What options do we have?

[DanielP]

Hello,

I'm new to the forum and I'm quite overwhelmed with all of the topics and which one I should be writing in.
Apologies if this is in the wrong section.

I am a British citizen and am in a relationship with a Mexican women, we are not married. I would like to help her to experience my country and whilst living with me in the UK and I am unsure what is the best route to go down. She would like to work here.

She currently works for a company in Tijuana. I am not sure about what kind of visa route to go down? Or what her options are really.
I tried navigating the gov.uk website I discovered you can no longer apply for the tier 1 visa.

I am also confused how you can be married to a british citizen, live in the country for 3 years legally then apply to settle?
This is a screenshot from the gov website.



Thanks in advance for any help.

This is something I'm completely clueless about.

Regards,

Daniel.

[vinny]

If you are married or have lived with her in a relationship akin to marriage for at least two years, then she may apply to join you in the UK, assuming you satisfy the financial requirements, etc.

Else, see other work options.

[DanielP]

Hi Vinny, thanks for the swift response.

I clicked on the "join" link but I'm unsure of what this means exactly. We've not yet lived together.

So given she can't live in the UK with me for 2 years now, I would need to live with her for 2 years in Mexico prior?
If she is permitted to join me in the UK does that entitle her to be employed in the UK?

What financial requirements are these?

Kind regards,

Daniel

[DanielP]

[DanielP]

The image I posted from the Gov website states we are eligible if we have lived together in the UK for 5 years, but I don't see how that is possible.

Regards,

Daniel.

[Casa]

The rules you posted referred to an application for British Citizenship, not settlement. You could live with her in Mexico for a minimum of 2 years and then apply for an Unmarried Partner visa. Or you could marry in Mexico and apply for a Spouse settlement visa, or apply for a fiance visa and marry in the UK within 6 months and then apply for a spouse visa from within the UK.
However, you would need to show as the sponsor that you are earning a minimum of £18,600 per annum or have savings of £62,500 held in an accessible account for at least 6 months.
If your girlfriend enters on a fiance visa, she wouldn't be able to work legally until the spouse visa extension is granted after you are married. The route to permanent settlement is now 5 years.
Edit: the last information you posted from the UKVI website is for permanent settlement (ILR) not for the initial spouse settlement visa.
This is form VAF4a https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... form-vaf4a

[DanielP]

Hi Casa, thanks very much for the reply.

You mentioned living with her here in Mexico for 2 years and then applying for an unmarried partner visa.

I just did some reading and found this:


If accepted would this mean she could work here upon arrival?
I also have to prove I'm making 19k?

Kind regards,

Daniel

[Casa]

Yes, she would be able to work, but you may be missing an important point. How are you going to comply with this?;
"You need to show that you have been living with your partner for at least two years in a relationship similar to marriage. You will need to provide documentary evidence confirming this."

You need to show that you are earning a minimum of £18,600 per annum. The initial visa is £956 + £600 fee for the new NHS Surcharge.

[DanielP]

What were to happen if we were to get married in England whilst she was on a holiday visa?

Would she be able to live in England with me and be able to apply for a job more easily if we went down this route?

It is difficult for me to prove I'm making that amount at this moment.

Kind regards,

Daniel.

[Casa]

She won't be able to switch to a spouse visa from within the UK if she marries here while she's on a visitor visa. She would have to return to Mexico to apply from there after the wedding. Be aware however, if the Immigration Officer at UK Border Control suspects that she intends to marry while she's here as a visitor she will be refused entry. Simply being married to you won't legalise her stay unless the correct visa has been applied for and granted.
She could apply for a fiance visa, marry within 6 months of her arrival and then apply to switch to spouse FLR(M) visa from within the UK. This will require two separate visa fees + the NHS surcharges. She would be able to work once the FLR(M) spouse visa has been granted.
However, unless you can meet strict condition of £18,600 minimum earnings per annum the fiance or spouse visa will be refused. You would have to show the last 6 months pay slips and bank statements when submitting the fiance or spouse visa application to show you've earned the required amount.

[DanielP]

She won't be able to switch to a spouse visa from within the UK if she marries here while she's on a visitor visa. She would have to return to Mexico to apply from there after the wedding. Be aware however, if the Immigration Officer at UK Border Control suspects that she intends to marry while she's here as a visitor she will be refused entry. Simply being married to you won't legalise her stay unless the correct visa has been applied for and granted.
She could apply for a fiance visa, marry within 6 months of her arrival and then apply to switch to spouse FLR(M) visa from within the UK. This will require two separate visa fees + the NHS surcharges. She would be able to work once the FLR(M) spouse visa has been granted.
However, unless you can meet strict condition of £18,600 minimum earnings per annum the fiance or spouse visa will be refused. You would have to show the last 6 months pay slips and bank statements when submitting the fiance or spouse visa application to show you've earned the required amount.

