Standard UK Visitor visa refused due to insufficient finances, despite sponsor having over £10,000 i

[worriedsponsor]

Hi,

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I'm sponsoring my fiance's application for a standard visitor visa, and I've stated on the application that I will be paying for her trip in full.

I've submitted 6 months' worth of bank statements for my savings account and for my current account. My savings account has had over £10,000 for this period. The closing balance on my current account at the end of each month tends to be fairly low, as I transfer funds into my savings account and then use the remaining funds in my current account for any other expenditures.

It appears that they've ignored my savings account statements and only considered the closing balance of my current account on the last statement.

My fiance has also submitted her bank statements for her savings and current accounts. Her savings account has over 40,000 baht, but they've also only considered the closing balance on her current account at the end of the month.

This is the text from the refusal letter:

I have refused your application for a visit visa as I am not satisfied that you meet the requirements of paragraphs V 4.2-10 of Appendix V: Immigration Rules for Visitors because:

- You have applied for a visit visa to visit your boyfriend, Mr xxxxxx, for one month.

- You have said that you are employed as an account supervisor and earn 20000 THB per month (£392 at an exchange rate of £1=51THB). You have said that you have £900 for this trip, however your bank statements show a closing balance of 61 THB (£1.19) on 18/4/2016.

- You have said that Mr xxxxxx will pay £2500 towards your trip, however his bank statement showed a closing balance of £23.88 on 22/4/2016 and you have not provided any more up to date information.

- I am not satisfied that you or your sponsor are in a financial position to finance your proposed trip. YOur application is refused under paragraphs V 4.2 © and V 4.3 © of the Immigration Rules.

I'm considering various options before re-applying, but each one has potential drawbacks.

- I could transfer the entire balance of my savings into my current account. This would mean my current account would show a closing balance of over £10,000. The drawback is that I've heard that if they see a large balance transfer it can arouse suspicion. Whilst I could submit statements for my savings account that show that it was my own money I had transferred, I'm not convinced they would look at these (since they didn't look at them last time).

- I could submit only the statements for my savings account. That might make them consider only my savings account. The drawback is that there is very little activity on the account, just a single credit each month. It might be the current account that they want to see.

- My parents have offered to be sponsors, and their current account statements will show a balance in excess of £20,00 for the past 6 months. The drawback is that we wouldn't be able to prove a relationship between my parents and my fiance, since they haven't met her yet (that's part of the purpose of the trip).

Do any of these sound more likely to succeed? Or is there something else I could do?

Thanks.

[brewsterbudgen]

My colleague's girlfriend's Visitor Visa was refused for much the same reason last month. She included copies of both her and his accounts showing a more than adequate balance to finance the trip but they appear to have only looked at one of the accounts.

She re-applied, clearly referring to both account balances, and the visa was issued. My colleague wasn't happy and has submitted an official complaint and request for a refund of the first application. He hasn't heard anything yet!

Maybe some first applications are refused because the full supporting evidence is not looked at properly, possibly because of how the supporting documents are presented. A cynic might say that it is a deliberate omission to secure a 2nd fee and test the seriousness of the application. I would hope this is not the case.

[jacko45k]

When I was successful I felt demonstrating my lady had plenty to return to was important.

She had substantially more in her own account, and it showed some history rather than being a recent deposit.

Also copies of chanot of her land.

I also proved I had money in the UK.

Sorry it didn't work out for you.

[NigelKennedy]

Also just refused...said she had investments bringing in

100,000 to 150,000 per month. Included bank statement but refused visa as no detail of investment submitted..reckon that you are right they want to secure a second fee.

[NigelKennedy]

Jacko45k did you translate chanottes..or no need.

[eastendanto]

My thai gf first application for visit visa (now my wife) several years ago where I was the total sponsor and no supporting funds from her.... was that the current account had to indicate regular monthly income for the past 12 months or you had to have savings of something like £50k-£60k in a savings account for a previous 12 month duration rather then just showing a lump sum recently transferred into an account.

It's not clear from you question whether the 20000 thb your fiance earns is paid directly into her bank account each month and then subsequently taken out, as if she submitted 12 months worth of bank statements it should clearly show 20000 thb going into her account around the same period each month.

