Someone Please Help!!!

[Ladychazxx]

Hi, I am new here so I hope I'm on the right page.

I have a big problem and was hoping that someone somewhere could advise me. I am 25 years old (British Citizen) and my fiance is 27 (from Guyana).
To cut a long story short he came here at the age of 14 to visit his grandmother, and ended up staying! Due to her stupidity, (she applied for all the wrong things, hired the worst lawyers possible), he is still here but has no indefinite leave to remain. In fact, he is an overstayer who has managed to consistently be on 'temporary leave to remain whilst application is pending'. He can't work or drive. He can't go home and apply from there as he hasn't been there for 13 years. All his family are here!

We have been together 3 years and are engaged. We applied for a COA in Oct 2009 and were asked for an affidavit which we sent off in Nov. Have not heard anything yet.

I do not understand how someone who has been here for so long, never got in trouble with the law, never claimed benefits from the govt, and is an educated professional cannot get LTR, but all these other people can just swan in here and get it straight away. How can he be here so long and still not get through?

Someone please advise me??!!

Much appreciated

[John]

Stop posting the same text all over the place! I have split your text into its own topic, because your situation is not the same as in the topics you have tried to post into.

Having posted this, I shall now reply to your query.

[John]

He can't go home and apply from there as he hasn't been there for 13 years. All his family are here!

Why does that stop him returning to his country? Indeed the easiest way of proceeding is for him to return, and then apply for a fiancé visa. Or for the two of you to marry outside the UK, and then he would apply for a spouse visa.

The alternative would be to persist with what you are trying to do in the UK, but as you have already discovered that is very time-consuming, and there is not even a guarantee that he will succeed. And even if the CoA is granted, and the two of you marry in the UK, the next logical step would be for him to return to his country and apply for a spouse visa.

[aminehmoh]

LadyChaz..

We were in the same situation. (pretty much anyway)

The way we worked it out was for him to go back to his own country and apply for a fiancé visa from there.. *Be Aware not to apply for a marriage visitor*

This is also very time consuming and it is alot of hard work but in the end it will be worth the wait - he would be back here legally and you can continue with your lives together and do things the right way.

Good luck in whatever you choose to do.

I think its so hard for people our age to go through something like this (I'm 23)

Wish you two all the best

[bbbb]

Hi LadyChaz


Don t go back in ur country like that..
U can get married in a church and go back in ur home country to apply for a spouse visas. or go back in u country to get married (better cos cheaper)

if u don t like that idea , for a fiance visa u need to prove that u have been living together for a least 2 years

I m not an expert so others could provide u more information.

Aa john asked , pls give us more details

[aminehmoh]

For a fiancé visa you do not have to live together for two years..

[mrlookforward]

Hi LadyChaz


Don t go back in ur country like that..
U can get married in a church and go back in ur home country to apply for a spouse visas. or go back in u country to get married (better cos cheaper)

if u don t like that idea , for a fiance visa u need to prove that u have been living together for a least 2 years

I m not an expert so others could provide u more information.

Aa john asked , pls give us more details

Its not possible to switch into spouse visa from within UK for an overstayer, so this route is not available to OP.

[bbbb]

@mrlookforward


I hav never said that u can switch into spouse visa for an overstayer.
his situation is more complex , he has been leaving here for roughly 10y,
he was a teenager when he got in the uk, what happened wasn t his fault.

What I tried to say is if they were married He could go back in his country and apply for a spouse visa (engaged 3y for me it sounds like the relationship is more that genuine).

the problem is when u apply from here as an overstayed ur application MIGHT take a VERY LONG LONG TIME to be dealt with and the only thing u have to do is to be patient

[mrlookforward]

Yes, I agree, the best and the easiest way out is to apply for a spouse visa outside the UK. He has been in UK for a long time, but sadly it doesn't make much difference as far as UKBA is concerned. Firstly a spouse visa from within UK is not possible, and secondly even if they apply for Discretionary Leave based upon the marriage and long residence and relationship, it is going to take a very very long time to process and still there would be a big risk of refusal. Also the route leading to settlement through DL is very long. At the moment its 6 years and might become even longer when changes are introduced probably in July 2011.

If an applicant has been in UK for 14 years under any legality, and they have official documentary proof of each of the 14 years, then an application based on 14 years long residence rule is a possibility. But again it could be a long wait before application is decided.