FLR(M) Questions need help

Hi all,

I’m about to apply for my FLR(M) and I hoped that you lot could answer some stupid questions and also double-check my document checklist list down the road, once the application questions below are resolved. I will put the checklist in this thread, though. (Unless you prefer I do a separate one for just the checklist).

Please bear with me as this is detailed. I arrived to live with spouse in the UK on 17 December 2017, vignette got stamped, I picked up BRP. At that time, I also moved my dog and cat and some clothes. On January 1st, I went back to the US (alone) for nearly five months in order to wrap things up at work, sell my house, and pack and ship furniture, etc. I returned to the UK for good on 6 May 2018 (after house sale). Note that my UKC spouse never lived with me in America.

My employer couldn’t find a suitable replacement and asked me to work remotely from the UK until they could find someone. Fine. A month after I got back to UK after the house sale, I flew back to the US again for 2.5 weeks for work from mid-June 2018 to 7 July 2018. Partner stayed here in UK with the furbabies.

Questions:

1.    The application asks for: 1) the amount of time I’ve lived in the UK. What is the answer? Do I count from my visa entry stamp date of 17 December 2017? I mean, that’s when my visa started. But I was here for two weeks and then went back to America for nearly five months. I am planning on applying on 17 July. Would my answer to this question be 2 years, 7 months (ie, from December arrival/vignette stamp)? Or do I count the amount of time living here from 6 May 2018 (when I returned to UK after selling house)? In that case, the answer would be 2 years, 2 months. I understand that my “residency”/visa started 17 December 2017. But that’s not necessarily what they mean by the time “lived” in the UK. Or is it? Because from 2 January 2018 to 5 May 2018, I “lived” in America to sell my house and deal with my job.

2.   The question next asks, “Have you been outside the UK since you started living here? The answer is yes—not only for my five-month sojourn to sell my house and the July 2018 work trip (both sans spouse), but we have also taken holidays together in various EU countries and one trip together to America for Thanksgiving (2018). I then have to list all of those trips outside the UK and explain where, how long and why. Will these trips be a problem? Especially my five-month house selling sojourn?

3.   For the immigration question, it asks the dates that I have lived in other countries than the UK (ie, America). What dates do I put? Birthdate to 17 December 2017 (when visa was stamped)? Or birthdate to 6 May 2018 (when I came back to UK after selling house)?

4.   Then there is the question of, “Have you lived with your partner since you were married?” If no, I must explain. I assume this answer is no because firstly, we married in June 2017 and lived separately in different countries until I arrived in December 2017. Is this correct?  Also, does my January – May 2018 sojourn back to America (sans spouse) count as “not living with my partner?” I mean, I considered the UK my home at that point, not the least because my spouse and dog and cat were in the UK! However, I was living alone for almost five months in my house in America that I owned, not in a hotel or crashing with a friend.

Regarding all of this craziness, will this initial five-month house-selling sojourn be a problem for the FLR(M)? I realise that it might mess up the ILR 60 months (unless the biometric backlog is so huge that my FLR(M) visa is issued in January)!

5.    “List shared financial responsibilities and what we pay each month.” WTF? Should I just list all the statements that are in both names, irrespective of who actually pays? I mean, some stuff is taken directly from my partner’s account and some from our joint account. But even if it comes directly from my partner’s account, my name is on the bill so I’m legally responsible, irrespective of the account it comes out of. And some things I pay for both of us with my own money but they aren’t necessarily monthly, such as groceries, car stuff, holidays, the vet bills, Netflix, theatre tickets, etc. And the amount varies for the monthly bills anyway. I cannot work out how to accurately give them this info. What do I do? Just list the joint statements and say that the amounts vary monthly so I can’t give them specific costs? They will have copies of some of the statements for the cohabitation evidence anyway.

Finally, a simpler question. I know there is a backlog for the biometric centres. Do you know if we can still book appointments to have them scan the documents? Or since Covid-19, do we need scan the stuff ourselves? (I don’t have a scanner except for my iPad and honestly, I’d rather that they do it).

Thank you in advance and thanks for ploughing through this tome!

I will put the checklist in this thread, though. (Unless you prefer I do a separate one for just the checklist).

No, it's much easier for us if you can keep all your posts about your application in one thread, so it's all in one place .

