Fiancee Visa

[Thaicoon]

My wife and child returned from Thailand last night, they brought with them my mates Thai fiancee, they got to immigration at Heathrow, only to be told 2 hours later. after all questions, that my Mates fiancee has got the wrong visa, and she should be returned back to Thailand, after a lot of hassle the imigration officer said she could stay but must go to the home office in Croydon ASAP to be given the correct visa at extra cost, she applied for a fiancee visa at the embassy and was given a Marriage visa valid for two years, my argument is how the hel_l did the British Embassy give her a marriage visa when they have no marriage certificates, it is a mess up by the Embassy in Bangkok, i do not think my friend should pay for a new visa, also what about his time of work and travel expenses to sort this out, as we live in Wales, Croydon is not just up the Road, i have since told him to contact his member of parliment if no joy with this issue. what do you guys think.

It was a good job my wife stood by her and not just left her on her own, as she would of been flying back last night.

Edited April 21, 2006 by penzman

[cuddleypete]

hello yes i agree with you that they should not pay for new visa as it was the embassy's fault,but i bet you will end up paying as british goverment like to get money for nothing

any way all the best for you and your friend hope everything goes ok

[sierra01]

Hopefully Scouse or GU22 will have some comments on this but my uneducated 2 satangs worth is that thankfully she's in the UK, so it's not so easy for even the Govt to ignore or wriggle out of it's own cock up. In all fairness the Govt/Immigration should reimburse the young lady for having to travel to Croyden, and as she's a foreigner I think it's reasonable for someone to accompany her, also to be reimbursed. It seems a monumental and highly embarrassing mistake by the BKK Embassy, for which someone needs a good slap on the wrist. Maybe they'll do the right thing, if not then at least you have avenues you can take in getting it sorted, IE your local MP.

[markuk]

My wife and child returned from Thailand last night, they brought with them my mates Thai fiancee, they got to immigration at Heathrow, only to be told 2 hours later. after all questions, that my Mates fiancee has got the wrong visa, and she should be returned back to Thailand, after a lot of hassle the imigration officer said she could stay but must go to the home office in Croydon ASAP to be given the correct visa at extra cost, she applied for a fiancee visa at the embassy and was given a Marriage visa valid for two years, my argument is how the hel_l did the British Embassy give her a marriage visa when they have no marriage certificates, it is a mess up by the Embassy in Bangkok, i do not think my friend should pay for a new visa, also what about his time of work and travel expenses to sort this out, as we live in Wales, Croydon is not just up the Road, i have since told him to contact his member of parliment if no joy with this issue. what do you guys think.

It was a good job my wife stood by her and not just left her on her own, as she would of been flying back last night.

To add my thoughts....

I dont think that the embassy can be held to blame alone for the mistake, mistakes unfortunately happen in all walks of life.

Ive never seen a marriage visa only toursit visa's but does it not state the type of Visa and the validity? if it does then it would have been up to them to contact the embassy and point out the mistake before travelling.

Just my opinion - expect i will be shot down for it!!!

[Thaicoon]

My wife and child returned from Thailand last night, they brought with them my mates Thai fiancee, they got to immigration at Heathrow, only to be told 2 hours later. after all questions, that my Mates fiancee has got the wrong visa, and she should be returned back to Thailand, after a lot of hassle the imigration officer said she could stay but must go to the home office in Croydon ASAP to be given the correct visa at extra cost, she applied for a fiancee visa at the embassy and was given a Marriage visa valid for two years, my argument is how the hel_l did the British Embassy give her a marriage visa when they have no marriage certificates, it is a mess up by the Embassy in Bangkok, i do not think my friend should pay for a new visa, also what about his time of work and travel expenses to sort this out, as we live in Wales, Croydon is not just up the Road, i have since told him to contact his member of parliment if no joy with this issue. what do you guys think.

It was a good job my wife stood by her and not just left her on her own, as she would of been flying back last night.

To add my thoughts....

I dont think that the embassy can be held to blame alone for the mistake, mistakes unfortunately happen in all walks of life.

Ive never seen a marriage visa only toursit visa's but does it not state the type of Visa and the validity? if it does then it would have been up to them to contact the embassy and point out the mistake before travelling.

Just my opinion - expect i will be shot down for it!!!

If i had been travelling with the young lady, i would of looked and pointed it out, but as you know, a lot of Thai's are not conversant with English, they may speak a little but cannot read, so i do not think the blame should go out to her, she travelled back with my wife and child, her future husband could not make it out to Thailand as work comitments, its a Cock up by those so called embassy officials we all pay our taxes for.

[sierra01]

To add my thoughts....

I dont think that the embassy can be held to blame alone for the mistake, mistakes unfortunately happen in all walks of life.

