bangkoktonni

I'm sure the ESOL test is only valid for 2 years where as if you studied ESOL and got to level 3, you would get a certificate which is valid forever.

Are you sure the test taken in 2011 was ESOL and not Toiec? as i'm sure that was the requirement for a settlement visa as my wife did hers then.

She then came to the uk and as her level of English was good already and she only had to study at college for 2 months and was accredited with her level 3 cert. She then did ielts at uni but this was not acceptable for the citizenship but her level 3 esol certificate was hence the life long validity.

wife took the lituk exam early march 2013 when we heard they were changing it, she passed first time. she came over as spouse on 15th dec 2011 so we just miss out on old ruling.

she passed esol entry level 3 in 3 mths study and has got a city and guilds stamped with speaking, listening, reading and writing pass entry 3. this was from leicester college which was an approved college.

just got off the phone with them and even they are in the dark regarding b1 equivalence to esol entry 3, and the list u shown does not have it either.

thx

hi 7by7,

i can now presume that my wifes esol level entry 3 will now be ok for ilr requirements when we apply in nov 2013 ?.

thx

my wife came to the uk from thailand on dec 15th 2011.

I know the financial requirements will stay the same but what im unsure of is whether her entry level certificate in skills for life (entry 3) will be ok.

I have read somewhere that entry 3 is the same as b1, so will her city & guilds certificate be accepted?

Ive also heard that the lituk test will change on 26th mar 2013 and if u take the exam after this date u will have to show b1 level so again will the certificate be adequate?

thanks for any help

tonni

hi

my wife and me are booked to go on holiday from mar-apr 2012. my wife came to uk on settlement visa and she just asked the question, "with me leaving the uk for one month, will this affect my application for ilr as i have read that you need to be here for 2 years"

my question is does the 2 years mean she has to stay here for 2 years or can we go and leave when we want?

we were planning to drive around europe in the summer as well

thanks

wife got the text message saying passport ready for collection, sent her friend to collect it (she was authorised person as wife did not want to travel to bkk).

its a yes, thank you all

thx 7by7, the information on this website was a great help in preparing my personal folder and forum members a great way of settling nerves

in total it took 10 working days for uk settlement visa to be processed

cheers everyone

Funds for maintenance can come from the applicant, the sponsor, a third party or any combination of these. Whoever is contributing towards the maintenance must provide evidence that they have the means to do so.

The ECOs are well aware of the SA system and that as you only became self employed in October 2010 you probably wont have filed your 2010/11 return yet, let alone received an SA statement.

Although a copy of your accounts wouldn't have hurt.

Moot points though, for two reasons:

1. You have provided what appears to be sufficient evidence of your finances.
2. The application has been submitted, it's too late to add to the evidence..

i did include all information from my business account and copies, and you are correct about self assesment records, even though a tax return was filed from oct 2010- march 2011 but this was poor because it was a new business start up and alot of funds swallowed up through expenses though from april 2011 till now has been very good.

another point for me to ask is my wife is young, 27, excellent education, honors at rangsit uni, masters at ramkhamheng uni, and also scored very high in a1 exam, but in her application she only said she was coming to uk to live with me, no intention to work was mentioned. but will these skills give her an added boost to application as it says in maa that applicants employment prospects will be considered.

thx

The ECOs are aware that not every sponsor will be able to provide a history of payslips etc. You say that you have explained your situation in the application and provided evidence of your financial position over the last 12 months. So provided your income is deemed sufficient (basically above the income support level of approx £115 per week) then I do not see a problem.

You may find Maintenance and accommodation (MAA) helpful.

Some embassy staff are Thai, but they are not ECOs. Not all the ECOs are English, however; some may be Scottish, Welsh or Northern Irish!

thx for the reply, i just read the maa part and it says maintenance may be provided by the applicant. so will that mean my wifes own bank account in thailand which has around 7000 uk pounds in it be taken into consideration? also wont the eco who looks at the application be worried that there is no tax returns even though ive stated my tax return wont happen untill 2012? maybe im thinking there not human lol. thx for your replys

my wife submittted the settlement visa at vfs on 21st november, she was the last person there, got the text to say it had been fowarded to embassy. now i know how all the guys who have been in the same position have felt, the waiting is hell time and its only been 5 days,

i do have a few issues with my supporting evidence that i handed in, the first being that my income when put on paper is all over the place as i am self-employed and also i do contracting work. i am a gas safe engineer and plumber who only started working for myself in oct 2010, i had no customers so work was slow in coming so i took on another job as well but that work only saw me being payed every 60 days. also i couldnt give 2 years tax returns as this was a new business start up. no p60 either because i had been student before.

i have gave them 1 years business and personal bank statements and wage slips from contracting work which has tax paid for by the company.I have explained in a covering letter about tax returns and p60 but i am hoping that they will understand my position.

all my business statements (12mths) i added together and divided it by 12 to try and give an example of each months earnings but this is before tax deducted, will the eco recognise my position.

i am very concerned, probably thats why i am so stressed.

all the other evidence is excellent, we had been together for 3 years before we married as my wife had been at uni doing a honors then masters degree and her mum wouldnt allow marriage until exams were passed. i had visited her 2 times a year and we have all the contact evidence needed.

its just my financial status that is worrying even though on paper it looks ok but its before tax deducted. has anyone else been in a situation like mine? can anyone give me a little bit of assurance and are the eco s english or thai?

i have been seeing peoples applications processed in 5-10 days just lately but the last one being on the 10th november, nothing new after that, any updates pls.

thx for reading

I am arriving at Swampy tomorrow and planning to travel to Prachinburi via motorway (7) to 314 into Chachengsao then 304/319 into Prachinburi.

