Sopho

Eligibility
You must prove that you’re:

18 or over
free to give notice of marriage, to marry or enter into a civil partnership in the UK within 6 months of your arrival
in a genuine relationship
visiting the UK for less than 6 months
leaving the UK at the end of your visit
able to support yourself without working or help from public funds, or that you can be supported and housed by relatives or friends
able to meet the cost of the return or onward journey



What I'm struggling to understand (and maybe I've just been looking at too many gov.uk pages and I've confused myself), at the end of the 6 months of the visa, do we BOTH have to leave the UK, or just my non EU partner?

So he comes here, we get married in the UK, and then he leaves and we work on the next step of meeting the financial requirements of the Family Visa.

My fiance seems to think there is a benefit to us just simply marrying in Tunisia. It's one less visa sure, but I don't see how it would speed up the Family Visa process when the finances (or current lack of) will be the same wherever we marry.

I am really keen to marry in the UK with all of my friends and family around, people I know would not be able to travel to Tunisia for a wedding. He is in a different situation where he only has his father and sister. I know I am being slightly selfish in wanting to get married here and have MY people around, but we could so easily have a huge party and blessing back in Tunisia for his family and friends.

If it will make things SO MUCH EASIER getting married in Tunisia then I am willing to, but the way I understand it (am I wrong?), us already being married doesn't lessen the financial requirements of the Family Visa?

I hope this isn't too confusing, it is slightly reading it back over, but someone might understand what I'm asking. TIA.

BritInParis

Just your partner.

You wouldn't need a visa to visit Tunisia to marry but you would need a Certificate of No Impediment.

Simply getting married, whether in the UK, Tunisia or a third county, isn't going to help you meet the financial requirements. If you want to marry in the UK with your friends and family then that is what you should do but from a practical standpoint the location of your marriage is pretty irrelevant if you cannot then live together as a married couple.

Whilst the UK remains an EU member then you could marry and move together to another EU country, e.g. Ireland, without meeting any financial requirements and attempt to pursue the Surinder Singh route.

Sopho

This is basically what I thought. Getting married in Tunisia might be easier because I just need the CNI and no visa, but it doesn't affect our ability to get the Family Visa.

I have just been reading on here about the Surinder Singh route. As I understand it, once we're married we could go to Ireland or France, he would apply as a spouse of an EU resident and then we could use free movement to come back to the UK after a certain length of time? Do we have to work while we're there or just live there? I have friends we could live with in Paris for a few months, and I could maybe get a job cleaning for some of them if that's a requirement?

He would love this idea haha The financial requirement part of the FV blows his mind.

BritInParis

A couple of years ago then that would have probably been enough. The Surinder Singh route has been considered tightened since then. I would consider an English speaking country like Ireland and bet on at least six to twelve months before attempting to make an application for an EEA Family Permit for your partner. Technically you don't need to work, you could be self-sufficient or study, but I suspect that you would have to.

If you are still keen on France then you could consider working as a nanny given you have a background in childcare. I suspect your French would still need to be of a reasonable standard however.

Sopho

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but I can keep track of my own posts easier and remember what I've said previously.

So we've decided to apply for the Marriage Visitor Visa and will hopefully be able to start the application process within the next few weeks. My main questions are:

My future father-in-law is providing the funds for the 6 month trip (3000 euros, the maximum you can take out of Tunisia each year), as well as paying for the flights and the visa fees.
Is this amount likely to be deemed enough by whoever is looking at the application? He can get more money once he's here through family friends that live in Europe, but that's the amount he'll initially have. Also will it make a difference that it's a lump sum and not savings or a monthly salary?

Secondly, I have written a letter outlining our intentions to marry and inviting him to stay in the family home for the 6 months. I have an emailed receipt of our provisional booking at the local Town Hall for our civil ceremony, which I'm intending to attach with the letter. Should I get this certified? It seems relatively easy to do, but is it an unnecessary step? My fiancé mentioned about getting the letter of invitation (signed by both myself and my father as the homeowner) notarised? Again, is this necessary? Should we include some kind of proof of address/ownership? Copies of our passports? I did wonder if certified copies of our passports would be accepted with the letter as a way of verifying our signatures, without having to pay a notary?

Has anyone else done this, and how did you do it/what did you include?

Thanks in advance

BritInParis

Certification and notarisation isn't necessary providing the invitation letters are signed in ink and accompanied by copies of passports as proof of signature. You can have copies of your passports certified at the Post Office. Evidence of home ownership (land registry title deeds) is a good idea as well.

Sopho

Thanks very much, you're good at this! Glad you were able to make sense of my ramble.
Would you recommend certifying documents at the Post Office rather than getting one of the people off the .gov website to do it? We have a lot of family friends who are teachers, Councillors and even a minister so wouldn't be short of people who would do it for me.

BritInParis

Yes.