First Time Uk Visa For Thai Partner - Visitor Or Settlement Visa?

[TCA]

Thanks for finding out bifftastic. Thinking hat on for this one I think. I might chance copied title deeds certified by a friendly chartered accountant.

My girlfriend has now booked the English language test and TB x-ray for next week. Re the latter, they're now asking for a note (typed I think) of sponsor's name and address where she'll be staying in the UK. Not sure what that has to do with a medical certificate though.

[bifftastic]

You're welcome.

Sorry I can't help with the TB stuff, we've never done any of that

[TCA]

Next question:

Do the passport photographs required for inclusion with the application have to be certified?

The guidance just says they have to be a good likeness (taken < 6 months ago) but I'm reading elsewhere of people getting them certified.

[theoldgit]

Next question:

Do the passport photographs required for inclusion with the application have to be certified?

The guidance just says they have to be a good likeness (taken < 6 months ago) but I'm reading elsewhere of people getting them certified.

No they don't.

Don't forget the the papers will be checked by a member of staff at VFS in front of the applicant, and the ECO will have the passport, including a photo, in front of them.

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[TCA]

Thanks oldgit. I figured as much. Good to know that's one less thing to think about though.

[TCA]

Am I correct in thinking that Appendix 2 (vaf4a2.pdf) is the correct additional form to go with the settlement visa? Slightly confusing as I'm resident in Thailand and the wording at the start of the form refers to the "partner of someone settled in the UK".

Assuming that is the correct form, can someone give me some guidance on the following please:

A. Sections 1.17 and 1.19 look to be the same to me.

1.17 Provide details of how long you have been in a relationship akin to marriage or a civil partnership with your sponsor. You must provide details of when and where you lived together and for how long. Please provide documentary evidence to support this.

1.19 Have you lived with your sponsor in a relationship akin to marriage or a civil partnership at any time (including since your wedding/civil partnership ceremony)? Put a cross in the relevant box. If ‘Yes’ please state the dates and at what address you lived together. If ‘No’, please explain why you have never lived together.

Same info to go in both?

B. Financial requirement - to meet this we'll be showing my UK savings in excess of £62,500 held for 6 months etc... so section 3F category D applies.

3.2 Given no children are part of this application and the fact we're applying based on savings and not income, do we still tick "Applying with no child dependents under 18 - an income before tax of at least £18,600 a year"?

3.75 Cash savings - my funds are all with the same bank, spread over 2 accounts, so could be read as same source. To have all the info together, should I include both accounts in section 3.75d,f & h (just written over 2 lines) or should I use section 5?

C. Payment to UKBA - is the bank at the VFS the best bet for getting a bankers draft/cheque? I have the list of Bank of Ayudyha branches and there is one close to us but I won't be here to help, and the fact that they took 3 hours to transact an address change for my girlfriend on her own (for 200 baht) does not inspire confidence. Especially when I had my address changed, 6 months transactions printed, passport number and telephone number updated, all in about 20 mins free of charge!

Thanks again for any assistance.

TCA

Edited March 30, 2013 by TCA

[TCA]

No takers on the above? OK, I'll blag the similar looking questions in part 1 but any guidance on my queries in part 3 or the bank at VFS?

Another query - my girlfriend keeps mentioning translation of her housebook. I was going to include a copy but is it really worth translating? Copy of i.d. card and of course passport will be included anyway.

[bifftastic]

I can offer advice about the payment. I would recommend using the bank inside Regent House. They know what the visa fees are, so if you get caught out with a price change they're up to date with it. Also, if there is anything wrong with it, it's easily sorted out.

House book; if you are going to submit it, seeing as its in Thai, then I would get it translated. There are probably people who have submitted them without translating, but the guidance from UKBA is to translate anything that isn't in either English or Welsh.

[theoldgit]

I'm not sure that I would bother to translate and submit her housebook, unless you're on it, she is already going to submit her passport and ID cards so I don't know what the housebook really adds to the application.