With regards to the £2.5k you were contributing, they say there was no proof of where the £2.5k was coming from and sounds like none was submitted, other then your word? I actually purchased the plane tickets and submitted proof of purchase of said tickets as part of visa application and also showed proof of where my gf was staying in the UK when she came to visit.

In terms of the actual application they are looking for:-

1. She can support herself financially whilst in the UK (whether that be by her own means or with your assistance) and require physical proof of that. This is to satisfy the officer reviewing the visa submission that she would be a low or no risk to becoming a burden on the UK benefits system.

2. Proof of where she will be staying for the month whether that be hotel, accommodation, parents place etc....

3. Proof of travel/return ticket with dates

Unclear as to whether you will be staying at your parents home or friends or relatives home, but if you are would suggest you get the people whose place you are staying at to write a letter of invite to your fiancee welcoming her and yourself to stay with them whilst she is in the UK. Obviously if you are staying in paid accommodation Hotel, BnB etc... you will have to show proof of purchase of accommodation for dates within the period of her stay in the UK.

The visit visa application is very much a tick box exercise where the Visa application reviewer looks at the responses to each question and for them it is very black and white no grey areas... it is either Yes or No. Whilst you or I might think we should have got a Yes to a question they can invariably say No with no shades of grey taken into consideration at all. My gf visitor visa she got first time but 2 subsequent Fiancee visas got rejected on what I consider pretty unfair marking, the second time of rejection I sought legal guidance about appealing and it would have taken up to 6 months to go to court, cost loads of money and no guarantee over overturning the result.... so in fact it was cheaper to reapply for a third time with legal help and she passed. In terms of appealing against the result .... not worth it for a visitor visa just reapply and hopefully you will get a tick in all the right boxes next time. Good luck

[crazydrummerpauly]

Hi Worried...bad luck with this - it's obvious that you are in a great position to cover all expenses for the trip, but it is worth repeating to yourself : 'I am not dealing with a human using normal common sense !' For example - the refusal states clearly that - " You have said that you are employed as an account supervisor and earn 20000 THB per month (£392 at an exchange rate of £1=51THB). You have said that you have £900 for this trip, however your bank statements show a closing balance of 61 THB (£1.19) on 18/4/2016."

Sorry, but this shows a fundamental mistake - if your fiance says 'She has £900 for the trip', then she had better HAVE £900 in her account when you apply.

As they say, she DID NOT. This was crucial in my opinion.

They will pick up on anything they can call 'Incorrect', even though you were showing 10 grand in savings.

Secondly, did you actually STATE in so many words in your 'Sponsors Statement' that your Savings of £10,000 will be called upon to help fund the trip ? You must lay it out, not assume the operation of that common sense i mentioned on their part.

Thirdly, i'm guessing your Savings are in a form of 'Easy Access' account which can be quite readily cashed ? They need to be. Building society accounts are fine but obviously not any account which involves a lock-in for a period of years to get higher interest and a delay in getting your cash.

Fourthly, yes you probably should consider transferring cash from Savings to Current account if the latter is running below a grand say - but i don't see why you start talking and worrying about transferring the whole £10,000 ? How much could 1 Month cost - well, depends on how much she loves shopping ! (only joking). Just transfer a couple of grand, over and above paying for flights if you are doing that up-front. But STILL emphasize that your remaining £8000 will be readily available to pay for any contingencies that crop up during the visit.

I'll finish by going back to my point about the need to POINT OUT TO THEM what you intend to do and how you intend to pay. You say - "It appears that they've ignored my savings account statements..."

Well if you had said in your Sponsors Statement , 'I will meet all costs of the trip from my £10,000 Savings with XXXXX society...', ignoring your savings would not have been a possibility.

Just don't LET THEM IGNORE - SPELL IT ALL OUT.

All in all, you were both running too close to the red line in your current accounts, and you didn't highlight your Savings strongly enough.

Oh - just thought - since there was no mention in the refusal of them not being happy with your fiance's 'Reason to return' - a vital component of the application - you needn't get side-tracked by any comments in this direction.

Best of luck !

