rayza

[ray richards]

I cant go back to Thailand because of major health problems needing major surgery in England.

I have a Thai girlfriend of 4 yrs & she has been to England to stay with me for 2 x 6 month periods .

Now because of my serious health problems we both would like her to come & take care of me for 1 or 2 yr continuous until i hopefully feel better in my health ?

 Would it be better to explain this to U.K visa upon application ? do they have any compassion regarding this.

My girlfriend will be applying soon as she only went back to Thailand the end of Oct 2017.

We do plan to get married a.s.a.p when she returns to the u.k for whatever period is allowed so that if i die she will have my house etc etc.

Thanks,, your thoughts please

[7by7]

A marriage visit visa would not be suitable as this would only allow a maximum of 6 months in the UK, at the end of which she would have to return to Thailand and apply for the appropriate visa to enter the UK again.

 

As you want her to stay in the UK for some time, at least 1 or 2 years you say, you plan to marry but you cannot travel to Thailand to marry there, then the only option is for her to apply for settlement as your fiance.

 

This visa is valid for 6 months, during which time she arrives in the UK, you marry and she then applies to extend her stay for 30 months (Further Leave to Remain) at the end of which she applies again for FLR to extend her stay for a further 30 months after which she can apply for indefinite settlement, also known as Indefinite Leave to Remain.

 

See Family visas: apply, extend or switch for the initial visa and FLR.

 

See  Apply to settle in the UK: You can apply as the partner of a British citizen or person settled in the UK for ILR.

 

You will need to meet the financial requirement, but if you are in receipt of certain benefits, such as DLA, this can be met by what is called adequate maintenance. See '3.6. Meeting the financial requirement through “adequate maintenance” ' in the link.

Were you to die after you had married and she'd received her first FLR but before she'd received ILR, she would be able to apply immediately for ILR as your bereaved spouse; see Apply to settle in the UK: You can apply as the partner of a British citizen or person settled in the UK who has died

 

 

Edited November 25, 2017 by 7by7

[ray richards]

Ok thanks that explains most things that we can try.

[ray richards]

can you tell me 7by7 what is the typical cost for further leave to remain for extra 30 months ? ive heard as much as £2,000 for the extension visa from London, im sure this cant be true???

[7by7]

1 hour ago, ray richards said:

ive heard as much as £2,000 for the extension visa from London, im sure this cant be true???

Unfortunately it can be! The current, 2017/18, fees are as follows.

 

Initial visa (Thailand): £1464; paid in USD at an exchange rate set by and very favourable to the Home Office; so add another 5 to 8% to that!

 

FLR (UK): £993 if applying by post, £1583 if applying in person for a same day decision. Remember that if she comes as a fiance she will need to make two FLR applications, one after the wedding and the second 30 months after that.

 

ILR (UK): £2297 if applying by post, £2887 if applying in person.

 

Historically, these fees have been increased each April by more than inflation.

 

The Home Office's own figures show that the fees charged for nearly all visa and leave to remain applications are way above the actual cost of processing those applications.

 

From that document, the processing costs of those applications mentioned above are:

• initial visa: £423, 
• FLR: £147,
• ILR: £252.

I firmly believe that visa and leave to remain applicants should pay a fair fee which covers the cost of processing their application. However, such blatant profiteering (1045.6% profit on an in person ILR application!)  by this and previous governments since Blair's introduced the principle of applications making large profits is, in my opinion, disgraceful.

 

In addition to the exorbitant fees, she will need to pay the NHS surcharge of, currently, £500 with each of her FLR applications.

[ray richards]

Thanks very much 7by7 that explains many costings, its not cheap.

My g/f or next year wife will maybe have to come only on another 6 month u.k general visit visa  as this is a 1 off payment of £100.+ health ins etc

Is their a maximum amount of times that a 6 month u.k general visit visa can be issued ?

many Thanks Again for all the info

[Mattd]

11 hours ago, ray richards said:

Is their a maximum amount of times that a 6 month u.k general visit visa can be issued ?

A person can come and go as many times as they want whilst the visit visa is valid, however, if your GF was to make frequent visits to the UK and stay for long periods of time, then this may become a reason for immigration to refuse her entry, as it could be construed as her living in the UK without the proper visa / permission.

For example, you state that she returned from a 6 month visa at the end of October, so if she were to return again in say early December with the intention of staying another 6 months, this may well raise a flag to the immigration officer processing her upon entry to the UK.

