FLR (M) questions/checks

Hello everyone
Happy Bank Holiday, VE and American Mother’s Day weekend! Hope everyone is doing well. Its that time again for visa stuff "Yay!"  haha.

So background info first:

• BRP expires 29th of June
• With my employment (been there since July 2018) I satisfy the minimum financial requirement, but we get a 1% wage increase at the beginning of each year so I might not have been earning the same salary for the last six months. Also, I get paid every 28th of the month. Payslips reflect this date only.
• No kids, or previous marriages.
• Husband owns the house we live in and only he is named on the registry and mortgage.

Right, so first, I was thinking I was going to try to apply ~May20th as it would mean I could use my April payslip and bank statement. I realise if I wait any longer then Id have to include the May one but that would have to be until after the first week of June as don’t receive bank statement until then.

Now for my questions:

• Is my ability to work affected by a pending visa? Because of centres being shut and all that, who knows when my visa will be approved/renewed. Will I still have a right to work or would I be in some sort of limbo?
• At work I go by E Gomez DauXXX (my husbands last name, family thought having an English last name would help me) but my legal name is E Gomez, so everything else is under  E Gomez, except of course payslips, contract, i.e. anything work related. Is this going to be a problem?
• Pay slips are emailed to my work email every month as a PDF. They include all the usual tax breakdowns plus: the company name and logo, home address, salary, pay date (usually the 28th of MMM YYYY), my work name. Do I need a further letter from employer stating they are genuine? Seem pretty genuine to me. One note, the bank statements will mostly reflect the 28th from payslips, except when the 28th lands on a weekend, then it shows up on the statement as 27th or 29th. The other time this is an issue is in December when the payslip will say 28th but we get paid before we break for Christmas holiday, so this last year it shows up on the 23rd. Will I have to explain this discrepancy?

Correspondence

• If I apply this month am I required to produce mail from May ‘18-May ‘20 or can it be, say, April ’18 to April ’20? I ask because even though I thought I was on all the bills and thought they were proper paper statements, that is not the case . So depending on what we’ve got, Im exploring other possibilities, such as April to April or even March to March.
• Is it possible to use the same bank statements/council tax bills I use for financial/accommodation proof as correspondence proof?
• We have a joint bank account with Halifax, and to be honest, I have no idea why I never thought it strange we never got paper statements to the house. But no mind, that’s now in the past and we have now rectified this for ILR. But I was wondering, if we order paper copies of some of our past bank statements, which would include both our names, address and month, would these be acceptable as proof of living together?
• In terms of sources, I know there should be a minimum of 3 different sources but what if say, there are 4 or 5 gas bills (source 1) which have both our names on it, plus one or 2 months where he has an electric bill (source 2) in his name and I have a bank statement (source 3) in my name. Would that be acceptable?
• Lastly, my name was misspelled on the council tax bill until it was recently fixed in April. I know I know, I am drowning in shame.  I don’t know how I let all this slip by me. I was content with letting Hubby handle the bills and look where that got me. Anyways, I will be more involved now, which is great for ILR but not for right now. So, is my misspelled name in previous bills going to be a problem?

   
That’s all my questions for now. Im sorry there are so many. My hubby says im freaking myself out but Im putting my mind at ease. Ive been reading some of the others posts so Im trying to stay up to date.

Thank you everyone for all the support you give 

Hey there,

Right, so first, I was thinking I was going to try to apply ~May20th as it would mean I could use my April payslip and bank statement. I realise if I wait any longer then Id have to include the May one but that would have to be until after the first week of June as don’t receive bank statement until then.

You can always just get the bank to print you a partial statement showing the May payslip deposit, so you don’t have to wait for the official bank statement.

Now for my questions:

• Is my ability to work affected by a pending visa? Because of centres being shut and all that, who knows when my visa will be approved/renewed. Will I still have a right to work or would I be in some sort of limbo?

Nope, as long as your online application is submitted before your current visa expires, your immigration status is not affected and your right to live and work in the U.K. will be automatically extended under 3C Leave while you are waiting for your visa to be processed.

• At work I go by E Gomez DauXXX (my husbands last name, family thought having an English last name would help me) but my legal name is E Gomez, so everything else is under  E Gomez, except of course payslips, contract, i.e. anything work related. Is this going to be a problem?

No, it won’t be an issue - you will provide your marriage certificate so they will see you are the same person.

You might just want to include a note explaining the reason for the different name though.

• Pay slips are emailed to my work email every month as a PDF. They include all the usual tax breakdowns plus: the company name and logo, home address, salary, pay date (usually the 28th of MMM YYYY), my work name. Do I need a further letter from employer stating they are genuine? Seem pretty genuine to me.

