Any updates from recent applicants?

Can applying for category B instead of A be grounds for refusal?

I can understand the other way around because you won't provide enough financial documentation.

Yes.  We've had members apply under one category when they qualified under another and were refused (correctly, as they had applied under the wrong category).  It's rare.  Most people get it right.   

Yes.  We've had members apply under one category when they qualified under another and were refused (correctly, as they had applied under the wrong category).  It's rare.  Most people get it right.   

Ah ok! Interesting!

It does depend on the category and your financial situation though - for example, if you have been working for the same employer for 6 months or more, but your income is variable, you may have the choice of A or B.

For example,

For Category A, if the income is variable, they will take the lowest payslip for the 6 months and use that to calculate the annual income, so if one payslip is below £1,550, you won't qualify for the visa and will have to go with Category B.

However, if all the payslips are above £1,550 but do vary, even taking the lowest one will still give an annual income of more than £18,600 so you can either still qualify under Category A but only have the lowest payslip used for the calculation, or you can apply under Category B and show 12 months of evidence if you want to.

It does depend on the category and your financial situation though - for example, if you have been working for the same employer for 6 months or more, but your income is variable, you may have the choice of A or B.

For example,

For Category A, if the income is variable, they will take the lowest payslip for the 6 months and use that to calculate the annual income, so if one payslip is below £1,550, you won't qualify for the visa and will have to go with Category B.

However, if all the payslips are above £1,550 but do vary, even taking the lowest one will still give an annual income of more than £18,600 so you can either still qualify under Category A but only have the lowest payslip used for the calculation, or you can apply under Category B and show 12 months of evidence if you want to.

Ok, so if the payment is not varied and always above £1,550 with an employer in the US for over 12 months, applying for Category B is only showing too much evidence and should not really be a problem?

Ok, so if the payment is not varied and always above £1,550 with an employer in the US for over 12 months, applying for Category B is only showing too much evidence and should not really be a problem?

That's how I understand it. In fact, Category B may well be the safer option because to use Category A you have to be currently employed in the US, with a job offer in the UK - so if you have left the job to find work in the UK, you can't apply under Category A.

When they first introduced the financial requirement categories, it was confusing because the way it was worded, I assumed that anyone starting a new job in the UK, moving from the US, would automatically be under Category B because they wouldn't have been in the new UK job 6 months yet.

However, as per the case study in the requirements now, it shows that as long as you were with the US employer, earning the requirement, for more than 6 months and you are moving directly from that job to the UK job, it's okay to apply under Category A - but I believe you have to still be employed at the US job (or at least have been working there right up until you move to the UK to start the new job) to apply under Cat A.

Case study for applying under Category A when sponsor is moving back to the UK from the US:

Example (a)
The applicant’s partner currently works in Australia but is returning with the applicant to the UK to work. The applicant’s partner has been with working for the same employer for the last 5 years in Australia earning a gross annual salary of £25,000. The applicant’s partner has a confirmed job offer to start in the UK in 8 weeks of their return, with an annual starting salary of £30,000. Therefore the applicant’s partner has both current gross annual salary and a future starting salary which meet the financial requirement under Category A.

and when they can't use Category A:

Example (b) If, in the scenario at (a) above, the applicant’s partner overseas had been unemployed for 12 months, the financial requirement could not be met using Category A. This would be true even if they had a job offer in the UK starting in 8 weeks of their return with a starting salary of £30,000. The applicant’s partner can only rely on the income from a job offer in the UK under Category A if they have been in employment overseas at the required level of income for at least 6 months at the date of application.

Case study for applying under Category B when sponsor is moving back to the UK from the US:

Example (a)
The applicant’s partner currently lives in China and is returning to the UK with the applicant. The applicant’s partner left her job in China 3 months ago to prepare for the move to the UK. She is not employed at the date of the application. From the job that she left, she received an income of £19,000 in the 12 months prior to the application. So part (2) of the Category B calculation for a returning sponsor is met because she received in the 12 months prior to the application the amount of income required to meet the level of the financial requirement.

In addition, the applicant’s partner must also, under part (1) of the Category B calculation, have a confirmed offer of salaried or non-salaried employment to return to in the UK (starting within 3 months of her return). This must have an annual starting salary or income sufficient to meet the financial requirement, alone or in combination with other sources. She does have a confirmed job offer in the UK starting within 7 weeks of her return, with an annual starting salary of £24,000.

So part (1) of the Category B calculation for a returning sponsor is also met because she has a confirmed offer of employment in the UK to return to which has an annual starting salary sufficient to meet the financial requirement.

That's how I understand it. In fact, Category B may well be the safer option because to use Category A you have to be currently employed in the US, with a job offer in the UK - so if you have left the job to find work in the UK, you can't apply under Category A.

When they first introduced the financial requirement categories, it was confusing because the way it was worded, I assumed that anyone starting a new job in the UK, moving from the US, would automatically be under Category B because they wouldn't have been in the new UK job 6 months yet.

