Can we apply for a Spouse Visa with No Current UK address.

Ahhh. I was calculating the IHS fee as being ₤2000.  Ie. ₤400/year for 5 years.  I don’t understand your ‘3 year’ figure. I thought your choices were payments to cover 2.5 years or 5 years..?

This, plus the ₤1,523 for the enter/leave to remain fee, plus as you say about ₤100 for return postage comes to ₤3,623

I also have seen numbers of about ₤20 for a biometric enrollment, and ₤56 for the biometric residence permit, which I added totaling around ₤3,700, getting close to ₤4000. But you say the biometrics are included in the ₤1523 fee.

I also see above that you can use multiple cards. I have a UK Debit Card and UK Credit Card. Are Credit Cards OK to use..

Apart from the Snail mail from the UK taking weeks for my UK bank Statements to arrive, making them almost out of date, (nearly beyond 28 days),  for me to use as part of the Financial Requirements bundle, our main hold up problem right now is waiting for the Biometric Centre to open, before we can proceed. Currently possible from June 4th..?  In the meantime, frustration reigns, and we’re not even starting the application until these centers open.

I notice the Priority Service has also been suspended because of the Covid -19 virus. 

 

Ahhh. I was calculating the IHS fee as being ₤2000.  Ie. ₤400/year for 5 years.  I don’t understand your ‘3 year’ figure. I thought your choices were payments to cover 2.5 years or 5 years..?

You only pay the IHS fee amount to cover the length of the visa you are applying for. You don't pay the whole 5 years in one go, because your visa is only valid for 2 years and 9 months.

- The spousal visa is valid for 2 years and 9 months, but they round it up, so you have to pay for 3 years when you apply for the spousal visa... so that's £1,200.
- Then when you apply for FLR(M) after 2.5 years, you pay the IHS surcharge for that visa, which is 2.5 years x £400 = £1,000.

So, actually you pay £2,200 in total, but in 2 payments: £1200 now and £1000 in about 2.5 years.

Although they are supposed to be increasing the IHS surcharge to around £600/year in the next few months, so it will likely be more like £1500+ for your second visa.

This, plus the ₤1,523 for the enter/leave to remain fee, plus as you say about ₤100 for return postage comes to ₤3,623

£1523 (visa fee) + £1200 (IHS surcharge) + £100 (postage) = £2823

Or if you add the £573 for Priority processing (if available), it comes to £3396.

I also have seen numbers of about ₤20 for a biometric enrollment, and ₤56 for the biometric residence permit, which I added totaling around ₤3,700, getting close to ₤4000. But you say the biometrics are included in the ₤1523 fee.

No, the biometrics and the BRP are included in the visa fee. There is no extra charge for either of them.

The £20 you're seeing is for in-country applications made in the UK, so it does not apply to you.

The £56 you're seeing is for a replacement BRP if yours is lost or stolen after you have moved to the UK and you have to replace it.

Apart from the Snail mail from the UK taking weeks for my UK bank Statements to arrive, making them almost out of date, (nearly beyond 28 days),  for me to use as part of the Financial Requirements bundle, our main hold up problem right now is waiting for the Biometric Centre to open, before we can proceed. Currently possible from June 4th..?  In the meantime, frustration reigns, and we’re not even starting the application until these centers open.

Why not just do the application now and apply online before your bank statements are out of date? The date you apply online is your official application date, so your bank statements only have to be dated within 28 days of that date.

Then you would be all sorted, you wouldn't need to worry about getting more bank statements, and would just have to wait until the centres reopen so you can attend biometrics.

If we was to apply online now, while waiting for the Biometric Centre to open, and suppose the Centre is kept closed another 2 months, (its already been closed 3 months from March), wouldn’t this still hold everything up from being processed as we couldn’t post in my wife’s passport, etc; without having to go through the biometric process first, and get a document, (or receipt), from them saying she’s attended..? 

I’ve read that it can take up to 12 weeks to get a judgement on whether or not your application is OK and has passed all the requirements. Is this 12 weeks from the date you applied online or from the date they received your passport, biometric receipt, etc..?