[7by7]

A

1.17 and 1.19 are basically the same, except only those applying as unmarried or same sex partners complete 1.17, whereas everyone completes 1.19.

B

3.2, as she is applying with no child dependents, that's the box she ticks.

3.75, if it's more than one account then, to me, it's more than one source; so I would continue in part 5.

C

See replies above.

[TCA]

Thanks very much for the 3 replies above.

Bifftastic - VFS bank it is then!

Oldgit - yeah likewise I'm not sure whether UKBA would be interested in the housebook. I'm not on it. This is one the girlfriend has brought up from her research on Thai websites. Confirmation of parents and daughter info perhaps?

7by7 - many thanks. I completely missed that section 1.17 was only for unmarried partners.

Edited April 2, 2013 by TCA

[theoldgit]

The parents will be of no interest to the UKBA, though they do ask for their names.

Is she intending to take her daughter to the UK?

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[TCA]

Is she intending to take her daughter to the UK?

No, her daughter isn't part of this application. Later in time perhaps, so housebook even less relevant I guess.

[theoldgit]

Is she intending to take her daughter to the UK?

No, her daughter isn't part of this application. Later in time perhaps, so housebook even less relevant I guess.

You are going for settlement?

Just bare in mind that the longer the child remains in Thailand without her mother the more difficult it is to get settlement further down the line.

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[TCA]

You are going for settlement?

Just bare in mind that the longer the child remains in Thailand without her mother the more difficult it is to get settlement further down the line.

Yes, going for settlement. To be honest I haven't explored child settlement in any great detail. Her daughter has largely been raised by the grandparents (the dad hasn't been seen since shortly after she was born) and although living with us for the past year, will return to granny and grandad shortly. We felt at 8 years old and almost no English, the transition would be too difficult for her this early on.

I'm not sure how much detail about this to put in my girlfriend's application now you mention it. Just background re our stay with us and in previous year's holidays? My financial support? Future plans? That sort of thing? The daughter is in plenty photos so will be seen in the supporting docs.

Edited April 2, 2013 by TCA

[theoldgit]

You need to give some thought to the future plans for the child, the longer she remains with her grandparents, with you guys in the UK, the more difficult it becomes for your wife to demonstrate that she has responsibility.

I'm not making a judgement, plent of people do it, but it's something for you to think about, especially as the grandparents get older, and your wife sees her less and less.

Not trying to worry you.

[TCA]

Thanks for the advice. Will definitely give it some thought. Given not part of this application though, do we need to give more than just general info about my girlfriend's daughter? I'm thinking re both our letters of support from applicant and sponsor?

[7by7]

My step daughter was 9 and had no English when she and her mother came to live in the UK. She adapted faster than her mother did; with the help of the excellent teaching staff and her fellow pupils the school she entered once here.

My opinion?

• The younger a child is when they make the move, the easier they will find it to adapt.
• The longer parent and child are separated the more difficult it will be to show sole responsibility should the child later apply for settlement.

The child must be mentioned in part 4 of the application form, not doing so will cause problems if she applies later, and I would recommend saying in your sponsor's letter why she is not also applying now and what plans you and your wife have for her future.

Edited April 2, 2013 by 7by7

[TCA]

Thanks 7by7. All good points and I/we will make some mention of our reasoning for not applying for child settlement at this time and plans for doing so in the not too distant future.

[TCA]

Jumped in at the deep end and got married at the amphur this morning! Celebrations on hold and ploughing on with the settlement visa application while we're in Bangkok, so it's just a bit unreal and seems like another link in a very long paper chain. Thanks to all who posted above to get us this far. Your help has been invaluable.

Got the marriage documents translated into English right away, but do these have to now be legalized at the MFA?

[theoldgit]

Got the marriage documents translated into English right away, but do these have to now be legalised at the MFA?

No I don't think so for the UK.

Oh, and congratulations.

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[TCA]

No I don't think so for the UK. Oh, and congratulations.

