daveyravey

Goodluck. My wife just got her second 6 month visit visa although our initial 2 applications were turned down.

With hindsight our applications were now strong enough and we were married.

Make sure her documents are all in order, and she has proff that she has a job/business to come back to.

Do not tell lies as the ECO's are very good at catching you out. They might phone people to check on what you tell them.

When you complete the application think of these requirements and think if you have satisfied them with irrefutable proof.

1. Is this a genuine tourist with a genuine reason to visit?

2. Can this person afford the visit?

3. Does this person have a reason to leave the UK ?

Satisfy these and you will be fine.

In my eyes your biggest hurdle will be proving your GFs business is genuine with company papers or a lease and tax papers.

Goodluck.

Does anyone know how much a visa costs if you havent got the 800k required in the bank in Pattaya and who can do it?

Many Thanks

So a quick update.

Visa was approved and passport and documents returned today.

That was 8 days after online application and 6 days after my wife went to the VFS office and lodged the application papers.

On the whole i'm very happy with the quick turnaround.

Thanks for your advice and comments 7by7 and The oldgit and other members i appreciate all of your help.

Airgun and shoot them is the only way. They are vermin.

Im a bit Jai Lon at the moment that as part of my application they have our bank books and out Chanode for our land. They also have my wifes passport. Thats a lot of trust i am putting in them and i need these documents. I didnt expect they would keep the originals.I put copies in of everything.

Strike that. I just got an email the wifes application has been been decided.

We paid for EMS so i assume we will get it back in 2 or 3 days time.

Fingers are still crossed!

Went there with my Thai wife a while back. She had no problems. Didn;t need a visa.

We always add a letter of support from family member saying we're staying at their house during these dates and attach family members passport so they can be checked if they wish.

The OP has already been advised to include a letter of an offer of accommodation, and replied that he's doing so.

A copy of a family members passport is unnecessary and adds nothing to the application, not everyone holds a valid passport.

My parents sent an email saying we could stay with them at their house and they have 2 spare rooms. I have printed it and included it in the application with their phone number if the ECO feels the need to check.

I would imagine in a situation like yours, the visa is 100% likely to be granted. The only thing I would have included is evidence of your status in Thailand, such as employment contract or retirement extension.

We are between jobs at the moment having sold a business a few months ago and we are currently building a new one. This was explained in my supporting letter and they can see my spouse visa that i have held for 5 years now.

Actually my wife was twice refused a visa when we first got married 5 years ago, and we went to Tribunal in the Uk

and got the refusal overturned. Well actually the ECO changed their minds 3 days before the Tribunal.We then visited the UK

and the wife left as per her visa.

All of the reasons from that time for refusal are now irrelevant because we have a joint bank account now and the wife

now owns a bit of land and our kids are in school in Thailand but i am still quite nervous as i never expected the refusal 5 years ago.

As i said my fingers are crossed but its not the end of the world.

Just a little update. I completed the online application on the 9/11 and then tried to book an appointment for the wife. I was surprised but even dates as soon as the next day (10th) were available. I opted for the 11th due to the fact we were waiting for KEY Visa in Pattaya to do some overnight translations for us.

Wife went yesterday and found the VFS staff to be very polite and efficient. Application was lodged, biometrics taken and she was out of there within 1 hour. This VFS service is much better than the previous service at the embassy.

We are now waiting for her passport to be sent back. I will update on the timings when we get it.

Fingers are now crossed!

Thank you. I will get my parents to email the offer of accommodation today. I did mention in my supporting letter that we would stay with my parents and offered their phone number if the ECO felt the need to check.

I am currently putting together an application for my wife to visit the Uk with me and our children.

Our background.

I am a Uk citizen living in Thailand with my wife and 2 children. Children have Uk and Thai passports so do not need

a visa. We have been married nearly 6 years.

We have just sold a business in Thailand and are currently building a new one so we wish to use this time to visit the UK

for a Xmas break with my family. We will stay at my parents house in the UK and stay there for around 3 weeks.

My wife has been to the Uk for a holiday 4 years ago and left in accordance with that visa.

Supporting documents i will show.

1. Wifes passports current and older ones.

2.Wifes ID card

3. Blue house book to show we live together.

4. Childrens passports and birth certificates.

5.My passport

6.Marraige certificate.

7. Bank book to prove we have the funds to travel.

8 Letter of support from me to explain purpose of trip and how we will fund it.

9. Copy of land the wife owns in Thailand to prove reason to return.

I would be grateful if members could suggest any other documents i might also show to make my application stronger.

last time we travelled i added photos of us together but as we are married and have 2 children im guessing we dont need to prove relationship

other than our marraige certificate and kids birth certificates.

My WIFE suffered 2 refusals 5 years even though we had lived together for 2 years and she was my wife so I empathise with you.I was lucky enough to be able to appeal the decision and it was then granted. Put yourself in the shoes of the ECO and make sure you tick all the boxes before you apply.

Quite frankly if you only have around a 1000dollars to your name there is not much reason for you to leave Britain. If I were the ECO i would want to see you well settled somewhere owning property etc etc before I granted the visa.

I am no expert but i do not think you have much chance unless your circumstances change a lot.

