fiend

Our FLM(R) visa has been granted. Below is the document list that we sent.

We complete the application online then, posted the application via Royal Mail special delivery. Biometrics were complete the same day as the application was posted.

We did not include any return postage for our passports/documents.
They were returned via Royal Mail 2nd Class Recorded Delivery.
The Biometric Residence Permit was delivered by DX Courier.

After posting the application we realised we had forgotten to include 3 documents. I have detailed this at the bottom.

Document List

Missing Documents

We also forgot to include 3 documents:

We realised the day after posting the application that we forgot to include the above documents. We wrote a cover letter and included the missing documents, then posted the letter to same address as we sent the main application. We also sent a Change of Circumstances form with the cover letter and missing documents to a different address.

The documents were all received and added to our application.

Application Timeline

Country applied from: UK
Visa Type: FLR (M) Online Application

This table shows the spread of our "6 Items of Correspodence":



The process of completing the application and gathering all the documents was very stressful and took a lot longer than expected.

Feel free to ask any questions!

swilliams1

Dear fiend,

Thanks for the informative post. I have a few questions as we will be in a similar position. My wife is starting a new self-employed job which should allow her to easily meet the £18,600 threshold next tax year but not this tax year as up until now her pay has been low.

Her visa is valid to 07/06/2020 however we would have to use her earnings from April 2019 - April 2020. I'm concerned this might be a tight squeeze for our application.

Am I right in thinking we can submit our tax return immediately after the end of the tax year - so eg April 7th 2020 and that the process is pretty much instant? Do we need to wait for the documents (Self-Assessment Tax Return and Statement of Account) to be posted to us or is it all online and we print it out?

Were you able to use online bank statements or do these need to be originals received by post - as this may be another source of a potential delay?

Lastly, I'm not clear on what the following is 'Unaudited accounts for the last full financial year with accountant’s certificate of confirmation' - both the unaudited accounts part (ie how is that different to the Self-Assessment return) and what a 'certificate of confirmation' is.

Thanks

fiend

Yes, you can submit your tax return as soon as the tax year ends. You don't have to pay the tax/NIC (if any) until January and July.

You will be able to download copies of your Self-Assesment return and Statement of Account through the HMRC website. These are usually available within 4 days.

The visa guidelines state you can use online bank statements but they must be stamped by the bank or include a letter of authenticity. You will find that no bank will stamp bank statements that have been printed outside of the branch. As the bank cannot guarantee those statements are genuine.

I requested original bank statments to be posted to me. These covered the tax year and 3 months after the tax year as proof of on-going trading as self-employed. They took between 7-10 days to arrive.

This is required for the financial section of the visa.

It is to confirm that the information you submitted for your tax return is genuine. An account will confirm this by looking at your accounts.

This can take time for an accountant to produce depending how busy they are. It can be difficult to find an accountant who will write one of these for you, if you have submitted your own tax return. I would recommened contacting accountants, to dicuss this, a few months before the end of the tax year. The accountant must be a member of a recognised body e.g.Insitute of Chartered Accountants.

The cost can be between £150-350. This can also be added as an expensve on your return.

swilliams1

Thanks for the reply - that's very reassuring. So even though our timing will be tight, it seems like it will be doable.

If we pay the tax due immediately - as I'm guessing that will provide a better impression for the Visa application? - would that cause any delays?

So the two HMRC documents we need we print out ourselves?

I have an accountant and am in touch with him at the moment - I'm trying to get clear on all the requirements so he's aware of what's needed to get it all done in time. It sounds like if he has all the relevant information and is prepared, then we could get it all done in the timeframe.

Thanks again for the info - I might pop back with a question or two if that's ok

fiend

Razia

Hi, not sure if I'm posting in the right section and if anyone can help. I'm self employed and a director of a limited company. One of the question on FLR M form asks what is the income for self employment . My self employment income shows income from April 2017- april 2018 but my financial year for my business is November 2017- December 2018. Do I need to clarify this when i send my evidence?

Sharn

fiend