From Florida moving on a spouse visa to Greater Manchester

I have just been issued my spouse visa for the UK with looking to return next Month. New to these boards and liked what I already observed. We have already had our apartment and for the most part everything we need there. After marriage in England, I had to return to Florida for the visa process in which I was totally not aware of. Now that it is done, I can't wait to get back.....Cooler weather is well needed and the main thing is to be with the love of my life forever.... Good to know that I can be apart of these boards with going to miss America loads....

Cooler weather is well needed

Welcome. I was speaking to someone from Houston (tied with New Orleans in my book for most muggy US city) the other day about not missing spring/summer/fall. I have my windows open and a jumper on right now. Free air conditioning!!!

hi we are waiting for spouse settlement visa could you give me an idea how long you waited,my fiancée is currently in Orange City ,Florida.
Application sent to New York three weeks ago,welcome to the UK

Congrats on your visa!   There are some great ex-pats here in the NW if I do say so myself.

Hello!  I'm from Florida too!  J-ville, GO GATORS!!  Currently living in Cornwall and have done for over 2 years now.  I miss my family and friends but I don't so much miss Jacksonville and the crime.  Where in FLA you from?  @tezza It took me 3 months to get my visa

hi we are waiting for spouse settlement visa could you give me an idea how long you waited,my fiancée is currently in Orange City ,Florida.
Application sent to New York three weeks ago,welcome to the UK

Current processing times are about 42 working days for fiance and spousal visas - which is the longest processing time we've seen in several years (last time they took that long was in Sept and Oct 2010, but other than that, they have been pretty fast... only 1 week when I first joined the forum in 2007). Before this July, straightforward application were taking about 1-3 weeks to be processed.

@sonofasailor LMAO on the free AC, so right.

@tezza , I skipped over the fiancee visa all together by taking certain steps. The visa times are ranging 42 business days from the date all documents reach UKBA in New York. Mine was 62 days due to the factor of additional documents. This was non priority.

@ Smashley , thank you so much

@ SllimMills , I was born in St.Petersburg, I lived in St.Petersburg, Tampa, Zephryhills, Orlando and Miami. At the moment, I am at one of our many owned houses in Miami.

Certain steps like already being married? 

Not at all prior. I will take a bit and type out the steps. I will list the positive and negative sides with them. At the end of it, the person needs to see which way they wish to proceed.

Process of skipping a fiancee visa that I took.

(1) Enter the UK on a visitors visa. Getting past UKBA at the border is a challenging one and they will turn you back if they know a marriage is planned.

(2) Once a person is in the UK for one month, both partners can go to apply for the "Intent to Marry" being that Americans need this being non EU. The intent to marry is what to fiancee visa is actually for. UKBA advised me while I was there, that they can not stop a marriage from being performed in the UK if one is on a visitors visa if the intent was in place.

(3) After the Intent of marriage is ordered, there is a mandatory 16 day waiting period before a marriage can take place.

(4) Marriage is performed so skipping the fiancee visa.

(5) The non EU partner must return to the States before the 6 months to apply for the spouse visa. During this time of the application, the new couple in marriage can take there honeymoon in the states.

(6) If all documents are in order and nothing hidden, they will receive the spouse visa and return together.

*Notes* A fiancee visa allows the non EU partner to remain in the UK after marriage, doing it this way, at least the non EU has to come back to apply for the spouse visa.

Financially if done right, like I went through triple AAA for cheap flights, it comes out to the same price but instead of paying for the fiancee visa, the same money goes to the couples airflights round trip for the honeymoon during the wait of the spouse visa process.

Why did you not apply for the marriage visit visa as you were meant to if you intended to marry in the UK?

This was the best route for my wife and I. One it allows a couple to remain together during the process of a visa. Second I seen it by asking myself, do I want to spend more money on not needed paperwork or money on something my wife and I would like with the outcome on the same result in the spouse visa which proved to work out and issued.

But you would have had to lie upon entry since you already intended to get married. Surely that is not something we would endorse here.

You have me clearly mistaken and labled. ECO at the border never once asked about a marriage with having EU Relatives thoughout the UK. Did I lie if not asked....? No. I did not know if I was wanting to marry in the UK at that time. Was I asked by the ECO? No.... Did I not go through the proper legal steps by calling the UKBA and Courts on the legal steps? As explained, I did in which the UKBA in London and Courts advised me on these steps. Did I lie?   No......Intent of Marriage was done.....Did I lie? No.....Coming from a career in legal, Police Officer, lead paralegal and officer of the courts, I had every intention to do this legally.....Did I lie? No........Clearly with you not knowing alternative legal ways, is not my fault. Was my spouse visa not issued? No, meaning no laws were broken or I would have been subjected to a ban or refusal or both.

You used deception in that you entered the UK knowingly intending to marry but did not reveal that to the immigration officer.  Did they ask you the purpose of your trip? You clearly did not say that you intended to marry.  That was the purpose, correct?  Withholding that sort of information is still use of deception even if you were not directly asked the question.

You say you went through the 'proper legal steps' but you should have applied for either a fiance visa or a marriage visit visa if you intended to marry in the UK.  Clearly you knew that because you stated that you determined it was a way to save money and remain together during the visa process.