1.    The application asks for: 1) the amount of time I’ve lived in the UK. What is the answer? Do I count from my visa entry stamp date of 17 December 2017? I mean, that’s when my visa started. But I was here for two weeks and then went back to America for nearly five months. I am planning on applying on 17 July. Would my answer to this question be 2 years, 7 months (ie, from December arrival/vignette stamp)? Or do I count the amount of time living here from 6 May 2018 (when I returned to UK after selling house)? In that case, the answer would be 2 years, 2 months. I understand that my “residency”/visa started 17 December 2017. But that’s not necessarily what they mean by the time “lived” in the UK. Or is it? Because from 2 January 2018 to 5 May 2018, I “lived” in America to sell my house and deal with my job.

You moved to the UK on 17th December 2017 and were temporarily visiting the US between January and July.

So, you have lived in the UK for 2 years and 7 months.

2.   The question next asks, “Have you been outside the UK since you started living here? The answer is yes—not only for my five-month sojourn to sell my house and the July 2018 work trip (both sans spouse), but we have also taken holidays together in various EU countries and one trip together to America for Thanksgiving (2018). I then have to list all of those trips outside the UK and explain where, how long and why. Will these trips be a problem? Especially my five-month house selling sojourn?

You list every single trip. They will not be a problem - just explain the reasons why you returned to the US.

You only have to show evidence of living with your spouse from July 2018 to July 2020, so those first few months don't matter too much.

3.   For the immigration question, it asks the dates that I have lived in other countries than the UK (ie, America). What dates do I put? Birthdate to 17 December 2017 (when visa was stamped)? Or birthdate to 6 May 2018 (when I came back to UK after selling house)?

You put Birthdate to 17th December 2017.

4.   Then there is the question of, “Have you lived with your partner since you were married?” If no, I must explain. I assume this answer is no because firstly, we married in June 2017 and lived separately in different countries until I arrived in December 2017. Is this correct?  Also, does my January – May 2018 sojourn back to America (sans spouse) count as “not living with my partner?” I mean, I considered the UK my home at that point, not the least because my spouse and dog and cat were in the UK! However, I was living alone for almost five months in my house in America that I owned, not in a hotel or crashing with a friend.

The times you did not live with your husband were:
- June to December 2017
- Jan to May 2018

So, you put No and explain why you didn't live together during those periods (you have valid reasons and you HAVE lived together for the last 2 years, so it won't be an issue).

Regarding all of this craziness, will this initial five-month house-selling sojourn be a problem for the FLR(M)? I realise that it might mess up the ILR 60 months (unless the biometric backlog is so huge that my FLR(M) visa is issued in January)!

It won't mess anything up.

Your 60 months to ILR started on 17th December 2017 and ends on 17th December 2022. It doesn't matter when your FLR(M) is issued, because you will continue to be legally resident in the UK while it is processing. It may just mean you have several months leeway after December 2022 to apply for ILR.

5.    “List shared financial responsibilities and what we pay each month.” WTF? Should I just list all the statements that are in both names, irrespective of who actually pays? I mean, some stuff is taken directly from my partner’s account and some from our joint account. But even if it comes directly from my partner’s account, my name is on the bill so I’m legally responsible, irrespective of the account it comes out of. And some things I pay for both of us with my own money but they aren’t necessarily monthly, such as groceries, car stuff, holidays, the vet bills, Netflix, theatre tickets, etc. And the amount varies for the monthly bills anyway. I cannot work out how to accurately give them this info. What do I do? Just list the joint statements and say that the amounts vary monthly so I can’t give them specific costs? They will have copies of some of the statements for the cohabitation evidence anyway.

There's no right or wrong answer to this and you do not need to provide any evidence for it - so it doesn't really matter how you answer. Just be honest.

I tend to think of 'joint responsibilities' as being things you are both legally responsible for paying (where both your names are on a binding contract), such as a mortgage or other type of loan.

However, most people consider them to be things like rent and bills - the expenses they both contribute to each month.

So, just answer how you feel best describes your personal situation. If you both pay rent and bills and it's asking for a monthly amount, just put an estimate or an average.

Finally, a simpler question. I know there is a backlog for the biometric centres. Do you know if we can still book appointments to have them scan the documents? Or since Covid-19, do we need scan the stuff ourselves? (I don’t have a scanner except for my iPad and honestly, I’d rather that they do it).