Yes, you do. If payslips are issued electronically, they MUST be accompanied by a letter from the employer, on company letterhead and signed by a senior official, confirming the authenticity of each one.

This can be combined with the mandatory employer letter so you only need to provide 1 letter covering both.

One note, the bank statements will mostly reflect the 28th from payslips, except when the 28th lands on a weekend, then it shows up on the statement as 27th or 29th. The other time this is an issue is in December when the payslip will say 28th but we get paid before we break for Christmas holiday, so this last year it shows up on the 23rd. Will I have to explain this discrepancy?[/li]
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Yes, any discrepancies must be explained in the letter confirming the payslips.

The visa can be refused if they are not explained.

Correspondence

• If I apply this month am I required to produce mail from May ‘18-May ‘20 or can it be, say, April ’18 to April ’20? I ask because even though I thought I was on all the bills and thought they were proper paper statements, that is not the case . So depending on what we’ve got, Im exploring other possibilities, such as April to April or even March to March.

You’d probably be okay using April to April but March to March is probably too far from your application date.

• Is it possible to use the same bank statements/council tax bills I use for financial/accommodation proof as correspondence proof?

Yes, you would just upload them twice - once in each relevant section.

• We have a joint bank account with Halifax, and to be honest, I have no idea why I never thought it strange we never got paper statements to the house. But no mind, that’s now in the past and we have now rectified this for ILR. But I was wondering, if we order paper copies of some of our past bank statements, which would include both our names, address and month, would these be acceptable as proof of living together?

No, you cannot use back-dated statements as the whole point is to prove they were physically delivered to your house in the months they were issued.

If you order them now, they will only count for mail that you received in May 2020.

• In terms of sources, I know there should be a minimum of 3 different sources but what if say, there are 4 or 5 gas bills (source 1) which have both our names on it, plus one or 2 months where he has an electric bill (source 2) in his name and I have a bank statement (source 3) in my name. Would that be acceptable?

Yes. That’s fine.

• Lastly, my name was misspelled on the council tax bill until it was recently fixed in April. I know I know, I am drowning in shame.  I don’t know how I let all this slip by me. I was content with letting Hubby handle the bills and look where that got me. Anyways, I will be more involved now, which is great for ILR but not for right now. So, is my misspelled name in previous bills going to be a problem?

   

Nope. Not a problem.


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Thank you Ksand24!

Did not know about partial bank statements. Will have to remember that.

It is such a relief to read your response! We have some bits of mail that fits much better with April to April, except for April 2018 where we have a council tax bill that for some reason instead of coming in April like the rest, came March 19th! (Please tell me this works ) But as a back up Ive got a P60 from April 2018, though not sure it is acceptable because it isnt actually dated, simply states "p60 end of Year certificate, tax year to April 5th". Failing that, I have a payslip from the local pub I used to work at dated in April with my name and address. Though not sure if it would have to be authenticated to count as correspondence proof.  And it wouldnt have been delivered to the house because we would just pick up our wages on Sundays.

Im pretty sure this is fine but just double checking. Does it matter if some bits of mail state Mr. J Smith and Miss J Doe? Without the full names and for some ridiculous reason stating "Miss"? Our joint bank has J  Smith and J Doe, and council tax bill has Mr John Smith and Miss Jane Doe  Really need to call all these companies and sort it all out for the future.

Ill send an email to HR at work tomorrow letting them know Ill need a very detailed letter from them. 

As Im going along collecting the bits of evidence needed, Im sure Ill come up with some more questions but for now....goodnight!

thanks again! 

Im pretty sure this is fine but just double checking. Does it matter if some bits of mail state Mr. J Smith and Miss J Doe? Without the full names and for some ridiculous reason stating "Miss"? Our joint bank has J  Smith and J Doe, and council tax bill has Mr John Smith and Miss Jane Doe  Really need to call all these companies and sort it all out for the future.

That's fine.

Thank You Larrabee!

I am currently waiting for HR to give me my letter and authenticated payslips tomorrow.

My employer asked me who and where the letter should be addressed to. Any ideas?

I was wondering. When they ask for the last six months of payslips and bank statements. Is it 6 months from the date of application? Or from my last payslip? For example, I got paid last on the 28th of April. Six months before that would be October 28th. But if its from date of application, lets say May 20th, and I provided my bank statement covering Nov 02 2019-Nov 29 2019, then Nov 2 to May 20, is six months right?

My dear hubby is curious how the agent reviewing my application will know if something was mailed to me or simply printed off (when it doesnt have anything saying it had obviously been printed in a different month). Probably because I keep chewing his head off whenever he supplies me with a bit of "mail" that doesnt have a crease on it. See below for further context. I think hed like to have a legitimate answer instead of my "because it has to!" 