Hello Casa, thank you very much for your last response.

I have a few more questions I was hoping you could assist me with, I appreciate your advice a lot!

Regarding the application in Mexico post marriage in the UK route, Do you know a source for processing times for this?

I feel like the only option I have given I don't earn 19k is for us to get married whilst she is vacation and for her to then apply for the documents in Mexico. What difficulties could I face doing this in terms of the application success?

Would she be needing to take an English language exam down the line? Currently she is having lessons and I am helping her with this.

You mentioned her having to apply from Mexico after marriage, is this a visa application specifically or another type of document? Do you know if we will face problems with her applying in Mexico? Just trying to get an idea of the potential difficulties in her applying in Mexico. She has no criminal background, solid work history.

Apologies for bombarding you with many questions,

Thank you very much in advance,

Regards,

Daniel.

[Casa]

UKVI official statistics show that most spouse settlement visas submitted in Mexico are processed within 60 days. A few points to bear in mind;
1. How will your financial earnings rise to £18,600 by the time you apply for the spouse visa? You say you don't currently earn this.
2. If your fiance is on a visitor visa when you notify the Registrar of your intention to marry, they may notify the Home Office and extend the waiting period to 70 days. You could also be interviewed by the Home Office before the marriage takes place.
When your notice period can be extended
Your notice period can be extended to 70 days if you or your partner:
are from outside the EEA or Switzerland
have limited or no immigration status in the UK
don’t give the registrar enough evidence to show you’re settled in the UK
You’ll be told within 28 days if your notice period will be extended

3. You can only give notice to marry in a Home Office designated Registry Office.

[DanielP]

Thanks for the swift reply,

Okay so I understand she could not work on a fiancée visa which sounds ridiculous to me since how can a person remain occupied/fulfilled for 6 months without pursuing a career. So once you get over that hurdle and then applied for the marriage visa? She would need to be living in the UK for 5 years in order to get ILR? Could she work during this time? I could not find an answer for this.

There must be a simpler route to enable her to live with me and work in the UK or is there really not?

Thanks very much for helping with this matter,

Kind regards,

Daniel.

[CR001]

Could she work during this time?

Yes, once she has switched to FLR(M) spouse visa, she is free to work.

There must be a simpler route to enable her to live with me and work in the UK or is there really not?

No, there really is not. Unless she qualifies for a visa in her own right (Tier 2 General etc)

Your obstacle is your income, you would still need to meet the financial requirement of £18,600pa for a Fiance Visa.

[Casa]

"How would someone occupy themselves for 6 months?" There's no requirement to wait 6 months before marrying and then applying for the spouse visa. You could marry shortly after she arrives and then immediately submit the FLR(M) application, After the initial 2.5 year visa is granted she could work. Until she's granted ILR (after 5 years) she won't be able to claim any Public Funds (benefits).
As CR001 has pointed out (and you didn't answer my questions on this), your biggest hurdle appears to be your low income. The visa fees and NHS surcharges alone are substantial.

[DanielP]

"How would someone occupy themselves for 6 months?" There's no requirement to wait 6 months before marrying and then applying for the spouse visa. You could marry shortly after she arrives and then immediately submit the FLR(M) application, After the initial 2.5 year visa is granted she could work. Until she's granted ILR (after 5 years) she won't be able to claim any Public Funds (benefits).
As CR001 has pointed out (and you didn't answer my questions on this), your biggest hurdle appears to be your low income. The visa fees and NHS surcharges alone are substantial.

Just typed out a lengthy reply only to realise I wasn't logged in and lost it in cyberspace doh!

Thank you both for the speedy, informative reply, I appreciate you taking the time to help in this matter.

I have highlighted in bold a few more things I wish to enquire about.

If I am to earn 9450 over the course of 6 months, is this sufficient to apply for the fiancee visa or do I need to show I've earned 18.9k for 12+ months?
I can get 2 jobs and meet this requirement. Does income from Savings/stocks count towards this figure?

Once married and with the 2.5year visa granted allowing her to work, do I need to continue to earn 18.9k? Curious if this requirement changes.

