Proof of Accommodation: Can I use a temporary hotel address?

Just wondering if anyone knows this for sure - On the application for a Settlement Visa, there is a place for address once you arrive. It also says in guidance that one should not pay money to secure an address until they get their visa. So this is a bit puzzling. Can one just put a hotel address where they intend on staying until they arrive and then secure accommodation?

Are you sure you've not misread the application form? One of the conditions of the spouse settlement visa is that you submit evidence of adequate accommodation which will be available upon your arrival in the UK. This doesn't refer to temporary hotel accommodation.

I've read in other places that people have submitted the hotel where they will stay at until they find a permanent home. Are you saying that they expect someone to sign a 6 month rental before they get approved for a visa?

The ECO will expect you to show 'adequate' accommodation for a family of 6. Hotel accommodation would be temporary with no guarantee that you will comply with the requirement to provide housing complying with the requirement of no 'overcrowding'. i.e suitable for the number of occupants.
With a borderline application regarding finances, I feel you should be watertight with the other requirements. You were considering coming on ahead and renting a house. Couldn't this be suitable for the rest of the family on their arrival, or have your plans changed?
One other point from a previous post regarding your wife's employment prospects. Bear in mind that the ECO will consider the restrictions on her working hours with 4 school age children. School hours and holidays aren't too compatible for both parents working full time and child care is expensive in the UK.
Please don't think I'm being negative, I'm simply playing 'devil's advocate'.

Casa wrote:The ECO will expect you to show 'adequate' accommodation for a family of 6. Hotel accommodation would be temporary with no guarantee that you will comply with the requirement to provide housing complying with the requirement of no 'overcrowding'. i.e suitable for the number of occupants.
With a borderline application regarding finances, I feel you should be watertight with the other requirements. You were considering coming on ahead and renting a house. Couldn't this be suitable for the rest of the family on their arrival, or have your plans changed?
One other point from a previous post regarding your wife's employment prospects. Bear in mind that the ECO will consider the restrictions on her working hours with 4 school age children. School hours and holidays aren't too compatible for both parents working full time and child care is expensive in the UK.
Please don't think I'm being negative, I'm simply playing 'devil's advocate'.

spot on Casa.

Ok, I appreciate your thoughts. I'm just puzzled that they say do not pay for flights or buy/rent property until you have your visas, but at the same time expect you to have a home. In your opinion, could I rent a "holiday let" for 2-4 weeks that accommodates 6? I still can go ahead of them and secure a home, but that will add more time and be a bit more complicated.

Yes, we have four school aged kids, but one is 15 and the other is 13. Do they not allow my teenagers to babysit/care for my younger kids for an hour or two a day?

Regarding the income requirements, I am definitely feeling more confident about it after reading they will look at our combined incomes. Yes, I am borderline with just my own salary, but even if my wife worked a part time job, it would easily put us above the benchmark. She is very skilled in her field and we will have a letter from an employment agency showing the demand for her skills in the area.

Once again, I appreciate any advice you have for our situation.

I'll let Greenie answer your point about taking a holiday let if he's still around as I suspect that he has more knowledge of the ECO's viewpoint. All I can say is that normally one would be expected to submit a lease of at least 3-6 months duration.

Although it isn't illegal for a 13 or 15 year old to look after their siblings the NSPCC recommends that no one under 16 should be left alone to look after younger children. In practice you would need to arrange for childcare to cover for 6 weeks of Summer holidays + the additional 6 weeks of statutory holidays throughout the school year. Regrettably, UK employers are often inflexible with hours and time off for working mothers, especially in the present tough economic climate. An ECO will be aware of this.

Ok, thanks again. I guess every "visa case" is unique. I fall short of about 6000-7000 GBP with my own income. My wife is employable. I'm sure she could get a part time job to cover that amount or more. There is employment opportunities available in the area.

With regards to child care, she could be home if she was working part time, and next summer, my oldest will be 16. My youngest is not an infant, he is 5. It's obviously the Visa people that make the decision on these things, not the NSPCC. I searched their website and they do advise to choose a 16 year as a babysitter - but there is a big difference between hiring a babysitter and have a 15 year old sibling watch his brother for an hour.

Love some advice on the holiday let if someone has any experience with that.

