Settlement visa help from Thai Visa Express

[paul771]

I would like to express my thanks to Thai Visa Express, the forum sponsor, for their help with my wife’s recent settlement application. We submitted the application at the end of 2013, and in February we received this email from the Embassy:

25^th February 2014

Ref: xxxxxxxxx

Your application for entry clearance under paragraph EC-P.1.1 of Appendix FM to the Immigration Rules has been considered. Your application falls to be refused because you do not meet the income threshold requirement under Appendix FM and the related evidential requirements under Appendix FM-SE as listed below.

EC-P.1.1(d) - Section E-ECP: Eligibility for entry clearance as a partner

Financial Requirements

ECO Reasons for Refusal

Your sponsor is not exempt from the financial requirements as defined by paragraph E-ECP.3.3. and must provide those documents as specified in the Immigration Rules in Appendix FM-SE. With your initial application which was submitted on 21.11.13 you stated within Appendix 2 that you wished for your sponsor’s income from his cash savings to be considered against the income threshold requirements under the immigration rules.

From the evidence provided your sponsor has no income. In order to qualify therefore, you and your sponsor require £62,500 (the income threshold of £18,600 pa x the 2.5 years you will be granted entry plus £16,000 that the DWP set as a public funds ineligibility threshold) in savings in order to meet the financial requirements.

In respect of cash savings the following must be provided:

1. personal bank statements showing the cash savings have been held in an account in the name of the person or of the person and their partner jointly for at least 6 months prior to the date of application.

NOT MET- Personal bank statements have not been provided. See below regarding the investment statements that have been provided.

1. A declaration by the account holder(s) of the source(s) of the cash savings.

NOT MET- There is no declaration of the source of the cash savings

In respect of cash savings:

1. The savings may be held in any form of bank/savings account, provided that the account allows the savings to be accessed immediately (with or without a penalty for withdrawing funds without notice). This can include, for those of retirement age, savings held in a pension savings account which can be immediately withdrawn.
2. Paid out competition winnings or a legacy which has been paid can contribute to cash savings.
3. Funds held as cash savings by the applicant, their partner or both jointly at the date of application can have been transferred from investments,stocks, shares, bonds or trust funds within the period of 6 months prior to the date of application, provided that:
   1. The funds have been in the ownership and under the control of the applicant, their partner or both jointly for at least the period of 6 months prior to the date of application.
   2. The ownership of the funds in the form of investments, stocks, shares, bonds or trust funds; the cash value of the funds in that form at or before the beginning of the period of 6 months prior to the date of application; and the transfer of the funds into cash, are evidenced by a portfolio report or other relevant documentation from a financial institution regulated by the appropriate regulatory body for the country in which that institution is operating.
   3. The requirements of this Appendix in respect of the cash savings held at the date of application are met, except that the period of at least 6 months prior to the date of application in paragraph 11(a) will be reduced by the amount of that period in which the relevant funds were held in the form of investments, stocks, shares, bonds or trust funds.

NOT MET- xxxxxxxxxx statements show funds just exceeding £62 500 but there is no satisfactory indication that they can be accessed immediately without penalty for withdrawal without notice. Also, there is no satisfactory evidence to show that investments have been transferred into cash within the 6 months period.

However, no final determination has been made at this stage as to whether you meet the income threshold and or related evidential requirements. This is because the Courts have not yet decided the outcome of the Secretary of State’s appeal in a legal challenge to the income threshold requirement. More information about this is set out on the Home Office website.

You have failed to provide the specified evidence as detailed above and therefore I am not satisfied that your sponsor meets the financial requirement.

A decision on your application has therefore been put on hold until the Courts have decided the outcome of the Secretary of State’s appeal in a legal challenge to the income threshold requirement. More information about this hold on decisions is set out on the Home Office’s immigration website.

Your application will be reviewed and a decision taken on it once the outcome of the legal challenge is known. This may not be for several months at least.