Edited May 28, 2016 by crazydrummerpauly

[crazydrummerpauly]

By the way - if you cannot reach the shockingly high bar described by 'eastendanto', don't worry - many of us have got visit visas for our Thai partners with far less in assets - we've had two successful applications and i never bought airline tickets in advance for example. But i repeat - it is better to say your fiance has NOTHING to contribute to the trip (and that you are paying for all of it) than to say she has 'X' in the bank and then it not be there on the page. Putting that £900 in the box for her contribution was just a little mistake and they pounced on it.

[crazydrummerpauly]

My thai gf first application for visit visa (now my wife) several years ago where I was the total sponsor and no supporting funds from her.... was that the current account had to indicate regular monthly income for the past 12 months or you had to have savings of something like £50k-£60k in a savings account for a previous 12 month duration rather then just showing a lump sum recently transferred into an account.

It's not clear from you question whether the 20000 thb your fiance earns is paid directly into her bank account each month and then subsequently taken out, as if she submitted 12 months worth of bank statements it should clearly show 20000 thb going into her account around the same period each month.

With regards to the £2.5k you were contributing, they say there was no proof of where the £2.5k was coming from and sounds like none was submitted, other then your word? I actually purchased the plane tickets and submitted proof of purchase of said tickets as part of visa application and also showed proof of where my gf was staying in the UK when she came to visit.

In terms of the actual application they are looking for:-

1. She can support herself financially whilst in the UK (whether that be by her own means or with your assistance) and require physical proof of that. This is to satisfy the officer reviewing the visa submission that she would be a low or no risk to becoming a burden on the UK benefits system.

2. Proof of where she will be staying for the month whether that be hotel, accommodation, parents place etc....

3. Proof of travel/return ticket with dates

Unclear as to whether you will be staying at your parents home or friends or relatives home, but if you are would suggest you get the people whose place you are staying at to write a letter of invite to your fiancee welcoming her and yourself to stay with them whilst she is in the UK. Obviously if you are staying in paid accommodation Hotel, BnB etc... you will have to show proof of purchase of accommodation for dates within the period of her stay in the UK.

The visit visa application is very much a tick box exercise where the Visa application reviewer looks at the responses to each question and for them it is very black and white no grey areas... it is either Yes or No. Whilst you or I might think we should have got a Yes to a question they can invariably say No with no shades of grey taken into consideration at all. My gf visitor visa she got first time but 2 subsequent Fiancee visas got rejected on what I consider pretty unfair marking, the second time of rejection I sought legal guidance about appealing and it would have taken up to 6 months to go to court, cost loads of money and no guarantee over overturning the result.... so in fact it was cheaper to reapply for a third time with legal help and she passed. In terms of appealing against the result .... not worth it for a visitor visa just reapply and hopefully you will get a tick in all the right boxes next time. Good luck

How could she ever have actually become a 'burden on the UK benefits system' during a one-month period in the UK ?

[evadgib]

And then all these people on this forum complaining about their own problems regarding Visas to stay in Thailand. The Uk don't seem to be very accomodating neither.

Has anyone in Los ever secured access to public funds?

[rgs2001uk]

My thai gf first application for visit visa (now my wife) several years ago where I was the total sponsor and no supporting funds from her.... was that the current account had to indicate regular monthly income for the past 12 months or you had to have savings of something like £50k-£60k in a savings account for a previous 12 month duration rather then just showing a lump sum recently transferred into an account.

It's not clear from you question whether the 20000 thb your fiance earns is paid directly into her bank account each month and then subsequently taken out, as if she submitted 12 months worth of bank statements it should clearly show 20000 thb going into her account around the same period each month.

With regards to the £2.5k you were contributing, they say there was no proof of where the £2.5k was coming from and sounds like none was submitted, other then your word? I actually purchased the plane tickets and submitted proof of purchase of said tickets as part of visa application and also showed proof of where my gf was staying in the UK when she came to visit.

In terms of the actual application they are looking for:-

1. She can support herself financially whilst in the UK (whether that be by her own means or with your assistance) and require physical proof of that. This is to satisfy the officer reviewing the visa submission that she would be a low or no risk to becoming a burden on the UK benefits system.

2. Proof of where she will be staying for the month whether that be hotel, accommodation, parents place etc....

3. Proof of travel/return ticket with dates

Unclear as to whether you will be staying at your parents home or friends or relatives home, but if you are would suggest you get the people whose place you are staying at to write a letter of invite to your fiancee welcoming her and yourself to stay with them whilst she is in the UK. Obviously if you are staying in paid accommodation Hotel, BnB etc... you will have to show proof of purchase of accommodation for dates within the period of her stay in the UK.