Ive never seen a marriage visa only toursit visa's but does it not state the type of Visa and the validity? if it does then it would have been up to them to contact the embassy and point out the mistake before travelling.

Just my opinion - expect i will be shot down for it!!!

Not shooting you down Markuk but I wonder how well the 3 Thai read English? If none of them can read very well then it's certainly possible that they didn't realise the mistake.

IMO the Embassy is entirely to blame, anything else is Thai style passing the buck.

[sierra01]

Thanks Thaicoon, you've answered my question about reading English! The buck stops at the British Embassy.

[GU22]

How did the IO at the airport know she had the wrong visa?

she applied for a fiancee visa at the embassy and was given a Marriage visa valid for two years,

Do you mean she was given a spouse visa, i.e. a visa for someone to come and live with their spouse? As you say, even if the application form had been incorrectly filled in, the ECO would have wanted to see a marriage certificate before issuing a spouse visa.

If she applied for a fiance visa and was given a spouse visa, then obviously this is an error that should be rectified by the IND at no cost to her or her fiance. Her, or her fiance's, first step should be to contact the IND (contact details here) to explain the situation and ask them what needs to be done to rectify the situation and legitimise her status.

[silomfan]

Well they cocked that up didn't they ? It would be interesting to kn ow the outcome of it . Bet you don't even get an apology let alone re-imbursed for all your considerable trouble and hassle.

Let us know what happens ..

SILOMFAN

[GU22]

Do you mean she was given a spouse visa, i.e. a visa for someone to come and live with their spouse? As you say, even if the application form had been incorrectly filled in, the ECO would have wanted to see a marriage certificate before issuing a spouse visa.

One possibility that has just occurred to me.

I know of an unmarried couple who had been living together in Thailand for 3 years. The British partner had to return to the UK. As they were not married they knew they could not get a spouse visa, so his g/f applied for a fiance visa. On looking at the evidence and seeing that they had been living together for 3 years, the ECO advised her that an unmarried partners visa would be more suitable and suggested that they issue this instead of the fiance visa she'd applied for; at no extra charge. She agreed, and so this is what they did.

Obviously, I don't know anything of the circumstances in Thaicoon's friend's case, but is it possible that a similar thing has occurred here and she does in fact have the correct visa?

But as I said previously, they should contact the IND without delay to clarify the situation and ascertain what action they need to take to rectify the situation.

I still don't understand, though, what made the IO at the port of entry think she had the wrong visa.

[Thaicoon]

How did the IO at the airport know she had the wrong visa?

she applied for a fiancee visa at the embassy and was given a Marriage visa valid for two years,

Do you mean she was given a spouse visa, i.e. a visa for someone to come and live with their spouse? As you say, even if the application form had been incorrectly filled in, the ECO would have wanted to see a marriage certificate before issuing a spouse visa.

If she applied for a fiance visa and was given a spouse visa, then obviously this is an error that should be rectified by the IND at no cost to her or her fiance. Her, or her fiance's, first step should be to contact the IND (contact details here) to explain the situation and ask them what needs to be done to rectify the situation and legitimise her status.

Thanks for the link and all the replies, i will e-mail them later, with the visa details etc, i will keep you guys posted.

[the scouser]

Thaicoon,

As has been suggested, get in contact with the Home Office, but as the error lies with the embassy in Bangkok, I'd also simultaneously get in touch with UK Visas. Perhaps your friend would like to make it clear to them that if there are any costs associated with sorting out this matter, she will seek reimbursement, not to mention the exemplary damages for the buggeration factor.

Did she keep a copy of the application form? If so, this should be copied to both the HO and UK Visas.

Scouse.

[Thaicoon]

Thaicoon,

As has been suggested, get in contact with the Home Office, but as the error lies with the embassy in Bangkok, I'd also simultaneously get in touch with UK Visas. Perhaps your friend would like to make it clear to them that if there are any costs associated with sorting out this matter, she will seek reimbursement, not to mention the exemplary damages for the buggeration factor.

Did she keep a copy of the application form? If so, this should be copied to both the HO and UK Visas.

Scouse.

Thanks Scouser, and all you other guys,

My Friend has been in contact with the Home office, a lot of help they were, really rude and arrogent, i asked the ladies name with no avail, she has said my friend and his future wife have to go there asap, and pay for another visa, i explained it is the Embassys fault so we are not paying a penny and if we do go there we want reimbursing for our time, as why should we pay for some other civil servants mistake, in the end i told her we will be contacting our local member of parliment and get him to deal with it, my friend and his fiance have an appointment next week, i am going with him to explain a few things. i will keep you posted.

[GU22]

Wish your friend the best of luck in this, but he should be aware of the following from What will happen when I make my application?