In the meantime, within three weeks from the date of this notification, if you submit any further information or document(s), it must relate directly to the reasons given above as to why you do not meet the income threshold requirement. It must also relate only to your circumstances, and / or those of your sponsor, as they were at the date of your application, or in the relevant period(s) prior to that date. If, on the basis of this further information or document(s) and otherwise, your application meets all the requirements of the Immigration Rules, a decision will be taken on your application and it will be granted.

Alternatively, you can withdraw your application at any time (and any document(s) submitted with it will be returned to you) and you can pay the relevant application fee and make a fresh application. You may wish to consider doing so for example if you wish to rely on a change in circumstances since the date of your application, or on the fact a requirement relating to a period of time (e.g. in respect of employment or cash savings) is now met which was not met at the date of the application. If you withdraw your application, you will not be refunded the application fee.

If you wish your passport to be returned to you while your application remains on hold, please complete the attached form and return it to the Visa Application Centre where you submitted your application.

Yours sincerely,

CK

Entry Clearance Officer

This really didn’t make any sense to me, as we had provided evidence of savings above the required threshold, and we weren’t relying on “income” to meet the financial threshold. We did send the requested further documents to the Embassy within the three week deadline, but heard nothing more from them. I contacted Thai Visa Express, and asked if they were able to help us, as there was no indication of when the current court case would be sorted out, and, in theory, we could be in limbo for months. TVE took it on. I have no idea how they did it, but within two weeks the visa was issued. The Embassy hasn’t given us any explanation as to why the application has been on hold for the last three months.

Again, our thanks to all at Thai Visa Express, and I am happy to recommend their services to all members here.

[Rob180]

They sorted it because TVE know the immigration rules inside out and know what they're doing, that's the short answer. Congratulations on the Visa and good luck to you both. .

[BIGJIMMY]

Why in this instance was the financial requirement so high??

Sent from my iPhone using ThaiVisa app

[7by7]

It wasn't.

As the OP says, they were not relying on sponsor's income (min £18,600 p.a) but on cash savings.

The minimum required cash savings is £62,500; which can be held by the sponsor, applicant or jointly.

Full details of how to meet the requirement can be found here.

Note that if children are applying as well then the minimums do increase.

[BIGJIMMY]

Oh righteo, thanks.

Sent from my iPhone using ThaiVisa app

[krisb]

Sounds to me like you could have sorted that out yourself. You do say there was no real reason to refuse, so just a matter of contacting the case officer and sorting it out what seems to be a misunderstanding. A no brainer really.

No miracle performed here from what i can see. Likely your application was thrown in the 'waiting for more info' box with the other thousand or so applications.

Still, glad you got the result you got.

Would like to know how much TVE charged

Edited May 28, 2014 by krisb

[ThaiVisaExpress]

Sounds to me like you could have sorted that out yourself. You do say there was no real reason to refuse, so just a matter of contacting the case officer and sorting it out what seems to be a misunderstanding. A no brainer really.

No miracle performed here from what i can see. Likely your application was thrown in the 'waiting for more info' box with the other thousand or so applications.

Still, glad you got the result you got.

Would like to know how much TVE charged

The OP first contacted TVE on the forum in October last year, when he was getting documents ready for this application. He had some questions, and TVE answered them at no cost ( as they do on the forum). TVE weren't involved in the application itself. In mid- April the OP contacted TVE again to ask for advice on the letter from the Embassy. The OP had submitted the documents requested in the Embassy's letter of 24th February, but had heard nothing. His wife had, as you yourself advise, tried to contact the "case officer" by email in April to try to sort it out, as they had heard nothing from the Embassy since February, but they did not receive any reply to this contact. They therefore came back to TVE for assistance.

TVE offered to contact the Embassy on the OP's behalf, and did so on the OP's instruction, as the OP and his wife had been unable to get any response from the Embassy. So it turned out to be a little bit more difficult than just a matter of contacting the case officer. The OP and his wife had contacted the Embassy twice since receiving the above letter, but had heard nothing back at all.

TVE did make a charge ( miracles are free, but, as you say, TVE didn't perform a miracle), as they had been asked to do some work that was outside of the free advice that they give on the forum. I don't think it's appropriate for me to say how much TVE charged, but if the OP wants to post the charge, then TVE have no objection at all.

