Fiance / Spouse Visa - procedures

I am a UK citizen and I am marrying my US boyfriend in the UK in October 2007 and afterwards we will live in the UK. At the moment we are considering going to the US for a honeymoon.

We know we should apply for Fiance visa, although my boyfriend will only arrive in the UK 5/6weeks before the wedding. I want to find out when we would need to apply for spouse visa - before we leave for honeymoon or after we get back (and take our marriage certificate with us).

I have spoken to UKVisas, Border and Immigration and Foreign Office and have so far got 5 different answers about what to do!
1 - we can take our marriage cert with us and be at the discretion of the immigration officer when we get back to the UK.
2 - we would need to apply for spouse visa before we leave and this can cost upto £595.
3 - we can go on honeymoon but apply for Entry Clearance while in US (I don't know where or how long this would take)
4 - we don't need fiance visa but can apply for Certificate of Approval in the UK
5 - we can apply for Visit-to-Marriage, marry in UK, go back to the US and apply for spouse visa there.

Has anyone been through this position before who may be able to give me some advice. I'm so confused that I'm getting alot of conflicting information because we can't be the first two people to do this. Maybe it's the fact that we are wanting to go back to the US after we are married. Maybe we should have a honeymoon somewhere else..

Thank you in advance. I hope you can help.

They are not all different..

Except for [4], these are not conflicting per se; they appear to be various alternatives, some of which overlap, all of which are ultimately doable, and mostly depend upon your strategy. 

It seems lunacy to get entry clearance as a fiance and then go back to the US and get ANOTHER entry clearance as a spouse.  But it's doable...

The best thing at this point is to stop calling them, cuz your list will only grow.   

I agree with garry, it doesn't make sense to apply for a £500 fiance visa when you're going to go back to the US and apply for a £500 spousal visa.

If your fiance comes over on a fiance visa, he could make an in-person application for FLR ASAP after you are married (thus getting it the same day), then you guys are free to go on your honeymoon in the US.

The marriage-visit visa is also a good option...the only problem with that though is that the ECO might be wary to issue it if it's clear that you guys are planning to settle in the UK.

If you don't mind getting married in the US, then going over there to marry/honeymoon and then applying for a spousal visa is a good alternative.

Or, you could do a legal courthouse marriage in the US and get the spousal visa, then have an actual wedding ceremony in the UK for family and friends at a later date.

Just my layperson non-expert opinions.

Don't risk option 1, as he may well not be permitted back.  It's just not worth it.

If you are considering the US for a honeymoon, then option 2 or 5 are probably the best ideas.  2 will mean delaying the honeymoon - and will cost £595 if you go in person, thereby only delaying by a day or so.

Option 3 is pointless, as the fiance visa costs more than the marriage-visit visa, and option 4 won't work, as he won't get the COA if he is on a visit visa.

Vicky


<Mods - can you delete duplicate post?>

Thank you for your replies.

I wonder if going on honeymoon to the US is causing more trouble? Maybe it wouldn't be as complicated if we went somewhere in the EU??

Thank you for your replies.

I wonder if going on honeymoon to the US is causing more trouble? Maybe it wouldn't be as complicated if we went somewhere in the EU??

Actually no.  If you plan to honeymoon anywhere outside of the UK, you would have the same issues, because you really can't re-enter the country on a fiance visa if you are in fact married (like Victoria said, don't risk it.)  Going to the US doesn't make it any more difficult (in fact it makes it easier to apply for a spousal visa if that's what you decide to do!)

I agree with Andrea, it is simply too risky these days to leave the UK between marriage and changing your visa.  I hate to say it, but IOs REALLY seem to enjoy hassling people about this one.  Basically you never want to leave anything to the discretion of the IO, because they can very well use their discretion to totally ruin the end of your honeymoon.

It is the reality all of us recent folks have had to face.  It may seem unromantic to delay your honeymoon, so if that is a concern, really consider a nice place in the UK or Northern Ireland.

I was married in the UK on a Saturday and received my FLR in person three days later on the Tuesday. We just made the trip to the PEO the first part of our honeymoon.

Hi...this post-honeymoon re-entry hassle is something I never thought of!  I'm coming over to the UK on a fiance visa, we're marrying, and then taking the Eurostar two days later to France.  I can't remember if they even checked my passport the last time I took the Eurostar, but do you all think I'll have any hassle getting back in if we haven't yet gotten the FLR?  Should we make sure to take a copy of the marriage license? 

THANKS!

but do you all think I'll have any hassle getting back in if we haven't yet gotten the FLR?

You may very well have problems and even if you don't it may come back to bite you later.

The fiance visa is for fiances to marry British citizens/permanent residents in the UK.  If you try to re-enter the UK after your wedding on a fiance visa, you're no longer a fiance.  This is a problem. 

Please, don't risk it- you need to either postpone your honeymoon or get your FLR in person before you go to France (and yes, they do have UK immigration officers stationed inside the Gare du Nord- I just took the Eurostar in April and it was just like going through immigration at the airport.)

I can't believe I missed this!  This must be a pretty common problem, right?  May I ask: how have others of you dealt with this?  Does everyone go get their FLR after the wedding and before going on honeymoon (out of country) to assure they could get back in?

a lot of people honeymoon inside the UK for this very reason...

I can't believe I missed this!  This must be a pretty common problem, right?  May I ask: how have others of you dealt with this?  Does everyone go get their FLR after the wedding and before going on honeymoon (out of country) to assure they could get back in?

It's not a question of "getting back in" so much, but rather what you are once you get in.

Best explained with a case study from true life...

Olga came to the UK on a fiance visa and married Frank.  So far so good.  Frank was the romantic type and then whisked Olga off to Venice for a long weekend type of honeymoon.  Olga had a Schengen so that part was good.  Then they returned and Olga needed to convert to FLR. 

Frank was the take-no-chances type and went to Lunar House with Olga to do her application in-person.  After they paid the 500 pounds, they went up to the 3rd floor to await her interview.  But instead the CW informed Olga and Frank that they had to reapply by post.  Why?  Well, because in-person applications are for straight-forward cases only, and Olga became an illegal entrant when she re-entered the UK without filing a variance.

So they left Lunar House 500 pounds poorer.  Frank was livid and Olga was terrified.  And *THEN* (only then) they decide to call Garry.     But Garry can do bugger all about it.  They just have to brass it out and apply by post.  Had they filed a variance, it would have been a TA for Olga, which also makes it not straight-forward.  So Olga spent the next 6 weeks stressed out until her FLR finally arrived.

Because all that is a bit complex and worrisome, at UKY we advise to just avoid it and convert to FLR right after the ceremony and be done with it.

That is why we honeymooned in the U.S. after we got married.  We went to NY to get the visa and just drove around. 

I'm confused.  I thought a fiance visa was good for multiple entries to the UK.  But does that mean only *before* you are married?

How does one apply for a variance?

My fiance and I were planning on marrying and then going to Ireland for a honeymoon there right after.  No-one checks passports going from Ireland to UK--at least not at the Manchester or Liverpool airports.  Maybe we should not risk it  though.

Sorry if this is a hijack.