Lots of Questions:How do we reach our goal of being married + living in the UK?

If your fiance is entering the US to get married, he should say so at US immigration.  He won't need a visa, and as long as he's not planning on settling there, he should be OK.  My husband had a letter from his employer saying he was expected back in the UK by a certain date, plus his return ticket, and he didn't have to show either.  He can get married in the US with just his passport in certain states, in others he'll need his birth certificate.  Some states have residency requirements or waiting periods.  You need to see what the requirements are for the state you want to marry in, but the fact that he's not American won't make a difference.   

You wouldn't need to be unemployed for six months.

Vicky

Vicky is right. Once you're in the UK on your fiancee visa and get married you can immediately apply for your FLR...some people wait for the 6 months to expire but for the life of me I can't understand why as once you get married you can't leave the UK and reenter as you are no longer a fiancee and technically your visa is invalid...AND by waiting to the end of the 6 months then doing a postal application for your FLR, some people have been waiting 14+ weeks to get them back and are moaning that they can't work and it's a strain on their family....

I did the US marriage & spousal route, much more simple and less expensive in my case.

Just to add to the others about waiting 6 months...

I came in August and my visa was valid until January 09. Once we were married in November, I had an appointment (pre-booked) for the Monday after our wedding for my FLR(M) at the PEO in Birmingham (Solihull). It was an in/out deal and I had the visa same-day AND I was legal to work from the moment the vignette was placed in my passport and then into my hand.

Definitely no need to wait an entire 6 months...it's a misconception as the fiance visa is VALID for 6 months and you are not legal to work at any time while strictly on the fiance visa. Once you switch over to FLR(M) though, you're sound. (Still, many people here would encourage a US wedding as you would apply for the spousal visa before entering the UK and you could start working from the moment you touched UK soil -- everyone's personal reasons for which route they decided to take differ though.)

Hello Everyone!

H and I have decided what to do!  We had a fantastic time when I visited him last weekend, and we sat down and figured out The Plan! = D

Given the dates of other important events in our lives, we've decided to go and apply for a Fiance Visa in May, hoping to have me over there in June, and be married in November!  I couldn't be happier and I'm so looking forward to being his wife.

So now we are jumping into planning the wedding and it's very exciting.  I've also got a VAF-4A and am giving it a trial run this weekend, just to see how complicated it is to fill out, so I may have lots of questions!

One question I do have is this: I have been asked to work on a show for a couple of weeks in December.  As long as I get my FLR right after we're married, can I come back to the states and do that show? I think it will really help with our finances.

Also, when am I eligible for NHS and how does that all work?

And (here I go with lots of questions again): what do we need to do to prove on the VAF that we plan to get married? Is just giving the date enough? or do we need to have an appointment with the registrar booked?

Also, can you please tell me if I am correct in thinking the following things about the visa process:

1. Fill out the application.
2. Send it in. (do you send in all the backup information right away, or wait and send it later?)
3. Do they interview you in person? Or only sometimes? And do they just interview me, or do they want both of us?
4. They will schedule me to have a Biometrics appointment
5. They will invoice us for an amount nearish to $1000 (I'm not really clear on this payment part, what are the methods of payment?)
6. We pay.
7. They will put an exciting Fiance Visa stamp into my passport (i am very curious to see what this looks like!) and mail it all back to me. Does it have a date by which I have to leave America?
8. I move to England!
9. We get married!
10. As soon as we are married, we go to the Visa Office and get an FLR (which is another 1000, right?), which allows me to live there for two more years, and allows me to work. 
11. After two years, when the FLR expires, I go back to the office, take the Life in England Test, and get the ILR so I can remain indefinitely.

Is that right? Is there anything I'm missing?

To say that we are excited is a huge understatement.  Thank you again to everyone who replied to me- You definitely made us feel like this is all possible!

xx
B & H

First of all, you will need to complete the on-line form, not the VAF4, which has different questions.