The visit visa application is very much a tick box exercise where the Visa application reviewer looks at the responses to each question and for them it is very black and white no grey areas... it is either Yes or No. Whilst you or I might think we should have got a Yes to a question they can invariably say No with no shades of grey taken into consideration at all. My gf visitor visa she got first time but 2 subsequent Fiancee visas got rejected on what I consider pretty unfair marking, the second time of rejection I sought legal guidance about appealing and it would have taken up to 6 months to go to court, cost loads of money and no guarantee over overturning the result.... so in fact it was cheaper to reapply for a third time with legal help and she passed. In terms of appealing against the result .... not worth it for a visitor visa just reapply and hopefully you will get a tick in all the right boxes next time. Good luck

How could she ever have actually become a 'burden on the UK benefits system' during a one-month period in the UK ?

How could she ever have actually become a 'burden on the UK benefits system' during a one-month period in the UK ?

Look up the term, health toursits to the UK.

Not so long back the UK was the destination of choice for people of other Asian countries to come on holiday and give birth in UK hospitals at the taxpayers expense.

[johnatong]

My thai gf first application for visit visa (now my wife) several years ago where I was the total sponsor and no supporting funds from her.... was that the current account had to indicate regular monthly income for the past 12 months or you had to have savings of something like £50k-£60k in a savings account for a previous 12 month duration rather then just showing a lump sum recently transferred into an account.

It's not clear from you question whether the 20000 thb your fiance earns is paid directly into her bank account each month and then subsequently taken out, as if she submitted 12 months worth of bank statements it should clearly show 20000 thb going into her account around the same period each month.

With regards to the £2.5k you were contributing, they say there was no proof of where the £2.5k was coming from and sounds like none was submitted, other then your word? I actually purchased the plane tickets and submitted proof of purchase of said tickets as part of visa application and also showed proof of where my gf was staying in the UK when she came to visit.

In terms of the actual application they are looking for:-

1. She can support herself financially whilst in the UK (whether that be by her own means or with your assistance) and require physical proof of that. This is to satisfy the officer reviewing the visa submission that she would be a low or no risk to becoming a burden on the UK benefits system.

2. Proof of where she will be staying for the month whether that be hotel, accommodation, parents place etc....

3. Proof of travel/return ticket with dates

Unclear as to whether you will be staying at your parents home or friends or relatives home, but if you are would suggest you get the people whose place you are staying at to write a letter of invite to your fiancee welcoming her and yourself to stay with them whilst she is in the UK. Obviously if you are staying in paid accommodation Hotel, BnB etc... you will have to show proof of purchase of accommodation for dates within the period of her stay in the UK.

The visit visa application is very much a tick box exercise where the Visa application reviewer looks at the responses to each question and for them it is very black and white no grey areas... it is either Yes or No. Whilst you or I might think we should have got a Yes to a question they can invariably say No with no shades of grey taken into consideration at all. My gf visitor visa she got first time but 2 subsequent Fiancee visas got rejected on what I consider pretty unfair marking, the second time of rejection I sought legal guidance about appealing and it would have taken up to 6 months to go to court, cost loads of money and no guarantee over overturning the result.... so in fact it was cheaper to reapply for a third time with legal help and she passed. In terms of appealing against the result .... not worth it for a visitor visa just reapply and hopefully you will get a tick in all the right boxes next time. Good luck

How could she ever have actually become a 'burden on the UK benefits system' during a one-month period in the UK ?

How could she ever have actually become a 'burden on the UK benefits system' during a one-month period in the UK ?

Look up the term, health toursits to the UK.

Not so long back the UK was the destination of choice for people of other Asian countries to come on holiday and give birth in UK hospitals at the taxpayers expense.

Not sure that there is or ever was a problem associated with Asia but no doubt you have evidence which proves your assertion.

If you were talking about the "Lagos Shuttle" and the number of African ladies who have abused the NHS there may be some truth but Africa is not Asia !

http://news.sky.com/story/1188138/maternity-tourists-using-nhs-for-free-care

edit

Add link

Edited May 28, 2016 by johnatong

[catman20]

throw 200,000 baht in her account for a few months keep your account toped up and reapply in a few months.

