UK Visa for Thai GF - Sponsor Question

[Josh88]

My Thai girlfriend (of two years) and I are planning on visiting the UK for two weeks in August. I'm a UK citizen but don't have residence in the UK, so we'll be staying at my mother's house. Who should sponsor my girlfriend, me or my mother? My girlfriend has sufficient savings in her Thai bank accounts to cover the cost of the trip, so I won't be providing financial assistance. I'm just a bit confused as to who would be considered the sponsor under these circumstances.

[theoldgit]

If she is paying for the trip herself then she doesn't actually need sponsorship.

If your mother is providing accommodation then she could write a letter offering accommodation and why, she should provide details of the accommodation available.

If you are travelling together, and returning to Thailand together, and you have a life together in Thailand, then a covering letter from you outlining that, mirrored by your girlfriend, would certainly go towards satisfying the Entry Clearance Officer of her reasons to return.

[sotsira]

Is there a provision in the online application to submit these covering letters

or should they be presented separately by hand for example?

[theoldgit]

All supporting documents need to be submitted by the applicant in person at the VFS office with the hard copy of the application is submitted and the biometric details captured.

[Josh88]

If she is paying for the trip herself then she doesn't actually need sponsorship.

If your mother is providing accommodation then she could write a letter offering accommodation and why, she should provide details of the accommodation available.

If you are travelling together, and returning to Thailand together, and you have a life together in Thailand, then a covering letter from you outlining that, mirrored by your girlfriend, would certainly go towards satisfying the Entry Clearance Officer of her reasons to return.

Thanks for the reply. Let me be a bit more clear about the financial situation, my first post was misleading after rereading it:

My girlfriend has two bank accounts in her name. One account contains savings from her salary. She recently got the required bank statements of activity over the past 6 months, and the final balance which would be presented to the embassy is 66k. Her other account contains ~90k, but that money comes from fairly large regular deposits from me, most of which is withdrawn. She saves about 10k a month there.

So, if she were to only present her account which receives deposits from her salary, do you think 66k would be sufficient? Alternatively, if she showed both accounts, would they want to see where those deposits came from me? If they did, would that mean that I'm sponsoring her? It's not as black and white as either her paying for it herself or me paying for it and sponsoring her, so I'm unclear about the best approach to take.

[theoldgit]

I can't give a definitive answer as to what figure would be satisfy the ECO that the trip is affordable of the trip, there are far too many variables, and she presumably wont want to drain her savings on one holiday.

How long does she hope to go for, what does she intend doing on holiday and is she paying for her own flights, the flights alone would swallow up about 30,000 Baht.

Regarding the two accounts, there's no right and wrong answer, I personally would provide details of both her accounts, if money from you goes through her accounts then say so. When my girlfriend applies for her visas she details both of her accounts, one with her savings and the one with her salary and an amount from me, which covers our household expenses.

If the ECO's have an overall picture of her finances and relationship with you, it helps the decision making process.

[Josh88]

We'll only be going for two weeks and accommodations will be provided by my mother, so other than the flight and some sightseeing, expenses are fairly minimal. I would guess that 66k would be close to the minimum they'd consider acceptable though, so I don't know if that's worth risking.

I'm not trying to hide anything and I have no problem disclosing that the money in the other account came from me, I'm just not sure how doing so would affect the application process. Would I have to sponsor her if they knew that the money in that account came from me, or would that still be considered her paying for it herself? It sounds as though your situation is similar in terms of the accounts, in your case were you sponsoring her? Also, if they knew the money was from me, would they expect more details of my finances or would the account's transaction history suffice?

Thanks again for your help.

[7by7]

The word sponsor has more than one meaning.

It can mean financial sponsorship; it can also mean one who assumes responsibility for or vouches for another person.

In a visa application, it can mean either, or both. Though, as theoldgit says, a visitor doesn't actually need a sponsor at all.

So I would say that as she is visiting the UK with and because of you, then you are her sponsor; even though she is paying for the trip herself and will be staying with your family.

In my sister in law's recent application my wife and I sponsored her, but she paid for the tickets herself; showing in her application a bank balance of 70K baht.

As she had not bought her tickets, as UKVI advise, she said in the application that they would cost around 35K; based on a quote from Emirates.

She also said that as she would be staying with us, the cost of her stay in the UK would be minimal.

Like tog, I recommend she shows both accounts, and you say in your sponsor's letter why you transfer money into her second one. This is not uncommon; the ECOs see it often.

Your mother should also write a brief letter offering accommodation, saying why she is doing so and describing her property and who else lives there to show that there is room for you both.

You may find UK visit visa basics helpful; though it is a little bit out of date the essentials haven't changed.

See also Standard Visit Visa from UKVI.

[Jip99]

The letter of invitation is fine.