However, as per the case study in the requirements now, it shows that as long as you were with the US employer, earning the requirement, for more than 6 months and you are moving directly from that job to the UK job, it's okay to apply under Category A - but I believe you have to still be employed at the US job (or at least have been working there right up until you move to the UK to start the new job) to apply under Cat A.

Case study for applying under Category A when sponsor is moving back to the UK from the US:
and when they can't use Category A:

Case study for applying under Category B when sponsor is moving back to the UK from the US:

Great! Thanks!

Just completed typing up the accompanying  cover letter for the requested documents...

I was able to download the requested 6 payslips for the period between December 14' - May 15' from the ADP website directly, just like the bank statements. So they are PDFs directly from the source.

Going to be sending 12 of those (he was paid bi-weekly) and the 6 corresponding bank statements showing the funds arriving into our joint checking account.

Will also send our signed lease statement for our townhouse (4 bed) in the UK.
Also sending a statement from his former company's HR indicating his dates of employment and his job title.

I think that should cover everything!

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to post an update on picking up BRP.  It's extremely easy and straight forward.  The post office they assign to you will ask for your passport/ spouse visa page and the visa grant letter.  Then they ask a few basic questions...address, email and phone.  That's it, then you've got your card

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to post an update on picking up BRP.  It's extremely easy and straight forward.  The post office they assign to you will ask for your passport/ spouse visa page and the visa grant letter.  Then they ask a few basic questions...address, email and phone.  That's it, then you've got your card

Thanks for this info UStoUK! I will be picking up my BRP in early September. My 30-day visa starts on August 23, and I'm flying over September 2. It'll be here before I know it! So much packing and cleaning up to do. Good thing you mentioned the visa grant letter. It would be just like me to show up with my passport and not the letter.

- Every single original bank statement from the previous 6 months (if printed from the internet, they must be stamped and signed by the bank branch on EVERY page)

I tried to get my bank to sign copies of each page of my bank statements but they refused. They would have to physically go through and check each page (110 pages) which would take them a while. If they printed it at the bank they would charge $2.50 PER PAGE. In the end I got them to print off one page with all of the credits for the past 12 months and sign that one page (cost me $25). I submitted this letter with the copies of the bank statements (un-stamped) and my payslips (with a letter from my employer that listed all of my payments from the last year).

My wife's visa application is currently flying over the Atlantic so I'll let you know how it goes. In the meantime, I became a US citizen yesterday :-) I got a little flag and everything!

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to post an update on picking up BRP.  It's extremely easy and straight forward.  The post office they assign to you will ask for your passport/ spouse visa page and the visa grant letter.  Then they ask a few basic questions...address, email and phone.  That's it, then you've got your card

So glad to hear it is as straightforward as the information makes it sound.

I received my e-mail today that said my visa has been granted, but not to make any travel arrangements until I receive it in the post. Hoping to arrive on the 20th! The time has gone by so fast.

Quantum - wow! Must of been a pain. I emailed the documents I downloaded from my bank and my husbands payroll website ADP and submitted those. Hope that doesn't come back to bite us....I know KFDancer mentioned the downloaded PDFs are considered original documents so I guess I'll find out if those were good enough when I get the application back.

Additionally the email from the IO working on my application only requested an email with those documents but did not specify they needed to be signed by any other parties to verify their validity.

Another person mentioned other people had just straight emailed the documents and they were fine...

Looking forward to hearing the answer! I'm sure it's good news!


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3 days since we upgraded to priority.

Nothing yet.

We got the visa!

Our timeline...

Relationship Aug 2014
Met in US Nov 2014
General Visitor Visa refusal 2nd Feb 2015
Met again in US March 2015 and got engaged
Married in US May 2015
Online application 14th July 2015
Sent priority 27th July
Sheffield acknowledgement email 28th July
Decision made email 4th August
Package received via UPS 6th August - Spouse Visa Application Successful!

30 day vignette valid from 28th August, so we have a bit of time to book flights and get things tied up in the USA.

Can't quite believe it!

Also, it is definitely worth paying for priority from the start - look how fast we had the visa issued and that was with a misdemeanor and previous visitor visa refusal!

We got the visa!

Our timeline...

Relationship Aug 2014
Met in US Nov 2014
General Visitor Visa refusal 2nd Feb 2015
Met again in US March 2015 and got engaged
Married in US May 2015
Online application 14th July 2015
Sent priority 27th July
Sheffield acknowledgement email 28th July
Decision made email 4th August
Package received via UPS 6th August - Spouse Visa Application Successful!

30 day vignette valid from 28th August, so we have a bit of time to book flights and get things tied up in the USA.

Can't quite believe it!

Also, it is definitely worth paying for priority from the start - look how fast we had the visa issued and that was with a misdemeanor and previous visitor visa refusal!

Wow! My husband and I are applying almost exactly the same except for August instead of July. Paying for priority straight away. I hope our timeline looks just like yours! Congrats!!