UK settlement visa,I am trying to reach the financial requirements ! .

[matsky13]

I MAY be trying to hit the New financial requirements for settlement for my wife and step Daughter so I am looking ahead in case it turns out I need to .

My wife and her 4 year old daughter both Thai (and our Daughter half British ) may be wishing to apply so we can come to the UK in April next year 2014 . They ( the Thai's )are in the uk on visitor visas at the moment testing the water and the climate ! If they Like it and think its the right thing we need to look Ahead as the savings need to be in the bank Maturing for 6 months .

I am self employed and its looking like I will not meet the earning requirements at the Application date Around December 2013 .

a couple of other routes may be open to me . MY Current Home is 100 percent mine ie The Mortgage has been paid in full .

Option 1 . Sell my home and bank the money , But would I need to do this 6 months BEFORE we APPLY or 6 months before its granted . So could i then use the money imediately after application to try and buy a new home before the settlement Visa is issued . (this is a theoretical Question ,I know its probably not wise to do so as a visa refusal would cause more problems on re application etc ) . But I am interested in the answer as it Highlights the ridiculous rules , meaning i will have to rent a property for at least 9 months (6 months for the Maturing of the banked money and then for the 3 months ish for application ) .

Option 2 Remortgage the current home , but would this be allowable as it would be a loan ! also maybe i would struggle to secure a new mortgage as the usual 2.5 times my income the Banks use to calculate available mortgages could become an issue . again if i got a flexible morgage/loan that allowed me to pay it all back the second the application went in . (to reduce the interest payments ) . would this be ok ?

Option 3 . A couple of wealthy Freinds have said they would be happy to help if they could . But a Gift from them of 75k would i beleive be seen as taxable income and guess this would be qiute expensive not sure if it would attract the 40% bracket . but still guess it would be quite a sizable sum. Does Anybody Know the Tax Law ?

Also I am very uncomfortable with this option I have always been a totaly independent person never needing financial support from my family , freinds or Government !!! . And as the honest truth would be that it would not be a permenant gift and i would be paying them back as soon as the visas had been issued or sometime soon after either the ILR/FLR milestone . or if my wife or mine earnings would lift us above the earnings threshold (so It would be a loan and so in reality not alowable

I Mainly ask this 3rd question so i can give them an honest and accurate answer when they make this fantastic offer to help again .

Option 4. Do nothing .And just sit around waiting to win the lottery or for the government to change the rules in the next 12 months . Both as unlikely as each other in my opinion .

Option 5 . start looking at the Surrindah Singh Route . Again a very real option ,I could try to start a business in France , Spain or Greece. I have freinds who have homes there and i could base myself there and make a half hearted sham of an attempt to get a business going with the 90 percent chance of it failing and subsequently return to the UK once my wife and daughter had joined me .

But what would the rules they had to abide by once they where in the uk , would they be able to return to Thailand and visit there family , Would my wife be able to work in the uk , her child be able to go to school in the future , etc, etc .

Just so this dosn't confuse anyone ,My personel circumstance is that in 2.5 years time I would HOPE to be able to meet the Earnings or savings (of course changes in policy or my circumstance may change by then) , The wife may be working here,I would be here full time and not splitting my year between Thailand and the UK so a full 12 months earnings should be ok , I also have some long term savings plans maturing then .
So my Questions relate only to the initial Settlement Visa Applications . not the ILR stage .



Any thoughts would be welcome .

[AnotherOneAmerican]

Self employed so

Move to France or Spain for 6 months using the 'freedom to move family around EEC', just apply at relevant Embassy for their VISA.

Then after working abroad for 6 months (she can work too), just move back using the' freedom to move family around EEC', just apply at British Embassy nearest to your foreign home. No need for any special employment, waiter, odd-job man, ebay trader, everything counts.

No financial requirements to move there, then move to UK, no VISA fees, all free.

After 5 years in the UK she can apply for settlement, no fees.

Just an idea.

Edited July 3, 2013 by AnotherOneAmerican

[matsky13]

I have just started to consider this route , I understood 6 months would not be the time needed ?, but I am not an expert .This route for me is a last resort it would be expensive in that I would not be earning from my existing business here in the UK and then staying abroad with possibly a small or no income !
But as you point out no Visa Fees , How much would this add upto in my circumstance wife and one child and how many fees would I save in total ?
. Even though its completely legal ,Morally I think its a bit of a cheat , But If push comes to shove , For the sake of keeping my family together I would do it .

[AnotherOneAmerican]

I believe 3 months is the required length of employment in another EEC country, before moving back to the UK.

VISA fees, sorry no idea.

While away you could possibly rent your house out. Your existing business can't expand into France?

It might be a fun experience, working bar in Spain, fruit picking in France, teaching Scuba diving in Malta, serving in a coffee shop in Amsterdam (or whatever).

Edited July 3, 2013 by AnotherOneAmerican

[ThaiVisaExpress]

You have identified various options. Are you sure that you cannot meet the income requirement ?

Have you thought about renting your house out ? At the moment, the way the rules are written, you could rent your house out, and rent somewhere else to stay. The UKVI are only interested in your income, not your expenditure. So, it doesn't even matter if you spend more on your own rent than you earn in rental income. That said, you could then show two forms of income - one from self-employment, and one from rental income ( and that might help you meet the threshold ?). It's not quite that simple, but it is doable, especially if you act early ( your rental income would have to be for the same period as your self-employed income - ie. the same period as your financial year).

If you need some help, or want a free consultation, then send Paul an email at the office.

Tony M

[matsky13]

Thanks A one A and Tony , Great Ideas but .Yes I have considered renting this property out , It would help with the income requirement but would not gaurantee it.) and I believe have to have been in place for 12 months as the income also has to be for 12 months prior to application , so even if i did it right now it would be 12 months before i could apply . Letting the property is a whole different set of headaches without any guarantee it would be successful .This property would give about 5.5k income at best and thats hoping it lets for the full 12 months and also they don't default and before any costs are taken into account ie electrical saftey and gas, certs , and related work to pass the stringent rules also an enviromental efficiency test, insurance costs , advertising , etc etc , . I am sure for some it would be a good idea. ie if your property could generate a better monthly return . For me Its not the best option ,

I am coming around to the Idea of selling anyway ,If the Visa applications where successfull ,sooner or later we would be requiring a bigger house anyway .

I feel angry at the reason i have been forced down this route but if its the most certain way i can think of hitting the Savings Target.

Back to my original Questions Am i right in assuming I would have to sell the property Now to have the money in the bank for 6 months before an Application in late December / January ? or is it 6 months before the Visa starts ?

This is Important for me as we are currently living in the house i need to sell .

[ThaiVisaExpress]

The money ( it will be savings of 72,000 required ) have to be "under your control for a minimum of 6 months, and immediately available at the date of application. That means you could put it in a term account until you apply, but you would need to switch it to an account which makes it immediately available before submitting the application.

Tony M