hi im living in the uk with my thai wife and 2 kids, we are due to apply for her indefinete leave to remain visa, she has passed her life in the uk test we have all our paper work in place, however Ive been a bit of an Ar.. H..e for the past 6 months ive been heavely gambling so on my past 6 months bank statements it all gambling transactions which the uk border agency are going to see quite clearly, im so worried that the visa will get refused due to my gambling issues, i know I should have thought about all this before, however the damage is done and im looking for some sort of a solution,I have now sought help for my gambling addiction and its all left me severly depressed and information regarding this topic will be gratefully accepted. my wife does not work so im the only source of income, I am going to do a cover letter stating about my gambling and about the help im recieving, Please be gentle in your reply, thanks all

I did not know you had to send or submit your bank statements if you are applying for Indefinete leave to remain,Your wife has passed the life in the Uk test thats all they will look at i would have thought.Gambaling is a mugs game mate, there is only one winner these days and thats the bookies, best of luck mate

Unfortunately you do need to send evidence of your finances with ILR applications. From Form SET(M)

Evidence of your finances. Bank statements, building society savings books, pay slips or other formal documents as evidence of your and your partner’s ability to maintain and accommodate yourselves and any dependants without recourse to public funds (see Note 7).

However, as long as this shows that you and your wife can support yourselves without recourse to the proscribed public funds and service any debts to the satisfaction of your creditors you should be ok.

Unfortunately you do need to send evidence of your finances with ILR applications. From Form SET(M)

Evidence of your finances. Bank statements, building society savings books, pay slips or other formal documents as evidence of your and your partner’s ability to maintain and accommodate yourselves and any dependants without recourse to public funds (see Note 7).

However, as long as this shows that you and your wife can support yourselves without recourse to the proscribed public funds and service any debts to the satisfaction of your creditors you should be ok.

Hi 7by7 I was going to let the eco know about my gambling on my cover letter as he will see it quite clearly on my bank statements. I think I'm better being open and honest and let him know what I'm doing to address my problem. Do you think this is a good idea as there is a lot of gambling transaction on my account. Any advise would be good from yourself thanks

Open and honest is always the best way.

As I said before; as long as you show that you and your wife can support yourselves without recourse to the proscribed public funds and service any debts to the satisfaction of your creditors you should be ok.

How big are the gambling withdrawals vs your income?

Does the bank account have a healthy bank balance or is it in the red?

If you are sufficiently solvent, but choose to gamble, the Home Office won't care. It is not their business.

Assess your finances before you put your life story in the covering letter.

My bank balance is zero at present however its a standard bank account with no overdraft so its not in the red. Basically I earn enough pay each month to live without gambling. If I do gamble I don't have enough to live. That's why I've sought help through my gp. Counselling and self help groups and was gonny explain all this in the cover letter what do you think. Thanks guys

Then certainly go ahead and explain the situation fully and honestly, as 7by7 suggested.

Do you have any bank statements out of the 6 that have no gambling transactions and that show your income covers your expenses?