No, you cannot book any appointments for anything at the moment - the extra services can only be selected when you book your appointment. You will be told when you are allowed to book an appointment.

If you want to scan everything yourselves, you can start doing when you register with the UKVCAS website, and you can start uploading right away, before you book your appointment... but you have until the day of your appointment to do it.

If you want to pay for the scanning service, you will have to wait until you are allowed to book an appointment and then add the scanning service to your booking (or book an Enhanced appointment that includes it).

Omg, ksand24, you are a rock star! Thank you! I feel so much better. I will put my dates as December 2017, when my visa started and then list and explain my absences from the UK. Would it be worth summarizing this US sojourn in a covering letter?  Is that why they ask to see both passports and stamps? To see who was where?

I will put the checklist here when I’ve got it. 😀

Just thought of something else—do I need to provide my old (expired in 2013) passport again like I did for the initial visa application? I mean, I’ve never used it while on this visa as it expired four years before my UK residency. They already saw it the first time.

Regarding the question about whether you and your spouse can live in your home country, I’m tempted to say no. I read that US immigration has frozen all visas due to Covid. (We don’t want to move to the US anyway). My huge fear is this FLR(M) will be denied and I will have to go back and restart my life, move the fur babies again, and do the visa process in reverse over there. Aargh!

Thanks again!

Omg, ksand24, you are a rock star! Thank you! I feel so much better. I will put my dates as December 2017, when my visa started and then list and explain my absences from the UK. Would it be worth summarizing this US sojourn in a covering letter? 

If it asks you to explain on the application form, then you don't need to explain it in a letter as well.

Is that why they ask to see both passports and stamps? To see who was where?

Maybe? I didn't think they looked at the stamps, but maybe they do.

Just thought of something else—do I need to provide my old (expired in 2013) passport again like I did for the initial visa application? I mean, I’ve never used it while on this visa as it expired four years before my UK residency. They already saw it the first time.

You only need to provide passports that you have held since you arrived in December 2017.

Regarding the question about whether you and your spouse can live in your home country, I’m tempted to say no. I read that US immigration has frozen all visas due to Covid. (We don’t want to move to the US anyway). My huge fear is this FLR(M) will be denied and I will have to go back and restart my life, move the fur babies again, and do the visa process in reverse over there. Aargh!

Your answer must be YES... because your spouse CAN live in the US.

Non-US spouses of US citizens ARE allowed to enter the US right now - they are exempt from the travel ban.

Also spousal visas are not included in the list of visa types that are not being granted anyway (only work visas have been affected). So, if your visa was refused, your spouse could always travel back to the US with you, even if it's just as a visitor, and he could still apply for a spousal visa to move to the US... because although US visa processing has been suspended for now because of Covid, that doesn't mean he can't still apply for one (same as with UK visa applications)... it just means it wouldn't be processed until the embassies start processing them again (same as with FLR(M) applications).

Valid reasons for saying 'No' to this question are:
- your lives will be in danger if you had to return to the US, because of war, famine, natural disasters or terrorism (Covid wouldn't count because it's a global pandemic and not specific to the US)
- you have no living relatives and no support system in the US, meaning you would be left homeless with no money or means if you were forced to return
- your UK spouse has been banned from entering the US forever, due to criminal convictions, bad immigration history, or medical conditions that make him ineligible for a visa and therefore it is physically impossible for him to ever live there with you.

Thank you! I will be so happy when this is done.

Hi again,

I have given myself a deadline of 17 July to submit the application. Could you look over the checklist of stuff I have gathered and let me know if it is correct and complete?

Additionally, partner transferred to a new role in November with a salary increase. Then received another pay rise in January or February (checking on the exact date). Irrespective of the recent promotions, role changes, etc., the salary has always exceeded the minimum threshold, including in the original role with the firm ten years ago. Do I need to submit more than six month’s salary evidence due to the role change/increase if the old salary met the requirement and was with the same firm? All the roles have been on a permanent basis and the promotion letter states that the original job contract from ten years ago still applies.

