I watch too many romantic movies!

Lilybelle- you will be fine.  My bf is convinced that they love British men.  He effed up something about his H1b visa number, and he was only detained twenty minutes.  And they brought him coffee.  Don't worry, your DF will be through easy.

wow, that experience is completely the opposite of what this board has been hearing about the treatment of american women going to the uk!  thanks for the reassurance, sarah! 

Lilybelle-- By the sounds of it, you are MORE than prepared to state your case if necessary.  I'm kind of freaked out because at the moment my bf is living at home and waiting to hear if he was accepted to do his phd.  So he doesn't really have proof of employment or a rent or anything like that to show.  Every time I tell him I'm worried, he tells me I'm worrying for no reason.  He's also the kind of person who acts the same towards everyone, which normally is a good thing, but right now I'm thinking "he's going to be dry and sarcastic with the immigration people and they're going to turn him around..."  I don't think he really gets that you have to be polite to them or they own you.  Sigh.

How's everyone else doing? 

Today is my last final, and then I'm packing up and going home to Pennsylvania, where it's not nasty and humid like DC. WOO HOOO!!

Where in PA are you? We should get together!

I'm off to Florida for a week tomorrow....try not to burn the board down in my absence!

have fun in florida, becca!

david arrives in the us TOMORROW!  i'm SO nervous about the immigration side of it, but so very, very excited to see him agian!!

Yay for you - have a great time, Lily! I second what the others have said - My David has never had so much as a second glance when going through immigration.  I do think that poise and confidence has a lot to do with it - if you act like you are doing something wrong, they will think you are. 

Having said that, I am TERRIFIED of going though Heathrow next week now that I dont have a job and there isnt enough time to apply for a visitors visa even if I had the money to do it.  I know that if I am given enough time to explain, I will be just fine, but if they make snap decisions then I am in big trouble!   

Yay for you - have a great time, Lily! I second what the others have said - My David has never had so much as a second glance when going through immigration.  I do think that poise and confidence has a lot to do with it - if you act like you are doing something wrong, they will think you are. 

Having said that, I am TERRIFIED of going though Heathrow next week now that I dont have a job and there isnt enough time to apply for a visitors visa even if I had the money to do it.  I know that if I am given enough time to explain, I will be just fine, but if they make snap decisions then I am in big trouble!  

I think you'll be okay, you are really knowledgeable about what you need to have and to do, and I think the paperwork you have now will be sufficient especially for the length of your trip

Steve says he's not really worried about immigration before--he'll be honest, and confident and all that jazz so it should be fine. I'm just a bit miffed since I can't top up his US mobile since I never registered his account on tmobile.com so they don't have his number in their system so I can't send him minutes So, he'll have to get some quarters I guess and use a payphone which I'm not thrilled about, because I'm out of ideas of how to send him minutes without him having an active online account with TMobile USA. If only I lived on the east coast so this isn't a problem, but unfortunately I'm a bit far from NJ.

No, I'm not stressing at all 

Thank you Kittenfish - I need to hear/read people say that!


I hate all the stress for all of us.. there is a point where I just want to whine and say "this isnt fair! I follow all the rules and have no intention of doing anything wrong. Give me a break! BOO HOO!!"

Carey- you'll be fine. When they ask the purpose of your visit, I'd just say "visiting my husband" and when they ask more, I'd explain that you know about the visa required and these are your plans, etc... Be confident (as you say!) and don't let them rattle you. Only 6 days now!!! WOW! Less than a week now!!

Lily- exciting that David arrives tomorrow! How long is he staying? I just looked at your sig. Moving in Aug. 09. I hope I can have that in my sig next year: "Moving Aug. '10" !! Have fun with David. I'm sure he'll get through just fine!

So, how's everyone else doing besides freaking out with immigration?? I've got 18 days left till I go now. Thank goodness. I am so ready to be done with school and in London! I've already got some fun plans for the first couple of weekends: going to see Star Trek on Friday night, then spending the weekend at friends of a friend in Birmingham. The following weekend I am going to a party with British people. LOL I've got my outfit already picked out (was told there is a color theme so I wanted to make sure I packed something appropriate!) I'm so excited!!!!!!!!

Becca- how's FL?

Here is my script:
IO: Purpose of your visit?
Me: Visiting family.
IO: What family?
Me:  My husband and his parents
IO: How long are you staying?  Whats your husbands name?  Address, phone, etc?
Me: (produce return ticket and tells him everything about husband)
IO: Where do you work?  (why do they always go straight to this!??)
Me: Actually, I was just laid off about 10 days ago, but before that, I was working as such and such and so and so.
IO: Hmm.  Are you planning on coming to live with your husband here in the UK?
Me: We are in the process of gathering the supporting documents for my visa and I plan on applying after returning to the states.
IO: Yeah right. Stupid American.  Why should I believe that you will return to the US? 
Me: I have a lot of things to take care of in the US before I can move - I need to sell my home, complete my dog's quarantine, find a home for one of my cats and, of course, complete the visa application process, which I know must be done from the United States.
IO: (impressed by my vast knowledge and certainty) You sure know your stuff. Welcome to the UK.  *stamp stamp*

Sound plausible?

Beth, I hate it that we wont be in the UK at the same time!!! Booo!

David and I may be going down to Cornwall for a few days next week!   I need some waterfront relaxation big time!

Whee, I put together my application last night (actually verified that I had all the info), and chatted with a very nice woman at the embassy today to clarify a few things, so I think tomorrow morning, my citizenship app will go in the mail!!

Apparently the turnaround time is 1-2 months, but that's still not too bad (especially since I still need to start the PETS quarantine for my guys, which is 6 months).

I hope everyone else gets through immigration well/has lovely visits abroad and/or with their SOs, etc.

I'm glad I'm not the only person that is constantly concerned about being bounced.  Phew.  Mirra, I make little scripts in my head too! Hopefully all will go well. I can't believe I leave in 9 days!  I am so overwhelmed and feel like curling up under my covers and saying forget this to all the crap I that need to get done in a little over a week!  Must. Persevere.

Ladies, I came on here to inquire about UK Immigration and what I plan to say, when I visit next week.  This is the 1st time I am going over as a fiance.

I plan to tell them that I am visting my fiance obviously and am bringing over my daughter's birth certificate, a letter from my parents saying they are caring for my daughter and the date they expect my return, a letter from my boss stating what date he expects me to return to work, the wedding facility contract and proof of payment showing the address of the facility in the US.

I am meeting with an UK Immigration Consultant since I will be in the UK and may have documents on me for my visa application.  Should I mention this to the IO?  I am leaning towards yes, but wasn't sure.  This wasn't the original reason for my trip.

I don't have confirmation yet on the meeting, but I am pretty certain it will happen.

The fact that you have a human dependent (rather than a feline or canine one) should help you quite a bit.  I would only mention anything IF they ask.  Don't offer all kinds of info - chance are, they wont care due to your other evidence of ties.  I think it can make you appear paranoid for no reason if you launch into a big speech about why you are there and what you plan on doing whilst there.  IMO, you have nothing to worry about.

OK, thanks...that's generally my approach too and have never had any problems even with the # of trips I've taken in the past few years.  I was just concerned that now stating I am a fiance might raise some eyebrows....but I know I am not doing anything wrong, so plan to stay calm and collected and just answer as I always do.