FLR (m) extension

[mouse999]

hi guys/girls

need some info on my wifes flr extension,she's been in the uk on flr since 01jan2014 when the 30 months is up we need to extend this visa,is it a matter of just filling out the application and paying the fee or is there more things we have to do? I have had a look around on this site and haven,t see anything on this! i'm sorry if it is already posted on here but couldn't find anything

[7by7]

As you say she has been in the UK with FLR since Jan 2014, I assume she first entered as your fiancée and then obtained FLR after your marriage; correct?*

This means she is on the 5 year route to settlement (ILR)

For how to apply etc., see Apply to remain in the UK with family.

If she will be applying before October then she can use the A1 English speaking and listening pass she used for her previous applications to meet the language requirement. If she applies from October, she will need A2 (see here).

You will need to show that you meet the financial requirement again; but this time, if meeting it through earned income hers, if any, can be used as well as or instead of yours.

Also, since her last application an NHS surcharge of £200 per year has been brought in; so you will have to pay that as well as the application fee.

*(If not, and she entered as your spouse before the rule changes in July 2012 and obtained FLR in Jan 2014 because she didn’t meet all the requirements for ILR, then things will be different as she will be on the 2 year route to settlement. It could also create a problem as the FLR she was granted in Jan 2014 will have expired in Jan 2016!)

[mouse999]

thanks for the reply

my wife entered on a spouse/cp visa issued 16/12/13 she entered the uk on 1jan2014 its valid until 16/09/16...i'm presuming she is on the 5 year route and we can apply for the ILR in 16/9/18 .I'm sure we have to renew this visa she has now the first part of this visa is 33 months then renew for 30 months then ILR..is that right? if so is it a matter of just doing the paper work and paying the fee?

[7by7]

Ah; got you.

I was confused by your saying in the OP that she'd been in the UK on FLR since 1/1/2014; she hasn't, she's been in the UK with a spouse visa since then.

Yes, she is on the 5 year route and so once she has been in the UK for 30 months she can apply for FLR, as detailed in my previous.

That lasts for a further 30 months, at the end of which, assuming she meets all the requirements, she applies for Indefinite Leave to Remain. If she doesn't at that time meet all the requirements, she can apply for another FLR.

[mouse999]

yep sorry my fault with the OP in the headline,so is my wife's oringnal A1 test pass (TOIEC) still usable in language requirement part of the FLR if she does it before oct 2016? the spousal visa first part finishes in 16/09/16 when can we apply for the FLR is it 1 month before the first part is up? thanks again for the info 7by7 the british government seem to move the goalposts every year! and the price's!!

[7by7]

Provided she applies before October then, yes, she can use the same A1 pass she used for her initial application. Even if the actual certificate has expired and the provider is no longer on the approved list.

She can apply anytime between the date 30 months after she first arrived in the UK* with her spouse visa and the expiry date of that visa (or Biometric Residence Permit if she has one).

* If applying by post she can send it off up to 28 days before this date.

Technically she can apply for FLR at any time after her first arrival in the UK; but as FLR is valid for 30 months if she applies too soon it will expire before she has met the 5 year residence requirement for ILR. So she'd have to apply, and pay, for FLR again to make up the gap.

Edited April 1, 2016 by 7by7

[Rob180]

7by7 could you clarify a couple of things please?

My wife sat and passed the English Test at A1 in Vantage Siam, Bangkok in November 2013. Her FLR application will be submitted mid September as her initial 30 month spouse entry visa issued January 2014 expires in mid October this year. Can her English Test certificates definitely be used for this FLR application?

Also what is the current fee for this FLR appllication..........I keep seeing different figures, has it gone up or is it going up?

I see you mentioned some form of £200 surcharge for health care?. I've never heard of that. Is that for FLR or ILR applications or both?

Thanks for your help.

Edited April 1, 2016 by Rob180

[7by7]

Provided she is able to submit her application before the requirement changes to A2 in October (sorry, I still can't find the precise date anywhere!) then she can use the same A1 pass for FLR that she used for the initial visa.

Most UK visa and leave to remain fees increased at the end of March. The new fee for FLR is £811 if applying by post, £1311 if applying in person.

The NHS surcharge was introduced last year and is based upon the length of visa or LTR applied for at £200 p.a., rounded up to the next 6 months. So for FLR it is £500.

This must be paid as part of the application process; see Pay for UK healthcare as part of your immigration application.

[Rob180]

Thanks 7by7, so effectively this £500 has to be paid before the FLR application is sent, then you have to shell out another £811? Will entry visa applicants wanting to come to UK now also have to pay that £500 as well?

Her initial Visa expires on Oct 22nd so the application will go in about mid September, so thankfully further expense will be avoided.

Considering there are thousands of people who have been in the UK for years who speak no English and thousands more from all over Europe coming in who don't even get tested, I think it's a disgrace that the requirement is now A2. That will make it very difficult for many people to get an entry visa, without attending English classes for quite some time, which is more expense for applicants and will just be more money for test centres and teaching centres. Raising the level to A2 to me is just the Government trying to stop people from non EU countries coming here at all, as is the ridiculous increase in fees which you have to shell out and hope everything submitted is correct or they will reject it and not even refund the fee. The whole system is a disgrace.

[bobrussell]

Everyone has to pay the NHS charge at FLR and every time FLR is applied for. There is no charge at ILR.

Not sure that I disagree with the A2 requirement. This is only the level that most Thai's will be at, having lived in the UK for three years. Many will be able to jump this and go for B1 which is required at ILR time.

