AlisonWonderland

Hi all,

OH (US Citizen by birth) and I (British Citizen by birth) are only at the very start of our visa journey, deciding which way to proceed after a long distance relationship. I have been on sabbatical from my employer (of 10 years) for the past 8 months which has enabled OH and I to spend time "living" together in the States. I am currently in the US on an ESTA and will stay here before I return to work in the UK on 1st Feb 2019.

Our plan is to marry and settle in the UK, and we would like to do it in as short a time as possible. From the research that I have done to date we seem to have the following options available... But I have a a few points I'm hoping to clarify for each.

(Disclaimer: I have put these in order of preference, rather than practicality..!)

1) We get married here in the US asap and then apply for a spouse visa for him.

• This would be our preferred option, to enable to him to work in the UK as soon as possible. However, we are aware that he would have to stay in the US for an undefined amount of time whilst processing...
• As I have been on an unpaid sabbatical I don't have payslips from the past 6 months to prove my income. Although I will return to work on the same salary (well above the required minimum) and with the same employment conditions as when my sabbatical started, am I right in thinking that this wouldn't be sufficient so I would also need cash savings to sponsor him?
• OH will have income from the rental of his US property - can this be counted?
• I own my UK property (where we will live) outright, would this be considered as a financial asset in any way?

2) We apply for a family visa with him as my fiancé, and then apply for leave to remain as my spouse after we marry in the UK.

• As above... I think?

3) We get married here in the US and he comes to the UK for <6 months as a tourist. He then returns to the US to submit a spouse visa application.

• (I am aware that this option would give me the required payslips for a spouse visa)
• A subjective question I know, but would we be likely to run into any problems with OH coming to the UK as a tourist even though we are married? He can prove ties to the US - property owner, has 2 children that will be staying here, and he is technically employed here too (long story) - and they would be able to see that he has only had short visits to the UK previously. He would probably only stay for a max of 3 months before coming back to the States to visit his children anyway - so he would be arriving in possession of a return ticket as well.
• Would a longer (but legal) stay in the UK have any bearing on the spouse visa application?

So I guess I'm just after some opinions/advice regarding the above - and if there are any other options available to us (at this stage we do not want to settle in the US).

We would much rather elope than have a fancy wedding (plus it saves the "which country do we have it in" question) so as an aside, would this been seen in a negative light - as we have 3 years of evidence and passport stamps to prove we are in a bona fide relationship..?!

Hope I have given enough information without waffling too much!

BritInParis

Getting married in the US before you return in February is a bit of a no-brainer, particularly if you wish to elope anyway. You will need six months of payslips so the earliest you could lodge a spouse application would be August (unless your fiancé is receiving £18,600+ pa in rent). If your fiancé wishes to visit you during this six month period then he’s free to do so. As a US citizen he can request Leave to Enter as a visitor for up to six months at the UK border. Obviously if his wife is in the UK then he’ll need to be able to demonstrate other ties to the US. A return ticket will be important. If questioned more closely I would explain the situation and that he will be returning to the US as he knows he needs to do so in order to apply for his spouse visa.

AlisonWonderland

Thought I would update this thread with a question, rather than start a new one...

For info - I returned to work in the UK in February and we married in New Orleans in April. We now have the required 6 months of payslips and are gathering our documents ready for applying for his visa.

My question is with regards to submitting all of our documents and evidence. As my husband is currently here in the UK, does he need to take everything back to the States with him, to then post back over here - or can he courier his passport to me and I can submit it all from here?



(As an aside, my husband has been in and out of the UK 3 times since our wedding and has thankfully never had any issues at the border.)

BritInParis

He should take it all back with him.

sine

Hey there,

I just wanted to check in on this thread as our situations appear quite similar. I wondered if you had any updates, and whether you have filed for the visa yet? My American husband is visiting me in the UK at the moment for a few months and will head back close to my 6 months of payslips to file. I'd be curious to hear your experiences thus far :-)