tjthai

Hi 7by7

Thanks for the reply. We realise we could save some money but don't want to wait upto 6 months for the passports to come back and my stepdaughter's college want to see the ILR stamp in her passport before her visa runs out in December.

I've just actually phoned the Croydon office and was told that as long as my wife has all the documents etc then there is no need for any dependants to go.

Additionally it seems that the waiting time can be 3 hours or so but they aim to decide and stamp passport the same day for straightforward applications.

Thanks again.

TJThai

Unless you need their passports back quickly, why apply in person? It is cheaper to apply by post, although it can take several months to get a decision and their passports back if applying by post.

As far as I'm aware there is no interview if you apply in person, you simply hand everything over and wait. In which case there should be no need for your step-daughter to attend. But I'd take her anyway, just in case.

Hi All

Time's flown by and now it's time for our ILR application

Amazingly it seemed easy to book an appointment - for information I just phoned up and was offered the following week for an appointment.....obviously paying the princely sum of £2025 for Wife and 17yr old Step daughter

My question is whether my step daughter needs to attend the appointment too or whether it is just my wife and I to go?

I couldn't find the answer on the UKBA site although it seems to be up and down like a yo yo at the moment anyway!

Good luck to all

TJTHAI

Hi Steve and 7by7

Thanks for the clarification on that - I think I must have been getting confused having read the citizenship stuff too!

Talking of citizenship, my stepdaughter is 17 so will go on her mum's ILR app as dependent this October. However she arrived in January 2010 as visa was refused to start with.

Does the 3 years mean that if my wife and daughter do the citizenship at the same time they'll have to wait until the January 2013 for the 3 year anniversary of my daughter arriving?

Thanks again for your help.

TJThai

Hi Steve

Thanks for your reply.

We are all here in the UK already and will be applying for ILR 28 days prior to the 2nd year anniversary which will be 26th August this year. My question is though my wife had previously been to the UK on 2 visit visas and so I wish to know whether the time spent in the UK on these visas is counted towards the 24 months and so therefore we would be able to apply earlier, by the amount of time on visit visas.

I hope that makes sense!

Cheers

Trevor

Hi all

Been a while since I been on here but have a question about ILR. My wife and stepdaughter will be applying for ILR and 24 months started October 2009.

I am sure I read somewhere that any previous trips to the UK would count as time spent and therefore we would be able to apply sooner than that.

Does anyone know if this is correct or whether I imagined it?

Shame we can't do it before the April increase as the dependent application almost doubles

Thanks in advance

Cheers

TJThai

Some on here may remember we had a 'similar' situation ourselves when we applied for Settlement Visas for my wife and step daughter last year. THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO REMEMBERS

My step daughter had not lived with my wife since she split with the father. To start with she lived with her father's grandparents and then went to boarding school in BKK. In February of last year she came to live with us permanently. We decided that we would come to live in the UK and discussed our situation with Ralph Davies at Davies Khan and he explained what we needed to prove and what documents we would need.

Firstly, as her ex-husband had custody my wife went to court to change the custody to her name. She then went to the Amphur to change the Kor Por 14 to her name also. Like your wife, my wife had been in constant contact with her daughter over the last 8 years (she had letters of communication and photos between them) but this had been in some secrecy.

When we first applied for the visa my wife passed but my stepdaughter did not - she was refused because we could not prove sole responsibility. Although in boarding school so day to day responsibility was with the school they argued that my stepdaughter's grandparents could look after her - even though we had letters stating that they were too old and had no income. We also had a letter from the father stating that he could not look after her, new family and low income, and indeed hadn't done so from the beginning.

When we got the refusal we talked to Ralph again and he advised us to send more letters from the people who had, at times, been responsible for my stepdaughter and more letters showing communication between my wife and my stepdaughter. We thought we had provided enough evidence to show that the responsibility had moved to my wife and that there was no one else that could look after her since finishing the boading school. Obviously the Embassy had another view on that and so we lodged our appeal last September and having met with our local MP in the UK and him badgering the Home Office 2 times we finally got it overturned just in time for Christmas. It was a great present and now we are all together here in Scotland.

All I can really say is that you need to think about the evidence you can provide that shows the Embassy that there has been contact and that your wife needs to look after her as no one else can. I agree with what 7by7 says and that it is going to be very hard. To be honest, I think we assumed too much with our evidence so should have really produced more at the beginning and perhaps we could have avoided the refusal.

I would recommend Ralph Davies as he helped us through the process and certainly I am sure he can best advise with your situation.

SCOOT74 I wish you all the best of luck but please feel free to PM me if you would like any further information on what we did or just want to chat.

TJTHAI

Oh yes, know the feeling. I was based in Thailand so with the time difference I would wake up and read what the UK based posters had said the night before and then it went all quiet until the lazy lot got up again

Thaivisa was always the first and last thing I read everyday and it helped mostly but sometimes it made me worry more and so I found myself telling my Wife not to read it....then sneaking a peak when she wasn't looking......I guess a bit like those other sites on the internet people have told me about - although I know nothing of them myself

I'm now UK based and looking forward to picking up my step daughter when we can actually get a flight after the festivities

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to everyone. May all your wishes be granted.

Mr & Mrs tjthai

Congratulations Mr & Mrs Ridgydidge

Looks like we both received an early Christmas present!

Good luck

Just an update.

Had a call from Embassy - My stepdaughter has just had her visa overturned

A perfect Xmas pressie.

