Confused, Advise Needed On New Ilr

[hugmarod]

Hi All,

I have been reading through many posts on the new changes on the UK visa requirements, I would apreciate some clarity from those in the know, My wife has been granted a spouse visa in March this year and is now currently living with me in the UK, she arrived in June, We would like to apply for a ILR once the time comes , my questions are,

1) under the new rules doe this mean she will now need to pass both the LITUK test, & B1 english, as i believe we will not be able to now do the ESOL course as we wont be able to apply for the ILR until after October 2013,

2) Should my belief on question 1 be true, if she successfully gets the ILR visa, am i correct in thinking this will allow her to travel between the UK and Thailand freely for as long as she wishes, or are there further visa requirements after a set time? i.e if she were to stay in thailand for a couple years without visiting the uk would this void the visa? hope that makes sense.

I should add i do currently meet the minimum salary requirements this would not be an issue.

one final question,

Should all the above fall through etc, is there a long term tourist visa she could apply for to give her access to travel here a couple of times a year with out having to apply for every visit seperatly?

I apreciate any help.

[bobrussell]

Statement of intent says;

Applicants for settlement currently required to take the Life in the UK test will from October 2013 be required additionally to present an English language speaking and listening qualification at B1 level or above.

So it seems that if ILR is after Oct 2013 both will be required.

She can travel freely with ILR but this will lapse if she stays outside the UK for more than two years.

[7by7]

Indeed.

Those applying for ILR from October 2013 will need to have passed the LitUK test and obtained at least level B1 of the CEFR in speaking and listening.

An ESOL with citizenship course will not be acceptable from October 2013.

As Bob says, ILR will lapse if the holder spends a continuous period of 2 or more years outside the UK.

However, it can also be canceled by an immigration officer at a UK port of entry if it is apparent that the holder is no longer a UK resident and just using it for visits; although they will be allowed in as a visitor on that occasion.

If living outside the UK there are options of long term UK visit visas, up to 10 years. However, the normal rules regarding length of stay will still apply. That is a maximum of 6 months per visit and, usually, no more than 6 months out of any 12 in the UK.

Hugmarod, assuming you are British, once your wife has ILR and has been in the UK for at least 3 years she can apply for naturalisation as British. Once she has a British passport she can, of course, enter and leave the UK without restriction or time limit.

See British Citizenship Basics

Both Thailand and the UK allow dual nationality, so this wouldn't effect her rights as a Thai citizen in any way.

[hugmarod]

Hi

Thank you both for your advise and clarification . Apologies as yes I am British.

My wife as stated is currently here on the spouse visa but in all honesty she does prefer her own country , who can blame her so I was trying to cover all bases , both the ILR and thanks again for clarifying, also if she decided that living back in Thailand was her choice what and how difficult it would be to get a 10 year visit visa?

I am in a fortunate situation that my work would allow me to be in either country, indeed I was also looking into the possibilities of working 3 months in uk and spending 3 in Thailand etc.

If you could advise on where best to find details on the 10 year visit visa for my wife that would be a great help.

Thanks again

[7by7]

VAT1.4 Visa validity - What period for a multiple entry visit visa?

There is no requirement for a person to have held a short term visit visa before being issued with a visit visa which has a longer validity. For example, an applicant does not need to have been issued with a standard six months visit visa before being issued with a five year visit visa. Unless there are grounds for not issuing a long term visit visa, the ECO should issue the visa applied for.

Applications for long term visit visas will be considered in the light of:

• Credible ongoing reason to visit. A successful applicant must demonstrate a frequent and sustained need to come to the UK, such as family links or an established business connection.
  
• Stability of personal circumstances. As far as possible applicants 'status should be unlikely to change significantly during the validity of the visa. The better able the applicant is to demonstrate stability over the long term the more it will support an application for a longer period of validity.
  
• Successful applicants will also need to demonstrate that they are able to support themselves in the UK without recourse to public funds, and demonstrate that they would intend to leave the UK at the end of each visit.
  
• Previous travel history as evidenced in a current valid passport, which might include travel to Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Schengen countries, Switzerland, or the USA in the same category as the application to the UK, for example, as a visitor. Holding a valid visa for any of the aforementioned countries, evidence they complied with conditions of entry, that applications for these countries were not refused nor were they removed from a country on their last trip, would all help to support the application.
  

Care should be taken when considering long term visa applications from child visitors. They should only be granted a visa which is valid to six months past their 18th birthday. For instance, a 14 year old applying for a five or ten year long term visit visa, the visa expiry date should be limited to the date that is six months after the applicant's 18th birthday.

In all instances, if an ECO decides that a shorter validity of visit visa is more appropriate than the one applied for, the ECM should approve it and notes should be added to Proviso. In such cases, no refund (full or partial) is available. The ECO should ensure that clear explanatory information for the decision is provided in a covering letter when the passport is returned.

If you were living with her in Thailand then this, in my opinion, would add greater wait to any application. Her living in Thailand and you living in the UK, even part time, may be seen as an attempt to bypass the settlement rules.

I feel that, if she can take it, living in the UK long enough for naturalisation and a British passport would be a better option.

I understand how she feels, my wife was the same when she first arrived; home sickness, the cold (it was February!), missing her family. But once she found work and so wasn't alone at home all day (I was at work, daughter at school) she soon settled in and now, 12 years later, has said that even were we to win the lottery she would want to divide our time between Thailand and the UK.

[hugmarod]

Thank you again for your invaluable advice, the settlement visa I agree is the most sensible but I did not want to be caught on the back foot should she decide she really did want to go back home as it were.

Many thanks