We are looking to move back to the UK from Thailand at the end of June 2018.  I have been reading through the gov.uk website and I am confused as to which visa my soon to be wife should apply for.  From what I can see there are two types:  Family Visa & Settlement Visa [Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR)].

 

From what I have read it seems that she would apply for a "Family Visa (33 months)" which would allow her to live and work in the UK, and then extend this once while in the UK in order to then apply for the ILR.  Once she has had the ILR for 12 months she can apply for British citizenship.  

 

However, there is confusion on the application for an ILR visa as it states:

 

Eligibility
You need to have been living in the UK with a ‘partner of a settled person’ visa for:

• 2 years if you applied for your visa before 9 July 2012
• 5 years or 10 years if you applied for your visa on or after 9 July 2012

 

Question 1:

As I am not a settled person but a British Citizen by birth does this then apply to my case?  Or put another way, can my wife apply directly for an ILR without first living in the UK with me on a Family Visa?

 

Here are some details of our situation:

 

1. I am a British citizen by parentage and born in the UK living there for my first 21 years. (i.e. not settled)
2. I have been living and working (legally) in Thailand for 26 years. 
3. Engaged to a Thai citizen who holds a university degree and works at an international school with fluency in English. 
4. We plan to marry in February 2018.  We met in Nov. 2016.
5. Fiancé has already visited the UK with me in July 2017 on a visit visa.

 

Question 2:

Do I need to prove that I am employed in the UK and if so what length of employment needs to be shown?  If not, can I show accessible savings that can support the minimum requirement for the length of the visa i.e.  £18,600 / 12 months * 33 months = £51,150.

 

Ideally we want to go together at the end of June and not be separated.  All factual answers to my two questions are greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you.

 

 

The UKVI terms are, I'm sure, designed to confuse, you are the settled person even though you're not living in the UK at the moment.

Your spouse will need to apply for a Settlement Visa, you will need to satisfy the UKVI that you meet the minimum income requirements and have suitable accomadation to go to and she will need to pass an English test, though this can be waived if she has certain acceptable qualifications, she will need to take a TB test to prove she is clear of disease.

You apply online and the supporting documents need to be sent to Sheffield, the fee and a the NHS Surcharge also needs to be paid online and she needs to visit the Visa Application Centre to have a biometric details captured. You need to be aware that the Sheffield application section is in a mess at the moment and there seems to be no signs of improvement at the moment.

If and when the Settlement Visa is approved she can travel to the UK, she has to do so pretty quickly, where she needs to collect her Biometric Residence Permit from a designated Post Office.
This allows her to live and work in the UK for 30 months, after which she has to apply for FLR (Further Leave to Remain), another application fee and NHS Surcharge and another language test, if her language skills are good she might well take the higher test at the Settlement Visa Stage.

After a further 30 months she can apply for ILR, no she cannot do it at the initial stage.

 

Regarding quuestion 2, I've attatched the financial requirement instructions.

 

There is a sticky at the top of the page but it's in the process of being updated, I'm afraid my Christmas trip to Europe has delayed this somewhat.

 

If you have any more questions please feel free to ask.

Appendix_FM_1_7_Financial_Requirement_August_2015.pdf

Settlement Rules.pdf

Settlement supporting documents guide.pdf

Many thanks!