Questions About Financial and Relationship Evidence

Okay, should we also take chat conversations? The reason I ask is that we don't have access to our chat history from when we first started talking to each other online (we used to use MSN exclusively  for the first year and a bit and then it was taken off line and there's no way to retrieve those chats).

Sorry I'm just so scared that we are going to be refused.   

You're not going to be refused. If it helps, FLR(M) visas have approximately a 95% approval rate.

In 2017, there were a total of 39,251 FLR(M) partner applications lodged and 37,303 of them were approved (95% approval rate). In the first 6 months of 2018, 21,049 applications were made and 19,924 of them were approved (95% approval rate). In regards to applicants from the US, in 2017, 7,697 applications for leave to remain were made by US applicants (in all categories - work, study and family/partner), 3,181 of which were FLR(M) family/partner applications. Of those 7,697 applications only 339 were refused (giving a 96% approval rate for US applicants).

Just take what you have for the relationship, and don't worry about the rest... after all, you can't provide something you don't have anymore.

The most important part of the relationship evidence is your correspondence showing you've been living together. Anything else is an added extra/bonus to strengthen the correspondence evidence and show you have been in a relationship for longer than you have been living together.

Thanks ksand, really appreciate all the feedback.

I was just reading through the new application form and it explicitly states that they don't want chat convos/pictures or phone logs. Then it goes on to contradict itself by asking for evidence of how you stay in contact with one another if you've been living separately .... 

Thanks ksand, really appreciate all the feedback.

I was just reading through the new application form and it explicitly states that they don't want chat convos/pictures or phone logs. Then it goes on to contradict itself by asking for evidence of how you stay in contact with one another if you've been living separately .... 

Yes, exactly - there are contradictions all over the place!

Generally, for FLR(M) you only need to include the correspondence items showing you live together... however, usually, people applying for FLR(M) are extending a fiancé or spousal visa, so they will have already proven their relationship for their current visa (using chats, phone calls, messages etc.).

In your case, because this is the first time you are applying for a settlement visa, and you are in the UK on a Tier 5 Visa, we just recommend including the other things to show that the relationship was subsisting before you moved in together.

Note that there is no official requirement to actually provide things like messages and chats for FLR(M), because the correspondence documents are provided instead... we are just recommending including them as well, to cover the rest of your relationship because of your Tier 5 Visa (as they need to weed out people who have entered a sham marriage for the sole purpose of being able to get a visa to stay).


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Yeah, the entire process is just convoluted and confusing. We've decided to include the flight and hotel confirmations and photos of us as additional evidence anyway.

How should we put our documents in order for the appointment? I don't want to get it wrong. Lol

How should we put our documents in order for the appointment? I don't want to get it wrong. Lol

My advice: stop worrying about doing things wrong - there's no real right or wrong here .

Just put everything in a sensible order and take it to the appointment. If they need to rearrange it, they will.

For example:
- Applicant documents
- Sponsor's documents
- Financial documents
- Accommodation documents
- Relationship documents

Alrightie, thanks so much for all the help. 

I feel horrible for asking so many questions but should I include a letter stating that we haven't lived together for the full 2 years?

And how many chat screen shots should I include?

I feel horrible for asking so many questions but should I include a letter stating that we haven't lived together for the full 2 years?

As you are switching from a Tier 5 visa, there is no requirement to have lived together for 2 years.

The correspondence documents guidance just states:

Six items of correspondence addressed to you and your partner at the same address as evidence that you have been living together since your last grant of leave in this category, or from the date you first started living together up to a maximum of two years

So, you only need to include an explanation if you cannot provide 6 documents in each name covering the time you have lived together.

And how many chat screen shots should I include?

You don't want to include ANY chat content at all; just a list of names dates and times pasted into a Word document.

You don't want more than 1-2 pages in total, so just select a few messages spread over the time between entering your relationship and moving in together.

Alrightie, thanks ksand. So how would I do that exactly? Wouldn't it look fraudulent if it's just copy and pasted names and dates and times?

It’s fine. It’s what everyone else has been doing for years, and no one has ever had their visa refused.

Here’s an example of a few months’ worth of Facebook messages (from my FB, so where I’ve blanked out the names in red, you would just keep them in):


Remember, this is not a requirement for FLR(M), and you are only providing it ‘just in case’. They may not even look at it.



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Thanks a lot for all your help!

We just spoke to someone at UKVI and he was incredibly rude and unprofessional to say the least.

He initally suggested that we fill in the new form, when I told him that it was only for people requesting a fee waiver he seemed surprised. Then he said we had to fill out the online form and didn't understand that we had already paid for our appointment a month in advance before the rules changed.

He gave us the email for online support and said that this is what the HO has told them to do...

I'm so confused, our appointment is tomorrow and it's unlikely we'd get a reply from the email until a long time after.

We just spoke to someone at UKVI and he was incredibly rude and unprofessional to say the least.

He initally suggested that we fill in the new form, when I told him that it was only for people requesting a fee waiver he seemed surprised. Then he said we had to fill out the online form and didn't understand that we had already paid for our appointment a month in advance before the rules changed.

He gave us the email for online support and said that this is what the HO has told them to do...

I'm so confused, our appointment is tomorrow and it's unlikely we'd get a reply from the email until a long time after.

Forget that call. Stick to the original plan, you will be fine!   

Seriously, don't worry about it. You booked your appointment under the old system, so just take what you have and explain when you get there. I imagine everyone applying at in person appointments this month is in the same boat and so they will likely be prepared for you to have the paper form.

Also, NEVER call the UKVI helpline.

They don't know what they are talking about and are known for giving incorrect and bad advice (including telling people to apply for visas they don't even qualify for!). I doubt they even know what the situation is with the new forms.

Honestly, the best thing to do now is to put your application to one side and do something else today.