Help With Thai Gf Getting A Uk Visa

[KunMatt]

I'm sure I could have found the answer to this by trawling through the archives but it's easier just to start a new topic.

I want my gf to come to UK with me in October, or if it's not possible to get a Visa for her by then, then for Xmas. We've been together since April, both same age, travelled all around Thailand together etc so lots of photos together and proof of relationship. She doesn't have a job, owns a load of land and her family are well off. She has no relatives in UK or anything like that, I own a house in Enlgand where we'd stay.

I'm now on a job in Oz so I don't have any paperwork such as bank statements etc and I can't be there to help her with anything. The plan is the next time I have leave we will spend it in UK instead of Thailand as I've been doing, so when I go back to work she goes back to Thailand, I could travel with her if it helps.

She's got a list of what we need to apply for a visa from a shop who would arrange the visa for us but the things they are asking for intrudes far too much into my privacy for my liking, i.e. photos of my house, my birth cert, a death cert (??? no idea whose!), and 6 months of my bank statements etc.

So,

1. What is the easiest way for her to get a UK visa to travel to the UK for one month. Get a visa on her own or a sponsored visa with me?

2. What visas are available for her? Ideally I'd like to get a 1 year as this would let us go to Gibraltar in the future if we want to visit my mum, and multiple entry would be good so we dont have to worry about doing this again in the next year.

3. If I sponsor her do I need to fly to/from the UK with her?

4. I'm a freelancer so I cannot provide any certificate of employment or employer details that they are asking for and I also dont get paid every single month, is this going to be a problem?

5. Could I just put, say, 1m baht in her bank account and let her apply for a visa on her own?

6. What are the chances of her getting a visa? I don't want to go through all of this, give a shop and the embassy all details about my life and financial affairs just to be knocked back over some small tecnicality they choose to use.

So that's my case, I'm sure a lot of guys here have been through this before and I'd appreciate any advice and help.

Thanks.

[ThaiVisaExpress]

So,

1. What is the easiest way for her to get a UK visa to travel to the UK for one month. Get a visa on her own or a sponsored visa with me?

You must sponsor her unless she has funds herself and accommodation ?

2. What visas are available for her? Ideally I'd like to get a 1 year as this would let us go to Gibraltar in the future if we want to visit my mum, and multiple entry would be good so we don't have to worry about doing this again in the next year.

You will struggle to get a 1 year visa first time a 6 month multi entry is your best bet.

3. If I sponsor her do I need to fly to/from the UK with her?

No

4. I'm a freelancer so I cannot provide any certificate of employment or employer details that they are asking for and I also don't get paid every single month, is this going to be a problem?

You must show you have sufficient funds to maintain and accommodate her whilst in the UK to fund the trip.

5. Could I just put, say, 1m baht in her bank account and let her apply for a visa on her own?

Are you going to write a letter explaining that you have deposited this amount for the trip they will obviously want to see the funds if she is sponsoring herself.

6. What are the chances of her getting a visa? I don't want to go through all of this, give a shop and the embassy all details about my life and financial affairs just to be knocked back over some small technicality they choose to use

Reason to return and her economic ties to her host country are all taken into account with each application.Why should you be different to anyone else everyone has to supply personal details about their background etc. This is the UK/BA you are dealing with gaining entry clearance is becoming more difficult as I'm sure you are aware.

If you require professional help feel free to pm me or contact myself we are not a shop we have an office both in the UK/Pattaya.

[KunMatt]

So,

1. What is the easiest way for her to get a UK visa to travel to the UK for one month. Get a visa on her own or a sponsored visa with me?

You must sponsor her unless she has funds herself and accommodation ?

2. What visas are available for her? Ideally I'd like to get a 1 year as this would let us go to Gibraltar in the future if we want to visit my mum, and multiple entry would be good so we don't have to worry about doing this again in the next year.

You will struggle to get a 1 year visa first time a 6 month multi entry is your best bet.

3. If I sponsor her do I need to fly to/from the UK with her?

No

4. I'm a freelancer so I cannot provide any certificate of employment or employer details that they are asking for and I also don't get paid every single month, is this going to be a problem?

You must show you have sufficient funds to maintain and accommodate her whilst in the UK to fund the trip.

