Application - Return to UK On Foreign Freelance Contract

[Cello]

Hi all,

 

Counter to my other thread, the other possible option for my return to the UK is my current employer continuing my contract from Japan and employing me in the UK on a freelance basis. 

 

I understand and meet the financial requirements with my work in Bangkok. I have a possible offer of a job with in the UK, pending a few questions from employer (see other thread) but this is yet confirmed. I also may receive a 12 month freelance contract (maybe on a self employed basis) from my current company (HQ in Japan) to work in the UK. I've been working for them full time from my office in BKK for 10 years.

 

Hopefully I finalize a job before we leave so we can initiate the application and my wife can come over with the 2.5 year spouse visa, but if not she may need to initially come over on a 6 month tourist visa.

 

• If I am given a 12 month freelance contract (self employed, but with signed contract and cover letter) from a company in Japan with a guaranteed salary, maybe in Japanese yen, that exceeds the minimum threshold, would that work with the system?
• I believe this application need to be made from my wife’s country of origin, or can a 6 month tourist visa be converted?

 

If she comes on tourist visa and my wife returns to Thailand to apply, I’ve read the previous 12 months’ salary is combined to see if it meets the threshold. I understand there’s a 3 month grace period if I apply before I leave.

 

• Are the months in between added to the calculation or is it just the previous 12 months where you’ve actually worked? i.e. We move in December but my new job in the UK begins in February; that’s 2 months unpaid and will those two months be used when calculating the total for the previous 12 months
• If new job starts after 4 months of returning then I will need to work at the new job for a further 6 months before reapplying. Is that correct?

 

Sorry for the barrage of questions. I did try and find the info on the gov website but found it tricky, as they cover all basis and I got in a muddle over all the different options and circumstances covered.

 

Thanks fr reading through regardless!

Cello

[7by7]

On ‎26‎/‎09‎/‎2017 at 3:26 AM, Cello said:

If I am given a 12 month freelance contract (self employed, but with signed contract and cover letter) from a company in Japan with a guaranteed salary, maybe in Japanese yen, that exceeds the minimum threshold, would that work with the system?

 

I think, but am not sure, that provided you are paid into a UK bank account and pay UK tax etc., then it would count as self employed income for the purposes of meeting the financial requirement.

 

But: as far as I can see, unlike employed people,  there is no provision in the requirement for a self employed person moving back to the UK and continuing in their self employment once here!!! (See "9. Self-employment or Director or employee of a specified limited company in the UK" of the financial requirement.)

 

Which means you would have to be self employed in the UK for at least a full financial year before your wife could apply!

 

Is there anyway you could be classed as employed; both now and after you move to the UK? If so, then you could come under "5.2. Category A: With current employer for 6 months or more – overseas sponsor returning to the UK."

 

On ‎26‎/‎09‎/‎2017 at 3:26 AM, Cello said:

I believe this application need to be made from my wife’s country of origin, or can a 6 month tourist visa be converted?

You are correct. Standard visit visas, which includes family visit visas, cannot be converted to settlement inside the UK. Your wife does not necessarily have to return to her country of origin to apply for a UK settlement visa; she can do so in her country of legal residence, even if she is not a citizen of that country.

 

On ‎26‎/‎09‎/‎2017 at 3:26 AM, Cello said:

 

• Are the months in between added to the calculation or is it just the previous 12 months where you’ve actually worked? i.e. We move in December but my new job in the UK begins in February; that’s 2 months unpaid and will those two months be used when calculating the total for the previous 12 months

If using "5.4. Category B: Less than 6 months with current employer or variable income – overseas sponsor returning to the UK" then your overseas income from your previous job will be based upon the 12 months prior to the application, not the 12 months prior to moving to the UK or starting work once here.

 

On ‎26‎/‎09‎/‎2017 at 3:26 AM, Cello said:

If new job starts after 4 months of returning then I will need to work at the new job for a further 6 months before reapplying. Is that correct?

Yes, you must have a confirmed. definite job offer starting within three months of returning to the UK. If it's longer, even three months and one day, then you cannot use it for this purpose. So your wife would need to wait until you have been employed in the UK for at least 6 months before she could apply for settlement.

 

It seems to me that you have a lot of options, and advising you on the best one is next to impossible without going into far more personal detail than is wise on a public forum; even if my knowledge stretched that far! Maybe discussing these with a reputable agent may be worthwhile? I'd recommend one of the forum sponsors; Thai Visa Express.