Thanks oldgit. The guy at the amphur said that if my wife wanted to go to the UK we'd need to go back to Chaeng Wattana road with the translation. This wasn't on my agenda and I could do without it. One visit there was quite enough. Could this just be a requirement for lodging a marriage certificate with the GRO in the UK?

Can anyone else confirm what's needed for the settlement visa?

[theoldgit]

As far as I'm aware the only time you need to get the stamp from the MFA is on the translation of the affirmation of your freedom to marry.

I'm not sure if you would even need it if you decided to lodge your marriage certificate at the GRO, which is not a requirement and, in my opinion a waste of money.

I do believe that, in some circumstances, some European countries require a marriage licence to be 'legalised'.

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[TCA]

Thanks og. I wouldn't bother with the GRO either. I'm googling and found this below in Frogster's amphur section of his excellent settlement visa post:

"At some point and this really depends when it is convenient and you find yourself back in Bangkok, have the original marriage certificate translated in to English and certified / legalised at the MFA. Required for the Visa Application later."

[7by7]

The translation bureau should have certified the translation, and this is sufficient for all UK purposes; including visa and leave to remain applications.

Some members have posted here that in order to obtain a Schengen visa they needed the translation certified by the MFA, but I have no personal experience of that.

Lodging your marriage certificate with the GRO does not increase the legitimacy of your marriage; as it is legal in Thailand it is also legal in the UK and nearly every other country. (I say 'nearly' because if I said 'all' someone would post that it isn't legal in some obscure country no one's heard of!)

The only reason for doing so is so that you can obtain a copy in the UK at some later date should you wish to do so. Like theoldgit I consider doing this to be a waste of money and have simply kept out marriage certificate and translation in a safe place.

If you do decide to do so, it is the original Thai certificate that you send them, not the translation.

[TCA]

The translation bureau should have certified the translation, and this is sufficient for all UK purposes; including visa and leave to remain applications.

Some members have posted here that in order to obtain a Schengen visa they needed the translation certified by the MFA, but I have no personal experience of that.

If you do decide to do so, it is the original Thai certificate that you send them, not the translation.

Cheers 7by7. Been googling re the Schengen visa (for Thai wife of UK citizen) and it looks a nightmare. Some saying Thai embassies in UK will do translation and certification, others saying it has to go to FCO as well. And none of it cheap. Although someone said a Thai embassy in UK could certify a Thai marriage certificate translated into English for £10! Not sure whether I should just get it done at MFA or not. Of course as you said, they'd require an original marriage certificate and although we have two, I don't like the idea of one being mutilated at the MFA and rendered useless as a legal document. Edited April 3, 2013 by TCA

[7by7]

It's the translation which will be certified by the MFA, not the Thai original.

If you do think you may want to travel to Europe at some point and so need a Schengen visa then it's probably a lot easier, and cheaper, to get it done at the MFA now rather than try and sort it out via the RTE in London later.

Of course, if she later decides to take out British citizenship and so has a British passport she wont need a visa to travel in Europe; but she'll need to have lived in the UK for at least 5 years before she can apply for that.

[liveforever]

Tca, if I were you while in bkk I would go back to MFA and get the translation certified, at least when you are back in the UK you will know its been done and sorted.

All the best

[TCA]

Thanks 7by7 and liveforever. Might just bite the bullet and get it done in BKK then. Groan.......

It's the translation which will be certified by the MFA, not the Thai original.

I'm getting confused here. For the affirmation, the original embassy document was used with the translation and MFA stapled together and stamped over them. That was given to the amphur.

Different story with a marriage certificate of course, so does this mean MFA just need a copy? Plus sight of the original perhaps?

Edited: just dawns on me that my wife might need to go too? That could kaibosh any attempts with the express service as she's got her English test and TB x-ray on the following mornings, then we're out of here.

Edited April 3, 2013 by TCA

[7by7]

I've never done it, but I understand that the MFA do not certify the original marriage certificate, they certify that the translation is correct.

To do that they obvioulsy need to see both the original and the translation.