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Sammie

Hi All

My husband is in the process of submitting his application for a UK Settlement Visa.

I heard somewhere that there is a form that I must complete and that my husband must include this form along with the paperwork he intends to submit? Is this true?
What sort of form is this? Is this form required in all cases?
As part of the paperwork that will be submitted, I had a solicitor draw up a Declaration that states that I am sponsoring my husband and his entry to the UK, if this declaration is presented in the paperwork, is the previously mentioned application form still required?

Also, from the day you hand in the paperwork to the local British Embassy office, how long does it take before a decision is made? My husband will be handing in his documents to the Mirpur office.

What's the normal process once the paperwork is handed in? Who views the documents? Do they get sent to Islamabad?

Any information would be much appreciated. Please put my mind at rest, I am ever growing anxious over my husbands visa application and approval!!

Thanks

Sammie

sajidmahmood · Member of Standing Joined: 06 Apr 2007 Posts: 132

The form you need is available here

http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/kfile/VAF4-10Dec07,0.pdf

and the guidance notes are here

http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/kfile/VAF4Guidance-10Dec07,0.pdf

I heard somewhere that there is a form that I must complete and that my husband must include this form along with the paperwork he intends to submit? Is this true?

YES AND YES

What sort of form is this? Is this form required in all cases?

yes in all cases

Visa officer or Entry Clearance Officer(ECO) is the one who makes the decision based on the documents submitted. Normally takes 7 working days I think!

see

http://www.ukvacpk.com/

sajidmahmood · Member of Standing Joined: 06 Apr 2007 Posts: 132

If you are not sure what documents to sent please see the following as a good example!!!

We applied for my wife's spouse visa in India on 23rd January. She passed her interview on 15th Feb, had her medical check up the next day and is now just waiting to receive her passport back. Here's the list of documents we submitted with her application:

1. Relationship & Contact
* Two photographs from our engagement ceremony held in India in 2004 (†)
* Photocopy of the photograph page from my British passport confirming my nationality status
* Photocopies of the pages from my passport showing Indian visas I was issued with so that I could visit India in November 2004 and December 2007
* Screenshots of some of the email exchanges between my wife and I, between November 2004 and December 2007
* An example of a letter and greeting card my wife sent to me between November 2004 and December 2007 (†)
* Our civil marriage and ‘Nikah’ certificates issued in December 2007 after our wedding which took place in India (†)
* A sample of the wedding invitation cards distributed amongst our friends and family showing the date of each ceremony and details of the venue at which each was held
* A few photographs from some of the ceremonies of our wedding which took place in India in December 2007 (†)
* Receipt(s) obtained from the hotel(s) that my wife and I resided at since our wedding in December 2007 till my departure from India on 11th January 2008
* Receipt(s) obtained as a result of booking some of the venues to hold the ceremonies of our wedding in December 2007

2. Financial Status
* A copy of my CV describing my settled status in the UK including academic background, qualifications and work experience
* My monthly itemised bank statements covering the period from May 2007 till November 2007 inclusive (†)
* My monthly payslips received from my current employer covering the period from June 2007 till November 2007 inclusive
* My latest P60 certificate covering the tax year from April 2006 till April 2007 showing my income, tax and national insurance contributions (†)
* A letter received from my current employer confirming my employment status
* A statement from National Savings & Investments confirming the savings I currently hold in the form of Premium Bonds

3. Accommodation Status
* My latest mortgage statement confirming I have purchased the property at which I currently live, where my wife also intends to live, on mortgage (†)
* An availability of Accommodation Certificate issued by the local council confirming that the property where my wife will reside with me and my family will not be overcrowded (†)
* A letter from me confirming our relationship and that I would like my wife to live with him at my residence with my family
* A letter from my brother, who is the joint-owner of the aforementioned property, confirming that he has no objection to my wife also living at that address

Key
(†) – We have enclosed photocopies of the original documents marked as such in the above list for their records so that they can retain these photocopies for reference if required, and return the originals to us along with my wife's passport

parvez · Junior Member Joined: 06 Dec 2007 Posts: 47

The list of documents that Sajid has posted was submited by my wife for her visa application. She was issued her visa about 1 month after submitted her application.

In addition to the documents already listed above, I'd also suggest sumitting proof of telephone/sms contact and online chat transcripts, the UK-based sponsor's utility bills, proof of money transfer(s) between the 2 of you if appropriate, proof of exchange of cards, any other pictures of the 2 of you together, letters of support from friends and family.... basically anything to prove that your relationship is genuine and subsisting, that you have both met and are in contact, are legally married, have somewhere appropriate to live and can maintain yourselves without recourse to public funds.

All the best

Sammie

Thanks for your responses guys, much appreciated! Very Happy

I've already got the paperwork sorted and it's all currently with my husband who is awating his TB test date, following which he intends to submit the visa application and the test results, inshAllah, sometime this month.

Has anyone recently applied for a Visa from the Mirpur office? How long did it take? Are they normally quite efficient in handling the paperwork and determining a decision? Could someone please share their experiences of applying for a Visa from this office?

does anyone have any hints or tips that would work in our favour?

Thanks...

Sammie

khan85 · Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 2:50 pm Post subject:

yeh my friend gave her case in Mirpur and she got a reply in 6 days, so they are quite fast there!!

Sammie · Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 5:17 pm Post subject:

My, that was quick, 6 days!!

I hope my husbands application is approved just as quickly. I'm just really, really anxious; I will be devastated if his application is refused! Sad

Hoping and praying all goes well!! Smile

m000n · Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 7:15 pm Post subject:

Please have look on my post it will help you and you will get more information

http://www.immigrationboards.com/viewtopic.php?p=151109#151109

Sammie · Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2008 4:47 pm Post subject:

Hi all..

