1st visa ... have I got it right?

Hi all ...

I have floated around on the site today as a guest double checking what I thought I already knew but now I'm confused.. maybe one of you can you help to unmuddle me please.

I am a born and bred UK citizen working full time my partner is an American citizen who after spending 6 months here with me has decided he would like to make this a permanent home as I have a 15 yr old child from a previous relationship who is still in school, house, job, pets, family etc etc... just makes more sense for him to come to the UK than for me to go to America..

Now I thought we had the process sorted out, but on reading the forums I'm beginning to doubt myself, as I understand it he has to return to America to start the formal process of coming here as a fiancée, I work full time earning enough (with contractual out of hours bonus) to meet the £18600 financial req.

He needs to apply for a visa using the VAF4A family settlement visa form online under appendix 2?

We also have to fill out the financial requirement form.. because I will be his sponsor do I do this or does he fill this out online also? If he fills this out do I need to do the sponsorship undertaking also?

I read on one of the posts that I may need to include my child's birth certificate, presumably to prove that she is also a British citizen and not counted in the additional financial req.?

I can provide payslips and bank statements, pics and logs on chat/phone calls etc but cannot prove intent to marry as we cannot give notice without the correct visa and the place we would like to get married only offers a 2 week reservation and clearly we will not have the visa in that time frame and difficult to book somewhere if we don't know when the visa will be granted etc, how do we prove that without those things?

My house is a council rented house, I can show the original tenancy agreement which shows how many people can live within the property, will this be enough or do I also need to include a letter from the landlord? Do I even need to provide that as its a 2 bedroom property with one child's room and our shared bedroom?

Is there anything that I am missing? Have I forgotten anything or misunderstood anything? sometimes I think the more you read the more confusing it gets so any advice would be very much appreciated

Welcome to the forum .

Now I thought we had the process sorted out, but on reading the forums I'm beginning to doubt myself, as I understand it he has to return to America to start the formal process of coming here as a fiancée, I work full time earning enough (with contractual out of hours bonus) to meet the £18600 financial req.

There are a couple of options.

He could do the fiance visa to marry in the UK, but he wouldn't be allowed to work or use the NHS until after you are married and have applied for the FLR(M) visa for him to stay.

Or you could fly to the US too, get married there, and then apply for a spousal visa for him, which would allow him to work and use the NHS immediately.

He needs to apply for a visa using the VAF4A family settlement visa form online under appendix 2?

He fills out two forms:
- online application (this should be the last thing he does when he's completely ready to apply)
- VAF4a Appendix 2

We also have to fill out the financial requirement form.. because I will be his sponsor do I do this or does he fill this out online also? If he fills this out do I need to do the sponsorship undertaking also?

He prints and fills out VAF4a Appendix 2 himself. However, it will ask for your details, so he will need those.

The Sponsorship Undertaking form is not required for a fiance or spousal visa, so you DO NOT fill it out.

I read on one of the posts that I may need to include my child's birth certificate, presumably to prove that she is also a British citizen and not counted in the additional financial req.?

No, you do not need to include any childrens' birth certificates for this visa.

It will be required for the next visa though, FLR(M).

I can provide payslips and bank statements, pics and logs on chat/phone calls etc but cannot prove intent to marry as we cannot give notice without the correct visa and the place we would like to get married only offers a 2 week reservation and clearly we will not have the visa in that time frame and difficult to book somewhere if we don't know when the visa will be granted etc, how do we prove that without those things?

All you need for intend to marry is an email chain from the registry office/church enquiring about possible ceremony dates.

You can also include things like pictures of the rings/dress etc.

My house is a council rented house, I can show the original tenancy agreement which shows how many people can live within the property, will this be enough or do I also need to include a letter from the landlord? Do I even need to provide that as its a 2 bedroom property with one child's room and our shared bedroom?

You must provide a letter from the landlord explicitly giving permission for him to live in the property with you... you have to prove that he, personally, has permission to live in a UK property.

Thank you for the amazingly quick reply! But it has prompted more questions

We had considered me going there to get married but its not really feasible and we wouldn't save anything thing financially by the time wed spent on 2 lots of airfares (for me and my child) a wedding etc.. although I do understand it can essentially speed parts of the process up...