[teacherpaul]

Best thing to do is go to a good immigration lawyer. A good firm will only take a small deposit, with the balance payable on receipt of the visa. It may be more expensive, but at least it's guaranteed, as they won't even look at it without the correct initial requirements.

[neeray]

My gal was turned down a year ago to visit me in Canada. There were 4 reasons stated but the prime one seemed to be "we are concerned that you will not return to Thailand". I have talked to several people since. They all said that it takes 2 or 3 tries.

[MaprangHolmes]

Best thing to do is go to a good immigration lawyer. A good firm will only take a small deposit, with the balance payable on receipt of the visa. It may be more expensive, but at least it's guaranteed, as they won't even look at it without the correct initial requirements.

There really is not any need to use a lawyer or visa agent your just wasting your time and money, if you apply again as has been said do not show your current account statements just use the statements from your savings account. Put in the sponsors letter you have xx amount in your saving account which is more than enough to cover the cost of said trip. You can also put this information in bold to highlight this part of the sponsors letter as it was an issue for you before.

[Linesy]

My thai gf first application for visit visa (now my wife) several years ago where I was the total sponsor and no supporting funds from her.... was that the current account had to indicate regular monthly income for the past 12 months or you had to have savings of something like £50k-£60k in a savings account for a previous 12 month duration rather then just showing a lump sum recently transferred into an account.

It's not clear from you question whether the 20000 thb your fiance earns is paid directly into her bank account each month and then subsequently taken out, as if she submitted 12 months worth of bank statements it should clearly show 20000 thb going into her account around the same period each month.

With regards to the £2.5k you were contributing, they say there was no proof of where the £2.5k was coming from and sounds like none was submitted, other then your word? I actually purchased the plane tickets and submitted proof of purchase of said tickets as part of visa application and also showed proof of where my gf was staying in the UK when she came to visit.

In terms of the actual application they are looking for:-

1. She can support herself financially whilst in the UK (whether that be by her own means or with your assistance) and require physical proof of that. This is to satisfy the officer reviewing the visa submission that she would be a low or no risk to becoming a burden on the UK benefits system.

2. Proof of where she will be staying for the month whether that be hotel, accommodation, parents place etc....

3. Proof of travel/return ticket with dates

Unclear as to whether you will be staying at your parents home or friends or relatives home, but if you are would suggest you get the people whose place you are staying at to write a letter of invite to your fiancee welcoming her and yourself to stay with them whilst she is in the UK. Obviously if you are staying in paid accommodation Hotel, BnB etc... you will have to show proof of purchase of accommodation for dates within the period of her stay in the UK.

The visit visa application is very much a tick box exercise where the Visa application reviewer looks at the responses to each question and for them it is very black and white no grey areas... it is either Yes or No. Whilst you or I might think we should have got a Yes to a question they can invariably say No with no shades of grey taken into consideration at all. My gf visitor visa she got first time but 2 subsequent Fiancee visas got rejected on what I consider pretty unfair marking, the second time of rejection I sought legal guidance about appealing and it would have taken up to 6 months to go to court, cost loads of money and no guarantee over overturning the result.... so in fact it was cheaper to reapply for a third time with legal help and she passed. In terms of appealing against the result .... not worth it for a visitor visa just reapply and hopefully you will get a tick in all the right boxes next time. Good luck

Your Point 3:You are strongly advised to not book flights before a decision is reached.

[mercman24]

what would be the problem of taking a female friend to the UK, NOT A GIRFRIEND, as far as i know she has not got much money , i would pay for everything, i have had £120,000 in one account for one year in the uk, total about 125 grand in the UK and 300,000 baht here, would this be a non starter, she has family and a daughter here, i live here also.as looking at these posts one has seen to prove that the lady is your g/f etc photos, etc. etc etc.seems a lot of jumping through hoops. ?

[brewsterbudgen]

what would be the problem of taking a female friend to the UK, NOT A GIRFRIEND, as far as i know she has not got much money , i would pay for everything, i have had £120,000 in one account for one year in the uk, total about 125 grand in the UK and 300,000 baht here, would this be a non starter, she has family and a daughter here, i live here also.as looking at these posts one has seen to prove that the lady is your g/f etc photos, etc. etc etc.seems a lot of jumping through hoops. ?