If we was to apply online now, while waiting for the Biometric Centre to open, and suppose the Centre is kept closed another 2 months, (its already been closed 3 months from March), wouldn’t this still hold everything up from being processed as we couldn’t post in my wife’s passport, etc; without having to go through the biometric process first, and get a document, (or receipt), from them saying she’s attended..? 

Yes, but you're going to have to wait that long anyway, regardless of when you apply online... there's nothing you can do about that. What you can do though is make things easier for yourselves by applying online sooner rather than later.

If you have all your evidence ready now, and you meet the requirements now, then why not apply now and lock down your official application date (which is the date you apply online) so you're not worrying about gathering all the documents again in 2 or 3 months' time?

That way your application will be decided based on your evidence ending May 2020, and you can be confident that everything is in order now and that you have all your documents ready, without having to order next month's bank statements, then the statements for the month after, and then for the month after that. It could be a never-ending cycle of ordering more statements every month because the centres are still closed and you still haven't applied online yet.

The other thing is that because the centres have been closed since March, there will already be a backlog of people who applied in March, April and May who will also need to book their appointments... so the longer you leave it, the more people there are who will have applied before you and may end up being able to book their appointments before you can. I don't know how they will manage the booking of appointments when the centres open again, but there's a chance they may give appointment booking priority to those who applied first as they will have been waiting the longest.

I’ve read that it can take up to 12 weeks to get a judgement on whether or not your application is OK and has passed all the requirements. Is this 12 weeks from the date you applied online or from the date they received your passport, biometric receipt, etc..?

It's supposed to be 12 weeks from when you attend biometrics (you have 5 days from attending biometrics to mail your passport etc. to New York).

The customer service standards time is:
- 95% of settlement applications processed in 12 weeks
- 100% processed in 24 weeks

If priority processing is available, that can reduce the processing time by about half. Before Covid caused all the problems, priority was taking around 15-20 working days. However, we really don't know how long it will take to get back to normal once the centres reopen... there could be large backlogs that cause the processing times to go out the window.

This now begs another question, that being what happens if say we pick a moving to the UK date as being say September 1st, only to find that because of all the Covid-19 closures, we don’t get a decision until October, or a date that overruns our selected US exit date..? What will be on the Vignette. And when will we be able to go..? 

This now begs another question, that being what happens if say we pick a moving to the UK date as being say September 1st, only to find that because of all the Covid-19 closures, we don’t get a decision until October, or a date that overruns our selected US exit date..? What will be on the Vignette. And when will we be able to go..?

Nothing to worry about. Your 30-day visa vignette will simply be dated to start after the visa is issued.

The way it works is that on the application form, you will want to put the EARLIEST possible date you wish to travel. That date could be as early as say, June 1st, if you wanted.

- If your visa is processed and issued BEFORE that date has passed, it will generally be made valid for 30 days starting 7 days before the date you put

- If your visa is processed and issued AFTER the date you put, it will usually be made valid for 30 days starting 7 days after the decision is made.

So, either way, it won't be an issue. Also, if you cannot travel within the 30 days given on the vignette, you can apply for a new 30-day vignette with new dates. Normally this costs about £150, but if your visa has been issued but you cannot travel because of Covid, you can request a replacement vignette for free until the end of the year.

Frustration reigns all the more...!!!

The time its taking statements from the UK Lloyds bank account is now taking longer than the 28 day valid period, if they even turn up at all..  When you try and phone Lloyds Customer Service they not only say that there may be long waiting times because of Covid-19, but on my last two calls, they say. “Sorry we can’t help you today”.. The waiting times must be so long..?

Even the US Barclays Statements are taking for ever, My April statement hasn’t yet arrived and its now May 29th. The real frustration is I can see these missing statements as .pdf’s online and can download the .pdf’s, but yet I believe I can’t use these downloads as they are not considered original copies from the bank..??  I find this very frustrating as the paper copies we get once scanned into a .pdf file are identical to what we can see online.. I’ve even taken to photographing the envelope the paper statements arrived in, in the post, just to show that we have copied original paper statements.. 

I just wish we could use the online .pdf statements instead of having to wait for none existent paper copies coming through the post..!! 

I despair..!!

Another thing that’s concerning me is the statements that are arriving from my Barclays online Savings account, have a redacted account number on them, only showing the last 4 numbers of the account number. I’m hoping this is not going to be a problem with the Entry Clearance Officer..?