But you mentioned he needs to do 2 forms, online application and VAF4A appendix 2, does this mean we do NOT need to complete the financial requirement form? or is that appendix 2 and he will have an additional online form to do?

Once hes done the forms online he needs to print them out and take with him t o any interview correct? However on both the VAF4A form and financial forms it states "The Home Office may take a decision on your application based on the information contained here without interviewing you." So is it likely to be approved without an interview? if not transport will be difficult within the US (he doesn't have any) will the interview be held in a local place or will he have to travel 100s of miles, when in the US he resides around Shreveport area and the only centre we can find online appears to be in New Orleans... 600 miles away!

In terms of the wedding everything has been on the phone or in person.,. guess I didn't think about the paper trail.. oops! is it too late to get that information in email now?

In the meantime if I need to get a letter from the landlord and work, is the date important? Can I get it today for an application made in 2 months? Or do I need to wait?

Do I have to send all the info, letters, payslips,. bank statements in original formats to the US for him to send off? take to the interview with him?

See too much reading! Im just really nervous this will all go a lil pear shaped


PS sorry have no clue how to quote from your reply!

There's no interview.  He sends all of his (and your) documents to Sheffield after the application is submitted and biometrics are enrolled.

I have no idea what document you are referring to as the financial requirement form, but you are likely calling Appendix 2 that?  Just a guess.  You need the application and appendix 2.

Get a paper trail for the wedding now.  It's required for a fiancé visa.

I personally would recommend having the landlord letter dated within 28 days of the application, just as the financial documents, but it is not specifically stated.

Yes, you send all ORIGINAL documents to him to complete his application.  Send via FedEx, UPS, or DHL.  Do not use Royal Mail or Parcel Froce.

Thank you again for the quick replies!
And yes I will get on that paper trail for the wedding as soon as I get home this evening, confirming the conversations we've had, including meetings etc . Will also wait to speak  to the landlord aswell then till we know the date we will apply.
 
And yes I think the financial form is the appendix 2 ... just personally always referred to it as the financial form that you show how you meet the financial element of the application with.

If there is no interview though, when, where and how are the biometrics done? Are they always needed?

And yes I think the financial form is the appendix 2 ... just personally always referred to it as the financial form that you show how you meet the financial element of the application with.

It's not just the financial element on the form though - Appendix 2 is the second half of the application form and contains questions on how you meet ALL of the visa requirements:

- your relationship history
- your UK accommodation
- the financial requirement category you are applying under.

If there is no interview though, when, where and how are the biometrics done? Are they always needed?

Yes, they are needed for every single visa application you ever make.

They are done by US immigration at a USCIS office on behalf of UKVI. It's just a quick 5-10 minutes to take your fingerprints and photo.

If there is no interview though, when, where and how are the biometrics done? Are they always needed?

Biometrics in the US are done at USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) offices.

I think this is a complete list of the USCIS offices:
https://www.uscis.gov/about-us/find-uscis-office/field-offices

I had to travel about 125 miles to get to my biometrics appointment. Once you're there, it only takes about 20 minutes. They're just taking fingerprints and a photo. Most of the time was spent waiting. It's just a part of the process - nothing to stress about.

Biometrics are required for each application. Applications from the US are done at USCIS offices. Applications from within the UK are done at post offices (only some do biometrics) or at in-person appointments.

Thank you for the replies .. and yes this is the form im thinking of ksand24

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/270484/VAF4A-Appendix2.pdf


And can I just say Holy Moly Travellingfrog!!
 
Thank you for the link ... it confirms what I suspected but that means a 400 mile trek (I just put it into google to find out exactly how far!)for a 20 min appointment to get finger prints and pics done :-/ and with no transport that could be an issue.. even getting to and from airports will be tricky (and expensive) ... eeeps I was sure there would be somewhere more local

so with the biometrics , once you've had it done do you send off the paperwork with your application ?

Yes, you have 5 days to get everything in the mail after biometrics.  So be sure to not hit submit until AFTER he has every last document in his hands!