This is due to Appendix V 4.2 of the immigration rules (V being visitor)

 

Genuine intention to visit

V 4.2 The applicant must satisfy the decision maker that they are a genuine visitor. This means that the applicant:

(a) will leave the UK at the end of their visit; and

(b) will not live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits, or make the UK their main home; and

(c) is genuinely seeking entry for a purpose that is permitted by the visitor routes (these are listed in Appendices 3, 4 and 5); and

(d) will not undertake any prohibited activities set out in V 4.5 – V 4.10; and

(e) must have sufficient funds to cover all reasonable costs in relation to their visit without working or accessing public funds. This includes the cost of the return or onward journey, any costs relating to dependents, and the cost of planned activities such as private medical treatment.

[ray richards]

Thanks Mttd,

My g/f would be coming to the u.k to take care of me so that i can recover from major surgery will she be given clearance as a genuine visitor if she puts that on her application form??

[Mattd]

3 minutes ago, ray richards said:

Thanks Mttd,

My g/f would be coming to the u.k to take care of me so that i can recover from major surgery will she be given clearance as a genuine visitor if she puts that on her application form??

I'd imagine that this will be entirely up to the Entry Clearance Officer at that point in time on how compassionate he / she is and whether or not they believe your GF, so any documentation to support the situation that she can have with her would surely help.

Does she have an existing visa, or will she need to have to reapply for a new one?

[bobrussell]

I suspect an ECO will want more information as someone coming over as a carer would not be a simple visitor. They might even decide this is unpaid work in which case the visa will be refused.

My thoughts would be that you want her to come with you for moral and emotional support rather than as a carer.

Documentation to show the operation and your entitlement to the treatment if it is under the NHS!

[7by7]

On ‎28‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 9:55 AM, ray richards said:

My g/f would be coming to the u.k to take care of me so that i can recover from major surgery will she be given clearance as a genuine visitor if she puts that on her application form??

 

On ‎28‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 3:13 PM, bobrussell said:

They might even decide this is unpaid work in which case the visa will be refused

 In my opinion they will definitely decide this is unpaid work; and nearly all sorts of work at all, paid or unpaid, is forbidden to standard visit visa holders!

 

I recall a topic a while back from someone whose mother in law had been refused because she said she would be providing child care for her grandchildren while in the UK!

 

On ‎28‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 3:13 PM, bobrussell said:

Documentation to show the operation and your entitlement to the treatment if it is under the NHS!

Why? He's a British citizen and resident. What bearing does his entitlement, or otherwise, to NHS treatment have on his girlfriend's visa application?

[Tony M]

An application would not/should not be refused on the grounds that the applicant intends to work in the UK. Even the UKVI realise that there are probably compassionate aspects to such an application.  Basically, the applicant must satisfy the general visitor requirements. Partly this is because the immigration rules don't define specifically what a general visitor is. There was an appeal determination on this a few years ago. An application could also be made, and be treated, outside of the immigration rules in certain circumstances, but generally a visa is likely to be granted (if it is genuine, and the applicant qualifies for a visit visa) to allow the applicant to arrange for long time care in the UK, if necessary, for the sponsor/relative/friend.  To quote from the guidance :

There is no provision in the Immigration Rules for issuing entry clearance on the basis of an applicant coming to the UK to care for a sick family member or friend. A person who wishes to enter the UK to provide short-term care or make alternative arrangements for the long term care of a friend/relative may do so under the Rules relating to general visitors.

See the attached document

 

Child care, often by grandparents, is an entirely different matter, as, generally, it is done to allow the parents of the child to go out to work, not because the children need care.

section2.pdf

[ray richards]

Thanks for the info.

Just to answer Mattd. My g/f visa expired at the end of Oct 2017, she went back home in good time without any overstay, she intends to re apply in Jan 2018, we are both hoping she can have a 1 or 2 yr stay as i will be sick for a long period & i will be totally be dependant on her in that period.

[Tony M]

22 minutes ago, ray richards said:

Thanks for the info.

Just to answer Mattd. My g/f visa expired at the end of Oct 2017, she went back home in good time without any overstay, she intends to re apply in Jan 2018, we are both hoping she can have a 1 or 2 yr stay as i will be sick for a long period & i will be totally be dependant on her in that period.

 

She will not get 1 or 2 years as a visitor. That is not possible, even in a compassionate application. She can only get that sort of time period with a settlement visa.  If you apply for a visit visa of 1 or 2 year duration as a carer, she will be refused, and she not get a visit visa in any future application.

