Frad

Hi Guys

Congratulations

I am new to this Forum thing!

My self and my Girlfriend (an Aussie) have just started the spouse visa
process. I was hoping you may be able to help out, when filling the 47p did you put down any minor cautions from years back.
Notice you mention OH's conviction, how did you approach this with the application? Sorry to be so direct.

Also your cover letter is great.

Regards

Frad

flodsfive

[QUOTE=Frad;6627603]Hi Guys

Congratulations

I am new to this Forum thing!

My self and my Girlfriend (an Aussie) have just started the spouse visa
process. I was hoping you may be able to help out, when filling the 47p did you put down any minor cautions from years back.
Notice you mention OH's conviction, how did you approach this with the application? Sorry to be so direct.

Also your cover letter is great.

Regards

Hello Frad


Do not know if this will help, but if you send of your police check early, it will come to you so you will see what remains on your record.

you have to have your visa within a year of your police check and validated the visa.

Hope this helps

Frad

Hey

Thanks for for your help.

have a good weekend

Frad

dance123

Brilliant news. Good luck!

londonmike

Good luck. Do drop me a line if we can be of any help.
My partner finally submitted her (front loaded) application, it arrived on 22nd July, a phonecall came on the 1st August, and half an hour later she got an email saying the visa had been granted!
To be honest, it probably took them the best part of a week to read through all our stat decs - mine was five pages long alone!
Melbourne here we come!!

londonmike

We included two pages of colour copies of photos (4 photos per page).
My stat dec. as sponsor also included about five photos embedded in the document. ;-)

Bernieboy

Congrats mate,we got our spouse visa on friday and it too didnt take too long,only 8 bloody weeks But hey ho there you go,good luck

Frad

That's great.

Did you send certified copies of all your documents (like rental agreements, bank statements, insurances) or just standard photocopies? We are planning to get certified copies of passports and birth certificates but weren't sure if we need to certify everything else we send. Also, do you have any recommendations on where to get documents certified (preferably around South London)?

londonmike

Hi,
No didn't certify *everything*, just official docs like birth/marriage certs., and two years worth of payslips.
Other supporting docs like rental agreements were just photocopies, likewise the five bank statements we sent etc.
Any solicitor will certify documents, its not usually necessary to make an appointment, but most will charge around £5 per certified copy(!).

Good luck, let us know how you get on!

Frad

Cheers mate! Thanks for your quick reply...we've just spent the day going through stuff.


Another quick one - did you have to fill out the Form 80 (there are so many conflicting things about whether we should fill it out initially or wait til they ask)?

Will let you know how we get on.

clbmanc

I submitted my application last week and chanced my luck without form 80 mainly due to the fact that I travel so much and it would be a nightmare to fill in. Just got an e-mail allocating me a case officer and asking for form 80! Most people seem to get asked for it if they don't include it in their initial application.
Best get to work trying to remember all my trips abroad...

OzTennis

A few questions (doing a spouse visa application for OH, me Aussie and Brit, she Brit, we're living in Scotland now going back to Melbourne eventually, hoping to get the visa before later on in the year when we'll visit Melbourne which could also take care of the validation bit):

1 I've got details of the nearest panel doctor and radiology unit and will be phoning to make appointments tomorrow. I'm told you get the X-Ray first and collect it and take it to the doctor for the medical. Correct?

2 We're going to front end load or whatever it is called so what forms do we take to the X-Ray and the medical? I've downloaded Forms 26 and 169. Are these the ones to be filled in and taken or something else? Presumably if you go this way you don't have to advise AHC in London, you just get them done and the doctor will send them before we lodge the application (?) Do you need a referral from your GP or can you just get an appointment direct?

3 Police check. Do I just 'front' up to the local police station and ask for the appropriate form? I've downloaded Form 1101 already, is this used?

4 Certified copies - is there a 'pro forma' your solicitor, schoolteacher or whatever can use to say that these are certified copies of originals or do they just make and sign a statement to that effect?

5 Statutory Declarations. I'm a bit confused here I must admit. Do we have to get any 2 Australian citizens to vouch that they have known me and OH for X years, blah, blah, blah or does it have to be 2 Australian citizens who are on the approved list for making SD's i.e. solicitor, doctor, full-time schoolteacher etc.

6 Passport. May sound silly be do you have to send OH's British Passport or just a photocopy of the photo page? Reason is we are planning a holiday on the continent in a month or so and would need the passport for that. I'm hoping they ask for the passport after the visa is approved for a stamp or is it all done electronically and they don't need to sight the passport at all?

Ours will be an absolute doddle because we've been married for decades, have property and bank accounts in Melbourne, lots of evidence going back decades of joint bank accounts, joint ownership of property etc, etc. We're probably talking a few weeks at most after application, meds and police checks are all received aren't we?

Thanks in advance for any help on these points.

OzTennis

medon

Hi,

I had my medical first then got the x-ray but then had to take the x-ray back to the medical centre, so yeah I would get the x-ray first! In australia you have to get the x-ray first, but here it doesn't matter, it just makes more sense to get the x-ray first. But they only last for a year so if you're not going to apply for a while I would maybe wait until closer to the time. You need forms 26 and 160 and remember you need to attach a passport size photo on each. You just make the appointments yourself, don't need a referral. The doctor sends in the results, you don't need to warn them they're coming, they just keep them on file until they get the application. But make sure you ask the doctor to send them to the same office that you will be applying to.

For the police check here is the link for the form you need - http://www.acpo.police.uk/certificates.asp
You send it away, no need to go into a police station.

Certified copies - I went to a Justice of the peace and they knew what to write. (eg I certify this to be a true copy of ....) and my friend got hers done by a different person and they had the wording slightly different. I don't know about school teachers certifying, I am attaching the info I got about who can sign.

For the stat decs, you need two friends/family (australian citizens if you can) who have known you as a couple, not people from the list. But you need to sign the declarations in front of one of the people from the list.

Hope that answers some of your questions!

londonmike

My OH just phoned up the panel doctor and made an appointment. I went with her while she had her medical and bloods done, and then we were directed to the X-Ray venue (again near/on Harley Street). Both meds and X-Rays were sent direct to the commission by motorcycle courier several weeks later on the same day as the visa application arrived.

Our local police station directed us to a website. It's all applied for online nowadays.

Our local solicitor just stamped each photocopy with a stamp they had and then scribbled a sig. beside each one. Each stamp/sig cost us a fiver. No appointment necessary.

We just got two aussies (husband and wife) thast we knew to complete an 888 each. They have pretty standard non-approved occupations.
We then also had about five non-Oz mates, and parents complete a stat dec, each (which wasn't subsequently certified). We also provided our own stat decs which were approx 3 pages of A4 each (!)

My OH was only asked for her passport after her visa was granted. It was returned less than four days later with the visa inside..


I think that's a fair estimate, but don't count your chickens!

OzTennis

Many thanks for those replies guys, very helpful.

We are planning on visiting Melbourne, late Oct at the earliest, most likely November. I've/we've virtually filled in Forms 40SP and 47SP with just a few things needed to complete those and assembled most of the supporting documents. The Stat Decs and the Certification are virtually the only things needed to complete these. If we get cracking on appointments for medical/x-rays and fill in and send off the police check I'm hoping the time frame won't be too narrow so the OH's visa is validated when we enter Melbourne.

Thanks again.

OzTennis