Indefinite Leave To Enter Uk

[quadisking]

My wife will be applying for a 2 year UK visa very soon. I read an article on here regarding ILE (Indefinite Leave to Enter) and ILR (Indefinite Leave to Remain).

I have been married to my wife and living in Thailand for 5 years, so she qualifies to enter the UK on ILE. If I understand correctly, she can sit the life knowledge test in the UK immediately upon

return to the UK, and if she passes the test she will have ILR status, and not have a 24 month probationary period, which most Thai wives going to the UK on a 2 year visa would have.

Question is:

Is there any point in applying for ILE before we go? I can't see how she would gain anything, as it would mean sitting the test as soon as we arrived in the UK, as opposed to sitting the test 2 years later,

by which time her English will have obviously improved and presumably she would have a better chance of passing the test because of this.

What are the advantages? I would be grateful if anyone could shed some more light on this. Thanks.

[VisasPlus]

I guess, for one, you would save the cost of an application for FLR, which is around 500 GBP at the moment.

[7by7]

One does not apply for ILE; one applies for settlement.

If one qualifies for ILE then this is what the ECO at the embassy should grant, but it is the applicant's responsibility to show that they do qualify.

If one does not qualify, then one will be granted the standard 27 month visa.

However, if the only reason for not qualifying for ILE is that one has not satisfied the KOL requirement then one should be given ILE subject to KOL. This is valid for 27 months, and once in the UK one can apply for ILR immediately one has satisfied KOL; either by passing the LitUK test or progressing one level in an approved ESOL with citizenship course, without having to be in the UK for the minimum 24 months.

As application fees are annually increased by amounts way above inflation, one should apply for ILR as soon as one is able.

See this topic for more details.

[quadisking]

7by7 can you please clarify one point?

My wife has completed form VAF4A (hope I got that right) in the normal way.

Should I include a covering letter with the application stating that she qualifies for ILE subject to her passing the KOL test?

i.e. Is this something that we should provide proof of before we leave Thailand, or after we return to the UK?

I understand that the KOL test needs to be done in the UK, not sure whether the first bit should be done from Thailand or from the UK?

[7by7]

The initial settlement application is made in Bangkok. Your marriage certificate and other evidence of your living together in Thailand for 5 years should show that she qualifies for ILE.

However, some members here have been issued the wrong entry clearance by the Bangkok embassy, i.e. a standard 27 month visa, even though they showed that they qualified for ILE. They have been able to sort it out with the UKBA once in the UK; but to save yourself that hassle then the covering letter you suggest is a good idea.

[Mercury]

Though we are still waiting, we applied for settlement with ILE and made that clear in the supporting evidence.

Just an aside here but if people are looking for settlement and would qualify for ILE subject to KoL, then she could take the test when in the UK on a tourist visa and then when applying for settlement, she would, if the test had been passed, get ILE without any KoL conditions and there would be no need to pay for ILR.

Just a thought for those who are going to the UK on holiday prior to potential settlement as I do not think the KoL ever runs out and it would save quite some cash.

[Guest jonzboy]

Have to agree with Mercury, as this is exactly what we did. Wifey and I were going to be in UK anyway, so beforehand we got the reference material and sample tests from www.tso.gov.uk and studied together. We prebooked the test by contacting our nearest centre in UK and confirmed that taking the test whilst in UK as a visitor is acceptable, just use the same passport to register for the test as will be used for the settlement visa application. [TIP, make sure the passport has plenty of validity, at least four years, that way, when the ILE stamp is issued (it's valid until date is the same as passport expiry date), it will be valid without any need to transfer it to a new passport, and for long enough to do the three years residency to qualify for citizenship]

Of course, if you plan to visit UK just to take this test (and bear in mind the cost of failure here, no resit for seven days as I recall), it is not exactly a financially sound option. I assume that you'd travel as a couple. So, two air fares and accommodation costs against the cost of applying for "ILE subject to KOL" and then for ILR. Not sure what it cost is to convert "ILE subject to KOL" into "ILR."

Final point, my sponsor's letter made it very clear in the first paragraph that my wife was applying for ILE based on our marriage for 4+ years, living outside UK during this time, and passing the KOL test.

[bobrussell]

According to the Borders Agency website the next price hike is in October. It seems that costs are going up every six months now! Get the application processed ASAP as these fees are rising far, far faster than inflation.

This government and the last one see these fees as an easy way of raising revenue with few complaints from within the UK so it is likely they will continue to raise them whenever they feel like it and by whatever they want!

Good luck!

[quadisking]

Thanks very much everyone for all the info. That's what I'll do then, I'll submit the settlement application with a covering letter saying we wish to apply for ILE subject to passing KOL.

I feel a bit silly because we have only just returned from my wife being on a 6 month tourist visa, so she could have done the test before when we were in England.

Oh well, never mind :jap: