Marriage Visa help please.

I am getting married to a US citizen in St Lucia in February. The plan was to go to her home of Charlotte, N.C. after the honeymoon then on to Atlanta to get a marriage visa and then for both of us to fly 'home' to London.

Can someone please advise on what I need to do exactly? I mean, how difficult is it to get the visa? Do I need an appointment or can I just turn up & wait? I'm starting to panic a bit!!!  Any help would be truly appreciated.

Ta

You can only apply for a UK visa at one of the three British consulates that processes visas- New York, Chicago or Los Angeles (which consulate you go to depending on state of residence.)  Since your fiancee is from NC, her assigned consulate is the New York City consulate. 

A good starting point would be to find the guidance for spousal visas on both of these sites and read them carefully:

http://www.ukvisas.gov.uk
http://www.britainusa.com

If you meet the requirements of the Immigration Rules (ie you can prove you're married, you have a place to live and you guys can support yourselves without needing public funds) then getting a spousal visa is a very straightforward process- no need to panic.  If you end up applying in person in NYC, you'll need an appointment.

All the info you need is on the two sites posted above- after you've read those, feel free to come back here with any specific questions you've got

Cheers Andrea...I feel less paniced :-) I will read carefully!

Just to add to what Andrea said, you will not be able to apply for the visa prior to getting married and will have to supply the marriage certificate, either in person or via that post in order to obtain the visa.  This means you do need to do a little planning.

If you are applying by post plan 3-4 weeks and DO NOT BOOK TRAVEL (normally takes about 10 days, but again, things can go wrong).  If you plan to apply in person, the New York Consulate generally only releases appointments 2-3 weeks ahead of time, meaning that you may not get your target date far enough ahead of time.  Again, you should not book onward travel, because there are people on this board who have booked travel and fallen into the small percentage that the processing isn't the same day.

Also, to probably answer your next question, there is no way to apply for the visa from the UK.  She must apply for and obtain the visa in the country she resides in.

quality advice kitsonk...thank you so much!

And just so you're aware...it can take awhile to get your marriage certificate. We were married in jamaica and even paid extra to have the process expedited but it still took 2.5 weeks until we got it.

If you meet the requirements of the Immigration Rules (ie you can prove you're married, you have a place to live and you guys can support yourselves without needing public funds) then getting a spousal visa is a very straightforward process- no need to panic.  If you end up applying in person in NYC, you'll need an appointment.

All the info you need is on the two sites posted above- after you've read those, feel free to come back here with any specific questions you've got

I'm from Ohio - my DH & I went in person to Chicago together and I got my visa the same day.  I booked my flight for a month in the future (to be on the safe side - in case they wanted to take their time on my visa... Doh!).  Just make sure she's got her flight booked before you go into the office.  Having pictures from your wedding & previous events helps too... Photographic proof that you know each other...   

It isn't a requirement to have the flight booked before they apply. I didn't have mine booked and still got my visa with no problem.

Just make sure she's got her flight booked before you go into the office. 

I always recommend that people DON'T book flights until the visa is in hand...I've known people lose thousands of pounds from getting the flights first.

Vicky

"...Linked to the allegation of vagueness is an associated one to do with a lack of booked hotels and tickets: I am aware that some Posts advise all applicants bar transit passengers not to book tickets or hotels until they have their visa. I endorse this approach. It is not right to require bookings which will cost money before a visa is obtained and UKvisas has now issued advice which states explicitly that applicant should not be expected to make travel or hotel bookings before obtaining their visa..."

Report of the Independent Monitor 2004 (Immigration and Asylum Act 1999), published February 2005, UKvisas

Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to help me out. I really appreciate it!

I am getting married to a US citizen in St Lucia in February.

Oooops.

British citizens travelling to St Lucia during the Cricket Cup will need a visa to enter.

How's that for a nice twist?   

This is just to stop the Barmy Army!!! Outrageous!!!

 


Vicky

This is just to stop the Barmy Army!!! Outrageous!!!

 


Vicky

Prolly just worried about all those Cricket hooligans getting out of control...   

Prolly just worried about all those Cricket hooligans getting out of control...   

Oh yes, they are often known for clapping too loudly and trying to bring trumpets on the grounds.  Cricket hooligans are the scourge of the nation.