It's perfectly ok to sponsor a friend's visit as long as you can explain why you are doing so, and show you have the funds. Like all Visitor visas, your friend will have to give a convincing reason to return to Thailand.

[crazydrummerpauly]

My gal was turned down a year ago to visit me in Canada. There were 4 reasons stated but the prime one seemed to be "we are concerned that you will not return to Thailand". I have talked to several people since. They all said that it takes 2 or 3 tries.

NOT true. We got the 1st and the 2nd without problems.

[crazydrummerpauly]

Best thing to do is go to a good immigration lawyer. A good firm will only take a small deposit, with the balance payable on receipt of the visa. It may be more expensive, but at least it's guaranteed, as they won't even look at it without the correct initial requirements.

Totally unnecessary.

[crazydrummerpauly]

If there's one thing that puts me totally off bothering to offer serious advice on here, it is OPs who disappear. It's all part of the process for the OP to stay connected and to say clearly whether help has been given or whether there are still questions he needs to ask.

Edited May 29, 2016 by crazydrummerpauly

[RAZZELL]

Also just refused...said she had investments bringing in

100,000 to 150,000 per month. Included bank statement but refused visa as no detail of investment submitted..reckon that you are right they want to secure a second fee.

The V/V fee is what? About £70. Don't talk nonsense. If your gf had 100-150k baht a month coming in she would get a visa easily - IF you submitted a decent application. 90% of all applications to the UK get approved in Bangkok.

My thai gf first application for visit visa (now my wife) several years ago where I was the total sponsor and no supporting funds from her.... was that the current account had to indicate regular monthly income for the past 12 months or you had to have savings of something like £50k-£60k in a savings account for a previous 12 month duration rather then just showing a lump sum recently transferred into an account.

It's not clear from you question whether the 20000 thb your fiance earns is paid directly into her bank account each month and then subsequently taken out, as if she submitted 12 months worth of bank statements it should clearly show 20000 thb going into her account around the same period each month.

With regards to the £2.5k you were contributing, they say there was no proof of where the £2.5k was coming from and sounds like none was submitted, other then your word? I actually purchased the plane tickets and submitted proof of purchase of said tickets as part of visa application and also showed proof of where my gf was staying in the UK when she came to visit.

In terms of the actual application they are looking for:-

1. She can support herself financially whilst in the UK (whether that be by her own means or with your assistance) and require physical proof of that. This is to satisfy the officer reviewing the visa submission that she would be a low or no risk to becoming a burden on the UK benefits system.

2. Proof of where she will be staying for the month whether that be hotel, accommodation, parents place etc....

3. Proof of travel/return ticket with dates

Unclear as to whether you will be staying at your parents home or friends or relatives home, but if you are would suggest you get the people whose place you are staying at to write a letter of invite to your fiancee welcoming her and yourself to stay with them whilst she is in the UK. Obviously if you are staying in paid accommodation Hotel, BnB etc... you will have to show proof of purchase of accommodation for dates within the period of her stay in the UK.

The visit visa application is very much a tick box exercise where the Visa application reviewer looks at the responses to each question and for them it is very black and white no grey areas... it is either Yes or No. Whilst you or I might think we should have got a Yes to a question they can invariably say No with no shades of grey taken into consideration at all. My gf visitor visa she got first time but 2 subsequent Fiancee visas got rejected on what I consider pretty unfair marking, the second time of rejection I sought legal guidance about appealing and it would have taken up to 6 months to go to court, cost loads of money and no guarantee over overturning the result.... so in fact it was cheaper to reapply for a third time with legal help and she passed. In terms of appealing against the result .... not worth it for a visitor visa just reapply and hopefully you will get a tick in all the right boxes next time. Good luck

Again some nonsense - no way do you need to show £50-60k in savings - unless you are talking about a Settlement Visa?

The rules state you just have to show the visit can be paid for/accomodation provided. Either the Ritz or or a one bed council house - doesn't matter.

Also, the UKVI state that no tickets should be booked before a visa is granted.

RAZZ

Edited May 29, 2016 by RAZZELL

[worriedsponsor]

Hi,

Firstly, thanks so much to everyone who's contributed to this thread, your help is very much appreciated indeed.