Does your mother own the house i.e. does she have the legal right to offer the accommodation? Be aware that a friend of mine was asked to obtain copies of the title deeds to his mother's house.

[7by7]

The ECO needs to be satisfied that the person offering accommodation is able to do so; e.g. such an offer does not breach any tenancy agreement.

So I always used to recommend that the person offering accommodation always provided evidence of their ability to do so in the form of proof of ownership if they own (doesn't need to be the title deeds, other evidence such as a mortgage statement is sufficient) or a landlord's letter if they rent.

However, it was pointed out to me by someone far more knowledgeable in this area than myself that such concerns usually only arise in settlement applications, not visit ones.

Indeed, when I asked my landlord for a letter of consent they confirmed that a visitor staying short term would not breach a tenancy agreement, while someone moving in to live indefinitely might.

Since then I have not provided such evidence when offering accommodation to a visit visa applicant, without any problems.

But it obviously wont hurt to provide such evidence if one has it.

[Josh88]

The word sponsor has more than one meaning.

It can mean financial sponsorship; it can also mean one who assumes responsibility for or vouches for another person.

In a visa application, it can mean either, or both. Though, as theoldgit says, a visitor doesn't actually need a sponsor at all.

So I would say that as she is visiting the UK with and because of you, then you are her sponsor; even though she is paying for the trip herself and will be staying with your family.

In my sister in law's recent application my wife and I sponsored her, but she paid for the tickets herself; showing in her application a bank balance of 70K baht.

As she had not bought her tickets, as UKVI advise, she said in the application that they would cost around 35K; based on a quote from Emirates.

She also said that as she would be staying with us, the cost of her stay in the UK would be minimal.

Like tog, I recommend she shows both accounts, and you say in your sponsor's letter why you transfer money into her second one. This is not uncommon; the ECOs see it often.

Your mother should also write a brief letter offering accommodation, saying why she is doing so and describing her property and who else lives there to show that there is room for you both.

You may find UK visit visa basics helpful; though it is a little bit out of date the essentials haven't changed.

See also Standard Visit Visa from UKVI.

Thanks for the advice. Her account with 66k may be sufficient then, but I'd rather not risk it so I think it makes sense to show both if it's not going to complicate things. I'll have to look at the visa application again to determine the context in which they use the word 'sponsor' to see if it makes sense for me to sponsor her. It seems strange to me since I'm not a UK resident but I suppose I can still vouch for her, and it would explain why she's staying at mother's more clearly.

The letter of invitation is fine.

Does your mother own the house i.e. does she have the legal right to offer the accommodation? Be aware that a friend of mine was asked to obtain copies of the title deeds to his mother's house.

I believe the house is in her long term partner's name, they're not married (unless the UK has some common law marriage that would apply) but I'm sure that can be explained without it being an issue.

[7by7]

You can still sponsor her even though you are not a UK resident.

Indeed, doing so may even help with her reason to return, especially if you live together, because you, one assumes, will be returning to Thailand as well.

You should provide evidence of your immigration status in Thailand, copy if your passport and Thai visa.

If you do live together then evidence of this; utility bills, rental agreements etc. addressed to you, her or you both jointly.

As I said, evidence of ownership by the person offering accommodation in the UK is not essential for a visit application; but if you do provide it and it is in her partner's name then her partner should write the letter offering accommodation, in which their relationship with your mother is briefly outlined to show why they are so doing.

E.g. "I am the long term partner of (your mother) who lives with me and am offering accommodation to (you), my partner's son, and his girlfriend (her name) during their visit to the UK."

Edited June 6, 2015 by 7by7

[Josh88]

If it has any chance of helping then I'll make sure to include proof of the property ownership, even if it means the letter coming from my mother's partner instead of her directly. I'd rather not take a chance on anything, particularly as the UK application process does not include a verbal interview (unlike the US) which gives you an opportunity to explain details that may be unclear from the documents alone. I'm just going to include anything that could possibly be relevant to the application.

Thanks again for the advice, I appreciate it.

[HollyT]

If you do live together then evidence of this; utility bills, rental agreements etc. addressed to you, her or you both jointly.

I have rent statements in mine and my partners name but they are in Thai, do I need to get this translated for the visa? I assume so, but do they then need to be authorised by someone?

[Jip99]

If you do live together then evidence of this; utility bills, rental agreements etc. addressed to you, her or you both jointly.

I have rent statements in mine and my partners name but they are in Thai, do I need to get this translated for the visa? I assume so, but do they then need to be authorised by someone?

Certified translations are usually accepted for this purpose.

[7by7]

Indeed, from the supporting documents guide:

If you submit a document that is not in English or Welsh, it must be accompanied by a full translation that can be independently verified by the Home Office. Each translated document must contain:
 confirmation from the translator that it is an accurate translation of the original document
 the date of the translation
 the translator's full name and signature
 the translator's contact details

You should also include copies if you want the originals back.