help me with!
1. It seems you have to be currently resident in the UK for an ILR - is this correct?
2. If my wife leaves the country and tries to return after her FLR expires, will she be able to enter on a visitor visa?
3. Will we be able to apply directly for ILR if we leave the country, or will we have to go through the FLR process again and wait another two years? Will the FLR application go smoothly in this case?
4. If it is really important / drastically easier to wait it out in the UK until the time for the application, will we actually be able to get an ILR if my wife doesn't have a job? I am just starting to earn money from freelance web design so my finances would appear less than secure!
5. Are there any other options that i haven't considered?
Hope you can help!
![Smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_smile.gif)