BlueMorpho

I might have been intended to prevent arranged marriages and the influx of those husbands and brides from India and Pakistan, but what it does is exactly what the original poster has found out- effectively exclude British Citizens who happened to have met and fallen in love with a foreigner from returning home without months of separation and or financial distress...sickening.
What's great about this forum is that at least we know we are not alone!
I am in almost exactly the same predicament as the OP. We decided as a couple, married for 17 years with an 11 year old daughter, that now is the right time to return to my country of birth. We started to look into how to do it at the beginning of this year, thinking that would give us time to sell our house (and net far more than £64k), arrange for everything we own to be shipped, to settle down in our family house (which we would start to pay the mortgage on so as to keep in the property game), and importantly for us, find a school where my daughter can get a good education (because that is not going to happen where I am now!).
Before I looked at the current laws-we'd looked a few years ago when we'd started considering a move back then- I assumed that being a Citizen, with an American wife and a child who is also a Citizen, that 8 months (ie. to arrive in the UK a few weks before school starts to get settled) would be far more than adequate to deal with matters!!!
Boy, how I was mistaken.

It is distressing, depressing, aggravating, misguided law making that catches innocent citizens in a wide net that is poorly designed to begin with. We truly are collateral damage. Dolphins in a tuna net if you will.

However, keep your chin up. Laws are made by people and can be changed, so even if right now it seems impossible, it isn't.
Good luck.

ldollard

No i really meant i didn't know what she was saying, haha

ldollard

That's scandalous

mandianna

Yes that is what the lawyer told me too it was meant to stop the influx of fake marriages from India but they find ways around it. It is very annoying especially since its MY home. Yet if my husband was Polish or Italian or any other EU he can walk right in. It is not right it makes no sense. There must be some way around it im hoping.

BlueMorpho

That is the very worst aspect, that a Polish man can bring his Thai wife into the UK and stay as long as he wants with full benefits access, whilst actual Citizens with UK passports and English speaking families, cannot.

It's also hard to talk about the situation without coming across as a xenophobic nationalist- which I'm not!

I haven't found a workaround yet and I'm not sure one exists, but in hopes, I have gotten my mother to send a letter to her local MP (who might one day be mine- though I hope not because he's a Tory ) on the off chance that he needs for political reasons in his constituency to be seen to be doing something good for a local English family in an immigration bind!

Likelihood that it will make any difference? Probably zero, but at least we are doing something. I'm not a fan of Churchill per se, but this quote sticks with me..."When you are going through hell, keep going".

iaink

Enough already. No one is coming out of this looking good IMO. Play the ball, not the man please.

mandianna

I sat and just emailed my MPs back home where my mother lives ( and I will be too) one of them must be able to suggest something.

WEBlue

There's a Parliamentary Enquiry going on -- tomorrow's unfortunately the last day, however, for submitting your evidence (31 Jan. 2013). But anyway, you can write a contribution to the enquiry. Anyone who feels the new family visa rules have impacted their life can communicate with the committee until tomorrow.

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=783744

http://www.appgmigration.org.uk/family-inquiry

BlueMorpho

I sincerely hope they can help and don't just play the "Well, if that's what the law says..."game.

Another thing we are realising is that when you talk to anyone not directly involved like friends or coworkers, none of them can really get their heads around just how ridiculous the situation really is. They can't believe that it is as hard and tortuous as it is -that I am exaggerating!

*sighs




I just saw that you'd replied WEblue (what an awesome forum feature!).
Yes, I have just received this morning my personal invitation to attend the meeting Parliament, which is very nice of them...I wonder if they'll be serving tea and biscuits?


Dear Stuart,

You are invited to attend the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Migration's first oral evidence session into the impact of the changes to the family migration rules that came into force on 9th July 2012.

The APPG Migration inquiry committee will take evidence from four witnesses, followed by a brief opportunity for contributions from the floor.


Needless to say, being that I cannot be in England for the meeting I have had to decline, but I will be following proceedings...

WEBlue

Amazing! Too bad you can't be there to contribute. Perhaps you can submit written evidence through the link anyway. Then we just have to wait & see what transpires.

Everyone who feels wronged by the new rules should submit evidence, if you haven't already. It's easy to do. Click the second link in my last post. I'll say it again -- tomorrow is the final day to submit evidence.

BlueMorpho

And send the form to all your friends and family.

This should be an emergency thread...last few hours to have your say folks!

WEBlue

I have to get get our supper going now, but if anyone wants to start a new post with the info & link, they're welcome to do it.... The more submissions of evidence to the committee showing these new rules are proving to be an undue hardship, the better.

mandianna

Thanks I wish I knew about it earlier but I just sat and typed my piece hopefully it helps....the whole things truly annoys me It makes me feel like an immigrant trying to get into my own country all over again.

Englishmum

Here is something you could try; on the UK radio station LBC 97.3FM on Thursday mornings 9am UK time, the Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg is taking calls from members of the public and it is broadcast live.

Perhaps you may think about contacting him and put him on the spot.....tell him about the scenario in your first paragraph above and ask him how that can be fair? (British expats are allowed to vote in UK elections for up to 15 years after leaving the UK, so do make it clear that you are a voter!!!)

Here's how to do it - although you will have to get up in the wee small hours to make that call lol!

http://www.lbc.co.uk/call-clegg-nick...n-on-lbc-65903

Home Page: http://www.lbc.co.uk - you can listen live at any time or listen to podcasts. People call in from all over the UK and overseas to the various presenters and the topics covered are not just relevant to issues in London.

Hope this helps.

spouse of scouse

I didn't expect to see this sort of thing on this forum. What a disappointment