Thai G/f To England For Holiday

[butler3005]

i went to thailand jan 06 for 4 weeks but ended up stayin for 6 1/2 mnts because of my thai girlfriend mainly. but now im back in england and i want to get my girlfriend over to england for max. 3 months (so she can have a real christmas with my family and have a holiday of her own) there are a few things i aint gotta clue about though:- 1st, can i get a tourist visa which would be valid for upto 3 months, if so, does anybody know how long it would take to get the visa once making the application and how much would it cost etc.

2nd, do i need to send a letter to the embassy directly inviting my girlfriend over or could that be emailed to my girlfriend and printed off and taken to the british embassy with her when she comes to apply?

3rd, im 21 and live at home with my mum, which is where my girlfriend would be stayin free of charge because my mum is a home owner, my mother and i will be providing for my girlfriend throughout her whole trip, is this imformation required when applying for a visa, would it help my girlfriend get accepted?

basically i need to know everything there is to know about getting my girlfrined over as this is the first time ive ever done anything like this and if anyone has done this type of thing before i would appreciate your advice, thanks alot...

[GU22]

Hi,

UK visit visas are usually for 6 months.

Basically she will need to show 3 things:-

1) She can afford the visit, either from her own funds or with the help of a sponsor.

2) She will be adequately accommodated during the visit.

3) She is a genuine visitor, i.e. will leave the UK when, or before, the visa expires.

It is number 3 that can be the difficulty. Does she work? Own land? Even if not, do not despair. Many Thais have successfully obtained visit visa based purely on their relationship with their sponsor. If the ECO is satisfied that the relationship is genuine and so the reason for the visit is genuine then they will issue the visa, even if the applicant has no apparent reason to return.

Have a look through the following, and then feel free to post any further questions.

Guidance for Visitors Visa Applications

Guidance - Sponsors

Document checklist

For what is required, and for how to apply see:-

UK Visas Application Centre

[butler3005]

that was fast, was expecting to come back in a few days without any response, lol! thanks alot, i really appreciate the help, if there is any more questions ill be back, cheers bud!

[binnsy]

Good Luck to you i will no in about 8 hrs if my wife can come to the UK in for a sleepless night waiting for her to call with either good or bad news.

[stevenh]

Hi

I recently got a 6 month visa for my thai girlfriend to visit and she is coming for the first time in 4 weeks time.

We applied for a 6 month visa which was the minumum length of time you could apply for and she will be staying for 2 months.

Whilst we are not staying at my parents as I rents in a shared house, I provided a letter from the landlord in support of my visa application. This stated that he was happy for her to come here and that there was basically the room for her to stay with me.

In support of our application I also got a letter from my parents stating that they supported the relationship and were looking forward to us going to stay with them for a period of time whilst she was here. This letter wasn't signed by them as it was sent by email to me. I don't know if this played a part in the visa being accepted but I wouldn't worry about it. There was an address and telephone number if the embassy wanted to question it. I did try to ensure that as much evidence as possible was signed though.

I felt both these letters would support and show that a relationship existed as well as satisfy them that she would be provided for.

My girlfriend doesn't work and it seemed the embassy were satisified that a relationship existed and that she would return home. I just found its easy to show a relationship exists, eg phone bills and emails, photos. The difficulty is her reasons for not returning. Whilst I was and am 100% sure she will return its putting any reasons across that you can in your sponsers letter and to her if she has an interview.

I hope this helps you at least a small bit. I needed a lot of help when we made our application and if you need anymore help I will gladly help if I can

Good luck

Steven

[vinny]

does anybody know how long it would take to get the visa once making the application and how much would it cost etc.

See also How long will my application take? and Visa Fees.

[butler3005]

thanks mate for the advice, it helped! gave me alot of confidence anyways that i should be able to get her over for a bit. i like the way you approached it by being genuine i suppose. there is a couple of more questions id like to ask so if you get this msg ill be in touch soon, thanx alot m8, take care.