Spouse Visa help needed

[katie_79]

Hi everyone!

My partner of 13 years had immigration problems here so went back to his country(Kenya) voluntarily, to apply for entry clearance. I am worried sick that he will face a ban due to his adverse immigration history. Any advice we have been given about the bans has been conflicting so we really do not know where we stand! A friend of mine says because he has family here (myself and our two children, age 11 and 4) my partner should not face a ban but our solicitor says he will probably get a one year ban, we asked another solicitor for a second opinion and he reckons my partner could face a 3 year ban.

I am not even sure which form we should use to apply for his return here as I cannot even get hold of my solicitor! Again I have been getting conflicting advice, he should apply in kenya, I should submit the application here.

We are planning to get married when he eventually comes back so I guess that he needs to apply for a fiance visa, which I cannot seem to find, only spouse visa.

Another thing that really concerns me, I am self-employed but have only been since March of this year so I don't have accounts etc and most of my work is paid cash, I know I should have banked it, was silly of me not to. So now I don't know how to prove my income! Due to being on my own to look after the children I have had to turn down work and keep my hours to part-time so my income is low and I have had to claim working families tax credit, this of course will not go down well with the entry clearance officer.

We do however have a close friend who is very comfortable financially and who is willing to help out in any way he can. He is prepared to write a letter of support stating that he is ready to support us financially and happy to give my partner work in his construction company. He will also be happy to provide bank statements to prove his finances.

Will this satisfy the entry clearance officer?

Sorry for the essay! Will greatly appreciate any advice offered,

Katie

[Casa]

Unfortunately 3rd party financial support will be disallowed. You need to be able to show that you will have sufficient funds to support yourselves without help from others.

[prettypolitical]

Hi katie_79,

I would advise you that you should gather all the evidence to prove that you have been a couple for x amount of years....

Birth certificates of the children showing your partners name on if possible.

Which type of visa are you planning to apply for??

Fiancee visa (if you plan to get married when he comes back to the uk and you need to get married within the 6 months)

Spouse visa (if you are planning to go to kenya and get married)

In any case your partner needs to submit application to British High Comission in Kenya.

You really need to concentrate on sorting your income out, i mean proving it that is......

With the tax credits you are allowed to claim these for you and your children and this is in your own right.

When are you planning for the application to go in???

The ban should not be applicable for your partner as he has a family etc here in the UK.

What I will say is leave no stone unturned and be thorough in your preparation.

Think of any reasons why your partner overstayed as they maybe interested in this as they were in my husbands case.

Use this time to gather evidence of your relationship!!! bills, letters, photographs, anything that links you together, letters of support backed up with photo ID, support from childrens schools etc....

Did your husband live with you etc????

Have yo got suitable accomodation for you the children and your partner???

Have you got any savings????

Let me know what your plan is!!!, best of luck...

And have you tried Immigration Advisory Service...if you are on a low income their services may be free for you...they helped me and it was free as I was on a low income and tax credits!!!

Hope this helps a little.

Maybe you could also try UK Border Agency website, this will give you a few pointers.

[prettypolitical]

Hi katie_79

Just thought of something else....

Have you been paying taxes as you are self employed...any proof, i know its not been long.....

or what about invoices for the work you have done etc....or anything like that????

[katie_79]

Thankyou so much for your replies!

prettypolitical

I may be OK for proof of earnings as I have banked cheques that should cover part of my earnings, the rest I have receipts for and can also do a profit and loss forecast chart. We do have save a little saved but by the time I book my flights to go out and see my partner in Dec and pay for vaccinations, renewal of passports my account will not be looking so great. The friend who I mentioned in my first post says he is happy to give us money to use whilst my partner is looking for work, as Casa mentioned that a letter from him stating that he would support us financially and his bank statements would be not ne allowed. To be honest though I am not ruling this out because a friend of mine who was on income support got a supporting letter and bank statements from her dad and it seemed to help.

We will be applying for fiance visa and get married within the 6months of him coming back. Is he allowed to work during those 6 months?

I have quite alot of support here such as our family gp, vicar, mp, childrens schools, my parents etc They are all willing to get involved and help out in anyway they can. In past (failed)applications,they have all written letters of support, would you suggest that I ask them to do the same for this application? Could easily arrange that but not sure about asking them all for their photo id?? thats ALOT of certified photocopies!!!!lol

We also have a report here written by the immigration appeal judge stating that she believed our relationship to be genuine and could not see any reason why an application made form Kenya for entry clearance would not be successful. I am wondering if it would be a good idea to include this report(with relevant paragraph highlighted)in the application. Any opinions or ideas on this?

I still feel very unsure about the whole ban aspect because all i have heard from people(including an immigration caseworker here) is that he 'probably' won't or 'shouldn't' face a ban because a) he went back voluntarily and b)he has a partner and children here. Nobody seems sure! I guess we will soon (or maybe not so) find out.

Do we need to do a CRB check certificate?he doesn't have a criminal history so we don't have a problem getting one its just that it will take ages to get one.

Yes my partner and I have lived together for 12 years and we have a tenancy agreement dated from 1998 in both our names to prove that, only problem is the tenancy agreement does not include how many rooms we have etc, should i get a letter form the council stating how many rooms we have?

Reasons why he overstayed? because I was pregant! lol

I have made a start on getting all of this stuff together and hope to send it all over to kenya within the next 2 - 3 weeks.

Would love some more feedback!

Katie x

[prettypolitical]

Hi katie_79

Glad you are on top of things......about the ban my husband was an overstayer....went back to his country...and he is sat here with me today!!!!!!!...because he has family ties in the uk.

I provided an up to date statement of rent from the council to prove i was not in any arrears....photocopied my rent card as well...you could speak to them about a report they could produce anout the size of the property...all councils operate differentl....although i am sure they can suggest the best course of action.

My friends husband who applied for his spouse visa whilst he was in the uk......included that her mother would support her and her husband if needed as she too was claiming income support...and they didnt have children !!!!

All our letters of support where backed up by id although no one certified them!!!! they just attached them to their letters...suppose it can rule out bogus letters etc....unless its from MP or Vicar...ha ha ha

Neither myself or my hubby had a crb check!!!

Include everything that links you together as a family unit and a couple, the report from the judge at AIT will not hurt, i would have thought it would point out something!!!!

Perhaps you could include a budget of your outgoings and incoings etc????

Let me know how you get on!