[Mattd]

21 minutes ago, ray richards said:

Just to answer Mattd. My g/f visa expired at the end of Oct 2017

Thanks for the reply, I do hope that the application in January goes well for you both, based on the info from all posters, it seems that your only option is to apply for a visit visa for your girlfriend, it might be worth going for either a 2 or 5 year visit visa this time (validity period of the visa, not duration of visit), even though your girlfriend can only stay in the UK for a maximum of 6 months at a time and would have to fly back to Thailand at the end of 6 months.

This would  at least save the hassle of having to re-apply for every visit.

Your biggest issues are going to be persuading the ECO at the embassy that the visits are genuine and that your girlfriend is not trying to circumnavigate the visa rules by visiting the UK often on visit visas.

Your health and her caring for you could be plus and a negative for the application, depending on how it is presented and the ECO's take on it.

If it is approved, then it would be critical that she never overstays her permission to stay in the UK and abides with the rules rigidly, any deviation would jeopardize future visits or visas.

[bobrussell]

18 hours ago, 7by7 said:

 

 

"Why? He's a British citizen and resident. What bearing does his entitlement, or otherwise, to NHS treatment have on his girlfriend's visa application?"

Why not? If the visa is to be based on the medical needs of the applicants UK based partner then it would seem logical to provide evidence that this is genuine. Indeed TonyM's link shows a need to provide a specialist letter to confirm this as a reason to visit.

To show he is entitled to NHS treatment he just has to show he is a UK resident so again I say "why not?"

All the more important should there be consideration through compassionate and compelling reasons outside the normal visit visa rules.

 

Time and time again we suggest applicants make sure all boxes are ticked to minimise the possibility of an ECO refusing a visa on sometimes spurious grounds.

Of course his entitlement to care is relevant and fortunately very easy to demonstrate  for a British citizen resident in the UK.

 

[ray richards]

Many thanks guys for all the advice.

The 2 to 5 year visit visa sounds a great idea, it would be no problem for my g/f to go back to Thailand & stay to visit her family after each 6 month in the u.k as long as she will be allowed to return after 2 or 4 weeks back to take care of me.

I have spoken to my Cancer specialist & he says he will give us both all the support & documentation signed by him for any issues the immigration dept may have, i am facing a long medical road ahead & nobody is sure of the outcome regarding my forthcoming surgery.

As i said before we are a very genuine couple, my will is made out for my g/f along with equal share's to my daughters so its incredible how difficult it is to get this all over to the visa people.

Thanks again.

[Tony M]

On 12/6/2017 at 8:17 PM, ray richards said:

Many thanks guys for all the advice.

The 2 to 5 year visit visa sounds a great idea, it would be no problem for my g/f to go back to Thailand & stay to visit her family after each 6 month in the u.k as long as she will be allowed to return after 2 or 4 weeks back to take care of me.

I have spoken to my Cancer specialist & he says he will give us both all the support & documentation signed by him for any issues the immigration dept may have, i am facing a long medical road ahead & nobody is sure of the outcome regarding my forthcoming surgery.

As i said before we are a very genuine couple, my will is made out for my g/f along with equal share's to my daughters so its incredible how difficult it is to get this all over to the visa people.

Thanks again.

I don't think that you understand what you are being told.  She cannot live in the UK by using visit visas. Going back to Thailand for a couple of weeks, and then returning to UK to look after you for another 6 months does not constitute "visits".  She will be refused entry for using visit visas to reside in the UK. The accepted minimum period out of UK, between visits, is 6 months, although this is not written in stone.

[7by7]

Indeed, paragraph V 4.2(b) of appendix V: visitor rules says

Quote

V 4.2 The applicant must satisfy the decision maker that they are a genuine visitor. This means that the applicant:

(b) will not live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits, or make the UK their main home

The decision maker can be either an ECO assessing a visa application, or a Border Force Officer at her port of entry to the UK. Remember that being in possession of a valid visa does not guarantee UK entry if UK Border Force believe that the reasons for granting the visa are no longer valid or entry would in some way be against the immigration rules

 

This is reflected in the Home Office Guidance to staff

Quote

Frequent or successive visits: how to assess if an applicant is making the UK their main home or place of work See: paragraph V 4.2(b) of appendix V: visitor rules.
 
You should check the applicant’s travel history, including how long they are spending in the UK and how frequently they are returning. You must assess if they are, in effect, making the UK their main home ......

........There is no specified maximum period which an individual can spend in the UK in any period such as ‘6 months in 12 months’. However, if it is clear from an individual’s travel history that they are making the UK their home you should refuse their application.  
 

 

 

[ray richards]

Ok thanks very much, i didnt understand the rules but its much clearer to me now.