It’s the same when you view these statements online also, a redacted account number.   

I’m drafting a simple landlord’s letter of invitation for my wife, and would like any comments on whether or not I’ve missed anything out..?

Pseudo names {John Smith}, represents ME and {Jane Smith} represents my wife.

UKVI Landlords Letter example

Example Landlord’s Letter of Invitation.
***************************

{Landlord’s Name}
{Landlord's Business Name, if applicable}
{Landlord’s own or business address}
{Landlord’s phone number optional}
{Landlord’s email address}

{Date}


To The Entry Clearance Officer, or whom it may concern,

I am the landlord of {UK Rental Property Address}, which has:-

2 Bedrooms
1 Living
1 kitchen
1 Bathroom

I am currently renting out this property to {John Smith} as sole tenant, and his name appears on the Tenancy Agreement.

In due course, when {John’s} wife, {Jane Smith} gets her Visa that allows her to legally reside in the UK, she is welcome to join her husband, {John}, and live at this same rental address.

As there will only be 2 people living there, the space in this accommodation is more than adequate, and is not over-crowded.

Regards

{Landlord’s Signature}

****************************************

I need help here On Accommodation

A good friend has said he will let us stay with him when we move to the UK. His house is big enough for 3 of us to live, my friend, myself and my wife, the visa applicant without over crowding.  At the moment I have no other accommodation in the UK, and so can’t prove that I already live there.  My friend has also provided us with a copy of his deeds showing he lives at his address with his and his deceased wife’s name on the deeds. He has also provided a copy of his wife’s death certificate, and has given me a Letter of Invitation for us both to reside with him.

My friend’s brother has advised him to be careful, as he might be taking on more responsibility the he thinks..

My friend seems to think that ‘HE’ will become the Sponsor of my wife, after reading the form on this link..

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/751681/sponsorship-form.pdf

On this Home Office Link is Form SU07/12.  A Sponsorship Undertaking declaration.        (Is this relevant to my application..?)

The first line on this form states:-

“The Sponsor giving this undertaking must be resident in United KIngdom”

On this form its asking for The full postal address where the ‘Sponsored Person’ (I assume my Wife, the Visa Applicant), will be residing .. This being my UK friend’s address

It then asks for the full address of the ‘Sponsor’ I assume Myself ..  But I’m now confused. Do I put my friends address in here, this being where I shall also be residing in the UK, or my current US address..? When asking for the full sponsor’s address, it refers to a note requesting proof that he or she lives at the address, like deeds for example.

The only Proof I can muster if its ME (My wife’s Sponsor), that will be living at this address, is the letter invitation from my friend, plus his deeds and his wife’s death certificate.

This is the first time I have seen, or heard mention if this form and so I’m not sure if its relevant..?

When we apply online will this form be asked for..?

I need help here On Accommodation

A good friend has said he will let us stay with him when we move to the UK. His house is big enough for 3 of us to live, my friend, myself and my wife, the visa applicant without over crowding.  At the moment I have no other accommodation in the UK, and so can’t prove that I already live there.  My friend has also provided us with a copy of his deeds showing he lives at his address with his and his deceased wife’s name on the deeds. He has also provided a copy of his wife’s death certificate, and has given me a Letter of Invitation for us both to reside with him.

My friend’s brother has advised him to be careful, as he might be taking on more responsibility the he thinks..

My friend seems to think that ‘HE’ will become the Sponsor of my wife, after reading the form on this link..

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/751681/sponsorship-form.pdf

On this Home Office Link is Form SU07/12.  A Sponsorship Undertaking declaration.        (Is this relevant to my application..?)

The first line on this form states:-

“The Sponsor giving this undertaking must be resident in United KIngdom”

On this form its asking for The full postal address where the ‘Sponsored Person’ (I assume my Wife, the Visa Applicant), will be residing .. This being my UK friend’s address

It then asks for the full address of the ‘Sponsor’ I assume Myself ..  But I’m now confused. Do I put my friends address in here, this being where I shall also be residing in the UK, or my current US address..? When asking for the full sponsor’s address, it refers to a note requesting proof that he or she lives at the address, like deeds for example.

The only Proof I can muster if its ME (My wife’s Sponsor), that will be living at this address, is the letter invitation from my friend, plus his deeds and his wife’s death certificate.

