Uk Settlement Ilr - Dwindling Funds

[aubutie]

Hi All

My wife will be applying for ILR in about 1 months time,

The only thing that concerns me is the ability to show that I have enough money to support her without recourse to public funds, reason being is that in the last 2 years I have been the only real wage earner, mainly due to the fact that we have a 11 month old child, and have moved house, we are spending considerable more that I earn, which will show up on the bank statements etc. I earn a reasonable UK salary (£30,000) but my stateable savings will run out sometime later this year, my wife is actively trying to find work when we should be in a break even position, however she may not find it prior to the ILR application. Longer term I have other money that I can call on, however this is tied up and can't really be shown on a current bank statement. I also have an Insurance policy I can cash in if I really realy have to (however I dont want to be artificially forced into do this at this time)

question is even though i am reasonably solvent, am employed. own our house and earn a 'good' salary, how can I convince the authorities that I/we have enough money to support ourselves after the ILR without recourse to public funds, as my bank statements over the last couple of years show that I/we have been spending considerably more money than I/we earn, any advice or similar experiences would be appreciated

Up to now everything has been done by the book (and i intend to keep it that way) and we have not had any problems with visa's and had no recourtse to public funds)

[sumrit]

Hi All

My wife will be applying for ILR in about 1 months time,

The only thing that concerns me is the ability to show that I have enough money to support her without recourse to public funds, reason being is that in the last 2 years I have been the only real wage earner, mainly due to the fact that we have a 11 month old child, and have moved house, we are spending considerable more that I earn, which will show up on the bank statements etc. I earn a reasonable UK salary (£30,000) but my stateable savings will run out sometime later this year, my wife is actively trying to find work when we should be in a break even position, however she may not find it prior to the ILR application. Longer term I have other money that I can call on, however this is tied up and can't really be shown on a current bank statement. I also have an Insurance policy I can cash in if I really realy have to (however I dont want to be artificially forced into do this at this time)

question is even though i am reasonably solvent, am employed. own our house and earn a 'good' salary, how can I convince the authorities that I/we have enough money to support ourselves after the ILR without recourse to public funds, as my bank statements over the last couple of years show that I/we have been spending considerably more money than I/we earn, any advice or similar experiences would be appreciated

Up to now everything has been done by the book (and i intend to keep it that way) and we have not had any problems with visa's and had no recourtse to public funds)

I'm sure somebody will correct me if I'm wrong but I believe you have more than enough income to satisfy the ILR requirements. The fact that you currently choose to spend more than your income and so use some of your savings is neither here nor there, thats your choice to do what you want to while you have those savings available.

[gypsymoth]

Hi All

My wife will be applying for ILR in about 1 months time,

The only thing that concerns me is the ability to show that I have enough money to support her without recourse to public funds, reason being is that in the last 2 years I have been the only real wage earner, mainly due to the fact that we have a 11 month old child, and have moved house, we are spending considerable more that I earn, which will show up on the bank statements etc. I earn a reasonable UK salary (£30,000) but my stateable savings will run out sometime later this year, my wife is actively trying to find work when we should be in a break even position, however she may not find it prior to the ILR application. Longer term I have other money that I can call on, however this is tied up and can't really be shown on a current bank statement. I also have an Insurance policy I can cash in if I really realy have to (however I dont want to be artificially forced into do this at this time)

question is even though i am reasonably solvent, am employed. own our house and earn a 'good' salary, how can I convince the authorities that I/we have enough money to support ourselves after the ILR without recourse to public funds, as my bank statements over the last couple of years show that I/we have been spending considerably more money than I/we earn, any advice or similar experiences would be appreciated

Up to now everything has been done by the book (and i intend to keep it that way) and we have not had any problems with visa's and had no recourtse to public funds)

When we applied we had only about £3k in savings, and me sailing v close to the wind on current a/c, + salary not much more than half of yours, yet we've just squeaked through.

I'd been told previously by someone who claimed to know that we'd need minimum £10k to start - patently wrong. I made a strong, personable application, and (luvvy - duvvy) photos of village wedding probably helped too.