Right. I am planning on applying this week and need to go through my checklist. I have

~Both our passports

Financial requirements.
~Applicant payslips from April 2020-October 2019
~Applicant bank statements covering October 02 2019 to May 02 2020
~Applicant latest P60
~Letter when I got my latest pay rise (applicant)
(will get letter from my employer confirming salary, employment etc. this week)

Accommodation requirement
~Latest mortgage statement in sponsors name
~Land registry in sponsors name (we have a letter and a little booklet. Not sure which one is correct)
~Latest Council tax bill (in both our names)

Relationship requirement
~marriage certificate
~2 years worth of correspondence
           April 2020-Council tax bill in both names (source 1)

           December 2019- Gas Bill In both names (source 2)

           August 2019-Gas bill

           April 2019-Gas bill

           December 2018-Applicant Bank statement (Source 3)
                                       -Sponsor electric bill (Source 4)

           August 2018-Joint Bank account statement (Source 5)

           April 2018 - Now here is the tricky one. These are our options:
                                             ~Electric bill from diff company than 12/2018 in Sponsor name
                                             ~Credit card account terms, 9 pages worth in Sponsor Name
                                             ~Wage slip from pub I used to work at (applicant)
                                             ~ p60 from pub, stating "this is a printed copy of a eP60, Tax year to April 5th 2018"
                       OR
                    Council tax bill in both names dated March 19 2018
The issue I have with the electric bill is there is no crease, so we cant remember if it was a printed bill or posted. All we know is that we had it in our little documents box. The wage and p60 of mine I would pick up from the pub whenever I next had a shift. They've got my name and address but were never actually posted because I lived 5 mins walk from the pub. What do you guys think I could use?

I think those are it? Am I missing something?

Thank you all again! Im feeling quite nervous!

Hello everyone, I know there isn’t a response to my previous message yet but I’ve spoken with the HR lady from my employer and she wrote in her letter that I got paid on the 24th of December because she checked with payroll and that’s when they say we were paid but it shows up on the 21st in my bank statement. She had to specifically come in to the office today to do this for me so if I need any changes made I’d have to let her know while she is still here.

On that note, she also signed and stamped all my printed payslips but she didn’t state in the letter that they are genuine.

Should I get both of these fixed?


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Hello everyone, I know there isn’t a response to my previous message yet but I’ve spoken with the HR lady from my employer and she wrote in her letter that I got paid on the 24th of December because she checked with payroll and that’s when they say we were paid but it shows up on the 21st in my bank statement. She had to specifically come in to the office today to do this for me so if I need any changes made I’d have to let her know while she is still here.

On that note, she also signed and stamped all my printed payslips but she didn’t state in the letter that they are genuine.

Should I get both of these fixed?

Yes, they need to be fixed.

Payslips should NOT be stamped or signed (though it doesn't matter if they are) but they MUST be accompanied by a letter stating that they are genuine.

So, the letter needs to state that the payslips are genuine, and for each payslip, it should list:
- payslip date (i.e. Dec 24th)
- pay period
- gross pay
- net pay
- date pay deposited into bank account (i.e. Dec 21st)
- an explanation of why the payslip date is different from the bank deposit date

Thank you!

She fixed the letter and I now have it with me.

Ive started the application. It is so different. Its interesting. I saw that I could include in the beginning any other names Im known by so I explained there about my added married surname for work.

I did have some questions though:
They ask when did my current visa start and end. The end is obvious because its on my BRP but the start.... Is that from when it was approved which the BRP states end of September, or is it from the date my little vignette is stamped on my passport. Basically the day I entered the country?


When they ask "Have you been out of the UK since you started living here?" do they mean for vacation or to live? Because Ive visited my family in the states a couple times and have taken weekend trips to Europe. Been out of the UK a total of 6 times I think.

This is as far as ive gotten on my application 

I did have some questions though:
They ask when did my current visa start and end. The end is obvious because its on my BRP but the start.... Is that from when it was approved which the BRP states end of September, or is it from the date my little vignette is stamped on my passport. Basically the day I entered the country?

Your visa start and end dates are printed on your BRP.

When they ask "Have you been out of the UK since you started living here?" do they mean for vacation or to live? Because Ive visited my family in the states a couple times and have taken weekend trips to Europe. Been out of the UK a total of 6 times I think.

They mean ANY trip outside the UK since you moved here.

So, that could be anything from a day trip to France to a proper vacation, to living in another country. I believe you will need to list every trip you have made outside the country in the last 2.5 years.

Thank you Ksand! I put all that in. Ive got past the financial and accommodation questions. Im on the section "documents". I can post some of the guidance they give while going along filling out the application if it helps anyone.