Tony M

[durhamboy]

Sounds to me like you could have sorted that out yourself. You do say there was no real reason to refuse, so just a matter of contacting the case officer and sorting it out what seems to be a misunderstanding. A no brainer really.

No miracle performed here from what i can see. Likely your application was thrown in the 'waiting for more info' box with the other thousand or so applications.

Still, glad you got the result you got.

Would like to know how much TVE charged

Yet another person in this forum assuming knowledge that they don't have! I think we can see where the real no brainer is.

Well done TVE.

[krisb]

Sounds to me like you could have sorted that out yourself. You do say there was no real reason to refuse, so just a matter of contacting the case officer and sorting it out what seems to be a misunderstanding. A no brainer really.

No miracle performed here from what i can see. Likely your application was thrown in the 'waiting for more info' box with the other thousand or so applications.

Still, glad you got the result you got.

Would like to know how much TVE charged

Yet another person in this forum assuming knowledge that they don't have! I think we can see where the real no brainer is.

Well done TVE.

Actually knowledge I do have.

Have done my fare share of visas and now my wife lives in Australia, no help needed, managed to navigate through the visa jungle solo. Not boasting, just never felt the need to get help with applications or contacting any case officers. They are designed to be relatively easy getting visas, and dealing with vfs. I wished the op well, not meant to sound rude at all.

No need to get up tight on the op's behalf, I'll let you get back to your cocoa

Edited May 28, 2014 by krisb

[Rob180]

I hardly think Tony M even required to give that explanation (credit to him for doing so) to a poster who had no knowledge of the intricacies of the case. I don't think comments about 'charges' phrased the way the one above was even merited a response.

Nobody really gives a monkey's about the 'bully for me I did it all myself brigade '. The fact is, it is an individual's choice whether to use an agent or not. TVE's record of successful applications speaks for itself. Many people (including me) chose to go to TVE because they knew they would do the job right, which saves a lot of time, makes the whole process much less stressful and reduces the risk of a failed application and possibly another £850 Embassy fee.

[thomasteve]

What seems wrong here is that the OP could not get a reply from the Embassy but TVE could.

The Embassy should respond to all enquiries in the same manner regardless of whether it comes from an applicant or an agent acting on their behalf.

Enquiries from Visa agents should not be given special treatment or priority by Embassy staff over applicants who do not make use of agents.

Edited May 28, 2014 by thomasteve

[theoldgit]

"Thai bashing" post removed, and a response.

The OP took the time to comment on what he conceived to be excellent service by an agent who also posts a lot of free advice on this forum, so please stick to comments on the original post.

[durhamboy]

Sounds to me like you could have sorted that out yourself. You do say there was no real reason to refuse, so just a matter of contacting the case officer and sorting it out what seems to be a misunderstanding. A no brainer really.

No miracle performed here from what i can see. Likely your application was thrown in the 'waiting for more info' box with the other thousand or so applications.

Still, glad you got the result you got.

Would like to know how much TVE charged

Yet another person in this forum assuming knowledge that they don't have! I think we can see where the real no brainer is.

Well done TVE.

Actually knowledge I do have.

Have done my fare share of visas and now my wife lives in Australia, no help needed, managed to navigate through the visa jungle solo. Not boasting, just never felt the need to get help with applications or contacting any case officers. They are designed to be relatively easy getting visas, and dealing with vfs. I wished the op well, not meant to sound rude at all.

No need to get up tight on the op's behalf, I'll let you get back to your cocoa

Actually this topic is not about YOU. The fact that you have done your fair ("fare"????) share of visas is really irrelevant. Obtaining visas for the UK has become progressively harder over the years and the OP experienced a problem and thanked TVE for sorting it out. That's why we have this forum and that's why we have specialist agents such as TVE. So what that you did your visa? So did I but, again, so what?

Frankly I did think that you sounded rude as, indeed your last sentence also sounds rude. Hence I am giving it back to you. Ok I'll get back to my cocoa now. Yes I do like cocoa - seems to be that is the only bit of knowledge that you have assumed correctly!

[thomasteve]

"Thai bashing" post removed, and a response.

