Overstaying Dates Set On Application

[r3aps]

in the visa application we are about to submit,we have said my gf will be staying for about 2 months.her work has written saying this is ok with them,altho to be honest they said to us she can have the 6 months,altho we didnt want to put this on the application as not many employers would give that amount of time off.my question is if she gets the 6 month visa,is she tied to the 2 months we stated or can she stay longer upto the 6 month expiry without worry about any future applications.

thxs

steve

[theoldgit]

You don't say where the visa is for, but as you come from the capital of the world, London, I'm assuming the visa is for the UK.

If your girlfriend gets her visa she will probably be issued for a six month, multi entry visa and there is nothing to stop her staying for the full six months from the start date of the visa.

If your girlfriends employer had indicated that she was allowed a six month holiday it might cause the ECO to doubt the validity of the letter, how many people can get six months off work? that said the ECO might also doubt the letter that says she can have a two month holiday, not many people get that luxury either, probably including the ECO.

So, as I say, if she gets her visa there is nothing to stop her staying the full six months. There are a couple of caveats to that statement, when your girlfriend arrives at her destination she will most likely be asked how long she is staying, there is also a chance she could be asked for her return ticket. If the IO at the port checks her reply and tickets against her application, unlikely but it can and does happen, she might have a problem and could be refused entry. If she stays the full six months, having indicated two months, there could very well be difficulties with subsequent applications.

I'm not trying to be a doom and gloom merchant but the short answer to your question is that yes she would be allowed to stay for the full six months even having indicated two months, but there are dangers.

PS - Don't say "overstay", that's a whole new area.

[r3aps]

You don't say where the visa is for, but as you come from the capital of the world, London, I'm assuming the visa is for the UK.

If your girlfriend gets her visa she will probably be issued for a six month, multi entry visa and there is nothing to stop her staying for the full six months from the start date of the visa.

If your girlfriends employer had indicated that she was allowed a six month holiday it might cause the ECO to doubt the validity of the letter, how many people can get six months off work? that said the ECO might also doubt the letter that says she can have a two month holiday, not many people get that luxury either, probably including the ECO.

So, as I say, if she gets her visa there is nothing to stop her staying the full six months. There are a couple of caveats to that statement, when your girlfriend arrives at her destination she will most likely be asked how long she is staying, there is also a chance she could be asked for her return ticket. If the IO at the port checks her reply and tickets against her application, unlikely but it can and does happen, she might have a problem and could be refused entry. If she stays the full six months, having indicated two months, there could very well be difficulties with subsequent applications.

I'm not trying to be a doom and gloom merchant but the short answer to your question is that yes she would be allowed to stay for the full six months even having indicated two months, but there are dangers.

PS - Don't say "overstay", that's a whole new area.

thxs for the reply,the return ticket thing is not a problem,as i work for an airline,i get staff travel and she is on it,i have bought tickets for her return as stated on application but can change them easily thru work.her work in thailand is in a clothes shop,she works 4 days a week and the shop is run by a friend whom i have met,she is happy for her to goto england and as such is writing the letter for the application to basically assist in the reason to return area.i was hoping if she did like england and did stay longer than applied for,we could in any future application say that she wanted to stay longer,foned her employers and they agreed to this.6 years ago i sponsored a friend and we stated 2 months,she stayed the full 6 and we got another tourist visa within 6 weeks of her old one expiring.i am just hoping things will be as easy.

thxs again.

steve

[sumrit]

thxs for the reply,the return ticket thing is not a problem,as i work for an airline,i get staff travel and she is on it,i have bought tickets for her return as stated on application but can change them easily thru work.her work in thailand is in a clothes shop,she works 4 days a week and the shop is run by a friend whom i have met,she is happy for her to goto england and as such is writing the letter for the application to basically assist in the reason to return area.i was hoping if she did like england and did stay longer than applied for,we could in any future application say that she wanted to stay longer,foned her employers and they agreed to this.6 years ago i sponsored a friend and we stated 2 months,she stayed the full 6 and we got another tourist visa within 6 weeks of her old one expiring.i am just hoping things will be as easy.

thxs again.

steve

Steve, first of all don't lie on the application. If there's any discrepancy between the application and what your g/f might say, in an interview, phone call or, as the oldgit says, replies to an IO's questions, her visa could be refused/revoked. I'm sure somebody from the Embassy monitors forums such as this one and flags up these sort of questions being asked. If you have a 'change of plans' after your g/f arrives in the UK there's no problem as long as you stay within the dates on the visa, but you should inform the UKBA when those changes occour and it could affect any subsequent visa application unless that application contains a full explanation of those changes.

