Immigrations' views about on-line relationships

I would like to know how UK immigration deals with the fact that more and more people are meeting and falling in love via the internet. They must realize that when two people talk to each other through IMs, see each other on cam and talk with mics that a very close bond develops, I would say even more so than if two people met in person because I believe it's easier to be yourself and open up online than face to face. This gives us shy people the opportunity to be ourselves without the usual uneasiness of talking to someone face to face we've just met.

My question for this thread is, since my boyfriend(husband to be)and I met online and we're going to meet in person and be together for 2 weeks, would they concider the time we spent talking online as having met? I know they want to know how long we've known each other, when and where we first met but does meeting online count for anything? I sure hope so because Craig and I have talked for hours every day since we met, whether it was online or on the phone, we have constant communication. Do they need proof of this like for instance copies of our chat logs and our huuuge phone bills? If I have to copy all my chat logs I'm afraid I'll be going through quite a few ink cartriges and it's going to look like a manuscript for a novel! Another thing I'd like to add is I also talk to his parents online and his mum and I write e-mails back and forth. I know everything about his family and his dad is always sending me pictures, so when we do meet in person for the first time it won't be like I don't know them. We both love each other very much and want to do everything right so we can be together.

Errr.. wow..

First off, I'm not exactly sure what you're asking here?

What, specifically, is your question?

Is it:

My question for this thread is, since my boyfriend(husband to be)and I met online and we're going to meet in person and be together for 2 weeks, would they concider the time we spent talking online as having met?

You say you're going to meet in person for 2 weeks.. what exactly does that mean?  Does that mean you're going over for 2 weeks for a VISIT, then returning back to the states, or does that mean you're going over for 2 weeks with the intent to marry and stay?

I'm not the best person to be speaking on this issue, as I don't know all the ins and outs of immigration, but to put it simply:  No, immigration won't be sympathetic to the fact that you met online however long ago.  They don't care if you've spent many hours and thousands of dollars on phone bills.  They don't care that you've swapped e-mail pleasantries with his mom and dad.  None of your online time spent together has any real bearing whatsoever on anything, as far as Immigration is concerned.

If you're only visiting, none of this is relevant anyway.  Immigration wouldn't care, in the least, if you've spent many lovely hours together over the computer.  In fact, I'd caution against even telling an Immigration Officer you're entering the country to meet the love of your life from the Internet.

If you're intending to meet up for 2 weeks, marry, and either a.) stay in the uk b.) return to the u.s. to sort paperwork and later return to the uk c.) both return and settle in the u.s. -- well, it's still irrelevant.

Just a quick addition:

The only time your internet relationship may come into play is when you're attempting to sort out your paperwork for either a Fiance Visa or a Spousal (Marriage) Visa.  Phone bills, pictures, plane tickets, letters, etc. might come in handy at this point to prove you two actually know one another and have met in person.  However, it won't count towards any physical time spent together.

Anyway, my (extremely) limited knowledge of the subject ends here (and hopefully what I've said is right.. if not, one of the many informed people here will quickly and aptly correct me) 

Ok,here's the deal, I'm going over for 2 weeks to spend time with him and meet his family,that's all,then return and do all the paper work the proper way. Is it so wrong to say you've met someone who happens to live in another country online? why are they against this? If anything the internet brings people closer together. I'm not going to break any rules and I intend to do this the right way. After reading  your post I feel like we don't even have a chance for happiness  :\\\'(

I'm not aware of there being any requirement for the amount of time you've spent together in person, as long as you HAVE met in person.  So take a deep breath!

Please go to this site and read about spousal and fiance visas:

http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/ind/en/home/applying/general_caseworking/spouses___partners.html?

Good luck to you, and I hope the visit confirms all your expectations!   

Kay65,

No one is saying that you don't have a chance for happiness. It's not wrong to say that you've met someone online. When I visited the UK in April, I got an extra bit of grilling from the IO. I guess it wasn't a grilling per se, but after I told him that I was there to visit my boyfriend and he asked me where we had met and I told him it was via the net he kept repeating "Internet Romance, Internet Romance", again and again and eventually let me through. When I came over in January and said the same thing to the IO he said that it was wonderful that we had met that way and wished me a lovely visit. How they view it just depends on the luck of the draw.

You have to realize that this is still new territory for everyone involved. How common of a practice was this 10 years ago? As time goes on, this won't be a big of a deal but for right now it's just the way the system is.  All of the internet stuff, phone bills, cards, photos, etc go a long way to show them when you are ready to pursue a settlement visa that a bonafide relationship exists but you still have to meet their requirement to have met in person.

