UK settlement- quickest route?

[luxoretired]

UK Settlement –quickest route

 

We are both old and considering the quickest route , ideally we would marry out of the UK. It seems we could save some months by marrying in the UK , is this correct thinking ?

The problem is now my lady has re entry troubles although well in visa limits .

Another point is with either form to fill my lady will have to say where she has been living. We have been for 5 years constantly traveling on tourist visa s , UK , New Zealand , Schengen to name the main   ones. We do not visit Thailand for more than a few days per year .what to say for her “residence “ its Thailand by definition but not practice !

I am British but not “lived “in UK for 40 years as I have been working in government and been seconded for that time. Since retirement 7years ago I have been “resident “ in the UK where we “live” (visit ) under the conditions of a visitor visa (short stays of a few weeks ) up to 170 days per visa running year. Will this lifestyle be bad for an application ?

All visa applications I have handled but think now expert experience could be wise ,

A UK or Thai agent ?

Many thanks in advance for wise comments !

[TCA]

In case you don't know, you can't get married in the UK on a tourist visa. To get married in the UK you'd need either a marriage visitor visa, which isn't meant for those wishing to settle in the UK, so your wife would still need to leave the UK after 6 months maximum:

 

https://www.gov.uk/marriage-visa/overview

 

or you'd need a fiancee visa (applied for outside of the UK), which is a settlement visa which permits marriage in the UK within 6 months but you then have to apply again for settlement proper but can do so within the UK. It's effectively 2 applications in a short space of time, so double the hassle and double the price.

 

Your best bet is probably getting married in Thailand. See the pinned thread above for more info:

 

https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/524561-uk-settlement-visa-basics/

 

Edited April 24, 2017 by TCA

[theoldgit]

Whilst the above is correct for those who plan to visit the UK to get married, I believe that if a person, who is subject to Immigration Controls like your wife, is already in the UK they can give notice at a Registry Office that they wish to marry.  marriages/foreign-national they may need to satisfy the Registrar that the marriage wasn't planned.

This would not change your wife's immigration status and she still might have problems satisfying the Border Force Officer that she is a genuine tourist when presenting herself at the UK Border. 

[7by7]

6 hours ago, theoldgit said:

Whilst the above is correct for those who plan to visit the UK to get married, I believe that if a person, who is subject to Immigration Controls like your wife, is already in the UK they can give notice at a Registry Office that they wish to marry.

The rules changed a short while back when most types of visit visa were combined into the standard visitor visa.

Quote

What you can and can’t do..........

You can’t:........

marry or register a civil partnership, or give notice of marriage or civil partnership

 Also, from your link

Quote

If your partner is not from the UK, Switzerland or EEA, and not settled in the UK

Apply for a Marriage or Civil Partnership Visitor visa. You’ll have to leave the UK within 6 months.

 

But I think the OP is looking at settlement.

[7by7]

On ‎23‎/‎04‎/‎2017 at 3:40 PM, luxoretired said:

UK Settlement –quickest route

 

To settle in the UK your partner will need to follow the 5 year route.

 

You do not have to be married or intend to do so. At each stage she can apply as your unmarried partner provided you and she can show that you have been living together in a relationship akin to marriage for at least the two years prior to her application.

 

1) She applies for an initial visa, which she cannot do in the UK; see Family visas: apply from outside the UK Don't worry that it says joining a partner or family member who’s living in the UK permanently. As a British citizen you are counted as such even though you would not be living in the UK at the time of her application.

 

You say that you are constantly travelling and have no real country of residence; so as she is Thai I think she should apply in Thailand.

 

2) If she enters as a spouse or unmarried partner the initial visa is valid for 33 months. After living in the UK for 30 months she applies for what is known as Further Leave to Remain; see Family visas: extend your stay in the UK

 

If she enters as a fiance, then this visa, although it costs the same as a spouse or unmarried partner visa, is only valid for 6 months; during which time you must marry in the UK. After the marriage she applies for FLR, which will be valid for 30 months, and after that 30 months she applies for FLR again. As you can see, the fiance route is a lot more expensive due to the extra FLR application required.

 

3) After living in the UK for 5 years she applies for what is known generally as Indefinite leave to Remain, referred to by UKVI as settlement; see Apply to settle in the UK.

 

At each of the above stages you and she will have to meet the financial requirement and she will also have to meet the language requirement required for that stage (see the various links above).

 

At the initial visa stage and the FLR stage after 30 months she will, in addition to the application fee, have to pay the health surcharge.

 

On ‎23‎/‎04‎/‎2017 at 3:40 PM, luxoretired said:

Since retirement 7years ago I have been “resident “ in the UK where we “live” (visit ) under the conditions of a visitor visa (short stays of a few weeks ) up to 170 days per visa running year. Will this lifestyle be bad for an application ?

Only if she has previously overstayed in the UK or otherwise broken the conditions of her visit visa; and even then probably not unless she falls under paragraph 320 of the immigration rules.

 

On ‎23‎/‎04‎/‎2017 at 3:40 PM, luxoretired said:

All visa applications I have handled but think now expert experience could be wise ,

A UK or Thai agent ?

 If everything is straightforward, you should be able to do it all yourself with, if needed, help from here. But if you want the advice of an agent, that is, of course, your choice.

 

If using a UK based agent, they must be registered with the OISC; unless they are a solicitor.

 

Visa agents in Thailand vary in competence and honesty from exemplary to useless crooks!