The OP took the time to comment on what he conceived to be excellent service by an agent who also posts a lot of free advice on this forum, so please stick to comments on the original post.

Yes indeed all credit and kudos to Tony M of TVE for his frequent free advice and managing to get a response from the Embassy where others seem to fail.

What i would like to know, and what would help future applicants, is if he could give some general advice as to who or how to get answers when they don't respond. Is there some formal route for complaints or is it just a case of being tenacious and knowing who to contact ?

[7by7]

Contact details for the embassy can be found on this page (scroll down 'til you find it). However, I suspect that they would tell you that you need to contact UKVI directly.

So see UKVI complaints procedure.

If living in the UK, there is also a chance that contacting your MP may get some sort of result.

[thomasteve]

Contact details for the embassy can be found on this page (scroll down 'til you find it). However, I suspect that they would tell you that you need to contact UKVI directly.

So see UKVI complaints procedure.

If living in the UK, there is also a chance that contacting your MP may get some sort of result.

I would prefer Tony M of TVE to reply (if possible) as to whether there's a local alternative method they use to expedite complaints rather than the official gov.uk website published procedure referred to above.

Edited May 29, 2014 by thomasteve

[aussiebob]

Some of you guys should really cut Krisp a bit of slack.

If you have read as many replys by Krisp on these forums as i have you would realise he is not all that bright.

[ThaiVisaExpress]

"Thai bashing" post removed, and a response.

The OP took the time to comment on what he conceived to be excellent service by an agent who also posts a lot of free advice on this forum, so please stick to comments on the original post.

Yes indeed all credit and kudos to Tony M of TVE for his frequent free advice and managing to get a response from the Embassy where others seem to fail.

What i would like to know, and what would help future applicants, is if he could give some general advice as to who or how to get answers when they don't respond. Is there some formal route for complaints or is it just a case of being tenacious and knowing who to contact ?

Our correspondence with UKVI is treated in exactly the same way as anyone else's. There is not, as some have suggested, special treatment for visa agents. In fact, visa agents are often treated with some circumspection by the Embassy ( I suppose that could be called "special treatment ). It might be that we know what to say, or how to say it ( and that is why we often offer to assist), in order to get a quicker response, but I really don't know. There is no magic formula.

[thomasteve]

"Thai bashing" post removed, and a response.

The OP took the time to comment on what he conceived to be excellent service by an agent who also posts a lot of free advice on this forum, so please stick to comments on the original post.

Yes indeed all credit and kudos to Tony M of TVE for his frequent free advice and managing to get a response from the Embassy where others seem to fail.

What i would like to know, and what would help future applicants, is if he could give some general advice as to who or how to get answers when they don't respond. Is there some formal route for complaints or is it just a case of being tenacious and knowing who to contact ?

Our correspondence with UKVI is treated in exactly the same way as anyone else's. There is not, as some have suggested, special treatment for visa agents. In fact, visa agents are often treated with some circumspection by the Embassy ( I suppose that could be called "special treatment ). It might be that we know what to say, or how to say it ( and that is why we often offer to assist), in order to get a quicker response, but I really don't know. There is no magic formula.

Thanks for replying.

Perhaps it carries more weight just by sending correspondence that has a letterhead or putting a few MP's names as cc on it even if copies are not actually sent.

[bobrussell]

The key thing is to know what to say and how to say it! That is why you pay for expert advice! Clearly the OP got what he paid for and is posting a vote of thanks for the organisation that provided that level of expertise.

Good result it seems!

[MaprangHolmes]

Using an agent or not is totally up to a the individual, if you are prepared to pay for another person to help you with your application then that is your choice, I really can not see, why anyone would criticise another person for asking someone for help with a problem and then paying that person for there time and expertise.

[Thanet]

Quick question, just supposing I ever wanted to take my Thai wife to live in the UK: Can foreign currency savings that exceed 62,500 pounds count towards the financial requirement? Most of my money is in Aussie dollars, but would not want to transfer it to the UK until partner visa was approved.

The money I have has been in my Aussie account a lot longer than six months. Can I show that as evidence, or do I have to transfer it to the UK and start the clock at zero?