I've been reading through all the posts and here are a few extra details.

In the cover letter I stated that I'd pay for my fiance's trip and all expenses in full. I also stated that I had over ten grand in savings and that I'd submitted bank statements for my current account and savings accounts. However, I didn't refer to both account balances like brewsterbudgen's colleague's girlfriend did in her second application.

crazydrummerpauly, my fiance did have £900 in one of her accounts. However, similar to my own situation, this was also a savings account. Whilst we did submit statements for both accounts, they seem to have only looked at her current account. To tell the truth, since I was going to be paying for the trip, I was unsure whether or not to submit her bank statements. Section 2 of the Guide to Supporting documments says that it's not an absolute requirement that they be be provided. We decided to do so just to be on the safe side, and also to demonstrate that she's got a regular income, and so a reason to return to Thailand.

You've made some other points which I think I can act on to make a second application that will have a greater chance of success.

Secondly, did you actually STATE in so many words in your 'Sponsors Statement' that your Savings of £10,000 will be called upon to help fund the trip ? You must lay it out, not assume the operation of that common sense i mentioned on their part.

Not explicitly, no. I stated that I'd be paying for her trip in full and that I had savings of £10,000. Re-reading the text, I think I could reword this to be more explicit.

Thirdly, i'm guessing your Savings are in a form of 'Easy Access' account which can be quite readily cashed ? They need to be. Building society accounts are fine but obviously not any account which involves a lock-in for a period of years to get higher interest and a delay in getting your cash.

That's correct, yes, it's easy access. But I guess that they'd have no way of knowing that, and that the funds are readily available. Perhaps that's why they didn't consider the savings accounts.

Oh - just thought - since there was no mention in the refusal of them not being happy with your fiance's 'Reason to return' - a vital component of the application - you needn't get side-tracked by any comments in this direction.

That's very encouraging, as from what you say it sounds like they'll assess the entire application, rather than stopping as soon as they find a reason for refusal. From that point of view, it sounds like we'd have a reasonably good chance with our second application, providing that we modify it to prove finance.

eastendanto, I think that we've satisfied the requirement of proof of where she'd be staying, as we'd stated that she'd be staying in my home, and I submitted a water bill, council tax bill and mortgage statement for the dwelling.

I've heard from one or two other people who sponsored people some years in the past that a copy of flight tickets is needed. However this doesn't seem to the case any more, as section 4 of the Guide to supporting documents says that flight tickets should not be submitted.

(https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/423699/2015_04_20_Visitor_Supporting_Documents_Guide_-_Final__2__-_CLEAN.pdf)

I think that's very handy for applicants who don't want to book the flight until they've secured the visa, so there's no risk they'd end up with tickets that can't be used.

It's not clear from you question whether the 20000 thb your fiance earns is paid directly into her bank account each month and then subsequently taken out, as if she submitted 12 months worth of bank statements it should clearly show 20000 thb going into her account around the same period each month.

Her statements that we submitted show her salary going in each month at the same time. She typically earns more through commission though, so it always shows a different amount.

In summary, we're going to re-apply, but make the following changes to the application:

1 Transfer enough money from savings account to current account to cover the cost of the trip, so that they'll see that the funds can be easily accessed.

2 State the closing balance of each account and resubmit bank statements for both of my accounts.

3 Explicitly state that the balance in my current account will be used to cover all the expenses of her trip.

4 Resubmit my fiance's bank statements to show proof of her regular income, but explicitly state that she won't be contributing any money to the cost of the trip.

Her appointment is booked for this Wednesday. I'll post on this forum thread as soon as I have any news. Fingers crossed.

Edited May 29, 2016 by worriedsponsor

[rasg]

We had no difficulty obtaining two visit visas last year. The first for six months and the second for two years despite only knowing each other for a few months when we applied the first time. Reason to return on the first was basically an employer's letter stating she could have a months holiday. She had no money and I was her sponsor. She stayed 14 weeks on the first trip. The second trip starting on the 1st December finished on the 15th February which meant the GF had spent a total of 180 days from the 1st July.

For the 2nd two year visa we pointed out why she stayed for 14 weeks and that she was no longer working and that I was supporting her. The visa came through in about five days.

Her settlement visa was applied for back in February and with weekends it came through in 14 days with no issues.

