Aquarama

Hello all

I was wondering if there is any one who could help to clarify the UK visa system for me ?

Im a British citizen living in Turkey married to a Turkish wife with a son who has a UK passport. I wish to return to the Uk with my wife as I have a job prospect there.

I assume that I’d have to go ahead of her to secure permanent rented accommodation meaning having time apart is unavoidable ?

I do meet the financial requirements however I’m sure that to be in work will also be preferable ?

I’m feeling but not sure that she should apply for the first spouse visa out side of the UK.

This being only 2.5 years will have to apply for a second spouse visa inside the UK to make up the 3 years to apply for citizenship.

It seems dumb to me that I have to buy 5 years worth of visa when you can apply for citizen ship after 3 but it seems the only way.

My only other question is let’s say I return to England, secure a job and accommodation and at this point she apply for the spouse visa that could take 3 months. Could she visit me on a tourist visa with in these 3 months with out it effecting the spouse visa application.

I’ll be truly grateful to any one who can answer some of my queries.

Michael

BritInParis

If you can arrange accommodation from Turkey or on a visit to the UK then you can move together providing you meet the financial requirements. How do you plan on doing that? You mention a job offer in the UK but are you working in Turkey at the moment?

Unless she is already resident in the UK on another visa your wife will need to apply for her spouse visa from Turkey. She cannot do so from within the UK as a visitor.

She will need five years of residence in order to be eligible for ILR. Without ILR she will not be eligible for naturalisation.

Your wife will need to submit her passport with her spouse visa application so she won't be able to travel to the UK to visit you whilst her application is in progress.

Aquarama

Dear Sir or Madam

Many thanks for your reply !

As far as I understand I need to have in place suitable accommodation in place in the UK before she submits the application. Being as there’s a three month wait I either leave this accommodation empty in the UK and return to the Turkey with my wife and once she has the visa hopefully we can move easily into accommodation.

This obviously isn’t realistic as I don’t want to pay for accommodation I’m not going to use in the UK for three months. Me staying in the UK for three months waiting for her is also not a nice option.

In the UK since I’ve lived in Turkey I’ve stayed with my brother when I returned on holiday. This is also my postal address, I wonder what would happen if I put this as our address ( we would almost certainly stay there temporarily ) however assuming we got the visa upon us returning to the Uk we would search for suitable accommodation.

What I find difficult is there must be loads of EX pats over seas who have met partners. And assuming they cannot put a hotel or gest house down as accommodation those partners must have to do what I will do and go ahead to secure accommodation so the visa process can start ?

I was wondering if we could go to England on a tourist visa and use the premium service but I’m unsure. This whole system seems corrupt as you can easily looks big money for mistakes and there’s little assistance from them.

The process of gaining citizenship is confusing !

So what I get is that she needs to be living in the UK for 5 years to qualify for an ILR, I assume the only way to do this is to apply for two spouse visas back to back. Plus have 1 year passed of that ILR before she applies for citizenship. Totalling 11 years min

What I find confusing under “ if your spouse is a British citizen “ in the gov.uk web site it states you must have lived in the UK for 3 years. But you need to have lived in the UK any for 5 years any way to get the ILR so what’s the point in them leading you to believe you can apply for citizenship in 3 ?

Any way thank you so much for your help, I’d be interested in your thoughts on the above.

Best regards from Istanbul Michael

Aquarama

🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴Sorry a few errors on my follow up mail, I meant to say easily loose you fee and inregards to getting citerzen ship I believe you need to be the UK for 6 years not 11 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴

SanDiegogirl

The first thing to figure out is under which category you can apply for the visa:

Read the following document to see how you can qualify:

https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...ment_Final.pdf

Which route you take will determine how you set up the accommodation.

IF you already have a job earning 18,600GBP per annum AND you have a job to go to in the UK also earning 18,600 GBP or above then you apply for the visa in Turkey and when issued travel over together. You could then put down your brother's house as a temporary place for accommodation for both of you.

If you have to return to the UK for a 6 month period before your wife, you could either live with brother and then when eligible to apply for visa, rent somewhere for you and wife. You can live in it until wife arrives.

Yes, your wife could visit the UK during the 6 month period, but she would have to leave the UK to apply for the visa.

Most people manage to either rent somewhere or stay with relatives or friends for the visa application.

Yes, your wife would have to live in the UK for 5 years before naturalisation.

You apply for an initial 2.5 year spouse visa, then another 2.5 visa, then Indefinite Leave to Remain, then Naturalisation. (5 years in all)

BritInParis

You don't need to pay for accommodation you can't use, you just to have it lined up. For instance if your wife lodges her application on 1 March and you indicate that your planned arrival date is 1 June and you enclose a signed tenancy agreement for a suitable property in the UK with a starting date of 1 June then that's a perfectly acceptable way to meet the accommodation requirement.

If there is sufficient space at your brother's property to accommodate your family as well as his and he's happy for you to stay there until you can sort your own accommodation then that's perfectly acceptable as well.

No, that's not possible. Short of claiming asylum or having an existing claim to citizenship by registration you cannot change your immigration status from within the UK if you have leave to enter as a visitor. Any spouse visa application you lodge from within the UK will be refused and you will lose your fee. Your wife must make her application from Turkey.

The spouse of a British citizen is still able to apply for naturalisation after three years of residence but that person must be 'settled' in the UK, that is being free of time limits on their stay in the UK, e.g. holding ILR/PR/Right of Abode.

Practically speaking this means that almost everyone will need to spend at least five years in the UK in order to gain ILR/PR. Previously the spouse visa would last for a single three year period after which you could apply for ILR. Now it's two 2.5 year visas to cut down on sham marriages. The only spouses who are now able to naturalise after three years who don't already have another route to British citizenship would be Irish citizens, who are considered 'settled' for immigration purposes as soon as they become ordinarily resident in the UK, or Commonwealth citizen women who married their British husbands before 1983 and therefore have Right of Abode in the UK.

The one remaining benefit is that someone not married to a British citizen would need to wait for an extra year after gaining ILR before they would become eligible for naturalisation, so six years in total. Spouses of British citizens can apply immediately after obtaining ILR, so only five years in total.

Aquarama

Dear Sir

Thank you so much for your help ! I was confused on a few aspect of this as you know.

Like you Suggest my new plan is to try and secure a rental contract for a future date so I can put a fixed address on the application. I still may go ahead a bit of my wife to start the new job an get settled in.

Maybe I’d set the accomidation up so I return a month before the visa compleation date.

Yes the statement that spouses of British citerzen Can apply for citerzenship after three years is very misleading if you need to to have an ILR which takes five years.

I didn’t catch that she can apply as soon as she gets that ILR though.

Ok once again thank you so much for your assistance, best regards Michael

Aquarama

Dear sir

I wonder if you know how to navigate the Gov.uk website to find more in-depth information of what living requirements I have to meet to bring my wife over. I’m sure it’s there however I cannot seem to find it. I know there’s requirements on the amount of rooms for the property etc.

Earlier in on this thread I expressed difficulty in bringing my wife over as I’m still in over seas with her. Leaving me with one option to return to secure rented property and wait three months for her to hopefully get the visa and join me. Securing a rental contract three months ahead of time and only putting a deposit down isn’t workable as most estate agents don’t wish to do this. I’m reluctant to pay for three months when I’m not in a property, this must be a common problem for those living with there wives over seas wishing to return.

This leaves me with putting a family address down and temporarily staying with them at the onset.

I hope may be you can help, many thanks Michael