A Few Questions On Ilr Uk

[norrona]

Hello there,

I know this subject has been done to death on here but with the constant changes in out immigration and rules/regs I would like a fresh perspective on my wifes choices for ILR.

she arrived UK October 2010 on fiancee visa

married March 2011

has FLR which expires July 2013

Went to school and obtained ESOL course skills for life on reading,speaking and listening level 1.

Has been in full time empoyment for last 6 months.

Her English is good in speaking but reading and writing is a bit basic in my opinion, I got her the Thai version of LITUK test book and no doubt she could apply herself if she had absolutely nothing else to do all day but working full time as we both do by the time we get home and eat etc studying is not really going to happen.

So my question is do we persevere with the book or with the level 1 exam she passed before are we half way there and just need to do another ESOL course.

She works with other Thai people and I have of course asked the question as to what routes did they take, she showed me a website for a course that lasts 3 days and will give you the certificates needed to get ILR which is what a couple of them have done last year, does that seem right?

I would like to get the ball rolling sooner rather later to avoid previous experience I had when in the hands of the home office and their lengthy waiting times in limbo.

Regards and appreciate any advice/pointers for next move

[bobrussell]

Check back with the college first. If the ESOL course was taught with some citizenship materials then it may already qualify. Some colleges have specific courses for ESOL with citizenship in mind but many have life skills courses that still use suitable teaching materials that will allow the college tutor to complete the standard letter required by the UKBA for ILR.

If the college is Ofsted inspected it will be suitable automatically and it is down to the college to decide if they can fill in the letter or not. The certificates (University of Cambridge) my wife received did not state anything about being taught with citizenship materials but were still OK with the UKBA.

The letter is what clinches it!

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/employersandsponsors/289490/template-letter.pdf

Just be very careful to check the validity of any 3 day courses.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/settlement/knowledge-language-life/demonstrating/#

If the course is not on the list, it will not qualify and you have wasted three days and a lot of money. Do not count on the reliability of advice from 'other' Thais without checking up carefully. The rules have changed a lot in recent years and a lot of bogus colleges have been removed from the approved list.

[7by7]

The requirement is to either pass the LitUK test or advance one level on an ESOL with citizenship course. There is no need to do both.

The college should have assessed her level at the beginning of the course, and if she was assessed as being below Entry Level 1 and has now reached Entry Level 1 then she has made the necessary advancement.

ESOL with citizenship is often referred to by colleges as ESOL with skills for life; so she may have done the correct course.

The best people to tell you whether or not this course and the progress she has made in it are sufficient is the college itself; provided they are a reputable LEA college and not some backstreet English school!

If she has met the requirement then as well as her examcertificate the college should give her a letter confirming that she has done so.

The links posted by bobrussell above give you more detail.

[norrona]

thanks for both the responses on this, making calls to the college now so fingers crossed it's just the letter and the certificates for her level 1 that are needed.

will report back and let you know how we get on.

[madmin]

Im in a similar boat taking the wife to be assessed for an esol course on wednesday 18th april, I did ask when we made the appointment about a course with citizenship material and was told this is on level 2 only, not sure if its the same everywhere this is at gloucestershire college

[norrona]

update: just spoken with the people at the college who inform me as she was basic level on entry and passed at level 1 she has done enough to not have to do the LITUK test and all it will take is around 2 months prior to FLR visa running out we need to contact them to instruct them to issue the letter which will cost £25, attach the letter with her certificate passes to the ILR application.

The lady did say no disrespect but it would be nigh on impossible for my wife to pass the LITUK test and admitted even she would probably struggle, I have seen the book and reckon if I ever suffer from insomnia I may give it a go as a cure!

That course was worth every penny in my opinion.

Many thanks to both BobRussell and 7by7 for their informative replies

[Thongkorn]

Im in a similar boat taking the wife to be assessed for an esol course on wednesday 18th april, I did ask when we made the appointment about a course with citizenship material and was told this is on level 2 only, not sure if its the same everywhere this is at gloucestershire college

If she has done level 1, that is speaking and listening, Level 2 has Citizenship material in it. Make certain you ask for a letter from the Collage stating that she has done an ESOL course with Citizen material in it, And that the Collage is an accredited college. when she has completed the course , send it with your IDL application.

Speaking from experience We found the ESOL route the best for us. My wife could not speak any English when i first met her, She found there where other Thai people on the course who helped her along with the course tutors.

Edited April 18, 2012 by Thongkorn

[bobrussell]

Good news!

All a college has to do is demonstrate that they use some of the materials within the citizenship material. It does not need to use all of it and this seems to cause some confusion.

Sign of the times that cuts mean them charging for a letter but still i am sure it is a weight off your minds! I would suggest a gentle request that you have a copy of the letter sooner in case they change the rules! Our local college seemed reluctant to write a letter much in advance of the ILR application so the college may not oblige!

The LITUK lest is a learning facts exercise and can be daunting. My sister-in-law (also Thai) had the book as reading matter in the downstairs loo! Not sure if it has been put to another, more practical application by now!!