Vicky

1. Fill out the online form
2. Submit the online form and make the payment with a credit card
3. Make an appointment to have biometrics done -- you will be prompted to do this once your application has been submitted
4. Mail your supporting documents to the consulate, or use an approved visa expediter (courier) for faster service
5. Wait
6. If there is a problem with your application or supporting docs, the consulate might contact you during the process, but there will be no formal interview for either of you.
7. You get your docs back with your visa vignette in your passport
8. You head off to the UK

There is no date when you must leave the US, it only has to be before the visa expires, but you can ask them to postdate the visa for up to three months. 

Yes, you can go back to the US once you have your FLR. 

Good luck!

One question I do have is this: I have been asked to work on a show for a couple of weeks in December.  As long as I get my FLR right after we're married, can I come back to the states and do that show? I think it will really help with our finances.

Bear in mind that FLR applications have been taking around 14 weeks to be issued by post recently, so if you mail in your FLR application, you may be without your passport for 3-4 months. However, you can pay extra to get your FLR done in person (about £200 or so extra), in which case I think it is issued same-day.

Oh, just realised that you are planning to apply in person anyway :

10. As soon as we are married, we go to the Visa Office and get an FLR (which is another 1000, right?), which allows me to live there for two more years, and allows me to work.

 

Also, when am I eligible for NHS and how does that all work?

You are eligible for the NHS from the moment you enter the UK on your fiance visa (as you are planning to settle in the UK), but some doctor's surgeries may try to tell you that you cannot register with them until you have been in the UK for 6 months... this is not true.

Depending on how you plan on getting married in the UK will be the difference in proof that you intend to marry to begin with. If you marry through a church, not sure if it depends on denomination or not, then they have instructions on how to give your notice and there is a certain waiting period for the banns to be read (maybe two Sundays?) at mass/service. If you get married in a registry office (DH and I did this and it's MUCH cheaper) then you go and give notice after you have been a resident for 7-10 days (check with the office on timeline) and give them the fee for giving notice. From there you have to wait at least 15 clear days (could be 16 or 17 in some places) until they are able to marry you. This is so they basically can post your intent to marry for anyone who cares to object because one of you has 300 spouses already, or something like that. (Similar to the banns being read a couple weeks in a church). From this time you can book when you want your wedding to be. Once that time is up, you pick up your permission to marry (that you waited 15+ days for) and take it to the place or person who will be marrying you and it's done from there.

So as far as documents...being married by the registrar won't allow you (in most cases) any physical proof to send in for your fiance visa that you're planning to marry as they require you to be a resident of the country for an amount of time before you can give your notice. Some places may allow you to provisionally book a date, but you need to check with them in advance. The proof my husband and I sent when I was getting my fiance visa was just a letter stating his support and of my application and the date we intended to give our notice at the register's office. Also, I included a couple of printoffs from MSN conversations with the bits where we discussed the wedding highlighted.

The IO may question you when you're entering the UK about the date you're getting married, but in my case, I stated that I knew the rules were that I had to be a resident before I could give my notice. That seemed to work for him.

£250 is the statutory fee to marry in the Church of England.  You then have to pay £22 to get the banns read.  If you live in different parishes, or are marrying in a church which is not your parish church, you must pay this £22 in both churches.

Just had a meeting with my vicar, and ouch!  This is expensive 


Vicky

Just had a meeting with my vicar, and ouch!  This is expensive 

We did the church route, and with the banns and the organist and multiple copies of the certificate and everything, it came to £335.

But I believe it would have been more to do a secular ceremony, *if* we rented a venue and the registrar had to come up and everything. We looked into it, though I can't say as I remember in detail.

In the registrar's office itself, I'm sure that's the inexpensive option.

Register Office cost:

£60 to give notice (£30/ea)
£40 for ceremony (included live broadcast on webcam - video only)
£3.50 for the marriage certificate (received same day)

Total: £103.50

Oh, and we also got a "for show" certificate that we paid an additional fiver for.

