Fiance or spouse visa?

Hello,

When Beth and I started her visa application in 2017 we went straight to spouse visa application by getting married in US first. I have a friend who is just at the start of the visa application process but from a country where same-sex marriage is not an option. Does this mean that they can only choose the fiance visa option or are there other solutions you know of, given that is a longer and more expensive route?

Also, I have sometimes seen people access this forum who are moving from countries other than the US. I guess there are some differences depending on where you move from especially with tax etc.,  but the spouse visa process would be the same. I have so much trust in you and the excellent knowledge and advice on this forum that I would like to suggest it to my friend but wanted to check if there were reasons not to.

Many thanks,
Emily

The fiancé visa would be a perfectly good route for them.

Or marrying in a country prior. For example, could they meet in the USA and marry there?  NYC or Las Vegas?  I’ve heard good things about the ease of marrying in Copenhagen as well.

It’ll depend on what country their passports are from on the process for travelling and marrying in those countries but I would hope they can find one that works.

But again, fiancé visa would be a perfectly reasonable choice.  As both of them meeting in a third country to marry would not necessarily be cheap.

Marriage visit visa? If they can't marry in the applicant's country first, and a third country isn't feasible, would a MVV be an option?

The fiancé visa would be a perfectly good route for them.

Or marrying in a country prior. For example, could they meet in the USA and marry there?  NYC or Las Vegas?  I’ve heard good things about the ease of marrying in Copenhagen as well.

It’ll depend on what country their passports are from on the process for travelling and marrying in those countries but I would hope they can find one that works.

But again, fiancé visa would be a perfectly reasonable choice.  As both of them meeting in a third country to marry would not necessarily be cheap.

Thanks KFDancer - good to hear from you. Good point that a marriage in a third country could be costly and I guess outweigh the additional costs of the fiance visa.

Marriage visit visa? If they can't marry in the applicant's country first, and a third country isn't feasible, would a MVV be an option?

Thanks Aquila, do you or others know anything about this option and how it differs from a fiance visa route?

Thanks Aquila, do you or others know anything about this option and how it differs from a fiance visa route?

Marriage Visitor Visa
- 6-month visa to allow someone to visit the UK for up to 6 months in order to get married here.
- It costs £100
- It requires that the visa holder leaves the UK and returns to their life back home within 6 months.
- They must show evidence of a return ticket, enough money to support themselves during the visit and evidence of a life (job/home) to return to in their home country.
- Once they have returned home, they can apply for a spousal visa from their home country to move to the UK

Fiance Visa
- 6-month settlement visa to move to the UK and get married
- it costs £1538
- it allows you to move to the UK, get married and switch to FLR(M) to stay in the UK

It really depends on which option works best for an applicant’s individual circumstances. For some, the MVV is better and for others the fiancé visa is better.

The MVV is cheap but it also requires extra flights to and from the UK and evidence that you are just a visitor.


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Marriage Visitor Visa
- 6-month visa to allow someone to visit the UK for up to 6 months in order to get married here.
- It costs £100
- It requires that the visa holder leaves the UK and returns to their life back home within 6 months.
- They must show evidence of a return ticket, enough money to support themselves during the visit and evidence of a life (job/home) to return to in their home country.
- Once they have returned home, they can apply for a spousal visa from their home country to move to the UK

Fiance Visa
- 6-month settlement visa to move to the UK and get married
- it costs £1538
- it allows you to move to the UK, get married and switch to FLR(M) to stay in the UK

It really depends on which option works best for an applicant’s individual circumstances. For some, the MVV is better and for others the fiancé visa is better.

The MVV is cheap but it also requires extra flights to and from the UK and evidence that you are just a visitor.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks so much ksand