last minute questions & final document checklist

That’s true


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I like to think of it less as complaining and more like constructive criticism!


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@ksand24 I have read on the forum that no one should enter the UK via Ireland. I'm assuming that's to do with Brexit. When my husband and I went to visit Dublin back in April we had to go through customs flying from Glasgow to Dublin but then when we flew back from Dublin to Glasgow we did not have to go through customs. So my question is… Is it OK to enter the UK via Paris or Amsterdam or some other EU city as long as it’s not in Ireland?

@ksand24 I have read on the forum that no one should enter the UK via Ireland. I'm assuming that's to do with Brexit. When my husband and I went to visit Dublin back in April we had to go through customs flying from Glasgow to Dublin but then when we flew back from Dublin to Glasgow we did not have to go through customs. So my question is… Is it OK to enter the UK via Paris or Amsterdam or some other EU city as long as it’s not in Ireland?

It's not to do with Brexit. It's because you would be coming in through the common travel area and would thus not receive a stamp in your passport. This stamp is really important because all your subsequent timings rely on it.
You can enter through anywhere else, including mainland Europe. And not entering via Ireland only applies to the first visit with the new visa. 

Okay, that's weird - I wrote a whole reply to your question above and posted it through Tapatalk a few minutes ago, and it doesn't appear to have been sent at all!

@ksand24 I have read on the forum that no one should enter the UK via Ireland. I'm assuming that's to do with Brexit. When my husband and I went to visit Dublin back in April we had to go through customs flying from Glasgow to Dublin but then when we flew back from Dublin to Glasgow we did not have to go through customs. So my question is… Is it OK to enter the UK via Paris or Amsterdam or some other EU city as long as it’s not in Ireland?

It has nothing to do with Brexit. It's because the UK and Ireland form part of the Common Travel Area (CTA) and therefore there are no immigration controls between the two.

When you first enter the UK on your visa, it needs to be stamped by UK immigration to 'activate' it and to show what date you entered the UK, so you can prove when you qualify to apply for FLR(M) and ILR, and also to be allowed to pick up your BRP.

However, if you enter through Ireland, you will only go through Irish immigration and not UK immigration... which means your passport will not be stamped (it is illegal for UK immigration to stamp it if you entered through Ireland), which means you won't be able to get your BRP...which would then mean you'd have to leave the UK again right away and enter through another country (i.e. a channel hop to France) to get the stamp in your passport.

Therefore, you must make sure you do not enter through Ireland on your first entry with the spousal visa (other entries after that are fine). You can enter through ANY other country in the world, except Ireland.

Great, thank you! Was looking at flights because I plan to use Skymiles to get over there once I have the visa. Looks as though flying through Amsterdam will be the best route when the time comes.

@ksand24 If I put down Dec 28th as my desired entry date and just got my decision made email today, what is the likely date of entry they will give me if I'm approved? I'm hoping they don't back date it that far so I can fly out on Jan 30th.

@ksand24 If I put down Dec 28th as my desired entry date and just got my decision made email today, what is the likely date of entry they will give me if I'm approved? I'm hoping they don't back date it that far so I can fly out on Jan 30th.

Sorry to but in, but this may help. They didn’t back date my visa, in fact, they made it valid nearly two weeks past the decision date. I requested December 20, they decided December 27 and my vignette is valid starting January 11


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Sorry to but in, but this may help. They didn’t back date my visa, in fact, they made it valid nearly two weeks past the decision date. I requested December 20, they decided December 27 and my vignette is valid starting January 11


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Yeah, this is what usually happens.

If the requested date has passed before the decision is made, it will usually be made valid starting about a week or so after the visa is approved.

I’ve never heard of them backdating and starting a visa before the date of the decision.


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Sorry to but in, but this may help. They didn’t back date my visa, in fact, they made it valid nearly two weeks past the decision date. I requested December 20, they decided December 27 and my vignette is valid starting January 11


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Cool. I saw someone who was approved last week and they backdated hers to Dec 27. Was hoping that wouldn't happen cause I booked a flight for Jan 30th. I used miles, so it'll only be a $150 change fee if they back date it, but that's $150 I really can't afford right now...

Cool. I saw someone who was approved last week and they backdated hers to Dec 27.

That’s odd - in my 12 years in the forum I have never heard of a visa being backdated.

It could have been that a decision was made on or before the 27th but she didn’t get the decision made email until last week (was she applying from the US?)... sometimes it can happen that there’s a gap of a couple of weeks between the visa being decided and issued and the communication getting to you.


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That’s odd - in my 12 years in the forum I have never heard of a visa being backdated.

It could have been that a decision was made on or before the 27th but she didn’t get the decision made email until last week (was she applying from the US?)... sometimes it can happen that there’s a gap of a couple of weeks between the visa being decided and issued and the communication getting to you.


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She did the self upload. Uploaded her docs on 19/11, pPassport, etc delivered to NYC on 26/11, decision made email 31/12 and received passport back 2/1. Her vignette was dated for 27/12 which is what she put on her application.

She did the self upload. Uploaded her docs on 19/11, pPassport, etc delivered to NYC on 26/11, decision made email 31/12 and received passport back 2/1. Her vignette was dated for 27/12 which is what she put on her application.

Interesting - we’ll have to keep an eye on issue dates... because if this is happening, that may affect the advice we give.

Having said that, there still could have been a delay between the visa being issued and the decision made email being sent. Or the start date could have been a mistake and they should have issued it starting later.

We have even seen some people have a decision made, but then for some reason they don’t receive their passport back for several weeks, and their vignette expired before they even received it!



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Interesting - we’ll have to keep an eye on issue dates... because if this is happening, that may affect the advice we give.

Having said that, there still could have been a delay between the visa being issued and the decision made email being sent. Or the start date could have been a mistake and they should have issued it starting later.

We have even seen some people have a decision made, but then for some reason they don’t receive their passport back for several weeks, and their vignette expired before they even received it!



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[bquote] Well mine is scheduled to arrive this Morning so I'll let you know!

Interesting - we’ll have to keep an eye on issue dates... because if this is happening, that may affect the advice we give.

Having said that, there still could have been a delay between the visa being issued and the decision made email being sent. Or the start date could have been a mistake and they should have issued it starting later.

We have even seen some people have a decision made, but then for some reason they don’t receive their passport back for several weeks, and their vignette expired before they even received it!



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Just got my packet back and they dated the vignette for Jan 14

Just got my packet back and they dated the vignette for Jan 14

Congrats  , so they dated it ahead a bit, but it still works for you to fly on the 30th yay