One final question about the NHS and visa charges. I read in a previous post about this one "The initial visa is £956 + £600 fee for the new NHS Surcharge."

What other charges are there?

Kind regards,

Daniel

[DanielP]

Could someone reply when they have a moment.

Kind regards,

Daniel.

[ALKB]

"How would someone occupy themselves for 6 months?" There's no requirement to wait 6 months before marrying and then applying for the spouse visa. You could marry shortly after she arrives and then immediately submit the FLR(M) application, After the initial 2.5 year visa is granted she could work. Until she's granted ILR (after 5 years) she won't be able to claim any Public Funds (benefits).
As CR001 has pointed out (and you didn't answer my questions on this), your biggest hurdle appears to be your low income. The visa fees and NHS surcharges alone are substantial.

Just typed out a lengthy reply only to realise I wasn't logged in and lost it in cyberspace doh!

Thank you both for the speedy, informative reply, I appreciate you taking the time to help in this matter.

I have highlighted in bold a few more things I wish to enquire about.

If I am to earn 9450 over the course of 6 months, is this sufficient to apply for the fiancee visa or do I need to show I've earned 18.9k for 12+ months?
I can get 2 jobs and meet this requirement. Does income from Savings/stocks count towards this figure?

Once married and with the 2.5year visa granted allowing her to work, do I need to continue to earn 18.9k? Curious if this requirement changes.

One final question about the NHS and visa charges. I read in a previous post about this one "The initial visa is £956 + £600 fee for the new NHS Surcharge."

What other charges are there?

Kind regards,

Daniel

When applying for the spouse visa extension after 2.5 years you can combine both your incomes to meet the 18600 income requirement.

You might want to ask your questions over in the immigration for family members forum.

[Casa]

I've moved this to the Immigration for family members forum,

[DanielP]

I've moved this to the Immigration for family members forum,

Hi Casa thank you, I was unable to find my post in the section you moved it to. Could you provide me with a link please.

Thank you in advance,

Kind regards

Daniel.

[Casa]

You're there...posting in the same thread!

[DanielP]

If I am to earn 9450 over the course of 6 months, is this sufficient to apply for the fiancee visa or do I need to show I've earned 18.9k for 12+ months?

One final question about the NHS and visa charges.
I read in a previous post about this one "The initial visa is £956 + £600 fee for the new NHS Surcharge."

What other charges are there?

Kind regards,
Daniel

[Casa]

The minimum income level is £18,600, not £18,900. You can submit payslips for the last 6 months showing that you've earned £9,450.
There aren't any charges apart from the visa fee of £956 at this stage. If you're applying for a fiancee visa you won't have to pay the NHS surcharge until you submit the application for a 2.5 year extension on form FLR(M). The fee for this will be £649 and the NHS surcharge of £500 payable before you submit the FLR(M) application.
To simplify this:
Fiance visa fee - £956
after the wedding submitted in the UK:
FLR(M) 2.5 year spouse visa postal application - £649 + NHS surcharge £500.
If your wife chooses to submit her FLR(M) visa application in person at Premium Service Centre there will be an additional fee of £400
She won't be able to work legally until her FLR(M) visa has been granted. Applications submitted in person are generally decided on the same day, a postal application may take up to 12 weeks to process.

Note that if you marry outside of the UK and apply for a Spouse Settlement Visa there will only be one visa fee of £956 + NHS surcharge of £600

[DanielP]

Thank you for the reply Casa.

I have been working since July in a new job, with overtime I am able to exceed the 18.6k

To whom do I submit these payslips to when I have all of them?

Is it a case of sending these off to get confirmed and then awaiting confirmation of the fiance visa being granted for my girlfriend?
Is it necessary for me to have an immigration lawyer?

Sorry for bombarding you with more questions!
Kind Regards,

Daniel.

[Casa]

Thank you for the reply Casa.

I have been working since July in a new job, with overtime I am able to exceed the 18.6k

To whom do I submit these payslips to when I have all of them?

Is it a case of sending these off to get confirmed and then awaiting confirmation of the fiance visa being granted for my girlfriend?
Is it necessary for me to have an immigration lawyer?

Sorry for bombarding you with more questions!
Kind Regards,

Daniel.

Your fiancee needs to submit the payslips with her application, together will all the other documents required. Have you read through the application form VAF4A?

https://www.gov.uk/join-family-in-uk/overview

Is the overtime guaranteed and with overtime will you have met the minimum earnings level each month? If not, the case worker will take the lowest month and multiply it by 12 which means the annual earnings may calculated as less than £18,600.