This is from the Diplomatic Service Procedures from the UK Visas website. This pertains to settlement (fiance, spouse, etc) visas: http://www.ukvisas.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1035796295766#point%20eleven:

13.11 - Requirement to have met

Internet relationships
It would not be sufficient for a relationship developed over the Internet to meet the requirement of the Rules unless the relationship included a personal face-to-face meeting between the couple concerned.


I second shell's comments about taking a deep breath. Don't worry, you'll be just fine.

Tanisha

PS - I used to hang out in Sandwich, IL, nice to meet someone from the area

How common of a practice was this 10 years ago?

It wasn't a very common practice six years ago, but my husband and I made it through with no problems.  Granted when I applied for my visa it had been a year since our first face-to-face meeting, plus we had three other meetings/holidays together and had the stamps in our passports to prove it.

I'm not sure how heavily they scrutinise the number of times/length time you've spent together face-to-face, but they will look very closely at your ability to support yourselves without recourse to public funds.  That seems to be the huge bug-a-boo.

Thank you all for your support. I guess immigration is a little scary to me but they're just people too and I'm sure they're not total ogres when it comes to seeing when two people are in love and want to be together. He's working, and I'm working, his family would co-sponsor if needed so there shouldn't be a problem. Terinth, I'm sorry if I took your post as being negative, none of us know if we have a chance or not at anything till we try and I won't worry about anything till I have good reason to.

Kay, try not to worry.  It sounds to me like you're doing everything the right way.  When you go to visit him, just tell the immigration officer you're visiting a friend.  Be careful what you take with you....no photos of family, resumes, or anything that might make it look like you were staying more than two weeks.  And you'll be absolutely fine! 

Take lots of pictures of the two of you together in the UK.  You'll need these later.

Then when you get back to the US after your lovely visit, and if you still want to proceed with visas so you can move to the UK permanently you shouldn't have any problem.  It sounds like your application will be fine to me.  I've yet to hear about anyone being denied a fiancee visa if they've met in person and both have jobs.  Seriously, you're going about this the right way so relax and enjoy your visit. 

Do they need proof of this like for instance copies of our chat logs and our huuuge phone bills?

I've put through just over 40 fiances and spouses in the last year without major problems - only 1 refusal so far, almost all of them evolved from internet; and about 1/2 of them needing co-sponsors.  While I don't mind submitting 2 or 3 emails with a fiance application, I think submitting a chat log is just asking for trouble.  Even if it's just a lovey-dovey chat, it's just too risky. 

2 or 3 emails very bland, 3 - 4 photos that are comfortably romantic and geographically distinct and that's that.  Of course that's my own viewpoint and everyone has a different experience -some people go in with mountains of stuff that nobody wants to wade through.  Plane tickets, on the other hand, are wonderful things to include.

I included ticket stubs of various trips we'd each made to visit the other. I think I only had 1 phone bill with a call to him on it so I included that. And several pictures of us together. Our hair was different over the various shots so you could see that things had gone on for a few years.

I included no e-mails, and no chat logs and I got along fine with the handful of pictures and airplane stubs.

Send some mail to each other too!  It only costs $.80 for a letter from the US to UK, and it will have the postmark and everything.  Plus it will be a nice surprise for him.

We got professional portraits taken when he was last here.  It wasn't terribly expensive, gives me something to have on my desk to smile at while we are apart, and (I hope) will look good for the application.

Garry, why would you say a chat transcript is "too risky"?  Not that I was going to do that, but I'm just curious.

I had Phil added as a "second cardholder" on two of my US credit cards - doesn't get much more serious than that! 

I think you mistook my post.  All I was saying was.. Immigration isn't too concerned with your time spent together online, only that you've met in person and are wanting to marry and live together for valid reasons, not solely to gain citizenship.  IE:  They likely would never ask for 'chat logs' between the two of you or anything.  They just want proof such as what I and others have already mentioned (photos, proper letters, plane tickets, phone bills).

Wasn't meaning to scare you.. just the opposite in fact.  I was trying to say.. don't worry about it, it's irrelevant. 

I was worried that we'd met online (we'd visited back and forth about 8 times over two years before we applied for my visa).  THe fact that we'd met online wasn't an issue at all.  The woman at the consulate didn't ask about it (I'd put the date we met online as the date we'd met and the date we met in person as well).  She didn't even ask for any evidence of the relationship, though we had plenty of pics, letters, emails, etc.!