Checking your visa

Please check your visa when you get it. You should make sure that:

your personal details are correct

it correctly states the purpose for which you want to come to the UK

it is valid for the date on which you want to travel

(My emphasis.)

It would, IMHO, be extremely unfair of them to use this as a get out, but you should make your friend aware that they may. He should make sure that he has an adequate explanation as to why she didn't check the visa was correct; e.g. She naturally assumed they knew what they were doing and so assumed the visa was correct, and was not told by the embassy staff when it was issued to check it, nor given anything in writing advising her to check it.

A thought has occurred to me.

What if they just get married? The visa says (I assume) that she is the spouse of Mr. XYZ, and once married she will be! She then simply applies for ILR in 2 years time as per any other spouse visa holder.

Anyone know if this is feasible? Scouse?

[vinny]

Did the Immigration Officer make any endorsements onto the Visa/Entry Clearance?

[the scouser]

What if they just get married? The visa says (I assume) that she is the spouse of Mr. XYZ, and once married she will be! She then simply applies for ILR in 2 years time as per any other spouse visa holder.

I don't know for certain, but I would think there is a difficulty in getting married. The lady's visa already apparently states that she is the spouse of so-and-so and, therefore, indicates that she is not free to marry.

Scouse.

[GU22]

Yeah, further investigation makes me think it's a non-starter.

Marrying in the UK - Frequently Asked Questions

From 5 December 2005, if you are subject to immigration control and you want to marry or register a civil partnership in the United Kingdom (UK) you will need to follow the procedures below. You must either:

hold a fiancé(e) or visitor - marriage / civil partnership entry clearance (visa), or

hold a Home Office certificate of approval, or

be settled in the UK (e.g. indefinite leave to remain)............

............In any marriage involving civil preliminaries, you will have to show your entry clearance to the registrar when you give notice of marriage.

So much for that idea.

[Thaicoon]

Wish your friend the best of luck in this, but he should be aware of the following from What will happen when I make my application?

Checking your visa

Please check your visa when you get it. You should make sure that:

your personal details are correct

it correctly states the purpose for which you want to come to the UK

it is valid for the date on which you want to travel

(My emphasis.)

It would, IMHO, be extremely unfair of them to use this as a get out, but you should make your friend aware that they may. He should make sure that he has an adequate explanation as to why she didn't check the visa was correct; e.g. She naturally assumed they knew what they were doing and so assumed the visa was correct, and was not told by the embassy staff when it was issued to check it, nor given anything in writing advising her to check it.

A thought has occurred to me.

What if they just get married? The visa says (I assume) that she is the spouse of Mr. XYZ, and once married she will be! She then simply applies for ILR in 2 years time as per any other spouse visa holder.

Anyone know if this is feasible? Scouse?

At last had a bit of sense of the IND today, i spoke with them for my friend, the lady i spoke to was quite pleasant and helpfull, i explained the situation, she told me send the passport and a covering letter, and they would put the right visa in passport at no extra cost, i explained it was the fault of the Embassy and if there is a charge etc we would contact our Member of parliment, she was understanding, lets see what happens, My Freind says thanks guys for all your info.

[GU22]

Sounds promising. Let's hope that she is as good as her word.

[markuk]

My wife and child returned from Thailand last night, they brought with them my mates Thai fiancee, they got to immigration at Heathrow, only to be told 2 hours later. after all questions, that my Mates fiancee has got the wrong visa, and she should be returned back to Thailand, after a lot of hassle the imigration officer said she could stay but must go to the home office in Croydon ASAP to be given the correct visa at extra cost, she applied for a fiancee visa at the embassy and was given a Marriage visa valid for two years, my argument is how the hel_l did the British Embassy give her a marriage visa when they have no marriage certificates, it is a mess up by the Embassy in Bangkok, i do not think my friend should pay for a new visa, also what about his time of work and travel expenses to sort this out, as we live in Wales, Croydon is not just up the Road, i have since told him to contact his member of parliment if no joy with this issue. what do you guys think.

It was a good job my wife stood by her and not just left her on her own, as she would of been flying back last night.

To add my thoughts....

I dont think that the embassy can be held to blame alone for the mistake, mistakes unfortunately happen in all walks of life.

Ive never seen a marriage visa only toursit visa's but does it not state the type of Visa and the validity? if it does then it would have been up to them to contact the embassy and point out the mistake before travelling.

Just my opinion - expect i will be shot down for it!!!

If i had been travelling with the young lady, i would of looked and pointed it out, but as you know, a lot of Thai's are not conversant with English, they may speak a little but cannot read, so i do not think the blame should go out to her, she travelled back with my wife and child, her future husband could not make it out to Thailand as work comitments, its a Cock up by those so called embassy officials we all pay our taxes for.

Hey i dont pay taxes to the UK governement