The big plan is to make sure that all non-EU migrants have basic English before arriving and improve it steadily over the 'journey' to ILR and citizenship if wanted.

It is a very expensive process but there are plenty of benefits to being resident in the UK. The reality is that within the population as a whole, there is little interest in what non-EU migrants and their families have to go through.

Bear in mind that there are significant numbers of people that have arrived in the UK and still are unable to speak English. The Thai population in the UK is not one of them!

Many threads have gone off at tangents when the fairness of EU/non EU migration is concerned but the reality is that the rules are completely separate. Comparisons are therefore pretty pointless unless the UK leaves the EU/EEA and decides to find a course that limits freedom of movement.

Edited April 5, 2016 by bobrussell

[7by7]

Everyone has to pay the NHS charge at FLR and every time FLR is applied for. There is no charge at ILR.

To add to the above; every non EEA national* visa applicant applying from outside the UK has to pay the surcharge, unless they are applying for a stay of 6 months or less; e.g. a visit visa.

Every non EEA national applicant* applying inside the UK also has to pay it; unless they are applying to remain in the UK indefinitely or permanently; e.g. ILR.

*Except qualifying non EEA national family members of an EEA national exercising a treaty right in the UK.

EEA nationals, and their non EEA national family members, don't have to pay because of reciprocal arrangements within the EEA.

Rob180,

The language requirement for the initial visa is still A1, a very basic level (see here). If the applicant can communicate at all with their sponsor in English this level is easily achievable.

It is that for FLR which has been raised to A2 w.e.f October. A2 is still pretty basic, and after living in the UK for a couple of years should be achievable without much, if any, tuition.. That for ILR remains at B1 plus the LitUK test, for which reading is required as well as speaking and listening.

I must say I find it very odd that you complain about immigrants to the UK not being able to speak English, whilst at the same time complaining about measures introduced, some time ago remember, to ensure that they can!

[Rob180]

BOB.... sorry I was meaning it was harsh making the level A2 for entry visas. I agree A2 would be no problem for someone who has lived here long enough to apply for FLR.

7by7, I wasn't complaining as such, I was just pointing out that the rules appear to be discriminatory. If you are from the EU you don't need to sit English tests and you don't have to pay thousands of pounds to apply for FLR and ILR. I know the answer to that is....'but we are in the EU and that's just the way it is'. Regardless, I think it's discriminatory although that's just my opinion.

,

Edited April 5, 2016 by Rob180

[Richard W]

7by7, I wasn't complaining as such, I was just pointing out that the rules appear to be discriminatory. If you are from the EU you don't need to sit English tests and you don't have to pay thousands of pounds to apply for FLR and ILR.

,

How do you feel about the Welsh not being formally tested in English? (OK, I know it's extremely hard to find a Welshman who would fail.)

The ideal behind the EU system, of course, is that the EU is one big state just like Canada.

[7by7]

Rob180,

The EEA freedom of movement treaty and the rights deriving from it apply to all EEA nationals. British citizens have exactly the same rights in other EEA states as other EEA nationals have in the UK.

There are approximately 1.5 million British citizens exercising one or other of those rights in other EEA states. I wonder how many of them can speak any of the local language at all, let alone pass an exam in it.

Edited for spelling.

Edited April 6, 2016 by 7by7

[Rob180]

7by7, I wasn't complaining as such, I was just pointing out that the rules appear to be discriminatory. If you are from the EU you don't need to sit English tests and you don't have to pay thousands of pounds to apply for FLR and ILR.

,

How do you feel about the Welsh not being formally tested in English? (OK, I know it's extremely hard to find a Welshman who would fail.)

The ideal behind the EU system, of course, is that the EU is one big state just like Canada.

Richard, I was referring to tests for people from outwith the UK.

7by7, yes I know the EU works both ways and there are UK citizens living in other parts of the EU that don't speak the local language. I would still vote to leave the EU and not just because of immigration issues.

Regarding A2 English, I noticed this on the Govt website:

"The new A2 requirement delivers the government’s manifesto commitment to ensure that those coming to the UK on a family visa with only basic English will become more fluent over time. It will mean that the person can better engage in everyday conversation and thereby better participate and integrate in everyday life in the community."

As this only applies to Non EU people, there is obviously no need for non English speaking EU people to integrate into everyday life and engage in conversations? . How can your need to integrate be based on where you originated from if you don't speak any English anyway? The whole thing is a farce.

Edited April 6, 2016 by Rob180

[mouse999]

7by7

      I wonder if you would  know on my wifes FLR visa they are asking for thai written doc's to be translated to English..i asked the home office where the official places that they recommend for this service but they couldn't tell me!! my wife has seen online that other people have translated the doc's themselves and just sign them  accordingly ?? is this possible?   thanks

[7by7]

The Home Office don't recommend particular companies.

 

The guidance merely says that any documents not in English or Welsh must be accompanied by a "reliable translation."

 

The translation does not need to have been carried out by a professional translator, but the Home Office must be able to independently verify it.  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.

What happened to the translations you used for the original visa application?

 

Edit:

Forgot to say that you or your wife cannot certify the translation and that the translator should not be related to you or your wife or live at the same address as you both.

 

Edited August 14, 2016 by 7by7

[mouse999]

oringnal translated doc's have been lost in  a flood

[jimbeam1]

Sorry for butting in on this thread. We are just applying for our first FLR(M) my wife passed the A1 test Grade 2 on 15/02 2016 her current visa expires on 28 Oct will she still be able to use her A1?

Cheers jb1