FLR (FM) Guidance request.

[farhanuk777]

Hello everyone, i am posting for the first time hoping to get some guidance for my upcoming FLR application.
Background:
I got married to British citizen in july 2016 we had our nikkah. After nikkah she went back to UK and i was staying in Pakistan. We applied our spouse visa after 6 months and got visa in August 2017. In August 2017 I traveled to UK and get my BRP but did not stay in the country and left for Pakistan after two weeks. Current BRP expires on 28/01/2020. Then my wife joined my in Pakistan in Oct 2017 and we lived together in Pakistan untill she went back in jan 2019 and i moved to UK in feb 2019 and been living in UK since. We have proof of adress letter for the time we have been living in UK but not for the time we were living in Pakistan as we were living with my parents and did not have any post in our name. We only have Pakistan CNIC with the same address on it.
Now i need to apply for my first extension. What sort of documents do I need?
I was also a student in the UK from sep 2008 to dec 2013- and was refused a student visa extension in 2013 aswell. Do i need to mention these details anywhere in the application?

Any help is much appreciated. Thank you.

[geoeng]

I was also a student in the UK from sep 2008 to dec 2013- and was refused a student visa extension in 2013 aswell. Do i need to mention these details anywhere in the application?

Yes, there will be a spot on the application for this information.

Now i need to apply for my first extension. What sort of documents do I need?

One of the requirements for an extension is "the applicant and their partner must intend to live together permanently in the UK and, in any application for further leave to remain as a partner (except where the applicant is in the UK as a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner) and in any application for indefinite leave to remain as a partner, the applicant must provide evidence that, since entry clearance as a partner was granted under paragraph D-ECP1.1. or since the last grant of limited leave to remain as a partner, the applicant and their partner have lived together in the UK or there is good reason, consistent with a continuing intention to live together permanently in the UK, for any period in which they have not done so."

I suspect you will struggle to meet this requirement as you must provide items of correspondence addressed to you in the UK as supporting evidence. There's a good year and a half the two of you haven't been living together in the UK. Your best bet may be to apply for entry clearance (initial spouse visa) again and start the whole process over, if you actually intend to live in the UK together. Others may have a different opinion of course, this is just my own.

[farhanuk777]

Hi,
Thanks for pointing this out.
Just wanted to clarify that we were living together for the most part of the initial 2.5 years just not in the UK as I was working at my family business in Pakistan and could not immidiately leave my home country. So the entry clearance was issued in june 2017 but could not live together untill October 2017 that is when we had the second wedding ceremony called the ‘rukhsati’. Since then we lived together in pak till jan 2019 and then in uk from feb 2019 till now. We also had our first child here in uk in july 2019 (not sure if that helps the application). We were of the impression that we need to be living together is the main condition and can live abroad (with good reason) my reason being taking care of family business/parents and only could move to UK once I have made appropriate arrangements for business to be run after i leave.

[geoeng]

We were of the impression that we need to be living together is the main condition and can live abroad

I don't really understand that when one of the requirements for being granted a spouse visa is quite clearly that "the applicant and partner must intend to live together permanently in the UK". You also would have provided a UK address at which you should have intended to live together in the UK as part of the application; you seem to have had no intention to live together in the UK despite this being a requirement.

We also had our first child here in uk in july 2019 (not sure if that helps the application).

It may make it less likely that a visa would be refused outright. If it is assessed you don't meet the eligibility requirements for FLR(M), having a child here makes it easier to meet the criteria for FLR under the 10 year route.

You're certainly welcome to try applying and your reasoning for not living together in the UK may be considered a "good reason", I'm just trying to point out the potential weaknesses so you're able to try to address them or are at least aware of them.

[farhanuk777]

Hello,
Anybody please help. I am really confused about this question on the online application form.
Have you previously lived in a country outside the UK including your country of birth?
Now obviously, anyone who gets born will be living in the country of birth. I find this question very vague and not sure how to answer it as not much detail is given in the question.
In my situation i lived in my home country from birth to Sep 2008. in sep 2008 i moved to UK as a student and lived in UK until Dec 2013. Then moved back to home country. Then I travelled to other countries just for holidays like Thailand, abu dhabi, and Azerbaijan. (Do I need to include these as I was not technically living there, it was for a couple weeks for holiday). Then I came to uk on spouse visa in june 2016 but went back in july 2016 to home country. Then finally moved to UK again in Feb 2019 since then I have been in UK.
Please help with answer to this question.

[farhanuk777]

bump

[Moon Lantern]

Hello,
Anybody please help. I am really confused about this question on the online application form.
Have you previously lived in a country outside the UK including your country of birth?
Now obviously, anyone who gets born will be living in the country of birth. I find this question very vague and not sure how to answer it as not much detail is given in the question.
In my situation i lived in my home country from birth to Sep 2008. in sep 2008 i moved to UK as a student and lived in UK until Dec 2013. Then moved back to home country. Then I travelled to other countries just for holidays like Thailand, abu dhabi, and Azerbaijan. (Do I need to include these as I was not technically living there, it was for a couple weeks for holiday). Then I came to uk on spouse visa in june 2016 but went back in july 2016 to home country. Then finally moved to UK again in Feb 2019 since then I have been in UK.
Please help with answer to this question.

I would just answer this as yes, keep it short and simple. You have lived in Pakistan.
The other holiday countries- you haven't really lived in them. I think there will be another page to list the countries you have visited.

[farhanuk777]

Thanks for the reply. But what dates do I put in?

[geoeng]

But what dates do I put in?

The dates you lived in Pakistan (and any other countries you have lived in), which seem to be detailed fairly well in your post. You're overthinking the question, it's not meant to be a trick, just a prompt to list the places and dates you have lived somewhere that were not the UK.