marriage visa

I have been in England 5 months on a fioncee visa. I have now married my English husband. What steps do I take now to obtain a marriage/settlement visa? I hear I automatically qualify for a 12month visa, but does this allow me to work?

You apply to the Home Office with form FLR(M), which stands for Further Leave to Remain (Marriage).  You can do so in person or by post - both cost money, and in person costs more.

You can download the form at:

http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/default.asp?pageID=106

And since April 2003, the FLR(M) is 2 years, not 1 year.

I just had a look at that form and i am a bit confused.  I remember someone saying that when they apply for a FLR after being on a fiancee visa they don't have to fill out that big form because they already gave them all in the infor in the fiancee visa part.

On this form there were two boxes to tick "unmarried spouse" and "married spouse" after both said you had to fill out the WHOLE form.

When applying for an FLR from a fiancee visa, must you fill out this whole form all over again and produce all the documents you produced to apply for the fiancee visa?  Or is there a short form for people switching from a fiancee visa and what documents are needed?

It's the same form - as I recall from reading the instructions that went along with filling it out, we didn't need to fill in a large section of it because I'd come over on a fiancee visa.  That means you've already done all the financial "able to support yourself without recourse to public funds" bit.

When you get to Section 6 - Additional Questions, it asks if you received entry clearance before entering the UK and if the answer is yes, you skip down to 6.15 and then on to Section 7, missing most of Section 6.

Yep, that's right.  It's the same form and we took all the same documents with us when we went to apply for this visa, but they didn't need them.  Once you have the fiance visa, it is a simpler process to get the spousal one, but you do have to fill out that form.

what do people recommend for flr(M)  in person or by post, i favour by post i know it takes longer, apart from that does anyone know of anyother draw backs

We went in person - same day, done and dusted!  And no worrying about passports getting lost in the post.  (I was applying for me and my two sons, so there were three American passports at stake!)

If you are close to the Home Office regional offices in Liverpool, Glasgow, or Birmingham, I would recommend doing it in person. You need to call to make an appointment, but you will get seen very quickly, and walk away with your visa after just an hour or so waiting. I did mine in Glasgow, and it couldn't have been easier or quicker. You can also go to the main office in Croydon (no appointment required), but you have to arrive very very early, and wait in line for hours and hours! It DOES cost a bit more, but the upside is that you will be able to work immediately, rather than waiting for the post, which can take awhile.

The numbers to make appointments at the regional offices are as follows:

Glasgow: 0141 419 1258
Birmingham: 0121 704 5450
Liverpool: 0151 237 0405

-kate