The documents I have are as follows:

Application documents

*Applicant’s US passport (scan all pages)
*Applicant’s BRP card
*Sponsor’s UK passport (scan all pages)

English language requirement

Applicant’s US passport

Financial documents

*Letter from Sponsor’s HR providing: Sponsor’s current job title, current salary and length of time earning it, length of time with firm, prior role and salary (promotion recent but old salary met the financial requirement too), type of employment and the letter also authenticates the payslips and P60 (because we are not using the originals—am using electronic printouts).

*Payslips showing more than 1,550 pounds before tax. Payslips dated as:
   20 December 2019
   24 January 2020
   28 February 2020
   25 March 2020
   24 April 2020
   22 May 2020
   25 June 2020

*6 months of original bank statements showing deposit of each payslip (27 December 2019 to 26 June 2020).

*P60 for 2019/2020
*Original employment contract
*Original Letter reflecting recent role transfer and new salary

Accommodation documents

*Land registry documents in Sponsor’s name
*Council tax bill in both names dated March 2020
*Mortgage payoff letter from bank

Relationship documents

*Original marriage certificate

Items of joint correspondence as follows:

July 2018—Electric bill in both names
November 2018—Barclays bank statement in both names
March 2019—Council tax bill in both names
July 2019—Gas bill in both names or NHS letter to me and TV license to sponsor
November 2019—Barclays bank statement in both names
March 2020—Council tax bill in both names
July 2020—Probably electric bill in both names. Or Barclays bank statement in both names. Haven’t received anything for July yet.

The only other thing for me is explaining my ancient speeding tickets in America, so I will draft a covering letter and also include the relevant driving records. Nothing has changed from the last application but I noticed that this one also asks for driving penalties again. I am planning to copy what I wrote the last time. Thank goodness I have a copy of that last visa application!

Thank you so very much!

Help with checklist and payslip question please. ^^^^ Don’t want to start new thread for my FLR(M) app.   

Additionally, partner transferred to a new role in November with a salary increase. Then received another pay rise in January or February (checking on the exact date). Irrespective of the recent promotions, role changes, etc., the salary has always exceeded the minimum threshold, including in the original role with the firm ten years ago. Do I need to submit more than six month’s salary evidence due to the role change/increase if the old salary met the requirement and was with the same firm? All the roles have been on a permanent basis and the promotion letter states that the original job contract from ten years ago still applies.

No, you only need to submit 6 months of evidence because he has been with the same company for more than 6 months.

In regards to meeting the income requirement, only his lowest payslip from the last 6 months will be considered - they will multiply the lowest payslip by 12 to get the annual income - as long as this payslip is at least £1,550 before tax, the requirement will be met.

Your documents look pretty good, however, just one concern about the bank statements:

*Payslips showing more than 1,550 pounds before tax. Payslips dated as:
   20 December 2019
   24 January 2020
   28 February 2020
   25 March 2020
   24 April 2020
   22 May 2020
   25 June 2020

*6 months of original bank statements showing deposit of each payslip (27 December 2019 to 26 June 2020).

The bank statements must cover every single day that the payslips cover... so since the first payslip is dated 20th December, the bank statements must also cover back to 20th December, not 27th Decemember.

Also, at the moment, the bank statements do not quite meet the requirement because they are 1 day short of 6 months... so you need an additional bank statement that explicitly covers December 20-26th.

The only other thing for me is explaining my ancient speeding tickets in America, so I will draft a covering letter and also include the relevant driving records. Nothing has changed from the last application but I noticed that this one also asks for driving penalties again. I am planning to copy what I wrote the last time. Thank goodness I have a copy of that last visa application!

If you are listing them on the application form and including your driving records, do you actually need a cover letter as well?

Fabulous, ksand24, I will include another bank statement covering those dates. I didn’t even clock that. You are a lifesaver! Thank you!

I hear you about the letter. It’s just that I have to submit my driving record and the problem with that is....six months before I moved here I was hit by a negligent driver and injured. Although I was not at fault and the other driver was charged and at fault for everything, lovely Virginia lists all accidents resulting in injury and vehicle damage above $2k on driving records—regardless of fault. (Most states don’t do this. They only record actual driver fault). There is a tiny disclaimer stating that the appearance of the accident on the record does not mean the record holder was at fault but....I don’t want to chance that an overworked or tired immigration officer doesn’t clock that fine print. From what I recall from the last application, there was not a lot of space for explanation on the online form, it was really glitchy. So I just thought I’d summarize in a brief letter (verbatim from my last application)