Thanks  to @nun  for the heads up on this.

I joined ACA ($55 fee) and then followed their link to open a savings account with SDFCU. I used WISE to fund the account (39c fee from WISE for a $/$ transfer).

Having got the savings account funded, I opened a share certificate (minimum deposit requirement is $500) at 5.2% per annum fixed for 15 months. Happy days 

* We currently don't live together, though we are starting to talk about how/when we'd like to do that. For purposes of the visa application,  I think we still need to show evidence of cohabitation even if we're legally married? I'm guessing that we'd need to be living together for at least a few months to accumulate letters / documents showing us both at the same address?

No, if you are married (and you are switching from a work visa to a family visa) you do not need to have lived together before applying.

If you have lived together, then great - you can show evidence of that, as well as evidence of your relationship prior to marrying.

If you haven’t lived together yet, you just show the evidence of your relationship while not living together. 

* Is there anything else we need to consider in terms of proving a "real" relationship? Will it be seen as suspicious if we get married too close to the time of my visa application, or too close to the time my current visa expires?

As long as you show that the relationship is genuine by providing evidence for the entire time you have been a couple, it won’t be an issue.

* We are unlikely to meet the income requirement at the time we apply. He's been a freelancer but has been struggling this year and has finally just signed on / is looking for full-time employment. Hopefully he'll find something, but honestly from what I've experienced on the job market and seen others go through, I would not be surprised if it takes a year or more. (It took me a year and a half after graduation to get my first job in my field.

I'm currently employed on a temp contract that's coming to an end, and I have seriously been considering moving back into freelancing, which I think I could actually succeed at given where I'm at in my career and the contacts I've made over the past few years. I would far prefer going down this route; I'm excited thinking about it! But that means I also wouldn't meet the income requirement, because it looks like you need to show evidence of a full year (at least) as a sole trader.

However, I DO have enough savings in a US bank account to meet the savings requirement, on my own (over £88,500).  But would it not look bad on my application if neither of us is "properly" employed? Or do they truly not care if I just show I have the money and it's accessible? 

Nope, it won’t look bad at all. All they care about is that you meet the requirement under any of the financial categories.

Savings is the easiest way to qualify, and it requires the least amount of evidence, which is why I usually recommend using savings instead of employment if at all possible.

If you have more than the minimum amount needed (£88,500), then go for it .


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Hi, looking for advice on how to plan for a marraige visa application next year! My situation:

* Entered UK in Oct 2017 as a PhD student
* Graduated in 2022, received 3-year Graduate Visa in July 2022
* Was living with a partner and planning unmarried partner visa, but the relationship broke up
* Started dating new partner (UK citizen) in July 2023

My partner and I want to stay here, moving to the US isn't an option for him for various reasons. We've agreed that while it's rushed, getting legally married / civil partnered and applying for a visa on that basis is the best option available, so we're starting to make plans for that. My questions:

* We currently don't live together, though we are starting to talk about how/when we'd like to do that. For purposes of the visa application,  I think we still need to show evidence of cohabitation even if we're legally married? I'm guessing that we'd need to be living together for at least a few months to accumulate letters / documents showing us both at the same address?

* Is there anything else we need to consider in terms of proving a "real" relationship? Will it be seen as suspicious if we get married too close to the time of my visa application, or too close to the time my current visa expires?

* We are unlikely to meet the income requirement at the time we apply. He's been a freelancer but has been struggling this year and has finally just signed on / is looking for full-time employment. Hopefully he'll find something, but honestly from what I've experienced on the job market and seen others go through, I would not be surprised if it takes a year or more. (It took me a year and a half after graduation to get my first job in my field.)

I'm currently employed on a temp contract that's coming to an end, and I have seriously been considering moving back into freelancing, which I think I could actually succeed at given where I'm at in my career and the contacts I've made over the past few years. I would far prefer going down this route; I'm excited thinking about it! But that means I also wouldn't meet the income requirement, because it looks like you need to show evidence of a full year (at least) as a sole trader.

However, I DO have enough savings in a US bank account to meet the savings requirement, on my own (over £88,500).  But would it not look bad on my application if neither of us is "properly" employed? Or do they truly not care if I just show I have the money and it's accessible? 

Thanks so much for any help anyone can give!
Erin

I had an introductory lesson / assessment, and ... WOW. I broke down crying, it was so stressful. The instructor told me he sees it all the time with immigrant students - we know how to drive, but we don't know the rules of the test, which is a completely different thing. I still don't understand some of the specific things I was doing "wrong" - there are so many granular rules about exactly how to position your car and where to look (and how to telegraph your movement to show where you're looking and that you've seen things) that I actually felt unsafe driving, because I was so focused on following the rules that I wasn't actually able to take in my environment and just...drive safely! He estimated I'd need 20 hours of instruction to pass the test. I found the whole thing so overwhelming that I am seriously reconsidering whether or not I actually need a licence. (Not to mention, that much instruction is an expense I was not prepared for this year!) Oof.

We got our eVisa sorted the next day. So in hindsight the only issue was locating the actual BRP chip (invisible on the rear of the card)