I read everywhere that i must get a job in Spain to enable me to get back into the UK through the Surinder Singh route

The judgement in the case of O and B v The Netherlands established five key points:

• A residence period of at least three months is required (para 54)
• Weekend visits and holidays do not count as residence for this purpose (para 59)
• Any citizen of the Union can potentially benefit from this right, not just workers and the self employed (my emphasis)(references to Article 7 of Citizens Directive 2004/38 , e.g. para 56, and to Article 21 of the TFEU, e.g. para 54)
• During the period of residence family life must have been “created or strengthened” (para 51)
• Abuse is impermissible (para 58)

BUT

The UKVI entry clearance guidance still says that to qualify under the Surinder Singh route the British family member needs to have been a worker or self employed in the other EEA state.

The general guidance also says that the British family member of applicants must provide "proof that they were working or self-employed in the EEA country, eg employer’s letters, wage slips, contracts or proof of registration with relevant tax authorities."

Whether this is because UKVI have not bothered to update their guidance, or whether it is because the UK is ignoring the judgement, I can't say.

Donutz? Anyone?

If i would like clarification that the UK guidance is flawed by giving incorrect information where or to whom should i write to? Is there an ombudsman or something?

Well it seems straight forward. I go to Spain self sufficiently and look for a business to buy there. If not successful within 4 or 5 months then apply to UK for EEA spouse permit . The judgement clearly says all we need to have done is strengthen our family life in Spain. Putting the kids in a nursery there, paying bills, join a spanish class etc should suffice for this in the case of not finding a business that suits.

So it now appears i dont even have to find a job.

It wouldn't make sense that being self supporting would not be acceptable, it most certainly is for the Spanish authorities (if you have sufficient funds ofcourse, the minimum number which I do not know). and after migrating back to the UK it should "only" be a matter of showing you had the intention of settling in Spain long term. The UKVI guidelines may give some insight on that but if you consider your migratie to Spain as something which might be long term and act accordingly (Spanish mobile package, perhaps opening a bank account there etc.) you should be fine. I guess having a job in Spain could help the case that that actually did a proper migration rather then a long holiday but I see no reason why the SS route wouldn't work for self sufficient migrants who stayed 6 (officially 3) months in Spain or any other EU coutry with the intention to likely stay there long term.

Sounds interesting. I have the funds available to look for a business in Spain although in all honesty I doubt I would invest in Spain.

I wonder where i might get more advice on this?

So you could go to Spain (or any other EU country) for the purpose of finding work (employement)and various other purposes, including economicaly inactive. In which case financial means would have to be proven, the height depending on the minimum living standard of the given country (Spain in your case but don't ask me how much income the require per month for financially independant EU citizens),

For the first 3 months you should be alright anyway aslong as you don't become a financial burden to the authorities,giving you time find work if financially independant is not an option. Once there you'd need to tackle Spanish bureacracy discribed above, but this might be more straightfoward if an experienced source explains it and I doubt you'd need to know everything in advance but having a general idea of the procedures certainly won't harm your cause.

The theory remains simple: move there, don't be a burden to the Spanish authorities, register in a townhall, register with immigration, register your family members, settle in perhaps later on move to the UK or just stay in Spain if it suits you better.

Thanks for that. I read everywhere that i must get a job in Spain to enable me to get back into the UK through the Surinder Singh route. Although i can self support whilst we are in Spain it seems the definition of family life in Spain revolves around having a job there or being self employed.

If i request a 90 day type C visa for my wife can she exit and re enter spain automatically?

We might like to visit Paris for a weekend or something.

Is a 90 day visa automatically given and is it multi entry?

great reading thread. I have now decided to apply through the Spanish embassy. <deleted> to VFS out of principle.

Donutz thanks for all this great info.

<snip>

Seems the crux of this is getting a job in Spain.

Not necessarily.

The freedom of movement treaty rights are:

1. Student
2. Jobseeker
3. Worker, employed or self employed
4. Living off independent means, e.g. a pension or investment income.

Assuming 1,3 and 4 don't apply to you, you could live in Spain as a jobseeker and your wife can live there with you. However, many countries put a time limit on this; usually three months, after which you would have to leave unless you can show you have a realistic chance of finding work in the very near future.

What the Spanish position on this is, I don't know.

If i choose living off independent means can my wife still relocate to the uk with me? i have enough money to last 6 months there.

<snip>

Seems the crux of this is getting a job in Spain.

Not necessarily.

The freedom of movement treaty rights are:

1. Student
2. Jobseeker
3. Worker, employed or self employed
4. Living off independent means, e.g. a pension or investment income.

Assuming 1,3 and 4 don't apply to you, you could live in Spain as a jobseeker and your wife can live there with you. However, many countries put a time limit on this; usually three months, after which you would have to leave unless you can show you have a realistic chance of finding work in the very near future.

What the Spanish position on this is, I don't know.

This topic can now be closed. I have decided to take my wife to Spain on an EU spouse visa instead. Thanks for all your input.

looks like the VFS fee is about 850baht. Its an admin fee , not the visa fee. I have just emailed them so i should get a reply in a day or 2.

Seems the crux of this is getting a job in Spain. Who knows we might end up staying there. Other forums say all we need is my passport, wifes passport, marraige cert and legalisation from UK embassy and 2 photos each. Sounds like an adventure.