Unmarried partner visa SNAFU - so confused - please help!

Hi, I need help! The situation that my boyfriend (a UK citizen from Northern Ireland) and I currently face is extremely complicated and confusing and we need all the help that we can get!  All we want is to be together in the same country and it is proving to be an insurmountable problem thus far..

I want to apply to join him on an unmarried partner visa as it is the only visa category that will really work for us (I am 27 and unfortunately do not have enough points to apply for the HSMP.  Nor can I afford at this time to attend school in the UK to get a student visa.  We also do not want to get married or have me apply as a fiancee...we are young, 25 and 27 respectively....without a doubt, we DEFINITELY plan to be together, but want to have a nice wedding when we have saved up enough money to involve both of our families and friends from both sides of the atlantic!)

***We have called the Britain USA 1-900 number and that was an exercise in futility.  We have written numerous letters and email inquiries to the consulate in New York but no reply.

So, here are the facts:
-We currently live in the USA, in Pennsylvania.  I am a US citizen and he is a UK citizen (from Northern Ireland).  He is in the USA on a 3 year work visa that is about to expire...he entered in May 2003 and MUST leave the USA (NO EXCEPTIONS) by 4 April 2006. 

-We met and fell in love instantly in May 2003 but did not begin to cohabitate until June 2004.

-At the time that he has to leave the USA, we will have been cohabitating for 1 YEAR, 10 MONTHS (just two months shy of the 2 year cohabitation rule for the UP visa)  He has no choice but to leave the USA at that time.  Thus, it is difficult for us to get the extra two months living together!

-We have all the necessary documentation and requirements to get the visa...leases, utility bills, letters from friends, good CVs, $8000 in a joint savings account, permission to live with his parents in northern ireland...etc.

-He is leaving the USA on 1 April 2006.  His flight home is to Dublin and I am booked on the same flight.  I plan to be his visitor in Northern Ireland until we gain the remaining two months living together.  Because we are flying into Dublin, we will not deal with a UK immigration officer.  The Irish authorities will stamp my passport for 3 months.  From Dublin to Northern Ireland, (about a 45 minute long drive!) there aren't any UK checkpoints that we will cross.

-We plan to apply for my unmarried partner visa in June, in the UK, hopefully in person at the Glasgow office after two months have passed.  Hopefully it will not appear to the entry clearance authorities that I have come there to settle. (During that two months, we will be going on vacation in Italy and I will travel home to the USA for one week)  Hopefully this will work in my favor.

So, here are my questions:
-Do you think this is an advisable plan of action?  We can't have the 2 years living together without me being his visitor for two months. 

-Is it okay for me to apply in the UK? 

-Or should I return home to the USA sometime in June 2006 and apply at the British consulate in New York?  (Can't really afford another return plane fare across the atlantic...but...)

-Does the fact that I will not enter the UK via an airport in the UK but one in Dublin, Ireland have any bearing on my situation?

Please, if you have any advice for me, please share!!!  I have no idea what is the best plan of action and would appreciate any suggestions that anyone would have for us! 


So, what to do?

This is all fine.  You can apply at the PEO in Glasgow as long as you are legally in the UK.

Not really sure what's 'extremely complex' about it...   

Well...the thing that is complex is that an application made in the UK could be refused if they think that, when you entered the UK as a visitor, that you really intended at that point to settle, which you did.

It would be easier to make the application while you are in the US for a week.


Victoria

Ok, two completely different replies.

I am just a girl who wants to be with her boyfriend.  All I am trying to do is rack up the two years living together. We have no other option in this situation to get that 2 extra months living together.  When I come to the UK I am not coming with the intention to settle.  I'm only bringing two suitcases!

It just makes sense that I should be able to apply for the visa in the UK.  Surely these people are human and understand that it would be a really expensive logistical nightmare to make a trip back to the US.

Furthermore, it is not exactly easy or convenient to present your visa application in the USA.  There are three consulates: New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago.  I am from western Pennsylvania and am required to present my application in New York.  You can only make an appointment at the consulate one week in advance.  Logistics with this short time frame are difficult.  The drive to New york is 8 hours and airfares average approx $250 roundtrip when booked far, far, far  in advance...with a one week time-frame to figure a way to get to my appointment it could go well over 600...

I don't see why this has to be so difficult or expensive! 

If I pay the 500 pounds to apply in person and talk to a human being at the PEO office in Glasgow and explain that I am not there to settle do they have any sort of leeway they can grant?  Surely, they have to understand the constraints that we are working with.

