Can my dependant wife in UK apply for HSMP

Hello,

Would be much thankful if you could answer my query.

Iam shortly completing my first year on a HSMP and I have had a decent job to qualify for an extension. My wife is also in the UK as my dependant and is working on a fulltime job at a 'highly skilled' domain.

Right after my extension, I plan to return back to India to pursue other ambitions for 4 years. However, I have my long term career plans aligned with my ILR in the UK. In light of this, I'd like to know if my wife can apply for a HSMP ? If she does get a HSMP - would her dependant visa be termed redundant and invalid ?

Thanks for any help.

Madhu

Your spouse can apply for HSMP in her own right. If this is approved she must obtain EC at a British Diplomatic Post overseas i.e. she is not elgible to switch in country. This will be granted for 1 year and supercedes the dependent visa she currently has/will have. She will then need to obtain an extension.

In light of the proposed amendments to ILR timeline (5 year plan) IMHO to commence on or around Spring 2006 (and in any case after the latest Immigration Act receives royal assent) its best to get this done soon if eligible. Note that your absences will be an issue for ILR. The only way you will qualify for ILR later on (due to absences) is as the dependent of your wife and you must have dependent HSMP status at the time of ILR application - this would in turn supercede your current HSMP visa.

That's why the HSMP is for those who intend to make the UK their home.

Much thanks !

One last clarification - you had suggested she applies for her HSMP before
the new ILR policy goes live coming spring. Can I logically assume that if I were to keep working in the UK, I would fall under the '4 years minimum stay' category when I apply for ILR, since I got my HSMP before the new '5 year minimum stay' came into play ?

Thanks for any help !

Madhu

I am not sure we know enough to give a definitive answer to this. My guess .... and I stress that is all it is ... is that it will work in the following way, namely :-

If the person already has their last time-restricted visa when the change from 4 years to 5 years is made then I think they will not to worry about the change. That is, if someone already has their 3-year extension then at the end of that they will be able to go for ILR. I think that because the last thing that IND want to be bothered by is lots of 1-year further extensions.

So when the change is introduced, instead of granting 3-year extensions they will start issuing 4-year ones. The effect will of course be to defer the ILR by one year.

There is a precedent which leads me to think that IND will make the change in this way. Spouse visas used to be of one year duration. Then, as from 01.04.03, they started to be issued for two years. The effect of that change upon those already having a one-year spouse visa? None at all .... they were still permitted to apply for ILR near the end of that one-year spouse visa. Whilst those who got their spouse visa on or after 01.04.03 needed to wait for nearly two years before applying for ILR.

John,

I suspect implementing the 5 year ILR rule whenever it is enforced will be slightly more complicated than the two year spouse settlement visa. Firstly it effects not just HSMP holders but also work permit holders. Secondly since you can combine two categories leading to settlement there are WP holders who are now on HSMP, who either dont need FLR extensions or dont need to wait for the end of their 3 year visa if they base their ILR applications on the 4 year rule.

I am merely speculating, but the best way HO can approach this is by making it clear whether or not their ILR changes apply retrospectively. Therefore, if someone is already in the country on categories leading to settlement under the 4 year rule - he/she should be allowed to get their ILR in 4 years time. Once the ILR changes have been applied, new enterents in the UK should come under the 5 year rule. IMHO that would be the best scenario.

Many many thanks !

-Madhu

MWazir, it depends what you define as retrospective! When two-year spouse visas came in there was an element of retrospection in that. For example, someone who came to the UK on a six-month fiancé(e) visa in say January 2003, gets married and then applies for their spouse visa in say April 2003 ... well they might have expected to get a one-year one but instead got a two-year one ... thereby delaying their ILR.

In other words it really was the date of issue of the spouse visa that counted ... the date they entered the UK initially was irrelevant.

So we shall have to wait and see how IND deal with this new issue, moving from 4 years to 5 years. I still think they will just start issuing 4-year extension visas instead of 3-year ones ... for such visas issued from a certain date.

The government may or may not apply this 5 yr to ILR retrospectively...they did the latter with the Working Holiday Visa maker. My presumption is that the spousal settlement being transitional was that legally it was more liable to challenge vis a vis Human Rights legislation etc so they didn't apply retrospectivity. No such issues over employment based visas.....it could go either way. Administratively I see no grounds for 1 year extensions to be an issue....legislation allows charging over and above cost recovery for LTR...more revenue for the HO. Likewise view must be taken as to political environment and pending accession of Romania and Bulgaria into EU by 2007 end.