Been having communications with our MP and it seems to have done the trick!

Exactly 6 months since the online application went in.

What a relief....hope she's ready for the weather

Thanks to everyone for their support and words of encouragement over the past months.

The very best of luck to those still waiting.

TJ

Congrats Mr & Mrs Jack31

1 day....now anybody beat that?

paulyturner

So sorry to hear you got a refusal.

As we are in the same position (different reasons - stepdaughter refused in our case) all I can really say is get the appeal faxed to the AIT as soon as possible. Hopefully the refusal notice will be more informative than ours and you can work out what the actual reason for refusal was. I do hope that you can address this reason without too much difficulty. Send the additional documents to the embassy and then I am afraid it is a waiting game....again!

I wish you the best of luck.

TJ

Good Luck Mr & Mrs paulyturner

Hua Hin - Thai news advising people not to use the PetchkASEAN Road between 23rd and 25th October!

Apparently the delegates are so important they require two 'ASEAN LANES' to ferry them and their chronies to and from their luxury hotels and do not want to be bothered with locals having the audacity to share the same road

Chok dee Hua Hin - you deserve better!

My Wife has just watched the Thai news and people are being advised to "not use the petchkasem road between 23rd and 25th"...........perhaps the jetski owners may get some benefit then as anyone familiar with the road construction in Hua Hin will know any alternative route for us lowly locals would require off roading skills far beyond most driver's abilities

I assume the beach will be accessible but then again a couple of months ago my Wife and I were asked to walk up off the beach and onto the road as 'someone important' was staying at one of the beachfront condos. We were just strolling on the beach and left our shoes on motorbike. My Wife pointed out to the policeman that we didn't wish to walk on the street barefoot and eventually we persuaded him to let us continue our walk but so as to avoid being shot we walked in the sea until well passed the 'no go area'.

I agree with d0ndela when he says it feels like Kabul - any trip off of the 'PetchkASEAN' Road' shows exactly the level of care the government has for the town of Hua Hin. The roads are appalling and seriously dangerous - especially for the majority, on motorbikes.

Just got the usual 'white knuckle ride' minivan back from Bangkok to Hua Hin and when you get to Cha am it goes back up to the bypass and then you come into Hua Hin town near Chatchai market. Apparently there are so many checkpoints the drivers are sick of it already.

The actual town centre is awash with traffic cones and more than the usual useless police watching as traffic stops for an eternity at disfunction junction! The Asean traffic has not one but two designated 'ASEAN Lanes' which slices through the main road from around Soi 102 to I'm not sure actually but possibly Chiang Rai

Driving from Soi 102 it doesn't look like you can actually u-turn at any junction so if wanting to go to say Khao Takiab you would have to drive into town and u-turn at the main lights!

As usual there has been complete an utter stupidity with regards planning. Last time every soi off the main road had to stop whilst the asean oficials and their chronies went to and from the hotels. Absolutely no regard for the inhabitants of this lovely town. This time, after their truly disastrous Pattaya meeting, they have gone completely OTT. It seems that for the whole meeting the only people that will be able to do anything are the delegates and tough to all the locals, tourists and businesses that suffer.

I feel better after that rant but some things that happen here in Thailand really do justify the Amazing in Amazing Thailand......but for all the wrong reasons!

Chok dee Hua Hin locals

Thanks CharlieB

Thanks for the info guys. Will take a look around when we get there.

Hi

Does anyone know of or have experience of ESOL (inc. Life in the UK) courses in Essex - Billericay, Basildon or Chelmsford areas? The gov website doesn't really give too much info so not sure whether private or the local college is the best way forward.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

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My Mrs arrives next Saturday after a very difficult 6 months.

You must be so excited for next Saturday! Good luck to you both, Mr & Mrs Globaleyes

Mrs horacegoestoengland

Congratulations to you both!

Congratulations Mr & Mrs learningcurve

It's Friday

Received confirmation that Settlement Visa has been processed!! 6 weeks and 2 days!!!! ......however visa company couldn't get there in time so have to wait till tomorrow..............queue 24 hours of restlessness, zero work productivity and poor sleep this evening

Well horace

In essence what I would like them to do, and indeed think I have a right to know (if I have any rights) , is how they concluded this from the documents provided i.e. THEY TELL ME WHO LOOKS AFTER MY STEPDAUGHTER?

Any advice is most welcome

IMHO it is most unlikely that the ECO/ECM would give you further reasons. I do not know your grounds of appeal to the Tribunal, but if you think they have povided inadequate reasons for their original refusal(perhaps after consultation with your representative,if any) you may amend the appeal notice(with tribunal's permission as 28 days may have already expired) to include a further ground along the lines of 'inadequate reasoning'. Then at the hearing UKBA's representative/counsel will address the same(and any other grounds of appeal) and you may hear detailed reasoning(including relevant case law) as to why they stand by their refusal. While no doubt this must be a very frustrating process for you, it appears that the final decision is now in the hands of the appeal tribunal. Don't forget, cases are settled before a full hearing and there might be scope for such settlement in your case too. Good Luck.

Thanks potter09. I will check that with my representative to make sure that is one of the reasons for appeal - I'm sure it is but will confirm.

I agree it does look like it will go to the AIT but didn't realise that it could be settled before a full hearing if warranted.

Thank you so much for giving an unbiased view of the situation. We appreciate you taking the time to explain and also, perhaps, giving us a ray of hope that it won't be the full 8 months

Thank you

Thanks simi