Help Needed With Ilr Visa Please

[khunhan12]

My wife,who i married in Thailand is coming to the end of her 2 year spouse visa in October.

A month before that time i understand that she can apply for the "Indefinite Leave to Remain Visa."

I've looked at the Border Agency website and fear that i might not be able to match their criteria.

She will have no problem with the Life in the UK test or ESOL qualifications,but what i am worried about though is her being able to supply documents such as Council Tax bills and Bank Statements from the very first day she entered the country.

Upon entering the UK she was given no documents whatsoever by the Immigration people,i.e. no guidelines as what she was to do if she wanted to remain in the UK for good.In my ignorance i did not open a bank account in her name(she just used my cashcard when needed) and did not put her name on the council tax bill until about 14 months after she first entered the country.

I just wondered if this might be bad news for her when i do appply for he Indefinite Leave to Remain VISA in 2 months time.?

Thanks in anticipation.

[kennkate]

She has her name on the current Council Tax Bill that's good. Have you got any mail addressed to her. the reason they want it it simply to confirm that she is still living with you at your address.

So any official mail will do They only require bank statement covering the last 3 months. They also ask who is supporting the applicant the answer is if she is not working (my husband)

it does come around before you know it and its only then you realise what you should have done earlier.

You have still time to get het name on the Telephone bill maybee the water rates

Anything you can gather to support the fact that she is living with you and has been since you arrived in the UK.

No doubt you will recive further info from people better than me. good luck

[khunhan12]

She has her name on the current Council Tax Bill that's good. Have you got any mail addressed to her. the reason they want it it simply to confirm that she is still living with you at your address.

So any official mail will do They only require bank statement covering the last 3 months. They also ask who is supporting the applicant the answer is if she is not working (my husband)

it does come around before you know it and its only then you realise what you should have done earlier.

You have still time to get het name on the Telephone bill maybee the water rates

Anything you can gather to support the fact that she is living with you and has been since you arrived in the UK.

No doubt you will recive further info from people better than me. good luck

Thanks very much for that,ken.

Any other thoughts from others are welcome .

[aland2012]

What about a letter from your local doctor showing address, or a letter from the local gym, if she goes to one. Mail sent to her from new friends in the uk.

Alan

[snuggzzz]

Mobile phone contact is another way, if she has a mobile in the UK, numbers called, or yours to hers, photos of any kind, letters with envelope giving postmark. Letter of confirmation from people in household stating day she arrived etc. Her passport will show that she has not been anywhere else since arrival.

Make sure she has National Insurance number paperwork if she has one.

Put it all in seperate plastic envelopes in a file. Other considerations are Car Insurance/ store cards/ loyalty cards in her name, club membership, anything with a paper trail and various dates leading to your wife.

Edited July 8, 2011 by snuggzzz

[Stanaris]

Any other thoughts from others are welcome .

My wife has been here 6 months now and have started our collection already, up to now she has

1. Letter from doctor confirming registration with them. Also letters for smear tests etc.

2. NHS card and letters from Hospital

3. Bank Statements

4. Credit card statement

5. College letters regarding enrollment

6. NI letter and number

7. Local store cards, Tesco, Nectar, Iceland and Debenhams

8. National Trust membership

We just applied for anything in her name to get started and now whatever comes in her name is a bonus. Hope our list helps

[khunhan12]

Thanks lads for all the suggestions.

[7by7]

You should supply 6 items covering th whole two years, preferably addressed to you both jointly, but if that's not possible then items addressed to you each individually. If you cannot supply 6 items or they do not cover the whole 2 years then you need to explain why.

See Section 10, note 8 of Form SET(M) for more detail of the requirement and a list of examples.

[Contractor]

Hi

Just thinking aloud here and IMHO.

OP states "..did not put her name on the council tax bill until about 14 months after she first entered the country". Might this be construed in a negative way, e.g. the OP not wanting to stop the single occupancy council tax discount (if this applies in his case)? Please understand, I am making no allegation whatsoever, am just wandering how this situation may be viewed.

Within 2 weeks of my wife coming to UK on a spouse visa, she registered at our local library. Very soon after I got a letter from my local council asking me to confirm that I should still be receiving the single occupancy 25% discount on my council tax. Maybe a coincidence? - I don't know, but they are now aware of my change in circumstances and I have an extra £600 a year to pay!

Could a statement from a neighbour (who is a respected member of the local community) help in saying that she saw OP and wife living in the same house for the necessary period - attending local functions together etc? I think photos showing relevant parties together at events may help.

Good luck.

Rgds

Edited July 9, 2011 by Contractor

[khunhan12]

You should supply 6 items covering th whole two years, preferably addressed to you both jointly, but if that's not possible then items addressed to you each individually. If you cannot supply 6 items or they do not cover the whole 2 years then you need to explain

Indeed 7 by 7.In my ignorance i did not start collecting evidence from the very day that she arrived in the country.It is my fault i suppose,but i thought that they might have given my wife some paperwork,i.e guidelines on what to do on entering the country.For example,since entering the country we have moved address.I did not know who to inform,if anybody,about this.The good thing,i am told,is that we are already married and this may count in our favour,but i still am going to struggle to produce documents in her name from the very first day she arrived.

