Advise on UK family visit for my Thai wife.

[007cableguy]

Was hoping someone could point me in the right direction,

Background information,

I've been married for 4 years to my Thai wife ,I've lived in Thailand for 11 years on a retirement visa with a bank account showing sufficient funds.

We went to Uk 3 years ago to visit family on a 6 month visa that was sponsored by my mother and we were only going 2 weeks but ended up staying 3 months as my mother was ill and later passed away, Will saying that we were only going 2 weeks but stayed 3 months because of my mothers illness have effect on applying for a new visa ?

My sister is going to sponsor this new visa and fills all the requirements ,We are hoping to go over for Easter for a Couple of weeks and Christmas and the following summer , Would a 2 Year multiple entry visa be easier then applying for separate month visas ? .

Thanks in advance

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[howerde]

You will need to explain to the embassies satisfaction, why she stayed 3 months instead of the 2 weeks stated, They will probably cross check the application with her previous application, what

reasons did she give for returning last time, if she said she had business/family etc etc, then they will need an explanation why she did not return after 2 weeks, if you can explain it, then i doubt there will be a problem. Not sure about a 2 year multiple entry due to the issue already raised

Edited February 11, 2014 by howerde

[nonthaburial]

Very sorry, I totally disagree with Howardes She was given a six month visa, which if as normal gave her a 180 day stay, then the fact that you honored the timings is in your favour not against you. You left with half the visa still valid. What is your worry ?

And as a British passport holder, legally married to a non Brit, you do not need sponsorship letters, as your wife she has every right to enter the UK, either with you or on your behalf.

There seems to be so many spurious postings on here.

Edited February 11, 2014 by nonthaburial

[howerde]

Very sorry, I totally disagree with Howardes She was given a six month visa, which if as normal gave her a 180 day stay, then the fact that you honored the timings is in your favour not against you. You left with half the visa still valid. What is your worry ?

And as a British passport holder, legally married to a non Brit, you do not need sponsorship letters, as your wife she has every right to enter the UK, either with you or on your behalf.

There seems to be so many spurious postings on here.

Things have changed over the last few years with ref to visit visas, i can assure you what i have said is not scare mongering, There have been a few posts on the subject, and it is not limited to people from Thailand.

[nonthaburial]

Very sorry, I totally disagree with Howardes She was given a six month visa, which if as normal gave her a 180 day stay, then the fact that you honored the timings is in your favour not against you. You left with half the visa still valid. What is your worry ?

And as a British passport holder, legally married to a non Brit, you do not need sponsorship letters, as your wife she has every right to enter the UK, either with you or on your behalf.

There seems to be so many spurious postings on here.

Things have changed over the last few years with ref to visit visas, i can assure you what i have said is not scare mongering, There have been a few posts on the subject, and it is not limited to people from Thailand.

You are quite tight, things are not limited to Thailand, I have a Chinese wife who now holds a five year multi entry. The big word is WIFE, sure I can agree that non wives are a different ball game. But it is interesting that the OP on his initial request got a six month visa, but only stayed three months. As long as she honored the 180 day stay please tell me what is her problem.

[howerde]

Lets not get into a war over this (it doesn't help) , we have both given our opinions

[nonthaburial]

Lets not get into a war over this (it doesn't help) , we have both given our opinions

Totally agree, however I give advice from recent experience. To help the OP can you please explain your reckoning from your recent experiences. That is what the OP wants to hear to assist him.

Edited February 11, 2014 by nonthaburial

[bobrussell]

The difference between original plans and the actual stay should be explained. Should not be a problem as you have a reasonable excuse.

Applications for 2 year visas cost more than a six month visa. It depends how often your wife is planning to visit the UK as to whether it is more suitable. There is always a risk that a shorter term visa may be issued but you will not get a refund of the difference!

Your wife does not have an automatic right to enter the UK even with a valid visa. Obviously an immigration officer would need a compelling reason to refuse entry.

With the brief history given I cannot see why a visa would be refused but then I am not an ECO!

[7by7]

Being the wife, husband or partner of a British citizen does not mean that any visit visa will be issued automatically; the applicant still has to satisfy the ECO that they meet the criteria for the visa applied for. Since the abolition of the right of appeal for family visit refusals, ECOs do seem, from posts in this forum, to be applying these criteria more strictly to family members!

A standard UK visit visa is valid for 6 months, no matter whether in the application the applicant stated they were going for 1 week, 1 month, 6 months, whatever. If the applicant does stay longer than originally stated then, as long as they leave the UK on or before the actual expiry date, they have not breached the conditions of that visa nor broken any rule or law.

However, ECOs do check what was said in previous applications and it can damage their credibility in future applications if they do stay longer than originally stated; especially if they also said they could only stay for that limited amount of time due to work or other commitments.

Therefore if they do stay longer than originally stated then they should in their next application explain why.

I'm not saying that the next application will be refused if they don't; but it's better to be safe than sorry.

007cableguy, longer term visit visas are available; but the longer the term applied for, the more expensive the fee. The applicant, your wife, will need to demonstrate a sustained need to regularly visit the UK over the period applied for.

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

Note that if the ECO decides to issue a shorter term than applied for there will be no refund of the difference between the fees!

Note also that no matter what term the visa is valid for, she will still only be able to spend a maximum of 6 months per visit in the UK. There is also a convention, not a rule, that a visitor should not spend more than 6 months out of any 12 in the UK.

[Jay Sata]

Worth remembering that according to a former ECO who appeared in a recent BBC Panorama programme they are expected to process

50-55 applications per eight hour shift.

Which by my reckoning with breaks your application faces a total of five minutes for decision.

From opening the file to reading I reckon that's three minutes to allow for decision and closure!