This is the first time I have seen, or heard mention if this form and so I’m not sure if its relevant..?

When we apply online will this form be asked for..?

What you have from your friend is perfect.

SUO7 is not relevant to the spouse visa. It applies to elderly and adult dependant relative visas, a different category altogether. Tell your friend and his brother not to worry, they are not the sponsor, you are. 

Many Thanks Larrabee

So does this mean my Friend has nothing more to do towards my wife’s applicantIon, having provided:-

(1) A Letter of Invitation.
(2) A ₤3 copy of hides deeds, Not a Full Copy, but one that shows the address and his name and the name of his deceased wife.
(3) A copy of his wife’s Death Certificate.

All these 3 Documents are stored as .pdf’s

If my friend has done all he needs too, then will presenting these 3 .pdf’s as uploads when we start to apply online, fully satisfy the Accommodation Requirements..?

I must admit I was a little shocked at this ‘None Relevant’ form. But it did lead me to think will there be any other forms I should be aware of that I might be expected to be presented when we do start applying online..? In any of the requirements, as well as Accommodation..?

So does this mean my Friend has nothing more to do towards my wife’s applicantIon, having provided:-

(1) A Letter of Invitation.
(2) A ₤3 copy of hides deeds, Not a Full Copy, but one that shows the address and his name and the name of his deceased wife.
(3) A copy of his wife’s Death Certificate.

Yes, that's all he needs to do.

If my friend has done all he needs too, then will presenting these 3 .pdf’s as uploads when we start to apply online, fully satisfy the Accommodation Requirements..?

Yep.

Technically, you should have the originals of each item (i.e. he should mail them to you), but given the current situation, I would think the PDFs will be okay.

I must admit I was a little shocked at this ‘None Relevant’ form. But it did lead me to think will there be any other forms I should be aware of that I might be expected to be presented when we do start applying online..? In any of the requirements, as well as Accommodation..?

Nope, no other forms. The online application is the only form you need to complete.

The SU07 form has NEVER been required for a spousal visa. It is only relevant to applications involving adult or elderly dependents, whereby the applicant is not capable of taking care of themselves and is 100% financially and physically dependent on the sponsor (i.e. they are incapable of supporting themselves financially and they need round-the-clock care to eat, dress, wash, get around etc.).

Declaring Financial Sources.

I’m getting the impression that when disclosing your savings in your bank accounts to the Entry Clearance Officer, you have to be very clear as to the source of all deposits of cash entering your accounts. 

Just how detailed does this declaration have to be..?

I ask because the main source of my savings in my Barclays account came initially from an inheritance I received when my mother died in the UK back in early 2018.

Do I for example, need to show my mother’s will be bequeathing her estate to me, followed by the final distribution statement from the solicitor actin as executor, followed by a bank statement from UK Lloyds showing these funds going into my account, followed by a statement from the Forex company that converted the funds to dollars and moved the funds to my US Wells Fargo Bank, followed by a statement from my Barclay’s account showing these funds arriving there...!! 

Phew, talk about follow the money..

OR..  Will it be enough to make a simple statement saying...
“I inherited funds from the UK which ended up in my US Barclays account”,

Then sign the declaration..??

Is there a specific format or template for these declarations..?

We might have  hit a problem, staying with my friend, he’s worried about the Covid-19 14 day Quarentine Rule due to come in on Monday June 8th.  I get the feeling he’s concerned that if we go directly to his house, he too will be under quarentine and unable to leave his house, making him unable to walk his dog, etc, which I’m sure, isn’t the case.

In an early discussion with UK Yankee one of you advised me this, with respect to picking up the BRP card From the post office within 10 days...

**********************************
You have 30 days to move.

Your visa will be issued in 2 parts:
- 30-day vignette to enter the U.K. (start date determined by the travel date you put on the application form
- 33-month BRP card which you pick up from a U.K. Post Office within 10 days of arriving in the U.K.

**********************************

Is there any way this 10 day pickup time rule can be extended, because of this Covid-19 quarantine rule

If it turns out that we end up having to spend 14 days in quarantine in a Hotel near the UK Airport we arrive in, before we can go and join our friend, we will be nowhere near the post office where the BRP will be..?