Double Trouble?

[Godders]

An expat Brit friend of mine in his sixties is married to a Thai lady, but he left the nest in Hua Hin nearly two years ago. His wife refuses a divorce and he continues to support her in the family home. For the last 18 months he has lived with a new partner whom he now wants to take to meet his UK relatives, with the idea of marrying her if and when he obtains a divorce. He can show they have lived together and that he has supported her and her children throughout their relationship and that he has the means to continue to do so. His girlfriend worked as a masseuse for a couple of years to support her kids after her husband died in a road accident (death cert available for Embassy). She does not have to work and is a full time housewife with a generous monthly allowance, a rentbook in her name and a healthy bank balance. My friend will be a sponsor for the planned visit and wonders whether it might help if he got his sister (who has got to know his intended via email and phone etc) to act as joint sponsor, since he and his new lady have been invited to stay with her while in the UK.

What are their chances of getting a tourist visa - and has anybody else a similar experience to share or tips I can pass on, or both? Somebody has told me the Oz embassy has a blanket ban on visits by Thai g/fs of expats who already have wives, but my friend has not been able to discover if a similar attitude prevails in the British embassy.

Edited March 10, 2005 by Godders

[NarrLing]

The blanket ban you heard on girl friends visits to Oz is not entirely correct. An Australian friend of mine was in a very similar situation to the one you have described.

He was separated from his Thai wife. The embassy interviewed him and his girlfriend. Once satisfied there was a definite separation from the wife and his girlfriend was aware of his situation, they issued her a tourist visa.

I am not familiar with the Brit embassies rules.

NL

[the scouser]

Godders,

The fact that your friend is already married to another woman is really neither here nor there. The visa officer will jusr want to be certain that his g/f will leave the UK at the end of her stay and if their life is as rosy in Thailand as you portray then I can't forsee any difficulties in getting the visa.

Obviously your friend will have to show the evidence which you mentioned. Perhaps a letter from his sister, too, saying how lovely it would be to see them and that she will put them up. It will also help matters if your friend has a long-stay Thai visa as this shows he, too, has an intention not to stay in the UK and therefore, by association, neither does his g/f.

Cheers,

Scouse.

[Godders]

Godders,

The fact that your friend is already married to another woman is really neither here nor there. The visa officer will jusr want to be certain that his g/f will leave the UK at the end of her stay and if their life is as rosy in Thailand as you portray then I can't forsee any difficulties in getting the visa.

Obviously your friend will have to show the evidence which you mentioned. Perhaps a letter from his sister, too, saying how lovely it would be to see them and that she will put them up. It will also help matters if your friend has a long-stay Thai visa as this shows he, too, has an intention not to stay in the UK and therefore, by association, neither does his g/f.

Cheers,

Scouse.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Many thanks for the fast and helpful responses, fellers. I'll pass on the Oz info to my pal from Down Under and ensure that my friend has what he needs for a successful approach to the BE.