Casa wrote:I'll let Greenie answer your point about taking a holiday let if he's still around as I suspect that he has more knowledge of the ECO's viewpoint. All I can say is that normally one would be expected to submit a lease of at least 3-6 months duration.

Although it isn't illegal for a 13 or 15 year old to look after their siblings the NSPCC recommends that no one under 16 should be left alone to look after younger children. In practice you would need to arrange for childcare to cover for 6 weeks of Summer holidays + the additional 6 weeks of statutory holidays throughout the school year. Regrettably, UK employers are often inflexible with hours and time off for working mothers, especially in the present tough economic climate. An ECO will be aware of this.

Casa I'm a she, not a he...

I think in the case of settlement visas, the ECOs wouldn't be too impressed with a holiday let, but it does depend on the circumstances. If you had a significant amount in savings the ECO might be satisfied, however if you are on the borderline with your finances, I think coming to the UK withough appropriate accomodation organised for at least the first few months you might risk refusal. In cases where the whole family is moving back to the UK after some years away, it is more common to be staying with family first or alternatively for the British spouse to come over first to arrange accomodation rather than getting hotel accommodation or a holiday let. Don't forget you need a deposit to renting a property which is usually at least one months rent and more often 6 weeks, plus the first months rent in advance.

I agree with Casa regarding childcare. A 15 year old could look after younger siblings for short periods but expecting them to take on childcare responsibilities and looking after three younger children, including a 5 year old, for long periods of time on a daily basis in order for both parents to work I am not sure would be considered appropriate by the ECO. By the time your eldest is 16 and even now at 15 he will probably be more intersted in going out with his mates than looking after his three siblings. I think if both parents are working, which of course, many do, you will need to show you have accounted for the costs of childcare/after school clubs etc

Regarding relying on your wife finding work - I am sure your wife is well qualified and experienced but it is difficult for anyone to find a job at the moment, and ECOs are well aware of this and will not hesitate to use the 'credit crunch' and 'current economic climate' against applicants who do not have a firm job offer.

I am not trying to be negative, but you just need to be aware of the possible arguments so that you can adequately prepare your case.

Sorry Greenie. No giveaway in the name...I'm a 'she' too.
Pompeyboy, don't underestimate the cost of a holiday let. Even a fairly basic
holiday home for 6 people is likely to cost anything from £500 a week upwards, depending on the season. In which case 3 weeks of temporary rentals may eat into your accommodation budget by £1,500.
I know that you were considering settling in Trowbridge where rental costs are low. In the UK the rental market is linked to employment. The higher the unemployment the lower the rent. Trowbridge is suffering at the moment after major employers in the area, Virgin and Vodaphone announced the closure of their customer service centres with high numbers of redundancies.
As Greenie has said, the employment market is tough here at present even for highly qualified professionals.

Once again, thanks for the advice. I guess coming from Canada, I am surprised that my 15 year old son or 13 year old daughter wouldn't be suitable to watch my 11 and 5 year old children. The area we are moving (Bristol) has the best employment opportunities for a major city in the UK and I have spoken to an employment agency about my wife's chances at full or part time work. They said prospects are good.

We can easily secure a lease of 3-6 months, just it's a risk to commit when we don't know if we are getting the VISAs. I would have to quit my Canadian job to go over and start in the UK. I work for a major tech company right now (have for 3 years) and am moving to the UK to work for the same company. We are Canadian, not trying to go to UK to go on public assistance.

I do have an aunt on the Isle of Wight that has a home that would easily accommodate my wife, our children and I. It's obviously not within commuting distance to Bristol, but I am wondering if they could stay there for a few weeks while I find accommodation.

I am sure you can appreciate my concerns.

Casa wrote: I know that you were considering settling in Trowbridge where rental costs are low. In the UK the rental market is linked to employment. The higher the unemployment the lower the rent. Trowbridge is suffering at the moment after major employers in the area, Virgin and Vodaphone announced the closure of their customer service centres with high numbers of redundancies.
As Greenie has said, the employment market is tough here at present even for highly qualified professionals.

So because Trowbridge is suffering with Virgin/Vodaphone jobs, my wife couldn't commute to Bath/Bristol and work in accounting - even when there are jobs available??

