felipefm

good evening everyone. I'm Felipe, I'm applying for a settlement/family visa with my partner Ian, he's from the UK, Birmingham. We've met during my time studying there one year ago and now we're applying for a family spouse visa. After a very silly attempt to apply for a refused marriage visitor visa, as we intended to get married and I'd be back to Brazil to finish my PhD and later on this year we would be applying for the settlement visa, we are now doing so with the help of a lawyer. I did apply yesterday in São Paulo but the VFS agency who intermediates the visa application, said it was uncommon for the applicant to apply only the cover letter and other few documents the solicitor sent me, as they were now scanning everything (proof of relationship, finances, etc.) at the time of the appointment. I then postponed to the next day to get advice from the solicitor and she said I could go on as planned, that the rest of the documents (it was more than 600 pages, with originals and copies within) would be sent to Sheffield's visa application center to be analysed with no problems. I did that the next day and the agency took the application but insisted that was not advised. Even with the solicitor's reassurance, I'm still a little bit insecure with the whole thing, so if anyone has any experience with such matter or knew of someone who went through the same process, I'd love to hear from you. thanks!

BritInParis

600 pages sounds absolutely ridiculous. What exactly have you applied for? Are you now married?

felipefm

it was even more ridiculous to get all of that done haha but it has proof of relationship and lots of other documents as finances from both of us, bookings from places we've been, etc. only whatsapp, skype and email logs were over 400 pages. I've applied for a settlement visa, as a spouse. the visa gives us 6 months to be married in the UK (where the preparations are already made with the home office) and then we proceed, with the marriage certificate, to the settled visa.

BritInParis

So a fiancé visa? In that case it's even more ridiculous to be sending that much. Who exactly is sending all this to Sheffield?

felipefm

fiancé and spouse visa, as I understood on the gov.uk website and from the solicitor, all those docs are for the second part which is when you get married. the first visa we tried, the marriage visitor, was actually quite simple and had little documentation but we cocked it up because of one silly document that was missing. the law firm in Coventry separated all the documentation and my partner sent it as advised by the solicitor.

BritInParis

The second part is effectively a rubber stamping process - the Home Office is not going give you a fiancé visa if they think the relationship is a sham. All you really need to add is your marriage certificate and some updated financial documents. You don't need reams of relationship evidence if you've just married in the UK. Are you planning to apply for the spouse visa by post or in person?

felipefm

hello. no, no, sorry I must have come across incorrectly. this visa would allow us to get married in the UK and then get the settlement visa, it's a two step visa. we were not married there as my student visa wouldn't allow at the time. I've already applied in person, yesterday, from Brazil!

BritInParis

Yes, I understand that, you have applied for a fiancé visa and after you are married in the UK you will be lodging a spouse visa. What I'm asking is whether you'll be applying for your spouse visa by post or in person?

felipefm

I did applied yesterday, in person, through the VFS agency in Brazil.