How to apply for a Partner/Spouse Visa Under New Rules

i think the outcome will be--your wife will have to come to the UK first---obtain suitable accommodation---which will mean 3 bedrooms--1 for the couple--and 1 each for the kids if its boy and girl. she will need a contract from the landlord--with permission for you to stay there too. the contract will need to have 6 months still to run when you apply.

if she can get a job--she will need to show 6 months payslips when you apply---but your savings will do instead. but you need 6 months bank statements as proof.

all this information is in the UKVI website---you need to really study it.

your visa application will take from 2 to 6 months to process---so be prepared to be apart for that time. i know its tough----but we are all affected by this.

We will make time to visit them both....Thank you for taking the time to help me out by posting here; ( kindness truly is sweeter when it comes from total strangers! )

That's what I was afraid of... but well, there's 5 more months to get used to not being with her.... I can't thank you enough for the time and effort you've exhausted in researching the options in my case.... I'll study the options and try to make the best economical steps towards gaining that spouse visa! thank you very much!

a lot of us are in the process of bringing our partners over--where possible---so--as we say in the UK--we are all in the same boat.

can you keep us briefed with your progress--yours is a more unusual situation---and any information or experience you can share with us will be of great value.

The savings are enough, but if they are in cash it may cause problems. The first thing you need to do is put them in a bank or a savings account so that you have documentary evidence of them.

If you can show where the money has come from then they would probably accept them straight away, but if you have no paperwork to show where this money has come from them you would need to leave it in a bank for a period of time so that you can show it on bank statements.

You should also write a covering letter explaining how you came to have this money. They will be very scceptical of a large amount of money being suddenly put in an account and declared as savings as you could easily have just borrowed it in order to satisfy the conditions.

savings must have been legally acquired--and not borrowed. and in the full controll of the sponsor.

6 months bank statements --originals--to be submitted with application.

In between getting a visa that is valid for 33 months, extending for another 30 months then applying for ILR, how long can a visa holder be out of UK soil?

One thing worth knowing is it doesn't have to be bedrooms. just usable rooms. EG, the front room will count as one of the rooms required, so a front room and two bedrooms is ok.

Hello everyone

Many thanks to Micawber for the clearly laid out explanation of the spouse visa process, especially the financial requirement part.

Has anyone had experience of applying from a third country for a spouse visa?

The situation:
I am British and living in UK. I work as a seafarer.
My beloved is a Filipina living/working in Qatar for last 6 years as cabin crew for Qatar Airways.
Yes I know scheduling nightmare! Theres been a lot of flying involved for us!

The plan:
Registry marriage this September in Philippines
in order to allow for an easier church wedding in April 2015 (also in the Philippines)
as well as allowing us to start a visa application.

Submit spouse visa application in Qatar (using registry wedding certificates) ahead of the church wedding in order that she can join me in UK not long after.

Suggestions or criticisms?

Thanks

Alex

Welcome to the Forum, Alex,

I would strongly suggest that you register your marriage with the British Embassy in Manila however you may need to wait for the official NSO Marriage Cerificate to become available which can take several weeks or even months. The reason being that the British Embassy in Qatar will definitely accept the Consular Record of a Marriage Abroad issued by the Embassy but they probably won't accept a Philippine certificate as the Philippines is not a signatory to the Hague Convention relating to the acceptance of official documents issued by foreign governments. That's despite the fact that the visa application will be processed by the Manila Hub!

Given that it could take quite some time to acquire the all-important NSO Marriage Certificate and the fact that your presence would be required at the Manila Embassy to register the marriage, might I suggest you consider marrying in Hong Kong? The British Government recognises a Hong Kong Marriage Certificate so there would be no need to register the marriage at the Embassy there and your plans to bring you wife to the UK shortly after your church wedding should not go awry.

Quick question...Filipino married to a british citizen. We already have our NSO marriage certificate, do I have to register it at the british embassy?

There is no legal requirement for you to do so. However if you intend settling in the UK, then a British-style marriage certificate may well come in handy as your NSO one will not be recognised there. The application for registration should be made by a British citizen and personal appearance is required at the Embassy and a fee is payable.

Thank u so much

Thank you so much for the info
We haven't applied for a spouse visa yet bcz we don't want our application yo be put on hold considering that ny husband cannot reach the income threshold set by the gov. He is currently in England atm, should I send him a copy of our NSO marriage ceritificate so he can go ahead and forward it to the embassy in London? Is it a wise thing to do even if we haven't applied for my visa yet?

There is no British Embassy in London!

Your husband will need to visit the British Embassy in Manila's web site, download the application form and complete it. He will need to provide certified copies of his Passport as well as other documentary evidence. As he is in the UK, he obviously can not visit the Embassy in Manila but he can provide you with a Notarised letter authorising you to register the marriage on his behalf. He should then send you all the documentation - including the application form, certified copies of his Passport, other required documentation and the letter of authorisation. Once you have received them, he can make the necessary appointment booking (via the Embassy's web site): he will need to email you the appointment confirmation which you will need to get printed to show the security guards at the Embassy.

My apologies...I meant Philippine Embassy in London. Does he have to register our marriage in the UK or its just the same as registering the marriage in the embassy manila?

Your marriage can NOT be registered in the UK because you were not married there; it can only be registered at the British Embassy of the country where the marriage took place.

Thank you Markham

Do u know what are the others docs needed aside from NSO marriage certificate, copy of his passport and mine. I tried to check the website but its kind of complicated.

Thanks Markham.

I have been trying to make an idiot guide/flow chart just for myself and its been an interesting process to say the least. I should say thanks to everyone for posting their experiences and advice, this site has been the most useful place I've found.

Good to know about Hong Kong wedding option and I will look into it.

Anyone else marry cabin crew or any former cabin crew on here? I ask because the form asks for my beloved's travel details for the last 10 years. She has been flying for 6 years but of course cabin crew don't get stamped in and out everywhere they go as they do 4 or 5 countries a month at least.

Will they hold her passport while the application is being processed? Obviously she needs it to work.

I suggest you email UKBA and ask them that very question.

Were you to be applying right now, the Visa would be handled locally at one of the Embassies in the Gulf and that would make it somewhat easier. However, Mrs May has decided to close all bar two of the Visa processing centres and all the work transferred to either the UK (very few countries) or Manila (most of the world).

You've no doubt read all about the chaos at the Passport Office but what hasn't been reported is that the major reason that the PO is swamped with applications is that Mrs May closed all the Passport issuing offices outside the UK earlier in the year including the very busy Hong Kong hub. Expect even more chaos and more demoralised HO staff when the Visa centres close in a few weeks' time.

Hi Im new to this. I just have a quick question.

I've been in my job for 3 years now and been earning roughly £1000-1200 per month. Just recently (July2014) been promoted and had a raise and now £1500+ before tax. Does this meet the minimum income requirement? And do we need to wait for 6 months before we apply?