Advice: UK Visa for Step-daughter

[GuiltyByDesign]

Hey Guys

 

So my wife is in the UK with me at the moment, we got our settlement extension couple months ago so we just have to wait for the IDLR then she becomes a Citizen, now her daughter, my step-daugher is currently still in Thailand due to circumstances with money etc, my wife's father is looking after her (I use the term looking after loosely). We send the money every month to support her, we have the evidence of this etc, now the issue we have is he's for lack of a better term a f*cking idiot, he see's my step-daughter as a bank to get money from me and think he's entitled to the world. now he's always drinking and going out to bars to find women etc and it's not the environment we want for our daughter and he is worsening so we are very concerned, we want to bring her here ASAP. now does this situtation allow us any new avenues to bring her here quicker as she is not "safe" and not taken care of properly.

 

Any help would be great.

if you need more info just ask.

[chickenslegs]

It's a long time since I did this (brought my step-daughter to the UK) and I know the rules have changed. But, anyone answering your question will need to know how old is she, and does your wife have sole custody.

[GuiltyByDesign]

Thanks for the reply, sorry step-daughter just turned 6 in March this year. My wife has sole custody, the biological "father" has never even met the daughter and never been involved, nobody even knows where he is. He does know she was pregnant at the time etc but left. And yea things change all the time so I'm not sure if there's a different kind of avenue we can pursue to bring her here quicker.

[chickenslegs]

Old topic might be worth a read - https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/550496-bringing-child-to-uk/

 

 

[bobrussell]

The main problem is going to be documenting that she is not safe with the present arrangements and showing there are no suitable alternatives.

Does the grandfather have any sort of criminal record? Have you communications from friends/neighbours/other family members or the school having concerns over her welfare?

Clearly the grandfather is unlikely to want to see his meal ticket fly to the UK so he probably will not be that helpful.

Can she be moved to a 'place of safety' that can be legally documented? Friends or relatives perhaps that can offer temporary shelter?

Who looks after the six year old while the grandfather is out drinking etc?

 

The welfare of the child has to be considered as part of the application but you must provide evidence of a problem. If not there would be nothing to stop anyone using this as a reason.

 

I would always that you take professional advice in situations such as this. The wrong things cannot be 'unsaid'!

 

In principle there should be nothing wrong with expecting a child to join a parent but there should be proper grounds why an arrangement should be altered. Six is a good age to move countries and a good age to determine that a child should be with the mother and not a grandfather. Getting the ECO to agree is the difficulty!

[GuiltyByDesign]

6 minutes ago, bobrussell said:

The main problem is going to be documenting that she is not safe with the present arrangements and showing there are no suitable alternatives.

Does the grandfather have any sort of criminal record? Have you communications from friends/neighbours/other family members or the school having concerns over her welfare?

Clearly the grandfather is unlikely to want to see his meal ticket fly to the UK so he probably will not be that helpful.

Can she be moved to a 'place of safety' that can be legally documented? Friends or relatives perhaps that can offer temporary shelter?

Who looks after the six year old while the grandfather is out drinking etc?

 

The welfare of the child has to be considered as part of the application but you must provide evidence of a problem. If not there would be nothing to stop anyone using this as a reason.

 

I would always that you take professional advice in situations such as this. The wrong things cannot be 'unsaid'!

 

In principle there should be nothing wrong with expecting a child to join a parent but there should be proper grounds why an arrangement should be altered. Six is a good age to move countries and a good age to determine that a child should be with the mother and not a grandfather. Getting the ECO to agree is the difficulty!

Thanks for taking the time to reply Bob. I agree that is not an easy one, I don't know about criminal records, I'll have to find out, but would character witness statements from my wife's sister and one of her brothers (who both live out there with him) be helpful? As they update us on everything and they are party to it all (including the brunt). There is nowhere else that is suitable, the rest of her family are literally too scared to take her in because of the problems it will cause with him, he is known in the area for being an idiot. Which isn't good for anyone.

 

I can contact the school too as she has been missing some days lately because he has been out drinking all night etc so that again doesn't reflect well on him and or her education, she has missed private english classes we have in place because of him too which is all money lost.

 

Agreed with regards to him not wanting to let her go because of her being his meal ticket, but he has always known she is coming here and that's final. Him not being helpful would actually in the end help us as he has no diplomatic bone in his body and he will only show his true colors in any protest.

 

We are thinking at the moment of moving here away with my wife's sister but this is only a temporary basis as she can't take care of her permanently, she has her own son, she has to work and we will support her for the time being to look after our daughter but we can't do that on a permanent basis.

 

There is nobody, my wife's father looks after our daughter/step daugther, her brother's 2 twins, her brothers daugher, and takes care of non of them, he currently has a girlfriend he is forever cheating on and treats like shit, but the kids aren't even fed most of the time and are left with her but almost to fend for themselves, again this is worrying.

 

I have already e-mailed my solicitor who has helped with my wife's visas for advice and to get the ball rolling too but wanted to see if I could get more knowledge and advice from people here or who have been in a similar situation.

 

What is the ECO by the way? I've heard mention a couple of times?

 

thanks again

[GuiltyByDesign]

found it, Entry Clearance officer, in my experience they aren't that harsh, I'm confident with convincing one to be honest, especially as it is genuine, I'll just make sure I have all supporting evidence

[Krataiboy]

Try this link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/application-to-settle-in-the-uk-as-a-child-under-18-form-setf

[bobrussell]

I would not consider an ECO to be harsh but they have a job to do and that does include weeding out applicants that do not meet the requirements.

Provide a well thought out and evidenced application and it should be processed fairly. It is the process of providing the right evidence in an appropriate way that may be the issue.

The longer a parent is separated from a parent the tougher it can be to demonstrate reasons for an application to be granted. You should be providing reasons why the present arrangement was considered appropriate in the first place and why it is no longer satisfactory. Always include 'welfare of the child' a few times!

Wording and presentation can make a big difference and this is why I believe it is important to get specialist help beyond the advice offered here. Be aware that UK based solicitors are not always as up on immigration law as they may suggest so choose with care!

[GuiltyByDesign]

20 hours ago, bobrussell said:

I would not consider an ECO to be harsh but they have a job to do and that does include weeding out applicants that do not meet the requirements.

Provide a well thought out and evidenced application and it should be processed fairly. It is the process of providing the right evidence in an appropriate way that may be the issue.

The longer a parent is separated from a parent the tougher it can be to demonstrate reasons for an application to be granted. You should be providing reasons why the present arrangement was considered appropriate in the first place and why it is no longer satisfactory. Always include 'welfare of the child' a few times!

Wording and presentation can make a big difference and this is why I believe it is important to get specialist help beyond the advice offered here. Be aware that UK based solicitors are not always as up on immigration law as they may suggest so choose with care!

thanks for the further info Bob, the solicitor I have is the one I've used for the last 2 settlement visas for my wife, she knows her stuff, she's brilliant. Couple with information and advice I uncover I am confident we can get it done, the main reason for the duration of the seperation at the moment was I dont earn enough to meet the UKBA requirements alone, but now my wife is here, she has jsut found work and her work is picking up even more, so now together we meet the financial requirements and therefore we can now bring her here. That and the living situation has greatly deteriorated due to her fathers antics.