I would suggest see an immigration solicitor ASAP.
Honestly, I don't think that's necessary. If they can use savings, their case will be extremely straightforward.
If they can't, then I would suggest a tax advisor over an immigration lawyer - what they need to do is work out their tax amounts, exact tax year dates, and how long it will take to get the paperwork filed at the end of the tax year, so they can time it to make sure they have it all sorted in time to apply.
I've only just read my visa letter again. I was away on holiday and honestly needed a few days to process what in the world happened to me last week. Looking at my letter, it quotes some immigration rule that grants me the right to stay only because I have a child here and they realise it is not reasonable to make the child move back to America?!
Yes, that will be correct. If you don't meet the financial requirements, instead of being refused outright, the visa will instead be granted under Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights, which is basically that they strive to keep families together if at all possible. Since the 10-year route is available, it's very unlikely that a visa would be refused in this case though.
Honestly I feel like I have committed some kind of horrible crime. I have done nothing but secure work as soon as I could when I moved back here in 2014. I have felt sick ever since this has happened. Keep beating myself up for ever switching to limited.
The only thing you did 'wrong' was switch to limited company in February instead of after April 5th. That's it.
Remember, it's nothing personal - it's a tick box visa, and unfortunately, your income didn't quite tick the boxes, due to the timing of you switching to limited company.
I thought a tax year was like it is in America - what you filed for the tax year - you know after April. Well my tax year only included work from April - Feb. And if you want to get specific - I didn't work the months of August, September and some of October as I took them off for maternity - would that not be "working a full tax year as a sole trader".
When setting up as self-employed it is your responsibility to research the tax year dates and find out how things work in the UK. It's not about when during the year you worked, it's about how the government calculates the tax years.
The official tax year is April 6th to April 5th and this is very clearly stated on the gov.uk webpages which tell you how to file your taxes:
https://www.gov.uk/self-assessment-tax-returns/who-must-send-a-tax-returnIt is also very clearly stated on the visa requirements too - the first paragraph of the Category F: Self-Employment guidance mentions the exact dates in April that are covered under the full financial year.
For sole traders, the tax year is April 6th to April 5th and for directors of limited companies, the tax year is the 12-month accounting year for the company:
9.3. Self-employment or Director of a specified limited company in the UK – general requirements
9.3.1. For those self-employed as a sole trader, as a partner or in a franchise, the relevant financial year(s) will be that covered by the self-assessment tax return and in the UK this runs from 6 April to 5 April the following year. Where the applicant is relying on their partner’s income from self-employment overseas, the relevant financial year(s) will reflect the requirements of the taxation system of that country
9.3.2. For those employed as a director of a specified limited company in the UK, the relevant financial year(s) will be that covered by the Company Tax Return CT600 and corresponds to the 12-month accounting year of the company.
For those 8 weeks I worked as a full time mom. And I know someone reading this will say..well it says "full financial year" but come on, really? I worked the full financial year - I'm the same person doing the same locum optometry work for the same exact company.
The full financial year is April 6th to April 5th, so you have to be a sole trader for that entire year, right up to April 5th. Because you switched in February, you were not a sole trader for the entire tax year, so you didn't qualify.
Its a technicality and my husband and friends are convinced it is just a stringent rule to restrict some from keeping the immigration numbers exactly as they are. Plus, they can extract more money from me.
No, it's nothing to do with that. It's about how your annual income is calculated when you are self-employed. The requirements clearly state that you MUST show a full financial year of income, because that's the only way they can calculate how much you earn each tax year.
You must also show that the income is ongoing... but because you switched to limited company in February, you were basically saying that your income as a sole trader had been terminated, and therefore UKVI had no evidence that you would also earn the same/a similar amount in the 2016/2017 financial year.
From the guidance:
19. When calculating income from self-employment under paragraphs 12A and 13(e)… this paragraph applies:
(a) There must be evidence of ongoing self-employment, and (where income from salaried employment is also relied upon or where paragraph 9(c) applies) ongoing employment, at the date of application.
When it comes to the self employed route, nothing is certain and what you read under the guideline notes may not give you the full story. I consider myself an intelligent woman who has done my last visa and my husband's green card without a solicitor, I figured I could go without the expense again.
It does give you the full story, you just need to make sure you are aware of and understand it all - and if you're unclear, then you can always ask questions in the forum, or hire a tax advisor to help you make sure you meet the requirements.
The guidance clearly states:
- the dates they will use for calculating a full financial year if you are a sole trader (April 6th to April 5th)
- the dates they will use for calculating a full tax year if you are a director of a limited company (the 12 months of the accounting year shown on the CT600)
- a list of every single document you must include to show you meet the requirements for the full financial year.
As it was, it seems that there was actually no way for you to meet the financial requirement using self-employment, because of your switch to limited company in February... because assuming your company accounting year is February to February, you wouldn't have been able to show a full tax year of income as the director of a limited company until February 2017.