Hopefully by the time you apply for her ILR the crazy delays will have been sorted and you can do a postal application. If not I suggest you bite the bullet and go to a Public Enquiry Office for 'same day' service.

I am not sure where you are but at the moment people are travelling from one side of the country to the other to get to a PEO that is giving better service! From all accounts Belfast is winning at the moment and people are travelling miles to avoid bedlam caused by so called IT issues at Croydon!

Good luck and glad it has sorted itself out!

[bobrussell]

Im in a similar boat taking the wife to be assessed for an esol course on wednesday 18th april, I did ask when we made the appointment about a course with citizenship material and was told this is on level 2 only, not sure if its the same everywhere this is at gloucestershire college

If she has done level 1, that is speaking and listening, Level 2 has Citizenship material in it. Make certain you ask for a letter from the Collage stating that she has done an ESOL course with Citizen material in it, And that the Collage is an accredited college. when she has completed the course , send it with your IDL application.

Speaking from experience We found the ESOL route the best for us. My wife could not speak any English when i first met her, She found there where other Thai people on the course who helped her along with the course tutors.

Most (if not all) ESOL courses will include some citizenship materials from day one and therefore the college is able to complete the required letter once a student has gone from entry to level 1.

Some colleges have taken this one stage further and do specific courses based around the citizenship syllabus .This is not a requirement for the UKBA despite the statements on the UKBA website that applicants must do an ESOL with citizenship course. This is misleading.

Most 'Skills for Life' courses are accepted but the college must be willing to sign the letter!

If a college is telling you that it only provides a suitable course for those moving from level 1 to level 2 try a different college!

Writing is included in the level 1 exams but a pass in writing is not a UKBA requirement.

I lost more than one nights sleep worrying that I had got this wrong!

http://www.cambridgeesol.org/exams/sfl/index.html

[norrona]

Good news!

All a college has to do is demonstrate that they use some of the materials within the citizenship material. It does not need to use all of it and this seems to cause some confusion.

Sign of the times that cuts mean them charging for a letter but still i am sure it is a weight off your minds! I would suggest a gentle request that you have a copy of the letter sooner in case they change the rules! Our local college seemed reluctant to write a letter much in advance of the ILR application so the college may not oblige!

The LITUK lest is a learning facts exercise and can be daunting. My sister-in-law (also Thai) had the book as reading matter in the downstairs loo! Not sure if it has been put to another, more practical application by now!!

Hopefully by the time you apply for her ILR the crazy delays will have been sorted and you can do a postal application. If not I suggest you bite the bullet and go to a Public Enquiry Office for 'same day' service.

I am not sure where you are but at the moment people are travelling from one side of the country to the other to get to a PEO that is giving better service! From all accounts Belfast is winning at the moment and people are travelling miles to avoid bedlam caused by so called IT issues at Croydon!

Good luck and glad it has sorted itself out!

sadly we are in Essex and Croydon is our 'local' centre....can't have it all can we!

the actual course is run by our local council and not a private college or anything I think so fingers crossed they remain true to their word on producing the letter, I did request it now and she was quite firm in saying to contact approx 3 months before the letter is needed and when we are getting our application ready to be sent out and ensured me that they have the template letter there ready and waiting.

as always we are in their hands till further notice, but for now can relax and enjoy the year!

Cheers

[bobrussell]

Good news!

All a college has to do is demonstrate that they use some of the materials within the citizenship material. It does not need to use all of it and this seems to cause some confusion.

Sign of the times that cuts mean them charging for a letter but still i am sure it is a weight off your minds! I would suggest a gentle request that you have a copy of the letter sooner in case they change the rules! Our local college seemed reluctant to write a letter much in advance of the ILR application so the college may not oblige!

The LITUK lest is a learning facts exercise and can be daunting. My sister-in-law (also Thai) had the book as reading matter in the downstairs loo! Not sure if it has been put to another, more practical application by now!!

Hopefully by the time you apply for her ILR the crazy delays will have been sorted and you can do a postal application. If not I suggest you bite the bullet and go to a Public Enquiry Office for 'same day' service.

I am not sure where you are but at the moment people are travelling from one side of the country to the other to get to a PEO that is giving better service! From all accounts Belfast is winning at the moment and people are travelling miles to avoid bedlam caused by so called IT issues at Croydon!

Good luck and glad it has sorted itself out!

sadly we are in Essex and Croydon is our 'local' centre....can't have it all can we!

the actual course is run by our local council and not a private college or anything I think so fingers crossed they remain true to their word on producing the letter, I did request it now and she was quite firm in saying to contact approx 3 months before the letter is needed and when we are getting our application ready to be sent out and ensured me that they have the template letter there ready and waiting.

as always we are in their hands till further notice, but for now can relax and enjoy the year!

Cheers

You can apply at any PEO and some people are travelling miles (one from East Anglia to Solihull) because of the problems at Croydon. Hopefully all will be fixed by next year!