Moving to the UK: Visa sanity check.
Hi All,
My wife (Venezuelan) and I (British) are moving to the UK and we are trying to arrange a spousal visa for her. We think we have all the arrangements at least planned out. But, because UK immigration is a massive cluster-fuck i want to check with you guys if we are missing anything important.
The things that we have currently:
- I have a job arranged a job in the UK (the pay being above 18K, so that isn't a problem).
- Proof of living together for our time in Sweden, from the tax office.
- Marriage certificate.
- Joint bank account.
- Loads of photos and online conversations.
- Personal letter attesting to the fact that our relationship is genuine.
Things we will have soon:
- Flat in the UK.
- IELTS life skills test (my wife is completely fluent in English so this won't be a problem).
Is there anything glaring that we have missed?
Posted Feb 28, 2016, 10:53 AM UTC
16
You'll need written permission for her to live in the flat by the landlord or letting agent (if you can't get her name on the tenancy agreement from the start). If the property is being shared with other people, it's strongly advised to get a property inspection report to show that it's not being overcrowded. Submit a recent utility bill as well, to show that you are occupying the space.
Remember that any documents which are not in English need to be accompanied by a certified English translation.
She'll need to submit her original passport(s), passport photograph, any evidence of current employment (if she's stating that she's employed on the application), and stamped pages from her biometric appointment. They need a photocopy of your passport bio pages as well.
As an overseas sponsor returning to the UK, you'll have to show six months of payslips from your overseas (current) job, and six months of (original, or stamped) accompanying bank statements showing the deposits into your account. You should also submit a letter or contract from your new manager or HR officer which states your salary, hire date, and terms of employment (full time, part time, contract, etc.)
You should also know that you almost certainly qualify for an EEA Family Permit under the Surinder Singh route, if she's been living with you in Sweden and you had established a centre of life there. It costs nothing to apply, as opposed to the rather hefty fees for a spouse visa. You can of course apply for a spouse visa if you want to be a bit more careful in the midst of EU uncertainty, but just something to be aware of and I wanted to make note.
https://www.gov.uk/family-permit/surinder-singh
Hi, thanks for the detailed response. We were planning on getting everything in Swedish to be officially translated.
We originally thought about the Surinder Singh route, but our line of thinking was that the money it costs for the spousal visa we would save by her getting a job sooner. Which we think would be around 6 months with EEA family permit, but almost immediately with the spousal visa (she would at least be eligible to apply).
Again, thanks.