When I come to the UK I am not coming with the intention to settle.  I'm only bringing two suitcases!

According to what you wrote, you are intending to settle.  Your intention is to live here for two months in order to qualify for a settlement visa.

It just makes sense that I should be able to apply for the visa in the UK.  Surely these people are human and understand that it would be a really expensive logistical nightmare to make a trip back to the US.

There are very few situations in which you can apply for a settlement visa from within the country.  In your situation, it sounds like you'll need to leave the UK in order to apply as you can't do an in-country switch from a visitor's visa to an unmarried partner's visa.  It's not cheap, but it'll be worth it once it's done.   

Furthermore, it is not exactly easy or convenient to present your visa application in the USA.  There are three consulates: New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago.  I am from western Pennsylvania and am required to present my application in New York.  You can only make an appointment at the consulate one week in advance.  Logistics with this short time frame are difficult.  The drive to New york is 8 hours and airfares average approx $250 roundtrip when booked far, far, far  in advance...with a one week time-frame to figure a way to get to my appointment it could go well over 600...

You don't have to apply in person.  You can apply by post and will have your visa back in less than 4 weeks (though most people seem to get theirs in 1 or 2 weeks).  If you do want to apply in person, I think the booking time frame is two weeks ahead, unless that's changed very recently.

If I pay the 500 pounds to apply in person and talk to a human being at the PEO office in Glasgow and explain that I am not there to settle do they have any sort of leeway they can grant?  Surely, they have to understand the constraints that we are working with.

When you apply for an unmarried partner's visa, you are applying for a settlement visa, so there's no way to argue that at the PEO.  There's no leeway there.

You are paying for the priveledge of being with your partner forever...I too have complained about the cost, but in the end its worth it.

Also they dont exactly see it your way on the whole applying from the UK thing...they want you in the US when you apply and it really does make sense to play by their rules rather than getting huffy and trying to get them to bend to your will. Sorry if I am not being terribly sweet about this, just trying to save you some frustration and possibly money.

Good luck.

I also have to say, if you are going there to get the two months so you can then live together forever, you really are intending to settle...whether you look at it that way or not...you arent just visiting to leave again later, you are going to complete cohabitation requirements to therefore continue to stay in the UK.

You can theoretically switch in-country from a visit visa to a UP visa, but as I said, there is a big risk of refusal if they suspect your intention when you entered as a visitor was really to settle.  And if it looks as if you have entered through ROI as a way to by-pass UK immigration, this will raise eyebrows further.  If you are going back to the US anyway, you may as well apply there.

And Immigration Officers 'human'  You're having a laugh!!!


Victoria

hi there
I know your situation feels overwhelming but it’s not as impossible as you think, only you may have to compromise. If I were you I’d get the visa before you go to the UK, even if it means changing your flight to Dublin in May and travelling later on to join your partner.
 
You’ll soon find out, in matters of immigration your intentions often matter as much, if not more in certain circumstances then your actions.

If you enter the UK as a tourist with the intention of joining your partner to live and work in the UK, you may find that you’ve complicated the situation for yourself as well as made it much more expensive.

It's my understanding that you can switch from a temporary visa, such as a tourist visa to a more permanent one like an unmarried partner visa while in the UK BUT if your application is not successful you may need to consult a solicitor – which could end up costing you a fair amount of money.

Also, I would under no circumstances cross the border into Northern Ireland without getting a stamp in your passport from UK immigration. The Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland are two different countries. It may look very suspicious to an immigration official in the UK when you show up to make an application to stay in the country with a passport that doesn’t have an UK entry stamp.

The system set up by the Home Office is efficient and easy to use. Fill out the application and made the appointment at the Consulate online, show up with your documentation and make your case. Yes, the two year rule is the main criteria used to grant the visa, the immigration officials aren’t interested in much else believe it or not but they can be flexible especially if you explain the situation with your partner’s US visa expiring.
 
You’re making a major life change. You say you have 8 Gs in the bank. Use a portion of it and do things right before you emigrate. It’s very generous of the people of the UK to allow couples who aren’t or can’t get married to have a life together in their country.

The switching rules are not the same for UP's and spouses.  Ups can switch in-country if they are *legally* there.  And in some cases, such as overstayers, they will concede the switch anyway.

As long as all the documentation is in order and they are legally here, a visitor can switch into a UP at any PEO.  Spouses and fiances do not have this option.