Thanks again for your responses, much appreciated.

My husband will be handing in his application tomorrow morning at teh Mirpur office inshAllah. Gosh, I'm so nervous and panicky now. I hope all goes well.
Please remember me in your prayers and please send positive thoughts in the direction of the Entry Clearance Officer.. Very Happy

Wish us luck!! Wink

Sammie

gollywood · Senior Member Joined: 17 Feb 2008 Posts: 324

^ Mirpur office....

Good luck!

Sammie · Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 3:04 pm Post subject:

Sammie

Hi all..

I need someone to put my mind at rest..before I drive myself mad! Mad

I was just thinking about the documents I submitted to prove regular contact between my husband and me and am worried it might not be sufficient to convince the ECO.

We mostly kept in touch using international calling cards and letters. Unfortunately, I could not prove that the callings cards were used to call my husband and so I did not include them.
The letters we wrote were brief and "basic". We did most of our talking over the phone so there was nothing new to put in our letters and we both were always busy and never had the time to write letters more often.

Over the period of 10 months [from our engagement in March 2007 up until our wedding Feb 08] he sent me about 7 letters, but only 3 of them came through the post. The rest came with friends of our families and hand delivered to me, so there was no stamped envelope to prove that he sent those letters. We also included the letters that I sent him over the 10 months; about 9 letters and cards but again, as our family friends were coming and going frequently, I gave some of the letters to them to give to my husband and so there were no stamped envelopes for these letters either.

In the application we included:

• All the envelopes that we could find from letters that were sent through the post, in total 5 envelopes
• All the actual letters we sent to each other, about 15 pages in total
• Birthday and Eid cards, 3 in total
• All the cards I made for him (with poems wriiten in them), one with each letter, 9 in total

Do you think this would be sufficient to convince even the toughest of ECO’s that, not only did we keep in regular contact, but also that our relationship is genuine and not one of convenience?

Thanks

Sammie Confused

(FYI - Along with the other required documents; Proof of income, accommodation, finance/savings, employment documents and the declaration, I also included:

• Photos of my husband and me before we got engaged
• A copy of the E-Ticket when I visited Pakistan and got engaged
• The entry/exit stamp in my passport from when we got engaged
• Photos of the engagement
• Photos of the wedding
• Proof of communication/regular contact as mentioned above)

parvez · Junior Member Joined: 06 Dec 2007 Posts: 47

Should be fine I think. I don't think the ECOs have the time to go to the extreme of checking proof of postage stamps on envelopes.

We only submitted one letter that my wife sent me with one of her relatives, when we submitted her spousal application in Mumbai on 23rd Jan 2008. Although we had also submitted other evidence of communciation (emails, greeting card), relationship, finances, employment, accomodation etc (search for my previous posts to find a complete list). My wife was issued her visa in just over a month after submitting the application.

Good luck

Sammie · Posted: Thu Mar 13, 2008 9:35 am Post subject:

Thanks for your response Parvez.

I’m just really worried after having read so many stories of other members who have had theirs/ their partner’s visa refused.

The night before the application I hardly slept and since then I've had this on my mind each night while I’m trying to sleep. I'll be an insomniac by the time we get a response in 10 days!
_________________
Visa: Spouse
Submitted: 12/03/08 (Mirpur VAC, PAkistan)
Time Elapsed:10 Working Days
Result: VISA ISSUED 28/03/2008
ILR App: 18/03/2010-28/03/2010
ILR App Sent: 25/03/2010
ILR Received: 30/07/2010 - YAY!!

parvez · Junior Member Joined: 06 Dec 2007 Posts: 47

I know the feeling. I was very much in the same boat when my wife applied for her. It is a very stressful time, I completely understand. All I can advise is remain positive if you're confident that everything you have submitted is true and valid and that you've ticked all the boxes on the ECOs criteria.

All the best, hope it all works out. Keep us posted Smile

princess22 · Member Joined: 27 Feb 2008 Posts: 78

It is really stressing, my health has declined because of the stress of getting the papers prepared!

However i have faith in my Lord which is why i'm still sane.

My hubby will be submitting the papers sometime end of march, please pray for me, i can do with it, thanks!

Also a huge good luck to those who have processed their application or will be processing them!

m000n · Posted: Sat Mar 15, 2008 10:54 pm Post subject:

Wish you best of luck and i m sure God will help you in this dificult time Smile

DRS1983 · Member Joined: 28 Jul 2007 Posts: 69

Hi Sammie, have you heard about the visa yet?

Sammie · Posted: Sun Mar 30, 2008 2:14 pm Post subject:

Hey Rani

We've enquired a few times and we keep being advised to check back again in a few days time as it's still being processed. We're going to leave it for a few more days and enquire on Wednesday.

How'd your husbands interview go?
_________________
Visa: Spouse
Submitted: 12/03/08 (Mirpur VAC, PAkistan)
Time Elapsed:10 Working Days
Result: VISA ISSUED 28/03/2008
ILR App: 18/03/2010-28/03/2010
ILR App Sent: 25/03/2010
ILR Received: 30/07/2010 - YAY!!

DRS1983 · Member Joined: 28 Jul 2007 Posts: 69

Salam, my husband got the visa, he said the ECO was smiling and very nice. They only talked to him for 5 mins, they just wanted to ask why he didn't apply for a year. (I was giving my LLb exams at uni and then I was working.)

Inshallah you will also have good news soon.

Take Care and let me know,
Rani