FLR M Processing times

I understand they may grant me 3years and i will have to apply for another 2 years before i even get the ILR.

Actually, you get 2.5 years, then you apply for another 2.5-year FLR(M) and then finally ILR .

This also means i will have to pay visa fees (which may have gone further high) 2 more times before i get the settled status. I am really hoping that the rules change for better before then.

To be honest, I doubt they will change for the better. If anything, the rules are likely to get more strict and the visa prices will continue to rise every year.

To be honest, I doubt they will change for the better. If anything, the rules are likely to get more strict and the visa prices will continue to rise every year.

Getting stricter, I guess I could understand maybe (although they seem quite strict now), but - with leaving the EU - surely this means EU migrants would be paying the same fees as non-EU migrants and therefore there will be MORE money coming in than before so they shouldn't suddenly want to jack up the pricing (at least for a bit) or am I over simplifying how it should work in my brain?

Getting stricter, I guess I could understand maybe (although they seem quite strict now), but - with leaving the EU - surely this means EU migrants would be paying the same fees as non-EU migrants and therefore there will be MORE money coming in than before so they shouldn't suddenly want to jack up the pricing (at least for a bit) or am I over simplifying how it should work in my brain?

Could be - or they might think 'hey, we can make EVEN more money buy jacking up the pricing as well, since so many more people will be applying now' .

My concern is that since their efforts in reducing net migration over the last few years have been unsuccessful, and there's the prospect of an influx of EU migrants applying too, they might decide to make the requirements even tougher in order to prevent as many new EU migrants from being able to come in as possible.

Of course, we have no idea yet what will happen, but going by past patterns, they aren't likely to make anything easier or cheaper in the future.

Of course, we have no idea yet what will happen, but going by past patterns, they aren't likely to make anything easier or cheaper in the future.

Oh I definitely wouldn't see prices dropping by any mean. I was just hoping for a little bit of stability - at least for a short period of time!

I feel it is a long winded process particularly as we have been married over 10years and have been together and have kids and have even bought a house here.

We feel this way and we're applying for a spouse visa. I've had two visas for our relationship already, together 11 years, married 9, 3 kids together. pretty sure it's genuine! I would have to think the number of fake relationships that would go to those sort of lengths to get a visa would have to be pretty much zero.

its just sad that one is asked to pay twice. Why not just issue the 5 years so that when its finished i know am applying for a settled status. Its just such a wicked way of exploiting genuine people.

The rules should be very clear espercially for people that can demonstrate the stability. My daughter was born a few months ago so she gets a british passport because she was born just after my wife got her ILR but she has to naturalise and all that which is going to cost about £1030 to do. My son was born in America in 2011 so his status is same as me even though he is american (whih means nothing as far as they are concerned)

its just sad that one is asked to pay twice. Why not just issue the 5 years so that when its finished i know am applying for a settled status. Its just such a wicked way of exploiting genuine people.

I'm pretty sure it's to a) make more money and b) prevent as many people as possible from qualifying to stay. That was the whole point of increasing the time to ILR from 2 years to 5 years and introducing the stricter income requirements.

The rules should be very clear espercially for people that can demonstrate the stability. My daughter was born a few months ago so she gets a british passport because she was born just after my wife got her ILR but she has to naturalise and all that which is going to cost about £1030 to do.

If your wife already had ILR when she was born, your daughter shouldn't have to naturalise - she should be an automatic British citizen and therefore will just need to apply for a UK passport.

You, your wife and your son will all need to naturalise if you wish to gain UK citizenship once you have ILR, but your daughter shouldn't need to. Also, it no longer costs £1,030 to naturalise, it's £1,236 now.

From the UK citizenship guidance:

5. Born in the UK after 1983

You’re automatically a British citizen if you were born in the UK after 1 January 1983 and 1 of your parents was a British citizen or settled here at that time. You don’t need to register.

However, if your daughter was born BEFORE your wife got ILR, then she will need to register as British, which costs £936:

Your parent has become a British citizen or settled since your birth

You can register to become a British citizen if you fulfil all of the criteria:

-    you were born in the UK on or after 1 January 1983
-    you’re under 18 when you apply
-    one of your parents has become a British citizen or settled in the UK since you were born

Apply using form MN1. Read the guidance before you apply.

See: https://www.gov.uk/register-british-citizen/born-in-uk-after-1983

its just sad that one is asked to pay twice. Why not just issue the 5 years so that when its finished i know am applying for a settled status. Its just such a wicked way of exploiting genuine people.

While I can appreciate some arguments regarding the process, on a personal level (as somebody going through it as well) I find this aspect to be the most frustrating bit. And it goes up and up in price. At what point are they going to make it too high that average people busting their buns at work won't even be able to afford it. You can't always help who you fall in love with. Unfortunately, I hear other countries aren't necessarily easier so it's not like they aren't all on the same playing field when it comes to pricing so if you DO fall in love with someone from another country, you can easily pick which country will cost less to settle in.

While they may have reasoning for why it's done this way that we can all appreciate, sometimes you just need to vent because it feels unfair and crappy (to phrase it in PG13 language).

ksand24, my daughter was born before my wife got her ILR. We have checked this and she needs to naturalise.
Naturalisation and passport check and send service = £55, passport= £46, Home Office fees =£936 total £1037

Its just pure exploitment regardless of how you want to look at it but it has to be done. She needs a passport to travel on holidays with us and besides i have to do it now before the prices go up to £2k or more. We are definately not having anymore kids at this rate even though i know if we do decide to have anymore they will only need to pay £46 for the passport if the prices havent changed.

ksand24, my daughter was born before my wife got her ILR. We have checked this and she needs to naturalise.
Naturalisation and passport check and send service = £55, passport= £46, Home Office fees =£936 total £1037

Ah, you said above that she was born AFTER she got her ILR.

However, she does NOT need to naturalise, she needs to REGISTER as a UK citizen. They are two completely different things.

- Naturalisation costs £1,236 and is based on holding ILR and either 3 or 5 years of residency in the UK. So, your daughter DOES NOT qualify to naturalise and she doesn't even need to, because she only has to register.

- Registration costs £936 and is for people whose parents are either UK citizens or hold ILR in the UK, but they didn't qualify for automatic British citizenship at the time of their birth, so they can apply to register as British instead. THIS is what you need to do for your daughter.

After having either naturalised £1,236 OR registered for £936, THEN you pay the extra £46 to apply for a passport online/by post OR £55.75 to apply using Check and Send. It's not both £46 AND £55.75, it's either/or.

So, the total amount you will need to pay for your daughter to register as British (not naturalise) and then apply for her passport will either be:

Registration and passport online/by post = £936 + £46 = £982
or
Registration and passport by Check and Send = £936 + £55.75 = £991.75

Many thanks Ksand24. I sincerely appreciate it. I hope when i get home i will get a letter saying my visa is ready. That will just makle my weekend a good one.

At what point are they going to make it too high that average people busting their buns at work won't even be able to afford it. You can't always help who you fall in love with.

Pretty sure that's part of the plan.
Love doesn't enter into it.

Pretty sure that's part of the plan.
Love doesn't enter into it.

 Love definitely doesn't enter into it, I totally agree. And emotions shouldn't interfere with business, but that's why it's frustrating on a personal level even when I get it to a degree on a business level.

how have you been? Have you had anything back from the home office?

how have you been? Have you had anything back from the home office?

Not a thing

No queries for me to follow up on, no emails, no letters. Literally nothing. 

Thanks for asking though - really nice of you to remember and ask