Be positive and go for it aubutie - good luck both!

[Brigante7]

From what I can remember, when my wife applied for her ILR last February, we had less than £1000 in the bank, I was told that what is more important is that you can show proof, through documentation going back atleast 2 years, that you are still in a stable relationship and are managing to live without recourse to public funds. I do believe that the amount of documentation required has changed and you now need to show less than before, hope this helps.

Brigante7.

[Boo]

Proof of ongoing relationship, proof of living together & self sustainability are the main requirements. My husband received his ILR & citizenship with zero savings and bank statements showing over drafts used often & salaries going in & out & not a lot left over at the end of each month. Anyone being told that you need thousands of pounds to get ILR should be putting in a complaint as it is not a requirement.

[7by7]

All you need to show is that you can support yourselves without recourse to the proscribed public funds.

As long as your income allows this then there is no need for any savings at all. You can even be in debt, as long as you are servicing those debts and still have enough to live on.

[chewy22]

Are tax credits considered public funds? I am looking after my son as my ex left us.

[7by7]

Tax credits are on the list of proscribed public funds. However, as a couple have to claim them jointly then a joint claim by a, for example, UK husband and foriegn wife is allowed.

I don't understand your situation, though.

What is the nationality and/or status in the UK of both you and your son?

If you are British and your son is British, whether he has dual nationality or not, then public funds and ILR are not an issue for you.

If you are British but for some reason your son is not then, to be honest, as your ex has left you and the boy then I am not sure how you regularise his status in the UK. Hopefully someone else can advise.

If neither of you are British and you do not have ILR then as your relationship with your ex has broken down then I'm afraid that you have no right to remain in the UK and must leave when or before your current leave to remain expires. Unless the marriage broke down due to your ex's violemce against you and you have police reports etc. to prove this. In which case you should contact the UKBA immediately to regularise your status and that of your son.

[chewy22]

Ok should have been more clear. I live in England now with my son and we are British, my ex wife divorced last year also British. I receive working and child tax credits. My new wife is Thai waiting for the visa in Bangkok, . We have an application for a settlement visa but after 13 weeks have no answer.

Edited June 19, 2009 by chewy22

[7by7]

She cannot claim tax credits on her own, but you can; and you can both make a joint claim once she is here.

Wont be a problem.

[chewy22]

She cannot claim tax credits on her own, but you can; and you can both make a joint claim once she is here.

Wont be a problem.

I do hope so, perhaps more details will help, and I am self-employed with my own shop and small Internet business. I get some tax credits at the moment but will probable get non in the next tax year. I think I may have put that I don’t get benefits on the application form do you think this will be a problem with my wife’s application for the settlement visa? I am very worried now that something is wrong after 13 weeks. We have no requests for any more paperwork.

[TheFiend]

Ok should have been more clear. I live in England now with my son and we are British, my ex wife divorced last year also British. I receive working and child tax credits. My new wife is Thai waiting for the visa in Bangkok, . We have an application for a settlement visa but after 13 weeks have no answer.

Under an agreement with my ex-wife child benefit for my daughter is paid to me, which then goes to my daughter. I declared this on the visa application for my wife, in case they picked up on it looking through my bank statements. I explained the situation in the sponsors letter. Technically, by child benefit rules, what me and the wife have agreed is wrong because my daughter is not with me full time.

Chewy, stop worrying. As long as you have proved that you can support your wife and have somewhere to live then they shouldn't refuse to issue the visa.

[dan7385]

Hi All

My wife will be applying for ILR in about 1 months time,

The only thing that concerns me is the ability to show that I have enough money to support her without recourse to public funds, reason being is that in the last 2 years I have been the only real wage earner, mainly due to the fact that we have a 11 month old child, and have moved house, we are spending considerable more that I earn, which will show up on the bank statements etc. I earn a reasonable UK salary (£30,000) but my stateable savings will run out sometime later this year, my wife is actively trying to find work when we should be in a break even position, however she may not find it prior to the ILR application. Longer term I have other money that I can call on, however this is tied up and can't really be shown on a current bank statement. I also have an Insurance policy I can cash in if I really realy have to (however I dont want to be artificially forced into do this at this time)

question is even though i am reasonably solvent, am employed. own our house and earn a 'good' salary, how can I convince the authorities that I/we have enough money to support ourselves after the ILR without recourse to public funds, as my bank statements over the last couple of years show that I/we have been spending considerably more money than I/we earn, any advice or similar experiences would be appreciated

