Spouse or Fiance Visa After Entry Refusal?

[everydyingember]

Just wondering something, as it's taken me a while to speak to a lawyer.

I'm currently going through a divorce and my current partner and I are waiting for it to be over so we can start our new life together. We'd like to apply for a fiance or spouse visa but I came across a complication earlier this month.

I was refused entry travelling from my home of Canada to the UK. There were a couple of reasons why:

- After my marriage ended in summer 2017 (after a little while of trying to make it work), I mailed the home office like I was supposed to, telling them I would leave the country before my visa is up and didn't hear anything back. I foolishly assumed that meant I could go whenever before my visa was up. Before I left in May 2018, I sent the same letter again to just make sure I had my bases covered - but the border agents told me that this second letter was the only one they had on file.

I was told I should have chased them after the first letter but my life was a mess and my mental health was terrible and I just wasn't keeping track.

- I returned to the UK for another two months and when I got back to the border, the agent stamped my passport for six months. Since I was with my new partner at the time, we were excited about the six months so I wrote to the airline and told them I'd be rebooking the flight for another couple of months. I should have asked when I got the stamped but I looked online and I saw that it would be okay to use the extra months. However, the border agents told me that the six month stamp was contingent on my leaving when my original flight was booked.

So, during my interview, the agent explained all of this to me. He admitted that it can be misleading and said that if I apply for a proper visa like I'm intending and admit my mistakes, I should be able to receive one.

I was rereading my refusal letter and it just makes me look quite bad. It's very straight to the point but doesn't include any of the details that convey my misunderstandings or genuine mistakes.

I just feel really stupid and like I've ruined my chances of ever getting a spouse visa or a fiance visa with my new partner. I'm worried they'll think because I overstayed (even though "overstay" wasn't explicitly said in the letter and I genuinely thought I'd be able to stay until my visa was up), the UKBA will think I'd just do the same thing again in the event of this relationship breaking down.

My new partner and I have loads of relationship evidence and I'm confident he'd never cheat so, while I know this would never be an issue, would they?

It just boils down to - does someone have a chance of getting a new visa if they've been refused entry before? Has anyone here been in this situation?