Harpers

So my wife and I are moving back to England this summer from the US.

I am a British citizen and she is US citizen, and we have lived here in the US for just over 5 years. She is a math teacher and is currently going through the process of finding a job as a teacher in England to sponsor her for the Tier 2 Visa.

My question is:
If we are in the UK and she is on a Tier 2 Visa can we then switch to a spouse visa after a certain amount of time? If so, how long would we have to wait to switch?

Thanks for any input.

BritInParis

Yes, you can switch at any time once you meet the financial requirements. Do you not meet them now?

Harpers

Thanks,

I do meet the requirements on this end, but finding a job there for my wife seems like the easiest option right now as she's a math teacher and they're on the shortage list. Not sure how easy it would be for me to find one that earns enough ahead of actually moving back there.

So if we move there on Tier 2 and then a year later decide to switch to a spouse visa, is it correct that we can use both incomes for the requirement?

I plan to find a good job once there so this hopefully won't matter, just checking to be safe.

BritInParis

You can do that but I suspect her employer won’t be particularly impressed if they’re shelled out for a 3-5 year Tier 2 visa. Switching also resets her clock towards ILR. Something to bear in mind.

SanDiegogirl

..... and who knows how long its going to take to get a job and the visa.? ....

Moving to the UK by summer 2020 might be somewhat optimistic .....

If you already meet the financial requirements, by paying for priority service the whole process could take around 2 months........

Pulaski

Things don't always work out in practice how they "seem" in theory.