As far as a reception, we skipped the fiesta and just had a nice dinner at a place called Dunsley Hall (a stately home in Kinver). Just myself, hubby, his sis & her fiance (our witnesses), and his parents.

Thanks again for the replies!! So so helpful. We very much appreciate = )

Some questions:

H has a trip planned to come see me April 24-May 2. He was thinking it might be a nice thing for us to do the online part of the application together so we can both feel like we're a part of the process.  Is that a bad idea? I read somewhere (I have no idea where, these sites are all getting tangled in my head) that they may call him and ask him questions or at least confirm that he knows the visa is being applied for.  And for his UK cell phone to work, he would of course need to be in the UK.  So I'm guessing that I will "send" the online application on May 3rd after he's gone back.  Any thoughts?

Also, I am trying to figure out when to give the two weeks on my job.  I can't do it until after I have received the visa, right? or I'd have to tell them there was a "change in my situation" sort of thing? Or should I just get rid of the job before I even apply? Will it help that much to have one when I apply?

And one more: I am currently taking a prescription drug and I'd like not to interrupt it during this transition. (If i have to, it's no big deal, not a serious drug or anything) I am going to ask my doctor if she'll advance me a few months even though I'll be off of my US insurance once I quit the job. But does anyone know, could I theoretically see a doctor in the UK pretty soon after arriving and get a prescription from them?

Okay you know me, Lots o' Questions Gal:  Can you tell me about how to get a driver's license in the UK? Can I drive on my US license for a while? I had heard that but it seems a bit silly.

Thanks again so much!!!

xoxoxox
b&h

Pertaining to filling out the online application while your fiance is in the US: I don't see where that'd be a problem. I don't think they'll call him, since part of the whole application process is sending in that lovely sponsor letter with all of your documentation to prove he's aware of everything going on. The only time I heard of people being called is the applicant, and that's usually from one of the consulates after they've received your paperwork (i.e. they need you to clarify something, or fax something in). And if anything, I think they'd call you, it's technically your application. So, I don't think it'll pose a problem--it's what I'm going to do as well *again, don't know that for 100% sure, someone can correct me if I'm wrong*

As for giving two weeks notice at work, you can tell the ECO when to date your visa for, since I think they ask when you'd like to travel back to the UK, so you can have some idea of when you're leaving, and therefore schedule yourself your two weeks notice. As for having a job at the time of application--I don't think that really matters much, since the ECO will have your bank statements to look at. I prolly won't have a job when I submit mine, and I've heard of some people on here who don't have one. Again, I don't know 100%, but I think as long as you're not trying to deceive them (by saying you have a job when you don't really have it), it doesn't matter one way or the other.

As for being able to see a doctor in the UK, that's one of the first things you should do, I've heard You'll have access to NHS, and one of the first things I've been told to do is register with a doctor to get that process started. As for whether or not it'll be 'soon' is hard to tell--depends on what clinic you go to, what kind of waiting list they have, etc.

And for your US license, I believe you have 12 months to drive on it before you have to get a UK license. *really hopes it's 12 months so I don't look silly*

 

I just got my fiance visa approved on Monday and I'm on my way to England!!  I've booked my flight over for August 22nd, so not too much longer now till I see my boy!

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone who replied to my post and pretty much everyone on this forum, as you answered so many questions and guided me through this process with a minimum amount of stress, and helped me to feel not so alone whilst waiting 55 business days! I don't post a lot but I read lots, so thanks!

Anyway we are very very very happy and excited!!

xoxo
-B

I just got my fiance visa approved on Monday and I'm on my way to England!!  I've booked my flight over for August 22nd, so not too much longer now till I see my boy!

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone who replied to my post and pretty much everyone on this forum, as you answered so many questions and guided me through this process with a minimum amount of stress, and helped me to feel not so alone whilst waiting 55 business days! I don't post a lot but I read lots, so thanks!

Anyway we are very very very happy and excited!!

xoxo
-B

I admit speeding to the end and looking for the happy ending.........

Congratulations.