Can a US Citizen file for family visa from the UK

Hi All,
My husband (UK citizen) and I (US citizen) are planning to move to the UK as soon as we sell our house.

The problem is everything depends on selling the house and we don't know when that will be. Once we sell the house we will likely only have 3-6 weeks before we need to be out of it and hopefully on our way to the UK.

I've looked into and we have everything we need for me to get a spousal visa. However, the UK Border Agency estimates that it can take between 10-120 days for the visa to be processed in the United States.

It also stipulates that once approved I need to travel within 3 months. I could apply for it now and hope that the house sells within three months but that's a big risk to take especially since the visa costs USD1363.00.

So I'm wondering if I can just go to the UK and apply for the visa upon arrival. I'm thinking not because also on the UK Border Agency website it states that you are not allowed to switch to a partner visa if you are in the UK as a visitor.

Are there any ways around this? Does anyone have experience or ideas that will work?

Thanks for your help.
Aimee

No, you can't do that. Your only option is to apply from the US before you leave. There isn't a way around it.  Sorry.. 

Other people will have more info about the process of applying and how long it takes.  I haven't done it in ages so the info I have is out of date and not helpful about it now!

It also stipulates that once approved I need to travel within 3 months.

No. You can enter the country at any time within the validity of the visa however it is preferable to enter within the first 3 months if you can or it will put your timeline off for ILR at the end of 5 years.


I am sure that you are thinking of this  paragraph.

You can apply for a visa up to 3 months before your date of travel to the UK. Applications received more than 3 months before your date of travel will be returned without a visa and without a refund of the application fee. You will then need to submit a new application and to re-enrol your biometric information at the appropriate time.

but what this means is that you can't apply more than 3 months in advance of the date that you want to travel. So if you think that you will want to travel say at the beginning of August, 4 months from now, then you should not submit your online application before the beginning of May ie within 3 months of your date of travel.
Just to clarify, you have to pick a date to put on the online application but you are not bound by this date, just make sure that the date that you pick is within 3 months of the date that you submit your online application.

So I'm wondering if I can just go to the UK and apply for the visa upon arrival. I'm thinking not because also on the UK Border Agency website it states that you are not allowed to switch to a partner visa if you are in the UK as a visitor.

You are right here, you can't do that. You must apply from the US.

Regarding processing times, the applications seem to be going through quite quickly at the moment, take a look at this thread to give yourself an idea of some actual timelines.

http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=78833.0

Good luck with the application!

Thank you all for your helpful replies.
Are you 100% sure about not being bound by the 3 month rule?
I can't find any documentation on it.
I'm afraid I do it and I'll be refused entry and would like to be sure about how it works. I would try to ask the border agency directly but there is absolutely no contact information that I can find.
Do you suppose if I call the US Embassy they will know?

Thanks,
Aimee

I've looked into and we have everything we need for me to get a spousal visa. However, the UK Border Agency estimates that it can take between 10-120 days for the visa to be processed in the United States.

The spousal visa processing times in the US have really sped up in the last few weeks. At the moment, if you apply using the settlement priority service (which is supposed to get your visa processed within 15 working days), it's only taking about 1 week, maybe 2. And if you don't use the priority service, it's taking more like 2-3 weeks. We recently had someone who mailed their application (priority service) the week before Easter, and their visa was approved the week after Easter.

Thank you all for your helpful replies.
Are you 100% sure about not being bound by the 3 month rule?
I can't find any documentation on it.

Yes - 100% sure.

You can enter the UK at any time during the validity of the visa.

However, if you leave it longer than 3 months and 28 days after the 'valid from' date, you will not qualify for ILR (permanent residence) before your next visa expires... and so will have to spend several hundred pounds to extend your visa to cover the time between your visa expiring and qualifying for ILR.

If you enter within the 3 months and 28 days though, you will qualify for ILR before your next visa expires and so you won't have to extend it.

This is stated explicitly on the official UKBA website, under the section for qualifying for ILR as the spouse of a UK citizen (http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/partners-families/citizens-settled/spouse-cp/settlement/):

If you delayed your entry to the UK

If you were given a visa in this category but you then delayed your travel to the UK by up to 3 months, you can apply for settlement using application form SET(M) shortly before your visa expires. Provided you meet all the other requirements, we will put your application on hold until you have completed your 5 year qualifying period in the UK.

If you were given a visa in this category but you then delayed your travel to the UK by more than 3 months, you will need to apply using application form FLR(M) for a further probationary period of 5 years. If we give you a further probationary period and you meet all the other requirements for settlement (including the knowledge of language and life), you will be able to apply for settlement as soon as you have completed a total of 5 years' probation (adding together your time spent in the UK under your visa and the necessary number of months from your second probationary period).

Do you suppose if I call the US Embassy they will know?

The US Embassy won't be able to help with anything because they only deal with visas to move to the US.

You could try to contact UKBA instead (in the US, you would need to contact their commercial partner, Worldbridge), but to be honest, they don't often know their own rules and have been known to give incorrect advice.

 Plus, the information you want is on the UKBA website anyway, and that's where they get all their info from anyway.

Thanks a lot. I really appreciate your quick reply and links.
It's a huge relief. Hopefully we will be travelling within three months / 28 days but if not having to renew the visa again before applying for settlement is a small price to pay for actually being able to plan some stuff and not do everything at the end in haste.

Thanks again for your help.
Aimee

One more small question. Will the visa be valid from the date I say I'm planning to travel or from the date of issue?

One more small question. Will the visa be valid from the date I say I'm planning to travel or from the date of issue?

It is supposed to be made valid from the day you say you plan to travel, but there have been a couple of instances in the past where they have made it valid from the date of issue instead.

If you are going to ask for it to be post-dated by up to 3 months, then I would make sure you emphasise (probably in a cover letter) that you want it to be made valid from that specific date.

It's a good idea to put down the earliest possible date that you might wish to travel, because you cannot enter the UK until the 'valid from' date and you don't want to be in a position where you have asked for a date in the future, but then your plans change and you want to travel sooner, but you can't because your visa is not valid yet.

You have flexibility in entering the UK AFTER the visa is valid (any time during the 33-month validity), but you can't enter BEFORE it's valid, so it's probably better to get it issued for an earlier date and then have to delay your travel for a while, than have it issued for a later date and getting stuck in the US until that date (i.e. if your house sells sooner than expected, and you have to move out before the visa is valid, you don't want to be stuck in the US without a home to live in!).

Thank you all for your helpful replies.
Are you 100% sure about not being bound by the 3 month rule?
I can't find any documentation on it.
I'm afraid I do it and I'll be refused entry and would like to be sure about how it works.

I completely understand your anxiety, I'm the same way!    Here it is as plain as can be, in as many words!

Checking your visa

Your visa contains the following information:

    1. 'Valid from' date. You cannot enter the UK before this date.

    2. 'Valid until' date. You must leave the UK by this date, unless you have successfully applied for permission to extend your stay. In some immigration categories, you cannot apply to extend your stay. We suggest that you apply for permission to extend your stay (if you are allowed to do so) at least 4 weeks before your visa's 'valid until' date.

    You can arrive in the UK at any time up until the 'valid until' date, but remember that this is also the last day that you are permitted to stay in the UK.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/general-info/visa-holders/