You don't need a lawyer or visa company to get a visit visa or a settlement visa. A total waste of money imho as if the visas aren't expensive enough. Just spell it out in your sponsor letter and create a good solid, well laid out application.

If you need any help you are welcome to PM me.

I would be interested to know what type of savings account you have your money in. Is it an instant access account? Many are not and you get penaiised or have to wait to get at your money. It could make a difference.

Edited May 30, 2016 by rasg

[Tony M]

There have been several reports recently of ECOs not taking submitted evidence of finances into account. I'm wondering if it is just one ECO doing this, or whether it is more widespread. If you are happy to let me know who signed the refusal notice then please send me a PM. It will be signed with either a number (BKK/....) or initials (BKK/.....).

You could try submitting a complaint (after your, hopefully, successful application), but UKVI seem to be currently refusing to accept any complaints. It is likely that they will respond with something along the lines of " We are unable to assist you with your enquiry as this is regarding applying from overseas for an Entry Clearance Visa and issues arising from this or regarding a refund for your visa application from overseas. Please refer to the link below for further assistance; https://ukvi-international.faq-help.com/........", and refer you to the International Enquiry Service. The IES will respond along the lines of "As we are not involved in the decision making of UK visa applications we do not have any access to the information required and we are not able to provide any specific information regarding your query." I'm still trying to work out how a complaint becomes an enquiry in their minds. If you do decide to submit a complaint, then please let me know if it is accepted by UKVI (or not, as the case may be), as I am trying to compile an over-arching "complaint" on the current complaints "system". If anyone else has had a similar experience, then please let me know.

[brewsterbudgen]

There have been several reports recently of ECOs not taking submitted evidence of finances into account. I'm wondering if it is just one ECO doing this, or whether it is more widespread. If you are happy to let me know who signed the refusal notice then please send me a PM. It will be signed with either a number (BKK/....) or initials (BKK/.....).

You could try submitting a complaint (after your, hopefully, successful application), but UKVI seem to be currently refusing to accept any complaints. It is likely that they will respond with something along the lines of " We are unable to assist you with your enquiry as this is regarding applying from overseas for an Entry Clearance Visa and issues arising from this or regarding a refund for your visa application from overseas. Please refer to the link below for further assistance; https://ukvi-international.faq-help.com/........", and refer you to the International Enquiry Service. The IES will respond along the lines of "As we are not involved in the decision making of UK visa applications we do not have any access to the information required and we are not able to provide any specific information regarding your query." I'm still trying to work out how a complaint becomes an enquiry in their minds. If you do decide to submit a complaint, then please let me know if it is accepted by UKVI (or not, as the case may be), as I am trying to compile an over-arching "complaint" on the current complaints "system". If anyone else has had a similar experience, then please let me know.

I'll get the sign-off details from my colleague and PM them to you.

As you know, my complaint was responded to and a apology made and I also got a refund (sent by UKVI in Croydon). However, my situation was different, as it was a problem caused by VFS staff, not UKVI.

[worriedsponsor]

I would be interested to know what type of savings account you have your money in. Is it an instant access account? Many are not and you get penaiised or have to wait to get at your money. It could make a difference.

It is easy access, but I guess that the ECO wouldn't have known that. Perhaps that's why they didn't consider it. I'm going to re-apply after transferring some funds into current.

[ronaldo0]

Turned down first time to UK only because we had only enough time to get 3 months bank statements despite me paying for everything , having money and owning my house in UK.

Second time married for 7 years. She had car ,houses in her name , over million bht in bank for 9 months and job. I was paying for everything again . Letters from parents in Uk , retired chief of police in Uk , letters from hotels I was going to be staying at etc and they gave 4 excuses saying why she couldn't get a visa. One was she had no money to buy a return ticket !!

My friend got his wife of a month there despite her having nothing and him living with his parents . He used a visa application company in BKK. He reckons the fee was part to company and part to make sure they got the visa.

[rawhod]

From our experience, many years ago, having our first application turned down on what appeared to be fatuous reason, take crazydrummerpauly's advise, which I would endorse wholeheartedly...don't expect the ECO to draw the logical conclusions from the information you supply...they don't.

If you want then to draw a certain conclusion tell them what conclusion you want then to draw.