[Bernard Flint]

The bottom line, is that not all people can sort a visa out themselves, that why companies like TVE exist, and overall, do a great job for tilac ja.

The uk requirements have got tougher over the years,and quite rightly so, and minefields do exist.

[ThaiVisaExpress]

Quick question, just supposing I ever wanted to take my Thai wife to live in the UK: Can foreign currency savings that exceed 62,500 pounds count towards the financial requirement? Most of my money is in Aussie dollars, but would not want to transfer it to the UK until partner visa was approved.

The money I have has been in my Aussie account a lot longer than six months. Can I show that as evidence, or do I have to transfer it to the UK and start the clock at zero?

If you are talking about cash savings in a bank account, then yes it can be ina foreign account. This is, basically, what the requirements are, but don't rely just on this. Please ask for further information if required :

Summary of all the requirements that must be met for funds to be considered as cash savings held in a deposit or investment account

1

The account is held within a bank or building society

2

The bank/building society is a financial institution regulated by the appropriate regulatory body for the country in which that institution is operating

3

The bank/building society is not on the list of excluded institutions under the Immigration Rules

4

The account is a current account or a savings account

5

Regular bank statements are provided

6

The statements cover the necessary time period required in the Immigration Rules

7

The savings are held in cash

8

The savings can be immediately withdrawn (with or without penalty)

9

The funds are under the control of the person and/or their partner for the necessary time period required in the Immigration Rules

10

The source of the funds is legal

11

The source of the funds has been declared

Tony M

Edited June 2, 2014 by ThaiVisaExpress

[theoldgit]

@ Thanet, there is always a danger in hijacking a thread that your question may be missed, it's always better to open a new thread or ask on a thread that is more relevant.

I suspect that a foreign currency account could be used, providing it meets the required standard required by the UKVI, thinking it through, if it didn't, a couple living together in Thailand with their savings here couldn't go down the savings route if they wanted to relocate to the UK.

The Entry Clearance Guidance mentions that a bank must be regulated where the funds are held.

1 The account is held within a bank or building society

2 The bank/building society is a financial institution regulated by the appropriate regulatory body for the country in which that institution is operating

3 The bank/building society is not on the list of excluded institutions under the Immigration Rules

4 The account is a current account or a savings account

5 Regular bank statements are provided

6 The statements cover the necessary time period required in the Immigration Rules

7 The savings are held in cash

8 The savings can be immediately withdrawn (with or without penalty)

9 The funds are under the control of the person and/or their partner for the necessary time period required in the Immigration

Rules

10The source of the funds is legal

11The source of the funds has been declared

The rules are fairly complex when using the savings route, so it's better to seek advice..

Edited June 2, 2014 by theoldgit
Tony M is quicker than me, thanks Tony.

[Thanet]

@ Thanet, there is always a danger in hijacking a thread that your question may be missed, it's always better to open a new thread or ask on a thread that is more relevant.

I suspect that a foreign currency account could be used, providing it meets the required standard required by the UKVI, thinking it through, if it didn't, a couple living together in Thailand with their savings here couldn't go down the savings route if they wanted to relocate to the UK.

The Entry Clearance Guidance mentions that a bank must be regulated where the funds are held.

1 The account is held within a bank or building society

2 The bank/building society is a financial institution regulated by the appropriate regulatory body for the country in which that institution is operating

3 The bank/building society is not on the list of excluded institutions under the Immigration Rules

4 The account is a current account or a savings account

5 Regular bank statements are provided

6 The statements cover the necessary time period required in the Immigration Rules

7 The savings are held in cash

8 The savings can be immediately withdrawn (with or without penalty)

9 The funds are under the control of the person and/or their partner for the necessary time period required in the Immigration

Rules

10The source of the funds is legal

11The source of the funds has been declared

The rules are fairly complex when using the savings route, so it's better to seek advice..

Thanks all, and apologies for the hijack. I'll start a new subject next time. I also just found this, which appears to answer my question (paragraph 3.5.1....

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/299103/Financial_Requirement_Guidance_20140324.pdf