spouse visa from us to uk

Hello all,
this is my first post:D
me and my husband are newly weds and are planning to move to the uk in may 05. We are wondering what all we need to do. From what i understand  we need to go online to the fast track and apply online and do the payment of about $600.00  what documents will we need/and or would be useful to have ?
We are wondering can u tell me how long can i expect to wait to know, and what little details might i need to know that they will not just come outright to tell us. Also am i correct in that he being the uk citizen and i the us citizen, can both move over at the same time to the uk? We plan to secure jobs and an apartment when we go over. will this be an issue? that we dont have them in place before we move? maybe it will help if we show that we are not intending to live off the government, and that we have and will have good jobs when we get there. Also anyone in the uk, that can tell me how hard will it be to secure an apartment over here right before we move? or can we just do it when we get there? his family lives there and they have scoped out apartments for us, so just wanting to know if anyone can be of help to us? thanks all!!!

First of all, welcome to the forum!  You'll find lots of friendly folks here to help and there's also tons of info on moving over on this board.  (You might also want to introduce yourself in the Welcome Wagon so we can get to know you.) 

I don't know the details about how to do the fast track since I came over on a fiancee visa, but from what others have said, yes it sounds like the fast track is what you want. 

Yes, you can come over together as long as you satisfy the requirements of the visa.  You will need to show you can support yourself, but your husband should be eligible for public funds if he so needs it since he is a British citizen.  Perhaps you could get some of his family to say they will help you out at first? 

It might be difficult to get a flat or place to live before you move, but your husband should be able to look for work from there.  Have you started looking online?  Might be a good place to start.

Where in the UK do you plan to move?

we plan to move to cardiff wales, i love it there and that is where his family is from.
Well we are going to try to get him a job before we leave, but shouldnt letters of reference from our workplaces, bank and landlord be enough to prove that we wont be a burden to society?
Thanks for the help

Like I mentioned before, not having been in your exact situation before, I can't really say one way or another what will satisfy the Home Office.  However, I do know that most other people who have gotten that visa have had to provide letters of employement from a UK employer to show that they will immediately be able to support themselves.  Letters from family saying you can stay with them, or proof of a good deal of money in savings might help just as well, though. 

we plan to move to cardiff wales, i love it there and that is where his family is from.
Well we are going to try to get him a job before we leave, but shouldnt letters of reference from our workplaces, bank and landlord be enough to prove that we wont be a burden to society?
Thanks for the help

Letters from US entities are irrelevant, really.  They're going to be looking for a support system in the UK, so letters from UK jobs, UK banks, and a UK landlord are ideal.  I don't know the full details of your situation, of course, but it sounds like you'll need decent savings and either a letter from a landlord in the UK or from your husband's family saying that you'll be staying with them.  If your husband can manage to get a job offer in writing beforehand, that would be really helpful as well.  The difficulty you guys will face is proving that there is a support system in place for you in the UK....most of us married a UK citizen who was already settled in the UK.

We plan to secure jobs and an apartment when we go over. will this be an issue?

It depends upon the circumstances in the whole of your application.  Sometimes the UK half has to go over first and set up a household and THEN apply.  Other times they are not too fussed.  It just all depends upon the strength of the application.  (And whether or not you are unlucky enough to have a twit process your application)

I keep reading everywhere on here where the couple got  married then just moved to the uk, then filed for the visa. Is this really how it can go? Our circumstances are a bit odd, but here they are.... i am the us citizen, chris my husband is a uk citizen. We both live here in the US. Chris currently has his conditional permanent residency, a work authorization, and social security card. He basically is all set to live here, until.... we decided we wanted to move. We both went back to the uk to visit( i on a visitors visa) for a couple of weeks. Instantly i wanted to move, but being the impulsive type, i decided for a change to think it through... well here we are in october and i still want to move. Chris hasnt given any of his citizenship up in the uk. I am now wondering what is the best way to go about this. We are wanting to move in may as soon as this school year is over, to cardiff wales. However being that we are both here and have jobs and a house etc, we want to make sure this is done right, so we dont have any unexpected hitches in the road. we want to take most major things with us, which i understand can take 6-7 weeks, so we will have to move it before we leave(again, we want to make sure there is no go back and get this paperwork then ull get ur visa thing).  I am confused on a few things though...being that chris is here i dont know how he will secure a job before we leave, or an apartment. Is it possible to just give the money to his rents, let them pick out a flat, then move in, or are we better off living with them for a week or two till we can get the apartment ourselves? we would have a few choices already picked before we left. Also, chris has some contacts in the uk that would give him a job, if thats all he needed., not a great job mind u and not one that would totally support us, but is that all they want, and or will significant savings help us out to prove that all we need is the chance to come to the uk, and that we can find our own work then??? also something im not sure on, when we move over me on my spousal visa, how long from when i get to the uk do i have to wait before i can legally work there?
any help would be sooo apreciated.
sorry for the long post,  i just wana make sure we do this right
 

Yes, many of us got married in the US and then moved to the UK.  In your case, you must obtain your spousal visa BEFORE you move to the UK (you can't adjust your status unless you have a student visa good for 6 months or more).  Your husband is free to resettle in the UK, but you cannot go back on anything other than a visitor's visa (and you may be questioned as to why you're trying to enter the UK as a spouse of a citizen without a spousal visa, so it's best to just wait and get it, in my opinion).

It sounds like the major difficulty you're having is that your husband isn't settled in the UK.  Why not send him over a month of two ahead of time to look for a job and get an apartment.  I'm assuming he can stay with his parents during that time.

The person who looks at your spousal visa application will want to make sure that your husband can support you.  That means having a decent place to live (either on your own or with his parents) and having a regular income that can pay for the two of you.  The way I see it, your options are:

1.  If you already have plenty of savings, get a letter from DH's parents saying that you can stay with them while you're both looking for work and go ahead and apply for your spousal visa.

2.  If you don't have substantial savings, send DH over a month or two ahead of time to stay with his parents while he looks for a decent job.  Once he's gotten an offer, go ahead and apply for your spousal visa (your husband doesn't need to be present when you apply, but you will need his passport).

Yes many people on this website got married in the US, got their visa there and then moved to the UK.  However, most of those people had the UK side of the relationship already settled in the UK. 

They will want to see 3 months (at least) of bank statements most likely, so as lolabola said, unless you have significant savings the best thing is probably for your husband to go over ahead of you to get settled.  Then do the application for your visa.  (This will only take a day if you do it in person.)

You will need to get some sort of letter of support from his family that they will help you out and let you live with them until you are able to support yourselves.  Getting a flat and work and settling in is probably going to take more than a couple of weeks! 

I have great news!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I called the chicago office just to double check what all I needed, and how long it would take. and she was sooo nice ,
she said all that i needed was a copy of marriage license and both passports , 2 passport photos of my husband, proof of where we will live ( with his rents till we get an apartment), copy of their mortgage, proof of funds like 3,00-5,000 pounds, any divorcxe certificates, letter from my husband saying he knows that I am filing $495 fee to process, and letter of support from his parents if they will help financially. Also she added if we get there early in the morning at the office that allot of times that they process the same day and will have the stamp, but could take 5-6 buismess days, that as soon as we have the stamp we can move, and that i can work in the uk!!!!!!
I am sooo excited, i was soo worried that we would be apart while he set up house and job, but apparently proof of bank statements and of his employer here in the states is good enough for them..
yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!11

Really?  Well that is good news!  Hope it all works out brilliantly for you then!!