Up to now everything has been done by the book (and i intend to keep it that way) and we have not had any problems with visa's and had no recourtse to public funds)

I'm sure somebody will correct me if I'm wrong but I believe you have more than enough income to satisfy the ILR requirements. The fact that you currently choose to spend more than your income and so use some of your savings is neither here nor there, thats your choice to do what you want to while you have those savings available.

[cuddleypete]

my wife just got her ILR last week we had very little in bank we were told that what is more important is that you can show proof i.e bills letter in joint names etc etc over last 2 years, and that you are still in a stable relationship and are managing to live without recourse to public funds. and now you do not need to show a great deal off paper work hope this helps.

You do not need to have 10,000 plus in bank like some people say.

pete

[nigelandjan]

my wife just got her ILR last week we had very little in bank we were told that what is more important is that you can show proof i.e bills letter in joint names etc etc over last 2 years, and that you are still in a stable relationship and are managing to live without recourse to public funds. and now you do not need to show a great deal off paper work hope this helps.

You do not need to have 10,000 plus in bank like some people say.

pete

I guess you went to Croydon ? correct as you live in Hastings ,, all I can say is from our OWN personal experience in Croydon when we got my wifes FLR there , we were interviewed by some ginger haired hippy woman, who all I can say was not that friendly towards us and told us that the ILR would be no cakewalk for us , then amongst other things she implied to us that we should be able to show at least £10.000 in savings . We have kept that money aside and will leave it that way. I also belive its a load of crap because I have tried to contact Lunar house mnay times to get further info on this but have had no joy ( no suprise ) welll nevermind it will make for some nice hols later when she gets her ILR.

You also say NOW you dont need to show alot of paperwork ,,, is this something that has recently changed ? as when we done her FLR we had to show a briefcase full including 12 months wage slips ,, 12 months bank statements ,, etc etc

[Boo]

Nigelandjan I would be contacting the home office not lunar house & making an official complaint against the person you spoke to. 10k gbp is not listed as a requirement of ILR & as many of us have attested, no one has been refused ILR even without savings.

[steve187]

Hi my wife obtained her ILR last September by personel visit to Vulcan House sheffield, A very friendly helpful staff, Dealt with in a few hours, dont forget to get a queue ticket from security on entry, We had to show documents for both of us going back over the last two years, We did four bits each for each year with some extras just in case,My wife is working we had her pay slips and i'm self employed, showed bank statements, no savings at all, just the normal money in and out of my account.

[spike31]

Wife and stepdaughter got issued with ILR on Friday, the whole postal process took approx 4 weeks from submission.

We sent bank details going back 6 months and ours too showed expenditure a little above income. We submitted all of the info requested on the new application form and included a few photos and a copy of my mortgage statement for good measure.

I must comment that during the times we have had any dealings with officials in the Uk be it by phone or face to face they have been thoroughly courteous and extremely helpful.

Good luck with your application as it was a great relief off our minds Friday morning

[nigelandjan]

Wife and stepdaughter got issued with ILR on Friday, the whole postal process took approx 4 weeks from submission.

We sent bank details going back 6 months and ours too showed expenditure a little above income. We submitted all of the info requested on the new application form and included a few photos and a copy of my mortgage statement for good measure.

I must comment that during the times we have had any dealings with officials in the Uk be it by phone or face to face they have been thoroughly courteous and extremely helpful.

Good luck with your application as it was a great relief off our minds Friday morning

Well done mate to your family,,,,,, just for the recordwhich UKBA issued their ILR,S ??