5. Could I just put, say, 1m baht in her bank account and let her apply for a visa on her own?

Are you going to write a letter explaining that you have deposited this amount for the trip they will obviously want to see the funds if she is sponsoring herself.

6. What are the chances of her getting a visa? I don't want to go through all of this, give a shop and the embassy all details about my life and financial affairs just to be knocked back over some small technicality they choose to use

Reason to return and her economic ties to her host country are all taken into account with each application.Why should you be different to anyone else everyone has to supply personal details about their background etc. This is the UK/BA you are dealing with gaining entry clearance is becoming more difficult as I'm sure you are aware.

If you require professional help feel free to pm me or contact myself we are not a shop we have an office both in the UK/Pattaya.

Thanks very much for the advice. I'll bear that all in mind.

By 6 months bank statements does that mean how much is in my bank each month, or a list of all my transactions??

I have more than enough money in my account now to support us both for longer than the trip we plan to take so can I just provide them with them my current bank statement and thats all?

Cheers.

[7by7]

The ECO will want to see a clear picture of your finances if you are going to be paying for the trip; or hers if she is paying or both of you if you are sharing the cost. The guidance merely says 'recent' but I reckon 6 months worth of actual, full bank statements is best.

Remember you don't just have to show that she or you can afford the ticket, but that she will be supported and accommodated in the UK without her working or recourse to public funds.

Sudden, large, unexplained deposits into a bank are bound to cause suspicion; so if you are going to put money into her account you should explain in the application why you did so and what it is for.

You may find the information in this post helpful.

[Thongkorn]

just go on the British Embassy site Bangkok it will give you all the Info , Not to hard to do yourself mate, many people on here will point you in the right direction. from what you have posted you should not have a problem provided you get your paperwork right.

PS your girl does not need a lot of money in the bank , just a history of using a bank

Edited August 18, 2009 by Thongkorn

[KunMatt]

Thanks to the people who replied, appreciate the help.

I have been a sponsor for a previous gf to visit the UK a few years ago, she was from Turkmenistan and the process was 10x easier for her, coming from a poorer, much worse off country than Thailand, than it is going to be for my well off Thai gf to apply for a Visa.

I don't know why it is so hard for Thais to get a UK visa and yet for a jobless young Turkmen girl it was a doddle to get a 1 year multi visa first time. Nothing was needed from me apart from a letter saying that I would fund the entire trip and be financially repsonsible for this Turkmen girl.

We just filled in one application, paid like 80 bucks, she got one interview with the British Embassy and I got a phone call from them to confirm I wrote the letter. Visa granted.

Anyways, thanks for the advice.

[TickTock]

And to add to your woes, if your GF gets anything less than a 12 month visa (e.g. six month visit visa which is the norm) then she won't be able to visit Gib without another visa. I thought I'd take the Mrs (in the UK on a settlement visa) and her sister (6 months vv) to Gib. Mrs OK, but sister needs to apply for a visa. That canned that idea. Good eh.

[KunMatt]

And to add to your woes, if your GF gets anything less than a 12 month visa (e.g. six month visit visa which is the norm) then she won't be able to visit Gib without another visa. I thought I'd take the Mrs (in the UK on a settlement visa) and her sister (6 months vv) to Gib. Mrs OK, but sister needs to apply for a visa. That canned that idea. Good eh.

Yeah, that's exactly why I wanted to get a 12 month Visa to visit my mum in Gibraltar. I can't imagine a Thai getting a Gib Visa seperately will be any easier!!!

[ThaiVisaExpress]

And keep away from visa shops we have an office that can deal with this or do it yourself simple.

Good luck.

[Bukseeda]

And keep away from visa shops we have an office that can deal with this or do it yourself simple.

Good luck.

I have to agree with this. Visa shops are not the best bet at all. Either use a service such as ThaiVisaExpress which is likely to be more up to date with the current situation or find out yourself and do it yourself.

[KunMatt]

OK, thanks for that because I'm pretty sure my gf was going to use a shop.

I have 6 weeks leave starting October, I'm planning to come to BKK but I don't plan to go to Pattaya this time, how can I use ThaiVisaExpress, or is it worth coming to Pattaya for a couple of days to arrange a visa?

