rasg

The new system was introduced in November 2018.

2 minutes ago, durhamboy said:

4. Furthermore you say quite categorically that she needs a visa. So would that also include a visa on arrival? 

 

Btw, my username gives no indication as to where I live and it shouldn't be inferred that it does.

She does need a visa. 7by7 is suggesting that she gets a visa in advance. As I said to you in an earlier post, if you do decide to try and just turn up, be prepared to be disappointed.

My wife's BRP says Spouse/partner, Leave to remain.

I thought it was a reasonable assumption that you live in Durham too and Manchester and Edinburgh would be closer options. ????

You are right but I can tell you that Donutz really knows his stuff on this.

In the end, should you choose to risk travelling with your wife without a Schengen visa, be prepared to be disappointed if you are turned away. I bet you won't get your flight ticket money back.

On the ferry or via the tunnel you might be lucky but with Brexit etc it may have changed attitudes too.

When I was after an appointment directly with the Danish embassy for a Schengen visa for Iceland for my wife they took a while to respond. They then tried to put me through to their visa provider. I had to email at least once more and I was fairly insistent and they relented with an appointment. It helps that we live just outside London and they gave my wife a visa while she waited. FOC too.

2 hours ago, atyclb said:

does deductive reasoning count for common sense?

 

why is the shower curtain inside the tub??  duhhhhh

 

 

it happens to other people non thai. thanks for the enlightenment

It's my pleasure. Is it also possible that most showers in Thailand don't have curtains so she had never come across a shower curtain before? I have stayed in many Thai hotels with and without my wife and most showers are totally separate to the bath. Most showers have a tiled floor and wall with a drain at the bottom. No curtain needed. I had never come across a bum gun before until we stayed at my wife's sister's house. I had to ask and I don't have a uni degree.

20 hours ago, atyclb said:

a recent date (car, real job, uni degree no less) pushes the shower curtain outside of the bathtub and floods the room. i explain to her the curtain is to keep the water inside and away from the floor.  she has an "einstein moment" and looks absolutely amazed with this concept. 

I have known some extremely clever people with no common sense. Something like this is not exclusive to Thai women.

14 hours ago, Destiny1990 said:

Her limited English skills that are obstructing her from getting into long nonsense conversations with me.

Or possibly your limited or non existent Thai skills that prevent you having a long nonsense conversation with her... ????

I only know of one success where a couple were both allowed to board and if I remember they arrived extremely early with lots of paperwork to make sure they had plenty of time.

Here you go. It took a bit of time but I found it. Take a look at the link at the end.

Directive 38

See also the visa Handbook found on the EU Home Affairs website:
- site: http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/home-affairs/wh ... dex_en.htm
- handbook: http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/home-affairs/wh ... ted_en.pdf
- the Schengen visa code itself is also found on the EU site.

From about page 83 onwards is a chapter dedicated to EU family member applications.

Under the the Directive your wife would of course be entitled to a free visa, provided that you show you are married, traveling together (or going to join the EU spouse) and they can ID the both of you. There should be no need for bankbooks, insurance, accommodation etc. since all that is irrelevant if you can show that she is your wife.

We boarded the flight to Amsterdam and i thought of what i was going to say to the immigration officer on arrival. I decided i would give our evidence incrementally and only if it was required so i could advise you all what is and is not accepted. We had our marriage certificate, translation of marriage cert, bank statements, council tax bills and driving licences with us to show that we were married and living at the same address. I also had the Directive 38 both in English and Dutch ready to show them of our rights.

http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/travel/entry-exit/non-eu-family/index_en.htm

That was my first thought. She is a Thai national applying for a Schengen visa to visit France.

1 minute ago, Jip99 said:

VfS now appear to be charging for the “scanning service”. Previously free, scanning now appears in the addition services that are pre-paid, along with sms/ems services.

Probably because you can now do it yourself.

I've tried to find the specification of the scans that are required without success. Does anybody know what they are or where I can find the infomation please?

1 hour ago, RBOP said:

No your case does not surprise me because your married. The OP is not married and wants to being his girl friend for a visit who seems to be young with not much commitment holding her here. Her key point will be commitment to take care of parents and very young brother and a food stall which she will need to show how it will be there when she comes back which I recall the OP already explained. 

We weren't married when my, then, girlfriend, applied for both of the visit visas. The first when we had only known each other for three or four months.

I agree. You only have to look at the Trinity College channel on YouTube to see some real tests. A1 and A2 are both six minute tests. They are very straightforward. My wife took her 10 minute B1 test last week in Hammersmith and pleasantly surprised me by passing first time. At £150 a pop, as long as the Government don't change the goalposts it's good for my wife's second FLR and ILR in 30 months time.

That’s why I only mentioned Eurostar and the ferries. I've only read of one single instance where a couple boarded an aircraft.

I suppose it depends how long the visa lasts for. As he has had a few Schengen visas before I doubt he will have difficulty getting an ME visa.

Work on a figure of around £10K for the visas that are required. The visas go up by around 20% each year.

The applicant for a Settlement visa needs to satisfy the ECO of the following.
1. That the relationship/marriage is genuine and subsisting.
2. You earn £18,600 or more. If you have £62.5K in savings lying around in a bank account you can bypass the salary route.
3. Accommodation arrangements in UK.
 
