Confused!! Not sure what I have to do.

Hello all,  I am confused and i think my Husband is as well.   Our story:   My Husband and I live in the US.   He came over here (From the UK) five years ago to move in with me.  He is British.  We flew over to get married at My Mother in laws house in Somerset in 2003. We have been living here in Brooklyn for 5 years.   We are moving to the UK in a few months for a great job for Husband.   He will be leaving Aug 8th ,  I will follow and come over at the end of September.  I have already sent my passport to be renewed and expedited, But i am SURE I need some sort of VISA. Neville (Husband) says that i can come over on my passport with a return ticket home for Christmas and then just buy another ticket when i am home and come back again. This sounds crazy to me.   What do i have to do?  Any info would be great!

Thanks,
Carol 

Your husband is correct, and with the same status as you, I did that many times before emigrating to the UK, except that the longest I ever stayed was about 3 months.  One time the official at Heathrow asked me why I was staying so long, but he let me in when I assured him that my residence was in the United States (it was).  If you are not able to do the same, you might be turned back at the airport.

Suggest you get your papers together and apply for a spouse settlement visa.  You have enough time.

Jim

I agree that it would be a good idea to get a visa. I think it will ring suspicion bells  if you say to the immigration officer, "I'm visiting my husband who lives in the UK, but I'm not planning on settling in the UK." IO's do more than just act on the letter of the law, they are allowed to use discretion, and refuse anyone who they suspect might try to settle without the proper visa.

edit: You are going to need a visa anyway when you eventually do move their permanently. Is your husband implying that you never need a visa? That you can go back and forth from the US to the UK indefinitelty throughout your married life with just your passport, no visa? (Sorry if completely misunderstood your post.) If you keep doing this, the odds are that eventually you will be stopped by immigration.

Hello all,  I am confused and i think my Husband is as well.   Our story:   My Husband and I live in the US.   He came over here (From the UK) five years ago to move in with me.  He is British.  We flew over to get married at My Mother in laws house in Somerset in 2003. We have been living here in Brooklyn for 5 years.   We are moving to the UK in a few months for a great job for Husband.   He will be leaving Aug 8th ,  I will follow and come over at the end of September.  I have already sent my passport to be renewed and expedited, But i am SURE I need some sort of VISA. Neville (Husband) says that i can come over on my passport with a return ticket home for Christmas and then just buy another ticket when i am home and come back again. This sounds crazy to me.   What do i have to do?  Any info would be great!

Thanks,
Carol 

Are you coming to the UK to live with your husband?  If so, then you need a visa!  You are NOT coming here as a tourist.  Also, if you come over here in September with a return ticket for Xmas, there's a reasonable chance you will be stopped and questioned by Immigration.  Well, you're not here for a vacation, you're here to see your British spouse.  That means you're not a tourist.  That also means they can send you back to the US and not allow you to return until you get the proper visa.

B/c of the length of your marriage, your visa process is straightforward.  You qualify for a SET(M) visa, a permanent resident visa on the basis of your marriage.  You can download the forms online. 

Get thee to the UK Consulate, my dear!  You do need a settlement visa (sorry Jim, but I think your suggestion isn't quite right.)  As expat_in_scotland said above, your visa will be very straightforward so do look into it.  By post it will only take a couple of weeks and if you go to the consulate in person, you'll likely have the visa the same day.

Otherwise, you are risking being denied entry to the UK at the airport, and will be sent home.  Getting a visa after that can be slightly trickier!

Thanks everyone.   I did the research and yep, I need a Visa.  I have everything lined up and should have no problem getting one.   Getting detained at the airport would freak me out.  And I have enough things to do before the move. let alone worry about that. So Thanks!