Hi All,
I've previously posted here to answer questions about my now-wife’s visa journey.
For completeness, here are the links to the previous threads, which should provide sufficient background:
here and
here.
We were finally married in April and, after a trip to the US and a passport name change, we are ready to switch from a Tier 4 visa to the 5-year journey of FLR(M). We just want to check our documentation is in order before we submit.
PreliminariesConsent Checks - Part 1 (Her)
Consent Checks - Part 2 (Me)
Consent Checks - Part 2 (Flatmate)
US passport in old name (all pages, her)
US passport in new name (all pages, her)
BRP (both sides, her)
UK passport (all pages, me)
UK passport (photo page, flatmate)
HousingTenancy Agreement (me, her, and flatmate all named, electronic)
Council Tax Bill (me, her, and flatmate all named)
There is a section that says “If you and your partner lived with relatives of friends for some or all of the 2-year period, please provide a letter from the relative(s) and/or friend(s) confirming this.” - Is this necessary for us? We have been living with a friend, but we are all named on the tenancy agreement that we are submitting.
At some other point, it asks how much rent she pays is. Should we input the total amount for the three of us, as outlined on the tenancy agreement? Or should it be her fractional share? Likewise, when it asks for shared costs, do we put our total shares of utility bills etc.
FinancialPhD Stipend letter (stating annual amount, tax-free status, start and end dates of funding)
Bank Statement (for July 2021. showing deposit of 1/12th of annual amount)
Bank Statements for my account (dated 1 Feb - 9 Aug; requested in-branch and posted)
Bank Statements for her account (dated 1 Feb - 9 Aug; requested in-branch and posted)
Letter stating the source of funds for each of us
(Do these need to be stamped? How does the Home Office know the difference between online banking statements and those sent through the post?)
Just want to check some sums:
My stipend is £15,285pa, and paid on a tax-free basis. This reduces the required threshold to £15,800, which we are supplementing with savings. The deficit is £515, which means we need at least £17,287.50 for the past six months. Is this correct?
The lowest amount in my account is ~£12,600 and the lowest in hers is ~£7200, which totals ~£19800. Is this sufficient, or is a bigger buffer advisable?
CohabitationShe moved here at the end of August 2020, and we started living together on 30th September 2020. Given the slightly awkward length of time that we are providing correspondence for, I have included the dates of all the mail we have in the table below. I have highlighted in red the documents I was thinking of providing, and they cover at least three sources (water bill, energy bill, and council tax).
| Month | Me | Her | Joint |
| Sept ' 20 | | | 30 |
| Oct | | 28 | |
| Nov | | 5 | 3* |
| Dec | 8 | 23** | |
| Jan '21 | 15 | | 28* |
| Feb | 18, 24 | | |
| Mar | 24 | 11, 19 | 5, 22 |
| Apr | 24 | 19 | 20 |
| May | 6, 10, 24, 27 | 19 | 10, 16 |
| Jun | 9, 7, 22, 24 | 18 | 7, 21 |
| Jul | 22, 24, 26, 28 | 15, 19, 23 | 5, 15 |
| Aug | | | 7*** |
*The 3rd Nov. and 28th Jan. documents are both missing the third (of three) page. They’re both Thames Water bills and the third page in both are fairly meaningless (e.g. telling me other ways to pay). Will this need explanation? I can include a pdf of the third page in a cover letter for completeness?
**The 23rd Dec. letter for her is a Parcelforce letter - is this ok? May not need to use it but worth checking.
*** This one hasn’t arrived yet, but I am anticipating it today/tomorrow.
If we have to provide a letter stating why they are not even/why one is missing, is it as simple as a few sentences? For example, ‘We are unable to provide a document from October as we had not switched to paperless billing by that time’.
Other StuffUK marriage certificate
I think this is everything - but I’m sure there will be a follow-up question or two!
