Spousal Sponsorship/ Changing WHV question

[haggishunter]

Hi
My wife and I recently got married in Canada and just recieved our marriage certificate.
I am british and she is canadian.
She also has a UK WHV which is valid until February 2007. She was previously in the UK from february to August 2005 and we have been in Canada since, planning the wedding, getting married and waiting on the certificate.
Now is it possible for us to return to the UK and change my wife's WHV so she can get ILR? Or do we have to apply for a settlement visa here in Canada?
how difficult is it to change a WHV to a settlement visa?
Reading this site makes the former seem possible though the BHC in Ottawa claim it is not possible at all and my wife's WHV is null and void as we are married....help??
what is form FLR(M)? can someone point me in the direction of it online?
What problems if any would we hit when arriving in the UK?
As I am currently in Canada I am between jobs in the UK, will this pose a problem if we have to apply for the UK settlement visa in Canada?
What approximate level of savings are they looking for?
Any help is greatly appreciated
Thanks
J

[John]

the BHC in Ottawa claim it is not possible at all and my wife's WHV is null and void as we are married....help??

I think that is right ... she is clearly no longer on an extended holiday!

what is form FLR(M)? can someone point me in the direction of it online?

Why that form? That would only be to make an application in the UK. But she is in Canada. Go to the www.ukvisas.gov.uk website and download a form VAF2 and also the INF4 guidance notes.

The application for a two-year spouse visa should be made in Canada. You are currently in Canada. Hopefully you have all the supporting documentation with you to enable that application on VAF2 to be made? If not you need to fly back to the UK alone to gather all you need and then get that information to your wife.

As I am currently in Canada I am between jobs in the UK

Could be a problem? It needs to be shown that the applicant will not need to claim certain Public Funds. Your lack of employment will not help ... but dependent upon circumstances it might still be possible to pass the financial test even if you are currently unemployed.

Back to you mentioning about the FLR(M)! Had the two of you married in the UK then indeed that would have been the form to use, to convert to WHV into a spouse visa. But you didn't ... you married in Canada.

[haggishunter]

thanks
hmmm will have to have a thinkthen and see if my wife and i can figure out if we meet the requirements financially
I have a bachelors degree, plus an HND, and 2 HNC's... will this be of help?
in addition my parents have offered accomodation free of charge to my wife and i.

[JAJ]

the BHC in Ottawa claim it is not possible at all and my wife's WHV is null and void as we are married....help??

I think that is right ...

Just because someone at the BHC in Ottawa said so doesn't make it true. It would be interesting to know what specific rule invalidates a WHV upon marriage to a British citizen.

[John]

It is quite clear from the immigration rules that a change of circumstances invalidates an EC. That does not specifically mention a WHV holder getting married but the rules are clear enough to cover, for example, the holder of a student visa who has stopped studying ... etc etc.

Clearly this holder of a WHV is no longer requiring entry into the UK as a holidaymaker .... they would be entering for the purpose of settlement.

The marriage of a WHV holder does not automatically invalidate their visa. For example, if one WHV holder marries another WHV ... both intending to leave the UK at the end of their holidays ... they would not have a problem continuing their holidays on their WHVs. But that is not the circumstances being outlined here.

I have a bachelors degree, plus an HND, and 2 HNC's... will this be of help?
in addition my parents have offered accommodation free of charge to my wife and i.

I think .... Yes those qualifications will show the ability to earn .... and the lack of needing to pay for accommodation will also assist.

If you had a job to go to that would be even better.

[marooned]

It is quite clear from the immigration rules that a change of circumstances invalidates an EC. That does not specifically mention a WHV holder getting married but the rules are clear enough to cover, for example, the holder of a student visa who has stopped studying ... etc etc.

Clearly this holder of a WHV is no longer requiring entry into the UK as a holidaymaker .... they would be entering for the purpose of settlement.

The marriage of a WHV holder does not automatically invalidate their visa. For example, if one WHV holder marries another WHV ... both intending to leave the UK at the end of their holidays ... they would not have a problem continuing their holidays on their WHVs. But that is not the circumstances being outlined here.

Just to chime in with my experience - I am a Canadian who married a Briton while here on a WHV visa. We went to Greece for something of a honeymoon, and in order to jump the inordinately long re-entry queue at passport control at Gatwick we both went through the 'All Other Passports' queue (she on a UK passport, me with a Canadian passport with a WH visa) - the passport control officer asked us about our circumstances and said that 'we needed to get it sorted as soon as possible' but allowed me entry without qualms on the WHV clearance, so that visa itself wasn't specifically invalidated as far as she was concerned.

We're filling out the FLR(M) now, but from everything I've read here and heard elsewhere it should be a pretty straightforward application so I'm not too worried, she has a good job, I'm successfully self-employed and they probably won't have much reason to deny me!

Good luck!

[Kayalami]

Monsieur haggis,

1st things 1st - congratulations on your marriage...you can't go wrong with a canuck .

2nd - your spouse's WHV is technically not invalid and may be used to re-enter the UK. However there are aspects of the immigration rules pertaining to misrepresentation of your true intent at a UK port of entry where it follows that you are actually returning with the intent to settle but do not hold a settlement visa. Given that intent can be a tricky one to handle such would normally be based on case law which in these cases has often been in relation to short term visa holders e.g. visitors or those where working was prohibited or restricted. Once you have returned to the UK then your wife could apply for a spouse visa by submitting form FLR(M) and a fee of GBP 335 (post) or GBP 500 (in person) - details are on the IND site (type into a search engine).

3rd - I concur with John that the best option is to get a settlement visa from the BHC Ottawa. Check their site for the relevant form (VAF2) and this family forum for the experencies of those in similar circumstances. Don't scrimp on the evidence particularly that pertaining to finances and accomodation. It is also cheaper than the FLR route unless you are some cosniderable distance from the BHC Ottawa. If you are successful your wife will get a 24 month spouse visa (SV) which allows her to work in the UK without the need for a WP. This SV supercedes the WHV which may or may not be cancelled without prejudice. 28 days beofre the expiry of this SV and subject to your marriage still subsisting then your spouse may apply for Indefinite Leave To Remain in the UK aka Permanent Residence.

For a country with whom the UK has such history the British consulate on Elgin Street is unreal - more like a school reception hall than a major G8 nation's consular section. If you like Mr Bean though you should be in for a treat since the consular section has endless re-runs.

Hope that helps and best wishes again

[haggishunter]

thanks for the replies guys and girls
thanks for the best wishes Kayalami.

Is the process simpler / easier to get it approved if you apply to the BHC Ottawa in person or is it the same if you apply via mail or in person?

Any idea what sort of savings they are looking for? As the savings we had were spent on the wedding (which we have just gotten paid off), but we have a car which we could sell which would raise anywhere from $3000 - $6000 Canadian....would this be enough? or are they looking for more?

So tomorrow i have to call my ex boss in the uk and see if he will offer me a job, if so then everything is good, if not then my wife and i might have a problem.

Are there any areas on the immigration forms that people have found confusing/ambigious?

Thanks again for the help

J