The story and problem:
My fiancee and I have been dating since August 2016, and have been in constant contact. I have visited her in the UK twice (Dec/Jan 2016, Dec/Jan 2017) and she has visited me for an extended period during the summer of 2017. We have known each other for four years, and have been good friends for three before we started dating in Aug 2016 (as mentioned above). We got engaged July 2017 and hired immigration lawyers to help with the visa process, as we heard alot of people get rejected without them. Well we have had minimal contact with the immigration lawyers, who have let my visa application expire, and have been impossible to reach. We expected to have everything done weeks ago, even a couple months ago, but because of them and our fear of doing it on our own and getting rejected, we are back at the starting point on the application. I am now scrambling trying to get the application done (correctly) and all of the documents gathered as I intended to travel back to the UK on May 22 (as I assumed all of this would have been taken care of weeks/months ago). I already have a flight for 22 May which is an issue, but they also messed up my flight itinerary and I REALLY missed a layover, so I believe I am able to get the flight moved if necessary free of charge. However, my main focus is on getting the visa done. My fiancee and I have a good bit of the supporting documents ready and are kind of waiting for some actual help to determine if we have everything, and if what we have is correct.
Here is a list of what we were told we needed by the immigration lawyers on the first and only time we had contact with them:
A) Documents required from applicant (me - US male):
- Application form signed and dated, given at the end of this process
- VAF4A form signed and dated, given at the end of this process
- 2 x passport size photos of applicant (I have this)
- Applicants original passport (I have this)
- Applicants birth certificate (I have this)
- Supporting letter illustrating who the applicant is, relationship nature with partner, how the relationship developed, why the applicant wishes to come to the UK, what the applicant intends to do when issued the visa (I have this)
- Certificate of degree for applicant (I assume my university degree? I have the original so that's not an issue)
- Testimonials from family saying the applicant is in a genuine relationship with the sponsor (I have one from my mom and dad, another from my brother, and the one from a close mutual friend that I mention below in documents my fiancee is supposed to provide)
- Photos of applicant and sponsor together (we have about 40-50 photos of us together in same frame, we have other pictures of each other when we are together but one of us was taking a picture of the other. Some pictures are from the same day, some at the same place almost exactly a year later, some with family, some with friends. I have read that they want the pictures printed, put on sheets of paper, and annotated with date, location, and description of photo)
- Communication evidence of applicant and sponsor (I was told by someone on Reddit that evidence every 2-4 weeks we were apart would be plenty. I have screenshots of our WhatsApp messages every 2-4 weeks from Aug 2016 to Jun 2017, with breaks of when we were together in person during Dec/Jan 2016-17, and then I have screenshots of our WhatsApp call log every 2-4 weeks from Sept 2017 to now with just the calls, and also call details for multiple day calls that includes time spent talking etc. I have 9 full pages each with 4 screenshots of texts/call logs. We are also including a couple of handwritten letters we have sent each other. I mentioned in my letter stating my intentions for visa that I had much more letters, screenshots, etc if they required it.)
- Letter of invitation from sponsor to applicant inviting him to come to the UK, and the fact she will be paying for everything involved with finances such as his accommodation, travel costs, air tickets, as well as home office fees and legal fees
B) Documents required from sponsor (fiance - UK citizen):
- Certified copy of passport (she doesn't have certified copy, could she send her original passport as we are running out of time?)
- Certified copy of birth certificate (she doesn't have a certified copy of this either, could she send her original in?)
- Copies of any visas obtained to visit fiance, if any. Copies of ticket/boarding pass used to visit your fiance, if any. Note that if you do not have copies of visas/tickets obtained to visit fiance then any other document such as hotel reservations, photos, evidence of purchase of ticket from bank statements can be used as alternatives (we both have tickets/boarding passes, as well as some hotel reservations, etc)
- Supporting letter from sponsor illustrating who she is, her relationship nature with her partner, how her relationship developed, why she wishes to have the applicant come to the UK, what she intends to do when he is issued the visa
- Applicants 6 months most up to date bank statements (which fiancee is printing at home, just learned from here yesterday that printed statements need to be stamped by bank, something lawyers never mentioned)
- Up to date last 6 months wage slips from sponsors current employment
- Employment contract letter on letter headed format
- Photos of applicant and sponsor together
- Evidence of sponsor actively looking an inquiring for venues, dates, and places for couple to get married (we have all of this, already signed contract with venue and paid deposit, have more details as well from venue)
- Letters, emails, or confirmations of any wedding dates, venues, caters guest list etc (we have emails from the venue, the lady doing our flowers, the guy doing our cake, the photographer, the guy performing at the reception, the DJ accompanying performer at reception, honeymoon flight confirmations)
- Wedding invitations (we have ordered them, we also have save the dates already given out)
- Two testimonials from family/friends who've seen the relationship develop over time (her mom and dad are doing one testimonial, her sister another testimonial, and we have a testimonial from a very close mutual friend who knew us before we were in a relationship)
- 2 x utility bills with sponsors name and property she lives in such as gas, electricity, internet, water, or phone bills (fiancee has her phone bills, bank statements, and a note from her doctors office, other than that the flat she owns she rents out currently so she doesn't have any utility bills as she is living with her parents until we get married, at which time we will move to her flat)
- Property inspection report for flat/apartment of property (she got a property inspection report for her parents house where she is currently staying, and where I stay when I am visiting. Is it an issue it isn't at the place we will be living in? Or was she supposed to get the property inspection report at the place she is currently residing?)
I'm sorry for such a long post but like everyone else I just want to get it right and get it done ASAP. If there is anything that we are missing, that isn't on the list, or details we need to be aware of I would greatly appreciate any help or advice.
With your help I am hoping to get the application done today or tomorrow, get the BRP appointment done late this week or early next week, and ship everything to UKVI when I receive documents from my fiancee. Please let me know what my next step is regarding to the application as I'm not waiting for the immigration lawyers if I am able to do this on my own (with your help and advice).
Thank you so much!