 

The only agency in Thailand I know enough about to be confident in recommending are Thai Visa Express.

[luxoretired]

many thanks for input , as said the fiancee way seems double trouble , we would never marry in Thailand as we want out ASAP ,so am considering New Zealand as family live there , this must surely be same value as Thailand  ? we want ASAP as near 70 so see death coming before the end result ! there seems to be a change in BKK with application dealt with in UK now , will this affect chance of approval or length of dealing with it ? I understand normally she could be called for an interview so we need to sit and wait in a hotel while its dealt with or am I wrong ?is there a chance in the near future that , as some countries , applications can be made at any embassy ? many thanks ,

[theoldgit]

7 hours ago, luxoretired said:

many thanks for input , as said the fiancee way seems double trouble , we would never marry in Thailand as we want out ASAP ,so am considering New Zealand as family live there , this must surely be same value as Thailand  ? we want ASAP as near 70 so see death coming before the end result ! there seems to be a change in BKK with application dealt with in UK now , will this affect chance of approval or length of dealing with it ? I understand normally she could be called for an interview so we need to sit and wait in a hotel while its dealt with or am I wrong ?is there a chance in the near future that , as some countries , applications can be made at any embassy ? many thanks ,

Marriage in Thailand is an administrative process, and whilst there are certain hoops to jump through it's reasonably quick and painless, you're not tied to Thailand afterwards. There is the added benefit that your wife could change her name here and get a new Thai passport quite quickly, should she wish to do so.

 

Of course you don't need to be married to apply for a visa to join the family in the UK, that would be joining you even though you aren't currently living in the UK, providing that you've been "living together in a relationship for 2 years" and have evidence to prove it.

[7by7]

13 hours ago, luxoretired said:

we would never marry in Thailand as we want out ASAP ,so am considering New Zealand as family live there , this must surely be same value as Thailand  ?

As theoldgit says

 

6 hours ago, theoldgit said:

Marriage in Thailand is an administrative process, and whilst there are certain hoops to jump through it's reasonably quick and painless, you're not tied to Thailand afterwards.

 You would need to complete an Affirmation of Freedom to Marry and have your signature witnessed at the British embassy; see Marriage in Thailand.

 

Note that if you have been married before you will need documents to show that the marriage is over. If your partner has been married before then she will also need to take such documents with her to the ampur when you register the marriage, with certified Thai translations if they are not in Thai.

 

I do not know the procedure for foreigners marrying in New Zealand, the UK government advice says very little

Quote

Contact the relevant local authorities in New Zealand to find out about local marriage laws, including what documents you’ll need.............

 But wherever you marry, if the marriage is legal in the country where it is registered then it is also legal in the UK; with some exceptions such as forced marriage and child marriage.

 

To be a legal marriage in Thailand, you must register it at an ampur.

 

But from what you have said she qualifies for UK settlement as your unmarried partner. So, if you have the documentary evidence to show this, then you only need to marry if you want to.

 

14 hours ago, luxoretired said:

there seems to be a change in BKK with application dealt with in UK now , will this affect chance of approval or length of dealing with it ?

It wont affect her chances of approval. If she meets all the requirements and shows that she does, her application will be approved.

 

It is too early to say how this change will effect processing times. Hopefully it will be more efficient and the times will come down; but, knowing UKVI, I have my doubts!

 

14 hours ago, luxoretired said:

I understand normally she could be called for an interview so we need to sit and wait in a hotel while its dealt with or am I wrong ?

 Routine face to face interviews for settlement applicants were done away with some time ago; these days they are very rare. Most applications are assessed on the paperwork alone. In the unlikely event that an interview is required, this is usually carried out by telephone.

 

But as the embassy will hold onto her passport while her application is being processed, she wont, of course, be able to leave Thailand.

 

14 hours ago, luxoretired said:

is there a chance in the near future that , as some countries , applications can be made at any embassy ?

UK visa applications usually must be submitted in the applicant's country of residence; even if they are not a national of that country. Although if they do live abroad they can also submit it in their country of nationality if they wish.

 

As a matter of interest, which countries allow visa applications to be made anywhere?

[luxoretired]

as  she is a "resident " Thai , london Burma and london New Zealand have both issued visa although she is only in UK on visitor visa . Believe but not yet tried Canada .next year ! Schengen needs for certain to be done in BKK although an amendment can be made in UK. Many thanks for input .

[7by7]

12 hours ago, luxoretired said:

as  she is a "resident " Thai , london Burma and london New Zealand have both issued visa although she is only in UK on visitor visa . Believe but not yet tried Canada .next year ! Schengen needs for certain to be done in BKK although an amendment can be made in UK.

If she is in the UK with a visit visa, then she is not a resident.

 

If the Burma and New Zealand embassies allowed her to apply for a visa in the UK while here as a visitor, then that's great to hear; although I am surprised.

 

Under the EU freedom of movement directive, qualifying family members of an EEA national can apply for a Schengen visa anywhere, resident or not; provided they will be travelling with or to join their EEA national family member.

 

The status of unmarried partners is not specifically defined in the directive, but most do accept them as qualifying family members if they meet the definition of unmarried partner under that state's own legislation. So while some Schengen states may recognise your partner as a qualifying family member, others may not.

 

British citizens and their non EEA national family members are still covered by the directive, but what the position will be post Brexit has yet to be agreed.