So far I like that its online, at the bottom of the page it lets you see all your previous answers and go back and review/change any really quickly. I forgot how detailed the questions are and how many! I feel like they ask me the same question a dozen times, probably just to see if Ill answer differently.

One thing I did find a bit sombre is that they ask things like "if you were refused, would it affect any of your family" or "where would you go if you were refused", or "is there anything keeping you from settling there if you were refused". I understand that they need to take that into consideration, but if feels an awful lot like they are wondering how easy it would be to refuse someone. Have there been any instances where they refuse an applicant, hence forcing the partner (British or European citizen) to move with the applicant to another country? Is that a possibility now that the UK is moving towards a point-based system of immigration? Where they might refuse a spouse or fiance, and would rather lose the citizen (or resident) partner to a different nation.

Anyways, Im just babbling now. A sign I must take a pause from the application and go to bed!

Like always,
thanks yall! 

One thing I did find a bit sombre is that they ask things like "if you were refused, would it affect any of your family" or "where would you go if you were refused", or "is there anything keeping you from settling there if you were refused". I understand that they need to take that into consideration, but if feels an awful lot like they are wondering how easy it would be to refuse someone. Have there been any instances where they refuse an applicant, hence forcing the partner (British or European citizen) to move with the applicant to another country? Is that a possibility now that the UK is moving towards a point-based system of immigration? Where they might refuse a spouse or fiance, and would rather lose the citizen (or resident) partner to a different nation.

Don’t read too much into that question - they only put it in there because it is now a legal requirement.

Your answer is ONLY considered if you don’t meet the requirements and visa falls for refusal... this means they have to consider your application under Article 8: Right to Family Life in the UK, where they look at all your ties to your home country to see if you could safely return to live there, or if your only option is to stay in the UK- in which case you may be granted leave outside the rules on the 10-year path to ILR.

So, now, instead of contacting you later to ask these questions, they put them on the application form so they already have them.

I believe the approval rate for FLR is something like 90-95% so it’s rare for a visa to be refused.


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Thank you Ksand. That is very reassuring.

I am officially at the checking of documents section of the application. I was wondering if any one could take a quick look at my correspondence  and bank statement/Payslip evidence. Im still unsure about the bits of mail from April 2018. Not sure which will be the best to use.

Your visa start and end dates are printed on your BRP.

They mean ANY trip outside the UK since you moved here.

So, that could be anything from a day trip to France to a proper vacation, to living in another country. I believe you will need to list every trip you have made outside the country in the last 2.5 years.

Hi, currently going through the application and got to this
 "Since you started living in the UK have you spent time outside the UK?
Do not include holidays of 2 weeks or less. Include any periods of time you have spent on the Isle of Man, Jersey or Guernsey." 
I have made several trips since being here but none of them exceeding 2 weeks...I hadn't listed them out because they are less than 2 weeks but having read this thread am now second guessing myself.

Hi, currently going through the application and got to this
 "Since you started living in the UK have you spent time outside the UK?
Do not include holidays of 2 weeks or less. Include any periods of time you have spent on the Isle of Man, Jersey or Guernsey." 
I have made several trips since being here but none of them exceeding 2 weeks...I hadn't listed them out because they are less than 2 weeks but having read this thread am now second guessing myself.

No, if it tells you not to include trips of less than 2 weeks, then don't include them. This must be a new update to the form.

I can't access the form, so I have to rely on people who are filling it out to tell me what it says.

I'm pretty sure that the '2 weeks or less' statement must be a new addition, because as far as I remember, others applying in the last few months have been required to list every single trip, no matter the length.

The form seems to have been all over the place with the trips outside the UK in recent years.
- the old paper FLR(M) form (mid-2018) only wanted you to list absences of 6 months or more
- the late-2018 online form wanted you to list ALL absences, regardless of length
- but now, in May 2020, it looks like they only want you to list absences of 2 weeks or more.

Hi, currently going through the application and got to this
 "Since you started living in the UK have you spent time outside the UK?
Do not include holidays of 2 weeks or less. Include any periods of time you have spent on the Isle of Man, Jersey or Guernsey." 
I have made several trips since being here but none of them exceeding 2 weeks...I hadn't listed them out because they are less than 2 weeks but having read this thread am now second guessing myself.

Hello PASomerset!, How strange. Ive just gone back to see exactly what my question said and it states only, "Have you been out of the UK since you started living here?" Thats it. A yes or no question. I put yes because I have been out, and the next page all it says is "You will be able to enter additional time outside the UK after you select 'Save and continue'." with space below to provide date left, date returned and reason for absence.

Are we doing the same visa application? Perhaps they change the questions depending on previous answers or different visas? An application which adapts to different circumstances?

Mine didnt say anything about two weeks or less so I did include all my short weekend getaways. Who knows.