Have you heard many stories about people being denied a ILR Visa because of this ?

Thanks in anticipation

Edited July 11, 2011 by 7by7
Typo corrected per poster request and unnecessary quote of preceding post removed.

[7by7]

I agree that it would be useful if the UKBA did supply new settlement arrivals with details of what is required for the next step; but they don't. I guess their argument is it would be too costly and that the information is on their website.

To be honest, I cannot remember any ILR application where the applicant has not had the necessary documents.

That you have moved since she arrived is not a factor, and there was no requirement to inform the UKBA that you have done so. The purpose of these documents is to show that you have both been living together at whatever addresses over the last 2 years.

You don't have to provide documents from day 1, but should provide them for as much of the last two years as possible.

When did she register with a doctor? Do you still have her NHS card? Any letters from doctor or hospital about appointments?

Has she applied for a NI number? Do you still have the letter granting that?

What about a tax coding if she has been working?

Does she have a mobile? If pay monthly, is the bill in her name?

Bank account?

Surely she must have had some mail over the last 2 years, although I accept that you may not have kept it!

Supply what you can, covering as much of the 2 years as possible and if you feel it's not enough, then a letter explaining why.

BTW, that you are married is not a factor. You wife entered, presumably, as your spouse so they know that; but there is a settlement category for unmarried partners. It is not being married that's important, it's living together.

Contractor, there is no requirement for a couple to have their council tax bill in joint names, so not doing so should not raise any suspicions.

[khunhan12]

I agree that it would be useful if the UKBA did supply new settlement arrivals with details of what is required for the next step; but they don't. I guess their argument is it would be too costly and that the information is on their website.

To be honest, I cannot remember any ILR application where the applicant has not had the necessary documents.

That you have moved since she arrived is not a factor, and there was no requirement to inform the UKBA that you have done so. The purpose of these documents is to show that you have both been living together at whatever addresses over the last 2 years.

You don't have to provide documents from day 1, but should provide them for as much of the last two years as possible.

When did she register with a doctor? Do you still have her NHS card? Any letters from doctor or hospital about appointments?

Has she applied for a NI number? Do you still have the letter granting that?

What about a tax coding if she has been working?

Does she have a mobile? If pay monthly, is the bill in her name?

Bank account?

Surely she must have had some mail over the last 2 years, although I accept that you may not have kept it!

Supply what you can, covering as much of the 2 years as possible and if you feel it's not enough, then a letter explaining why.

BTW, that you are married is not a factor. You wife entered, presumably, as your spouse so they know that; but there is a settlement category for unmarried partners. It is not being married that's important, it's living together.

Contractor, there is no requirement for a couple to have their council tax bill in joint names, so not doing so should not raise any suspicions.

Thanks again 7 by 7.I have got a lot of the above,i.e. medical card and National Insurance number,however i did not register her from day one with the doctors.The ironic thing about all this is that i managed to get her not one,but TWO 6 month visitor VISAS to the UK prior to marrying her in Thailand and then subsequently getting the 2-year spouse VISA !!.I suppose i should have married her in England first or second time around.

PS,Is it rare to obtain 2 separate 6 month visitor VISAS to visit England ?

My friend told me not to bother applying second time around,as i had no chance.!!

[7by7]

Previous visits have no bearing on an ILR application, whether you married her during one of them or not. For ILR you need to show, among other requirements, that you have been living together in the UK for the whole 2 year qualifying period (holidays excepted, of course). Time spent in the UK as a visitor does not count toward this 2 years, it started on the day she first entered the UK with her settlement visa.

However, when. or if, she applies for British citizenship time spent in the UK as a visitor can count toward the residency qualification for citizenship (3 years for the spouse or partner of a British citizen).

There is no limit on the number of visits a person can make to the UK and so the number of visit visas they may have. Subject to them not spending more than 6 months in the UK on any one visit nor, usually, more than 6 months out of any 12 in the UK as a visitor. Though the latter is a convention and not a rule and visitors can spend more time than this in the UK if they have an acceptable reason for doing so.

[Contractor]

.

Contractor, there is no requirement for a couple to have their council tax bill in joint names, so not doing so should not raise any suspicions.

Yes, as long as the presence of the wife is declared and the property is not registered as "sole occupancy" for council tax.

Edited July 13, 2011 by Contractor

[Thongkorn]

.

Contractor, there is no requirement for a couple to have their council tax bill in joint names, so not doing so should not raise any suspicions.

Yes, as long as the presence of the wife is declared and the property is not registered as "sole occupancy" for council tax.

Correct I pay Council tax for both of us my wife and i, her name is not on the Council Tax form ,As long as you pay the correct fee there would be no problem from the Council.

[potter09]

Thanks lads for all the suggestions.

In ILR application, one question is "Does a relative or friend of you or your partner, or both of you, regularly give you money?". In the case of a married couple with more than sufficient income of partner,what would be the view if the answer to above is "no". I am not sure of the relevance of this question to a couple in a normal married relationship who do not give each other 'money' regularly.

Thanks in advance.