The UK jobless rate is about the same as Canadas right now, not great but not terrible in the area we are looking at.

**UPDATE**

I am hoping I have found a solution. I have a friend that lives within commuting distance of my new job in Bristol. He owns a home that has 5 bedrooms (receptions not included). It is only him and his wife that live in the home, so the 5 bedrooms would easily accommodate him and his wife, myself, my wife and 4 kids (according the UK overcrowding law).

He has offered us accommodation while we look for a long term rental. Does this work? If so, what would he have to do/write in order for us to prove this to the UK Visa people? Would he need to provide something from the local authority showing the property would not be overcrowded?

Is this my best solution?

Good solution. If the house is mortgaged, he will need to provide a copy of the mortgage agreement. If he owns the house with no mortgage outstanding, a copy of the property deeds. A property report isn't essential, but you should give details of number of rooms and size and how many occupants at present.
Your friend also needs to provide a letter stating that you and your family will be able to stay in his home while you are looking for your own place to live.

Of course your wife can look for work in Bristol. I assumed she wouldn't want the 50 minutes or so commuting if she was only able to work part-time and was working around the children's schedule, or the cost of the travel.

Yeah, I am going to ask him to take pictures of the home, provide a letter, etc. This will make things much easier for us. Thanks again.

Sorry, just a few questions...

1. Are photocopies of the mortgage agreement/property deed ok? I assume we wouldn't have to send originals.

2. Should my friend put a date when he is expecting us? Should he state that he is providing temporary accommodation or just state his offer to house us?

Any copies of original documents should be legally certified.
Your friend can say that the accommodation will be available for you on your arrival and for as long as you need it while you are house-hunting.

So would a solicitor in the UK offer this service? If not, who would?

Yes, but your friend will need to find a solicitor who is also a notary. Most towns will have more than one.

Pompeyboy,

Your friend can simply obtain official copies of his property from the Land registry. This sets outs the title number, address and who the registered owners are i.e him and his wife. Also it will show if the property is mortgaged or free from incumbrances. It costs 4.00.

If he has a Mortgage the deeds will be lodged with his lender, so it may be difficult to get them to copy. Hope this helps!

Your friend won't need to provide a copy of the deeds if he is paying a mortgage. A copy of the mortgage agreement will be sufficient.

He no longer has a mortgage. I guess I was wondering between notary and certified because I talked to someone on the phone and they said making a certified copy is very easy. They said a bank can do while you wait. I looked up notaries in the Bristol area and found 3-4 vs. tons of lawyers who could certify.

Certified will be fine. There's no difference, except for the fact that not all solicitors offer this service.

Ok, I promise that this is the last time I ask questions on here. I want experienced people to judge their opinion on whether my UK Settlement VISA will be successful. The cost for our applications are $6500, so I want to know I have a reasonable chance. Here is our situation...

1) I am a dual citizen of UK/Canada. I have my British passport (through my father's birth in UK), so no worries about me coming to UK.

2) I have a wife (of 17 years) and four children (ages 5-15). They are all Canadians.

3) I am leaving my current job of 3 years with a major tech company and have a solid job in the UK with the same company. My pay will be 27,000 GBP and after taxes that becomes about 20,700 GBP.

4) My wife has a degree in a business field where she has worked for over 20 years. She does not have a job offer in the UK, but has contacted agencies and they say with her resume, she will have no problems getting a job. The guidance says they will consider the sponsor and my wife's potential income.

5) We have an offer of accommodation from a friend in the UK. The friend has a 5 bedroom (plus receptions). It is only him and his wife that live in this house that is owned by him.

6) We have savings of about 5000 GBP after we pay for our 5 visa applications. If I wait a month, I could probably have another 2000 GBP in savings. I just don't want to wait if I don't have to as we want our kids in the schools there.

What are your thoughts on our chances?

Thanks so much.

You may want to check this thread out following the US member's spouse visa refusal today on financial grounds,
It supports my belief that contrary what the Regulations appear to imply, potential employment for the foreign national spouse is disregarded unless a formal offer of employment is submitted with the application.
Have a read through the refusal. Parents-in-law were offering free accommodation.
http://www.immigrationboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=84733