Anyone know any reason why this route wouldn't be clear? I.e. is 314 from 7 into Chahchengsao, and Chachengsao itself, OK?

Thanks!

i travelled from sukumvhit asok terminal 21 grande centre point yesterday to amnat chareon, the route u want to travel on is clear off flooding but heavy traffic when you leave highway 7 onto 314, but soon as u get onto the 304 its easy going, we spoke to a few people who where returning to bangkok from prachinburi via the 319 and they said it was quiet.

anyone wanting to travel to the northeast we then went through the mountains past kabin buri which was fairly easy apart from a few slow trucks but they are passable, then travelled all the way on the 304 into korat then on highway 2 to the northeast, traffic was normal, speed from 90 to 120 kph.

the whole journey took us 9 hours 45 minutes and we stopped a fair few times for food and coffee.

hi

i recently traveled fromm bkk to issan(amnat chareon). i took the nakhorn nayok, prachinburi, kabin buri, khao yai national park to korat route, amnat, route,

my wife has her english exam this weekend and i need to sort some some business out in bkk so i need ur help.

what roads would u suggest for me to get to bkk, ive looked at a few maps and was thinking taking the same route back but avoiding the nakhon nayok/ rangsit route because of flooding.

looking to goto chachoengsao and then connect onto highway 7 into bkk,

is this a good way or has anyone got a better suggestion

thanks

i drove from sukumvhit to amnat chareon in 11 hours yesterday,

the route we took was the tollway to don muang, we turned of after the airport and took the road to lam luk la, then we turned off to khlong 2 rangsit and headed to nahkon nayok, instead of going up the mountain through kabin buri we took the road through the khao yai national park

from there we used the signs to head to korat where highway 2 was still useable, we then took our normal route to amnat via prathai, buriram, roi et, yasothon, amnat chareon

Explain this in your covering letter + get a letter from your accountants also confirming your earning for the previous tax year.

as i said i have only been self employed since nov 2010 so previous tax year non existent as was still studying at uni, will a covering letter be substanial enough?

thx

hi everyone, my wife and i are in the process of gathering info for her settlement visa but i have hit a grey area concerning my employment status.

i am a self-employed gas engineer, i get private jobs as well as being a sub-contracter. i started self employment in nov 2010 so i do not have to submit earnings to the tax man untill jan 2012.

now when it comes to the application they are asking for pay slips, i can provide these from my sub-contract employment but they are only between 500 pounds uk- 1000 pounds uk, not enough for 2 people when u take out all living expenses. but with my private jobs on top it will cover us but i can only give my buisness account statements before tax.. will this be acceptable?

my wife gets her own salary each month from her job in thailand and also has savings around 600,000baht, will this add weght to her application as sometimes my monthly salary varies what with the econmy being slow at the moment (some months i might only take home between 700-1000 pounds) but again tax has not yet been deducted

i would be grateful if anyone could help

t

hi, i have been trying to download from the uk embassy the affimation freedom to marry form but i am having no joy. (i`ve not got microsoft word).

ive been told i can retype the form but then some people are saying u need the original form from the embassy and a re-typed copy will be turned away.

i am trying to do the visa in one day and i am taking one of thai visas member itineray. i know my way to all the places i need to visit but the dam_n form is elusive..

if and when i get the form do i need to fill in 2 forms, 1 to take to the translation office the day b4 and 1 to take to the embassy first appointment the next day?

thank you

t

thanks for all your positive replies but i have decided to put the visa app off till july when i will have enough sufficient bank statements, i really dont want to waste the £750 i will have to fork out,. its a shame shes not coming as a asylum seeker (lol), otherwise they would off greeted her with hands open, sufficient money, house and a car...

but thanks again everyone, your knowledge is priceless

hi everybody, im a new member and i would like to ask u advice about some supporting documents needed for my wifes settlement visa.

the visa is asking for my financial statements for the last six months, i have recently started a new buissness in november 2010, and things were a little slow for the first 2 mths, so my nov & dec statements are not that good, jan is good and feb is looking good but will these staments be enough evidence to prove my financial status ? ( even though my wife has her own money over 500,000baht).

should i wait a little longer untill i have a fair few statements with better readings ?

will my wifes bank balance and proof of house ownership be enough?

thank you

tonni