Uk Tourist Visa Rejected - Help To Re-apply

[kiran5000]

Hi there,

would be great if any one could help me with this .

I did a one year internship in New York and made a really good friend from Thailand who also was on the internship program. We were best friends throughout the whole year.

The program ended four months ago and she returned to Thailand and I came back home to the UK. I thought it would be cool for her to spend the summer here with me and she could do some sightseeing and meet my friends and family. I was going to go back to Thailand with her in September for a month. She is due to start University in October which is why now is the best timing. We currently both dont have jobs which I no looks bad. She was excited to come to the UK and rushed the visa application. We didn't think it would really be a problem getting the visa as she got a tourist visa to the UK last summer for a one weeks holiday and she also had a J1 visa for the USA for 13 months.

As I had very little money in my bank account and was claiming job seekers allowance I asked my sister to write a supporting letter for her application as she had a job and enough money to show evidence that she was able to support her. My sister came to visit me in New York for two weeks so my friend and my sister know each other. My sister was happy to support her as I gave money to my sister during her university days and is basically just paying me back. On the application my friend said that her parents are currently supporting her and she said she had savings of 1500 pounds. My friend was unable to get her parents bank statements and she really didn't have 1500 pounds in savings so could not show any evidence. The only supporting evidence submitted with the application was my sisters letter and her bank statement.

The visa application got refused for the following reasons. There was no evidence of how she was currently supporting herself and also there was no evidence of how she knew my sister and why she would pay for her and support her trip. Looking back there was obvious mistakes with the visa application. It has now been a month since her visa got rejected and she would like to apply again.

This time round my friend is going to say her uncle is currently supporting her and she will submit his bank statement as evidence. I will submit a lengthy supporting letter for my friend saying how we know each other and that my parents will be providing accommodation, food and travel. I will also get my parents to write a letter to support this and submit the house deeds. I will state that my sister is happy to pay any of her other expenses as returning the favor of when I gave her money during university. I will state the reason that me and my family are supporting her is that I will return with her to Thailand and she will be returning the favor. I will also submit photos of us of our good times in New York. I will get the internship program to write a letter that we know each other and we became good friends and shared an apartment. My friend is also going to deposit 1500 pounds into her bank account to show she has savings as stated in her last application.

Would the above be enough evidence for her visa application?

Would depositing a lump sum of money right before the visa interview cause any problems?

Would saying that her uncle is currently supporting her instead of her parents as stated in her last application cause any problems?

Am I albe to sponsor my friend even though I curretly dont have a job and I am claiming job seekers allowance?

Sorry for the lenghy boring essay above just wanted to give as much details as possible and I really dont want my friend to get her visa rejected again! Also this will look bad for her record.

Any help on this would be fantastic!

THANKS

[CharlieB]

Would the above be enough evidence for her visa application?

It certainly will look better than her previous application. Do not forget to address the reason to return question that hangs over all visit visa applications. For this you already have the ideal reason, provide evidence of her attending university in October. If her fees have already been paid, supply the receipt too. Does she have any assets in Thailand, land, house? Provide evidence of this.

Would depositing a lump sum of money right before the visa interview cause any problems?

This is not a good idea. The ECOs will have seen a large sum deposited right before a visa application a million times and know that it isn't the applicants money, but an attempt to show they have money that they don't actually have. Better to spend money on her uni fees to firm up her reason to return.

Would saying that her uncle is currently supporting her instead of her parents as stated in her last application cause any problems?

Another bad idea. Submitting one application saying her parents are supporting her and then another a month later saying something completely different is not going to look good. They will wonder if she is lying to them now, on the first application or has lied both times. Lying on an application can result in a visa application ban for up to ten years. Who decided she should lie on the initial application, because it was a bad move. It's always the best policy to be truthful on the application, or you risk them finding out and deciding to reject any future applications. You have now made the second application slightly harder too, because you have to try and hide the first lie.

Am I albe to sponsor my friend even though I curretly dont have a job and I am claiming job seekers allowance?

Probably not as you have no job and therefore probably insufficient savings to show you can pay for her flight and expenses while she is in the UK.

All you have to provide is a reason for visiting the UK, evidence of a place to stay, evidence of funds to cover her flights and expenses and the most important piece, evidence that she has a reason to comply with the visa rules and return to Thailand before the visa ends. There was no need to say how she is being supported now. All you had to do was say she is starting Uni in October and is therefore living at home and being supported by her parents. You don't need to prove who is supporting her in Thailand, the ECO is only interested in who is going to be supporting her in the UK and that she won't overstay her visa and cost the UK taxpayer money to remove her.

Hope this helps. Remember, be honest and the most important piece of a visit visa is the reason to return to Thailand and she has that with her plans to attend uni.

[7by7]

As CharlieB says, she must address each and every point of the first refusal or she will just get refused again.

The problem is, as she lied in her previous application she is now going to contradict herself! For example, she said in her previous application that she had £1500, this time she is going to show a bank deposit of this amount dated after the previous application! The ECO is going to want to know what happened to the original £1500 and where this £1500 came from!

All I can suggest is that she comes clean and admits to her previous lies; hoping that her honesty and contrition this time round will be enough to satisfy the ECO's inevitable doubts about her.

Yes, you can be her sponsor, even though you are not offering financial support yourself. You should write a sponsor's letter and include brief details of how and when you met; how often you have visited her in Thailand if you have, with a copy of you passport showing the entry/exit stamps; how often you contact each other, with evidence such as phone bills etc.; what your relationship is and your future plans together, if any; and the reason for the visit at this time.

Whoever is paying for the trip should also write to say why they are doing so, provide evidence of their ability to do so and say how they know her.

Similarly, whoever is offering her accommodation should also write a letter of invitation, including a brief description of the accommodation they are offering, to show that there is room for her, with evidence that they can offer such accommodation; a mortgage statement or similar if they own; a landlord's letter if they rent.

Good luck with this; I'm afraid that you are going to need it.

Edited for typos.

Edited June 30, 2009 by 7by7