wanting to get married/health issues

[Valentina]

Hi, Im from Canada, living in Ontario, my fiance is Northern Irish, but is here with me now for the next month.
we want to get married and for me to go and live with him, so I will be filling out the visa application etc..
BUT, he recieves incapacity and housing benifit because we both have Crohns disease.
does any one know if this will cause too many problems? it said that we needed to support ourselves without public funds.
I should be able to work (Im in remission at the moment, and can work)
I will need health benifits fairly quickly though, I am on a pretty expensive drug at the moment and also need to know how hard that will be to get once I live there.

Questions:

1. will the benifits he is recieving cause problems?
2. will I have trouble getting health care?
3. is it easier for us to get married in Canada while he is here?
4. will they actually tell us we cant be together?

any help with any of these questions would be GREATLY appreciated,
thanks
Valentina

[John]

Valentina, I have edited your post above, merely to insert question numbers. Then using that numbering :-

1. As your fiancé is British he is fully entitled to claim Public Funds. But as regards things like Housing Benefit, he is not allowed to claim any increase in the benefit when the two of you start to live together in the UK.
2. As soon as you arrive in the UK you will be entitled to use the NHS. And use of the NHS is not within the definition of Public Funds, so no problem on that account. As your fiancé has the same condition as you he will be able to tell you what is available in practice in the area in which he lives.
3. Definitely, yes, go for it!
4. Of course not, but it is necessary to show that the tests are passed in order for you to get your spouse visa, which you will apply for in Canada before travelling to the UK.

Do appreciate that whilst your fiancé is fully able to claim UK Public Funds, it is still necessary for you to pass the financial test, to show that you will not need to claim certain Public Funds. So Valentina, how is the financial situation for the two of you at the moment? Any savings? And if you work when getting to the UK, what sort of salary do you hope to earn?

If you are going to be getting married in Canada, and then applying for a spouse visa, it will be useful for you to go to this webpage and then download the VAF2 application form and the INF4 Guidance Notes.

Marriage in Canada is preferred, for two reasons. Firstly it means that you can work in the UK as soon as you arrive on your spouse visa (whereas the holder of a fiancée visa is not allowed to work, until after the marriage, and after the fiancée visa has been converted into a spouse visa). Secondly it cuts out the cost (£335 by post, or £500 in person) of converting the fiancée visa into a spouse visa in the UK.

[Valentina]

it is necessary to show that the tests are passed in order for you to get your spouse visa, which you will apply for in Canada before travelling to the UK.

Do appreciate that whilst your fiancé is fully able to claim UK Public Funds, it is still necessary for you to pass the financial test, to show that you will not need to claim certain Public Funds. So Valentina, how is the financial situation for the two of you at the moment? Any savings? And if you work when getting to the UK, what sort of salary do you hope to earn?

Thanks so much for your answers John, very helpful, and a load off both our minds with so much else to worry about.

Ive been working as a graphic designer full time for over 7 years now, and think I should be able to find the same sort of work while Im there (hoping anyways) and I have managed to not take any time off during my illness or had to claim any financial assistance other than some provincial health care (trillium) to help pay for my meds because they are so unafordable.
I do have some savings, they seem to be going up and down at the moment, but Im not in the red at all, so hope that helps a bit. by the time I am ready to go Im hoping to have a lot more in the bank.

I do still have student loans that Im paying off, Im not sure if they actually look into that or my credit rating (from what Ive read it seems they just look at my bank statement/savings ?)

so the two "tests" that now concern me are the finacial test, and proving youve been in contact.

Do you need to have a specific amount in the bank to make them happy? is there any online information about this? (Ive been looking, but most info Ive found is pretty basic/not very detailed)

Do you have to prove how long youve been talking on the phone/been in contact before/after your married? (we use calling cards, and Ive just realized I cant prove how long weve been in contact, unless email, msn, and text messages are acceptable.

Also, while my visa is being processed, am I aloud to go to Ireland (up to 6 month visit) or do I have to stay put until its all sorted.. make money etc in case they pick that time to look into my bank statements/job etc?

sorry so many questions, its all a bit overwhelming..
thanks again,
Valentina

[John]

I do have some savings

Can you give some idea of the sort of amount you are talking about? And your fiancé, any savings? If so, again, what sort of amount?

[Valentina]

right now I have aprox $7000.00 Canadian saved, but should be able to save a bit more by the time Im ready to move there, on top of selling two cars before I move (Im hoping aprox $10000 Canadian or more from those sales).
My fiance has no savings, he has been out of work because of Crohns for a while now, and wont be able to go back until his health is much more improved.
Thanks for you help with this.
V

[Valentina]

if anyone could share a link, or point me in the right direction of where to look up what kind of finances your expected to have to pass that part of the spouse visa, that would be very helpful, Ive looked, but cant seem to find a lot about it, and still very unclear on that part of things.
thanks in advance

[jjustyy]

There isn't a catch-all definition for the amount you need as every situation is different. For example, some cases there will be children, one job, two jobs in the equation. So in your case, you just have to prove that you will be able to cover your expenses whilst job hunting, without the need of "public funds".

I would imagine that $17000 should be more than enough to satisfy an ECO. I'm sure John will elaborate further.

Here's some advice on finances from another site:

9) Financial Support

Evidence that you and your spouse can support yourselves and your dependants without recourse to public funds may include one or a combination of the following documents according to your circumstances.

a) Letter from your spouse’s employer in the United Kingdom stating the position in the company, length of service, annual salary and whether the position is permanent.

b) Offers of employment for either/both parties including details of salary.

c) Recent statements of bank and saving accounts showing sufficient means of support while employment is sought in the United Kingdom or for indefinite support if no employment is planned.

d) Educational or vocational certificates and C.V. to demonstrate qualification for potential employment in the area in which you plan to live.

e) References from previous employers.

f) Enquiries made regarding employment in the United Kingdom.

g) Plans for self-employment in the United Kingdom.

source: http://www.britainusa.com/visas/article ... 00&a=41033

From this list you can see that having references related to your graphic design work, certificates and recent examples (maybe over the top, but wouldn't cause any harm) would really emphasise to the ECO that you are willing and able to work once you arrive in the UK.

[Valentina]

we got married while he was here.. went to Las Vegas!
so I will start filling out the spouce visa application and hope that it all goes smoothly. (Im still very nervous about his recieving public funds.)

Im also thinking I should wait to change my name until after all the spouce visa stuff is done.. and Im in Northern Ireland.
but someone said maybe it would help matters to change it before... the last thing I want to do is slow things down, or cause myself any unwanted issues.
Does anyone have an opinion on that?