[mickyboy]

Hi All

My wife will be applying for ILR in about 1 months time,

The only thing that concerns me is the ability to show that I have enough money to support her without recourse to public funds, reason being is that in the last 2 years I have been the only real wage earner, mainly due to the fact that we have a 11 month old child, and have moved house, we are spending considerable more that I earn, which will show up on the bank statements etc. I earn a reasonable UK salary (£30,000) but my stateable savings will run out sometime later this year, my wife is actively trying to find work when we should be in a break even position, however she may not find it prior to the ILR application. Longer term I have other money that I can call on, however this is tied up and can't really be shown on a current bank statement. I also have an Insurance policy I can cash in if I really realy have to (however I dont want to be artificially forced into do this at this time)

question is even though i am reasonably solvent, am employed. own our house and earn a 'good' salary, how can I convince the authorities that I/we have enough money to support ourselves after the ILR without recourse to public funds, as my bank statements over the last couple of years show that I/we have been spending considerably more money than I/we earn, any advice or similar experiences would be appreciated

Up to now everything has been done by the book (and i intend to keep it that way) and we have not had any problems with visa's and had no recourtse to public funds)

[7by7]

just for the recordwhich UKBA issued their ILR,S ??

Err.......there's only one.

[pingit]

She cannot claim tax credits on her own, but you can; and you can both make a joint claim once she is here.

Wont be a problem.

I dont understand 7by7, if you are not allowed to use public funds then why can you claim tax credits? My son is a UK citizen with Dual nationality and we applied for the tax credits and was told we are not eligible for them as Oa is subject to immigration.

[7by7]

Working tax credits are on the list of proscribed public funds, which means any immigrant subject the the 'no public funds' condition cannot claim them. However, tax credit rules say that a couple must make a joint claim. In which case the no public funds prohibition is waived.

From the Home Office leaflet 'N o r e c o u r s e t o p u b l i c f u n d s'

My partner is allowed to claim tax credits - can I claim them too?

Claims for child and working tax credits are assessed jointly. If you are living with a spouse or partner who is allowed to claim tax credits, your name may be included in the claim.

we applied for the tax credits and was told we are not eligible for them as Oa is subject to immigration.

Whoever told you this was wrong. Submit your claim, and if necessary point them towards the above document.

Edit.

Just had a thought. Your wife is not yet in the UK with a settlement visa, correct? If you tried to claim while she was here with a visit visa then that is different. She was not a resident so you could not make a joint claim.

Edited June 27, 2009 by 7by7

[borodave]

7by7

I think where people are confused is there think the sponser is not entitled to public funds.

as i read it they are, it is the person they are sponsering is not entitled

Tax credits is different as you must claim as a couple but you will get no extra

People think that if there are claiming the likes of tax credits cant get a ILRs for their sponser

Or is it that none of them can be claiming

can anyone confirm please

Edited June 28, 2009 by borodave

[sumrit]

7by7

I think where people are confused is there think the sponser is not entitled to public funds.

as i read it they are, it is the person they are sponsering is not entitled

Tax credits is different as you must claim as a couple but you will get no extra

People think that if there are claiming the likes of tax credits cant get a ILRs for their sponser

Or is it that none of them can be claiming

can anyone confirm please

You're right Dave. A sponsor is allowed to claim themselves but the person they are sponsoring can't claim in their own right.

With tax credits the claim has to be made jointly. I know somebody who has been claiming tax credits since the beginning of

last year and his wife received her ILR in February of this year without any problems.

[learningcurve]

I was looking into this the other day, the way I understand is: although child benefit and family tax credit is a public fund it can be claimed without having any negative effect on any visa application. I found this on the UKBA website (Immigration rules and regulations)

[borodave]

I was looking into this the other day, the way I understand is: although child benefit and family tax credit is a public fund it can be claimed without having any negative effect on any visa application. I found this on the UKBA website (Immigration rules and regulations)

Tax credits was introduced as a top up to people on the lower end of household income, and does not mean you are unable to support yourself and the applicant.

The Applicant is not allowed to make a claim for the above, but must be included as a partner of someone claiming.

Reason if applicant was working then their salary would be included against (as total income) your claim, but if not working then you would not be able to claim extra as a couple.

Edited July 4, 2009 by borodave