Assuming you married in Thailand, to get the Settlement visa (33 months), she will also need an A1 English language certificate (£150) and a TB test (3300 baht) that she will have in Bangkok at the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). For Further leave to remain (FLR for 30 months) she will need the A2 English language certificate. For Indefinite leave to remain (ILR), after she has lived in the UK for five years, she will need the B1 language test and to pass the Life in the UK test (£50). If her English is good, get her to take the B1 test for the first visa so that she, hopefully, won't need to take another language test. If the UK government don't change the rules as they did last year.
 
On top of the cost of the visas you will need to pay the NHS surcharge for the first two visas. The NHS surcharge is £400 a year. For the Settlement visa it will be currently £1200 and FLR will be £1000. No NHS surcharge for ILR which is after she has lived here in the UK for five years. Your wife will be allowed to work when she comes here on the settlement visa.

4 hours ago, Jumbo1968 said:

The Visa says you are not allowed too work as well ?

It is a tourist/holiday visa for that purpose. If found to be working the visa holder can be sent home and as I pointed out in an earlier post, the employer will pay heavy penalties.

She  can apply when she has lived here for five years.

Your job situation certainly won’t help as you need to show the £18,600 pa salary requirement. Savings won’t help much as you will need to show £62,500 as an alternative to £18,600 salary. If your wife earns £8K pa and can show NIC payments, payslips and her P60 you can combine it with any salary you earn.  

8 minutes ago, RBOP said:

UK visitor visas are done through VSF who will forward to the UK Embassy. I would be very surprised if the is no interview for the OP case. https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/tourist-short-stay-visas

My Thai wife has had two visit visas, one marriage visa and one FLR visa for the UK and she has never been interviewed. Are you surprised now?

1 hour ago, wgdanson said:

A little bit off topic, but relevant anyway.

How do the 'foreigners' who appear on BRITAIN's Got Talent get a Visa to 'work' in UK. Short term initially for the auditions, and then possibly long term if they impress the judges. 

There are quite a few categories of visa. A Tier 1 visa is for somebody of exceptional talent. Does anybody on BGT fall into that category?????

https://visaguide.world/europe/uk-visa/

No work allowed on a visit visa and if an employer is caught allowing a visit visa holder to work, if I remember it's a £10k fine for each person.  

The main reason they want biometrics each time is so they know it's the same person applying each time.

You could try without one on a ferry trip to France or Holland. At least you won’t have wasted a load of cash if she is turned back.

Last year I struggled to find any body who had tried the visa free route and I have no idea if Brexit has changed things. It was probably has with France because they hate us any way. ????

You do have alternatives. She can go to Turkey, visa free and there are many other countries a bit further afield where Thais don't need a visa.

We went on honeymoon to Jersey a couple of years ago.

8 hours ago, merijn said:

Are the requirements for the 2 year visa the same as the 6 months ?

I will write a supporting letter in which i can ask for a visa more then 6 months.

Also do the translation have to be notarised ? 

If you use a professional translation company they will date, stamp and sign the translation.

9 hours ago, Jip99 said:

You can apply up to 3 months before your travel and you must stipulate the date of entry that you require.

That's not quite right. On my wife's first visit visa we didn't stipulate a date for the visa to start. (We were just happy to have got one having read about the terrible stories of others experiences). UKVI dated the visa to start on the day that they made the decision.

It meant that my girlfriend had to apply for another VV so she could come to the UK for Christmas. Had we specified the start date to be the day she actually travelled (1st July) she could have happily come here for Christmas on the the first visit visa.

It's better to specify a date but it's not required. But then UKVI will set an arbitrary date for entry to the UK.

Any document you rely on when applying for a visit visa needs to be translated into Thai. But you can be selective. For example, a birth certificate is not required.

You are better off applying for a six month visa for the first one imho. If you apply for a ten year VV which is pretty expensive but saves you schlepping to Bangkok over and over again, UKVI might only grant a 2 year or even a 6 month visa and they don't refund any money. If your wife hates the UK and you have paid a lot of cash for a 10 year VV it's waste of money.

7 hours ago, Jip99 said:

6 months or 2 years .... you cannot "ask for more".... you can try and extend in the UK but that costs an arm and a leg.

It's not possible to extend a visit visa from within the UK.

5 minutes ago, Benroon said:

For her job and family (though family alone and especially children is NOT a good enough reason on its own) - UK immigration don't value the thai family bond highly ! Like its better in the UK I don't think !

That is because so many Thai women work away from their family and kids and send money home. My own wife had her first son back in 2002 and was back at work in Saraburin within a month. 

2 hours ago, Sumarianson said:

A word of warning. I saw a very beautiful girl at the office when I went to pick up the visa. She worked in a good job for the government and had a lot of money in the bank and her own condo. She just wanted a holiday in UK and see some friends. She was refused.she said she was staying with friends) If she knows anyone Thai there you will not suceed. Possible threat of absconding. I had spent over £7,000 on that holiday going to Ireland

(Repblic) too, which a UK visa allows.

I would be very surprised if that was the reason she was refused. I've spoken to a lot of Thai people my wife knows in the least few years who have had visas refused or know people who have had visas refused and they will tell you all kinds of reasons why the visas were refused. I have always asked to see the refusal notice if they want my help and those reasons in the letters are rarely what I was told.

A Thai national with a UK visit visa does need a visa for Ireland but if you are in Northern Ireland and drive into Ireland there is nobody to stop you.

https://www.dfa.ie/irish-embassy/thailand/our-services/visas/visas-for-ireland/

5 hours ago, Elad said:

If so she could come back for another month before it expires.

I did suggest that in an earlier post.

5 hours ago, Elad said:

Are UK visit visas still multiple entry?

I think they are all multi entry now although there might be exceptions.