How long would it take to get a visa, i.e, could we get it in time to go to the UK for October, or is it best to arrange it for Xmas?

[Bukseeda]

OK, thanks for that because I'm pretty sure my gf was going to use a shop.

I have 6 weeks leave starting October, I'm planning to come to BKK but I don't plan to go to Pattaya this time, how can I use ThaiVisaExpress, or is it worth coming to Pattaya for a couple of days to arrange a visa?

How long would it take to get a visa, i.e, could we get it in time to go to the UK for October, or is it best to arrange it for Xmas?

I'm sure ThaiVisaExpress will reply regarding your first query. As for October i wouldn't hold out much hope as there have been huge delays in visa processing times in recent months (it's likely to take a few weeks as opposed to a few days/ a week as it would have in the past). I would aim for xmas, but the situation changes all the time so I'd also suggest asking ThaiVisaExpress's opinion if you do use them.

[ThaiVisaExpress]

Either pm myself or click on my banner which sponsors this forum.

We have an office in the UK/Pattaya

Good luck.

[TickTock]

Mrs' sister has just applied for a vv. Submitted on the 4th Aug, ready for pick up on the 17th, just short of two weeks to process.

[ThaiVisaExpress]

Some have been 5 working days but 10 is about right.

[KunMatt]

And keep away from visa shops we have an office that can deal with this or do it yourself simple.

Good luck.

I have to agree with this. Visa shops are not the best bet at all. Either use a service such as ThaiVisaExpress which is likely to be more up to date with the current situation or find out yourself and do it yourself.

A follow up; we ended up using a Visa shop in Bangkok to apply for a 6 months Visit Visa and the whole process took about 10 days from start to finish. The passport was returned today with the Visa granted! Very happy.

It wasn't as much as an ordeal as I had thought after reading everyone's comments on ThaiVisa.com. I had to submit a lot of info about myself which I don't carry with me but copies and electronic printouts sufficed; such as printouts of my bank statements from online banking, a photo of my house from Google Maps, screendumps of Skype transaction history etc.

My gf went to the embassy to submit all of her and my documents and a Thai girl at the embassy just went through a checklist to make sure everything was there. The next day we got a text saying everything had been sent to the UK for processing and 6 days later we got an email to say the Passport was ready to be collected.

I wasn't particularly happy about submitting so much private data about myself in Bangkok but the 'originals' were returned to me wth my gf's passport today.

So thanks to everyone for the advice. I'm very relieved and happy that it all worked out. I would defnitely recommend using a professional organisation to help you through the process at least the first time. I have organised a Visa for a Turkmen girl three times before by ourselves by it is far more intrusive doing it in Thailand. I think next time we will probably just do it by ourselves.

Just one question, is it posiible to extend this 6 month Visit Visa © at all? For example, this visa currently expires in April, if we go to the UK for one month now is there anyway we could go arrange to go back to the UK in June for one more month as we'd only used the 6 month Visa for one month so far? I know it may sound like a silly question but I heard that it was possible to travel to the UK for up to six months within a 12 month period with this visa, I guess that some sort of extension is needed??

[7by7]

A visit visa is valid for a maximum of 6 months. One can leave and re-enter the UK as often as one wishes during this 6 month period, but the visa cannot be extended beyond it's expiry date.

Once it has expired one can always apply for another one, but if it appeared that one would be spending more than 6 months out of any 12 in the UK as a visitor then any such application would be refused.

BTW, applications are handed in at the UK visa application centre, not the embassy. The VAC send them to the embassy for processing, not the UK. Sorry to be a pedant, but it could be confusing to someone reading your post who is not familiar with the system.

[Thongkorn]

Why put money in her account , she does not need a lot , She just needs a history of a Bank account being used regularly,

[KunMatt]

Why put money in her account , she does not need a lot , She just needs a history of a Bank account being used regularly,

You should have quoted who you were referring to because by itself your statement has no relevance.

We got the visa showing my and her bank statements, I never deposited a large sum of money in her bank like I had asked about before. As I was her sponser it only really mattered that I had enough money in my banks for her to travel to and from the UK without depending on any UK public funds. We had to show that I had been supporting her for the last six months which was easy by showing my and her bank transactions, we deliberately did all transfers bank to bank and not in cash so we had this proof when this time came.