Got our spousal visa - and it was so simple (complete breakdown included)!

Hey all,

Just thought I'd let you all know that we got our UK visa!  I dont believe how easy it was...

12/08/04 - Made appointment online with British Consulate in New York (for 9:15am on the 20th)
19/08/04 - Flew to New York with my wife from London Heathrow
20/08/04 - Arrived at British Consulate at 8am - no-one there and told to come back at 9am.  Got back at 8:30am and one person was there - we lined up outside.  Got sticker from security at about 9am and went inside.  Sat down for about 15-20mins, then got told to line up by the window - we were second in line (everyone just rushes to form a line).  Got to the window almost straight away (they opened 2 windows).  Gave them the completed VAF2 form, they checked it and only asked for the following:

- Marriage Certificate
- Tenancy Agreement in England (also had a letter confirming that my landlady knew about my wife coming over)
- Letter from my company showing my work status and salary
- Payslips (didnt actually ask for this, but they did look at it)

and thats it.  No birth certificates, no bank statements, no resumes/CV's, nothing...  The only question they asked my wife was what work she was in, but she only just graduated, so she wasnt in any work yet.  In fact, she only said one sentence to them.  I pretty much talked the rest of the time, but he still didn't ask much.  We had brought lots of pictures, chat logs, emails, etc, but they didnt look at any of it (they didnt even know we had it, cuz they didnt ask).  The whole process took less than 8 minutes.  We then proceded to the cashier, paid our $494, then waited for our number to be called.  About one hour later we were walking out with my wifes passport with the visa in it.

22/08/04 - Travelled back to the UK (flight left about 11:30pm, New York time!)
23/08/04 - Arrived in the UK (today!)...  Immigration took one look at the visa, asked us when we got married and how long we knew each other, walked off for about 2 minutes to check the authenticity of the visa, then came back, stamped it, told us we had to apply for unconditional permanent residence after two years, then let us go.  The whole process took less than 3 minutes!

So, in total, we spent about 1hr15mins on visa stuff, and one hour of that was just waiting for them to stick the visa in the passport.  It was such a simple process...  Quite annoying that they wouldnt let us do it in England though!

Anyway, anyone else who needs to go for a spousal visa need not panic at all...  As long as your VAF2 form is in order, and you have good supporting documents, you dont even need proof of relationship, or anything - and you probably wont be grilled or questioned - afterall, it's none of their business who you choose to marry

Thanks for all the help and support...  Now we can finally apply for US permanent residence at the US Consulate in London (and no, we didn't tell the British Consulate that we were going to do that)!

S.

I'm impressed the IO at Heathrow told you about applying for ILR in 2 years!

Congratulations - very happy to hear it went smoothly for you! 

Congrats! Bet the US Immigration process will be a bit more complex 

Anyway, anyone else who needs to go for a spousal visa need not panic at all...  As long as your VAF2 form is in order, and you have good supporting documents, you dont even need proof of relationship, or anything - and you probably wont be grilled or questioned - afterall, it's none of their business who you choose to marry

Just to add that the "proof of relationship" documents - photos, chat logs, and what-have-you - are needed for visitor and fiance visas, and not for spousal applications.  There's apparently some misconceptions about that floating around the internet.

And to note that your job position and salary may have carried the application without need for further evidence, but that might not apply to everybody. 

And yes, certainly there's no need to panic.  To my knowledge, there hasn't been a spousal visa refused in all of North America all year - and it's already August.  Nobody wants to be the first, so it pays to be as diligent as possible in preparing the VAF forms.

It's always good to hear that things go the way you like them to!

Unfortunately all the 'recorded experiences' I've seen/read/heard about don't apply to me because I've apparently gone the unconventional route of mailing my app. in as my hubby could not get more time off (as I just visited him in June/July time and he took two weeks off).

But congrats to you and your wife...hope you two are very very happy together!!!

x x x - Missy 

Hiya! If you need any help with the US immo process MelB, Marlespro, Kellie, and Laurie have just gone through the process or are about to very soon. Im sure they'd all love to pass on what info they have to help make your application along. Im also happy to lend a hand where I can and you can contact me any time Good luck and congrats!

Thanks all!  This forum is truly awesome

S.

 The whole process took less than 3 minutes!

So, in total, we spent about 1hr15mins on visa stuff, and one hour of that was just waiting for them to stick the visa in the passport.  It was such a simple process... 

Ahhh, that is encouraging news.  I love it when things go well.  And, it eases my mind for when I'll be doing the same thing.  Thanks for the breakdown and debriefing.

Quite annoying that they wouldnt let us do it in England though!

OH HOW TRUE!

And yes, certainly there's no need to panic. To my knowledge, there hasn't been a spousal visa refused in all of North America all year - and it's already August.  Nobody wants to be the first, so it pays to be as diligent as possible in preparing the VAF forms.

Hopefully there will still be no need to panic when I'm doing it....since, unfortunately, due to Jamie's work and financial restraints we have to wait until the new year to get to New York.  Here's earnestly praying that they are still being as relatively easy and cooperative next year as this one.

Oh, and I panic about EVERYTHING. ~~sigh~~

HI just wondering where you got married?  England or the states?  What type of visa did you or your spouse get married on?  Thanks kathryn
Katiemas639@hotmail.com

Kathryn--

A UK citizen can get married in the US on a tourist visa/VWP as long as they have no intent to reside in the US after the wedding.  If they want to live in the US after the wedding, they'll need to secure a fiance/fiancee' visa BEFORE heading to the US for the wedding.

If the couple gets married in the UK, the US partner doesn't need a fiance/fiancee' visa (at this point...the law is changing), but he/she must return to the US to apply for the spousal visa.  If the US partner already has a UK fiance/fiancee' visa, then he/she can adjust to spousal status from within the UK.