Planned Uk Settlement

[jji23]

Hi All,

I have quite a few questions with regard to a UK settlement visa for my Thai wife. I would like to give you some background info first so that you can see the details etc.

I'm 24 years old. I met my wife in June 2009, she was a new teacher at the school I was teaching in. We began our relationship around September 2009 and have been living together since October 2009. In April 2010, my mother and brother visited and we all went on holiday together. Then in December 2010, we successfully acquired a UK visitor visa for her (then girlfriend). We had countless documents to prove our relationship, photos of the family together, my mothers mortgage certificate, letter of invitation from my mother etc. We visited England for 2 weeks over Christmas and New Year.In June 2011 we got married and registered in Bangkok.

We have decided that spending our lives together in the UK would be better long term than in Thailand, and my wife agrees with me. I have been browsing over the UKBA requirements and have a few questions I would like to ask to anyone who has been through this process.

Maintenance; How much maintenance have people shown to successfully acquire a UK Settlement visa? I read on TV that one person passed with 8K Sterling. I don't have any savings at the moment. But as of this month I'm saving around 400-500 pounds per month from my salary and sending it to my UK account, which leads me nicely to;

ILR confused; As you can I see it will be a while before we actually make the move due to savings. I think around a further 4-5 years. At which point we will have been married for 4+ years. I have been reading that if we have been living together for over 4 years we could be eligible for ILR. Does ILR mean that my wife wouldn't go through the 27 month probation period and straight into the next stage? Would she then not have to do a KOL or Citizenship with ESOL? The information I found on UKBA website with regard to this seems very vague, or I'm just getting confused.

Accommodation; I don't have a property in the UK. My mother has a 3 bedroom house that we would be initially staying in rent free (We will be helping with shopping, bills). Would this satisfy the accommodation requirement? After perhaps 6 months we would look to move into our own place either renting or hopefully mortgaged.

Employability; My highest UK qualifications are 2 A-levels. I am currently studying an Open University degree majoring in Environmental Science & Oceanography. I will be finished before we make the move. Although it would be beneficial to have some sort of job offer prior to going, I can't see myself having a guaranteed job or offer before applying for a Settlement visa. How severely will this hamper our application? I believe I will have enough maintenance to show that we can fully support ourselves whilst we will be unemployed (and we don't plan to be for long!), + free accommodation from my Mother. Do you think that should be OK?

My wife has a Bachelor degree in Business English for Communication from Sri Patum University. I know that her degree is pretty worthless in the UK, or is it not? She did the Wall Street Institute English test and her level was 7 or 'Upper Waystage' I believe that she has a good command of English but does make the usual mistake. I know that she will quite easily pass the BULATS test if it is required (ILR?). She has worked as an English Grammar Teacher for Prathom 5-6 children, Passenger Service Agent for Lao Airlines, and presently Purchasing Control for LiteOn (Taiwanese Electronics Company). She currently has a job offer from Kasikorn bank to be a Teller. What does her Employability look like to you? We have talked over what she could/would like to do in the Uk, and whilst she said she is happy to do most jobs, I don't want her working in retail or as a cleaner. She likes the idea of working in a nursery, in a bank (would the experience of working in Kasikorn benefit?), or some sort of admin or secretarial position.

So, what do you make of our chances?

I would like to thank you for taking the time to read through my topic. Any answers to any of the above questions, advice, or feedback is greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[jji23]

anybody?

[Thongkorn]

I think 7by7will put it clearer than I can,

Basically you have to prove you can support yourself and your wife, because she will have no recourse to public funds. also she should be able to get her English speaking tests in Thailand, along with her TB test . Your Parents can vouch for you about your living accommodation and also your Upkeep. i have seen people on this site get IDL with the same difficulty's you have.

[7by7]

Have a read of UK Settlement Visa Basics, which should answer most of your questions. If not, feel free to ask here.

However, you say that it will probably be 4 to 5 years before your wife actually applies; things can change a lot in that time; especially the immigration rules and requirements!

[jji23]

Thanks for the links 7by7.

From that it seems that accommodation wouldn't be a problem. Also by that time if the immigration rules and regulations haven't changed she would be eligible for ILE and could take a KOL or Citizenship with ESOL immediately.

With maintenance I guess the more the better. I plan to have around 17-20k sterling, which should be more than enough to satisfy the requirement, plus the relatively low accommodation cost.

I guess my biggest worry is both of our Employability. Do you have any advice on this aspect of the settlement visa requirements?

Thanks

[7by7]

Also by that time if the immigration rules and regulations haven't changed she would be eligible for ILE and could take a KOL or Citizenship with ESOL immediately.

Once obtained a LitUK pass is valid for life; it cannot lapse. So if you are going to be visiting the UK before applying for settlement it would be worth taking the test while there. Then she would, assuming all the other requirements are met, be eligible for full ILE and so not have to make (and pay for) another application once in the UK; until she is eligible for naturalisation, of course.

Note that while she can take the LitUK test whilst in the UK as a visitor she cannot take an ESOL with citizenship course as visitors cannot undertake a course of study.

I guess my biggest worry is both of our Employability. Do you have any advice on this aspect of the settlement visa requirements?

Only that you start a job search before returning and show whatever evidence of this you have in her application; letters to and from potential employers for example.

See also MAA10 Assessing adequate means of maintenance

[ThomsonPeter]

The key requirement that you lack is the established job. You may have to go to the UK on your own and establish a job first before you can apply.

Settlement visa requirements are likely to get more difficult over the next few years.

[7by7]

The key requirement that you lack is the established job. You may have to go to the UK on your own and establish a job first before you can apply.

As the OP states he will have significant savings and low accommodation costs, there is no requirement for him to return first and find a job.

See the link in my previous.

[ThomsonPeter]

The OP is planning ahead. So is the UK government!

People coming to live in the UK from outside the EU must "add to the quality of life in Britain", immigration minister Damian Green has said.

He argued Britain does not need more "middle managers" or unskilled Labour and those who settle could have to command a salary of more than £31,000.

Any British citizen who wants to bring in a non-EU spouse should also meet a minimum salary level, he added.

Edited February 2, 2012 by ThomsonPeter