On the point of subsequent visit visa applications there is now an 'unwritten rule' that, to prevent somebody from using visit visas to live (semi) permanently in the UK, under normal circumstances they would only be issued with a visa that allowed them to stay in the UK for six months out of any twelve.

So, if your g/f stays the full six months, it would be unlikely that she could get another visa until she she has been back in Thailand for six months, instead of the six weeks your previous friend waited.

Also, if you've previously sponsored somebody for visit visa applications the Embassy will have a record of it/them that will flag up against your name. If they see a 'pattern' emerging it just might prompt some awkward questions.

[r3aps]

thxs for the reply,the return ticket thing is not a problem,as i work for an airline,i get staff travel and she is on it,i have bought tickets for her return as stated on application but can change them easily thru work.her work in thailand is in a clothes shop,she works 4 days a week and the shop is run by a friend whom i have met,she is happy for her to goto england and as such is writing the letter for the application to basically assist in the reason to return area.i was hoping if she did like england and did stay longer than applied for,we could in any future application say that she wanted to stay longer,foned her employers and they agreed to this.6 years ago i sponsored a friend and we stated 2 months,she stayed the full 6 and we got another tourist visa within 6 weeks of her old one expiring.i am just hoping things will be as easy.

thxs again.

steve

Steve, first of all don't lie on the application. If there's any discrepancy between the application and what your g/f might say, in an interview, phone call or, as the oldgit says, replies to an IO's questions, her visa could be refused/revoked. I'm sure somebody from the Embassy monitors forums such as this one and flags up these sort of questions being asked. If you have a 'change of plans' after your g/f arrives in the UK there's no problem as long as you stay within the dates on the visa, but you should inform the UKBA when those changes occour and it could affect any subsequent visa application unless that application contains a full explanation of those changes.

On the point of subsequent visit visa applications there is now an 'unwritten rule' that, to prevent somebody from using visit visas to live (semi) permanently in the UK, under normal circumstances they would only be issued with a visa that allowed them to stay in the UK for six months out of any twelve.

So, if your g/f stays the full six months, it would be unlikely that she could get another visa until she she has been back in Thailand for six months, instead of the six weeks your previous friend waited.

Also, if you've previously sponsored somebody for visit visa applications the Embassy will have a record of it/them that will flag up against your name. If they see a 'pattern' emerging it just might prompt some awkward questions.

thanks for your reply.with regards the friend i initially got visa for,it was my girlfriend at the time 6 years ago,she got 2 tourist visas,but only used one,we split before she could use the 2nd,and she definately didnt use it.i assume the embassy would not think after 6 years and meeting a new girlfriend that there is some sort of pattern???

steve

[7by7]

After 6 years, probably not; but I would mention it, and what happened to that relationship, in your sponsor's letter just in case.

Telling them something they don't want or need to know is better than not telling them something they do.

Peoples plans and circumstances do change, and staying longer than originally intended would not be viewed as an overstay; unless she stayed past the visa's expiry date of course. However, if the intention is to stay for 6 months then I would advise that this is what you should say in the application; any inconsistencies between what is in the application and anything your girlfriend may say if questioned could cause big problems, even a refusal of the visa or refusal of entry once she arrives in the UK.

If she does stay longer than originally stated, then a brief explanation of why her plans changed when she next applies for a UK visa will be necessary.

Finally, remember that the visa will be valid for 6 months from the date it is issued; if she wants to stay the full 6 months in the UK she will have to ask for it to be post dated when she applies; the ECO may wonder why she needs to do this if she only intends to stay for 2 months.

[ThaiVisaExpress]

My advice is be honest if she intends to atay the full 6 months then inform them of this.