Non-EEQ spouse visa success

My wife's visa was granted a few days ago. Took 21 days from the time she went to the visa centre in China to them returning her passport with the visa attached.

I'm not an expert by any means but thought I would share our story in case it was of help to anyone else.

I am British, she is Chinese. We applied for a UK marriage visa but were rejected, so I went to China and married her in May. We have known each other for 11 years and been together for most of that. I took legal advice at all points, I recommend everyone does even though it is expensive.

When making the applications we declared everything, including the failed UK visa. The Irish INIS can see all the UK visa stuff apparently. We tried to include the UK application form but the visa centre in China rejected it.

Other documentation submitted:

- My bank statements showing payments to my wife going back several years
- Her bank statements showing receipt of the funds
- Airline tickets, hotel bookings, travel insurance, foreign currency purchases from when I visited her
- Photos of us together over the years, with locations and dates written on the back
- Our marriage documents. In China the husbaand and wife each get one, and we had them both translated and certified. I had a certified copy of mine made at the Post Office
- Certified copy of my passport pages showing the photo page, stamped pages where I visited my wife, my Chinese visa etc.
- Copy of my birth certificate
- Her passport
- Her ID card
- Letter from my friend saying our relationship was genuine
- Wage slips showing my income
- Letter from the company I'm working for in Ireland stating that I work there and my salary
- Copy of the rejection letter from the Home Office for our marriage visa
- Letter from me stating that I was exercising my treaty rights and explaining that the Home Office made a mistake with our marriage visa
- Letter from my wife stating that she was applying as the spouse of an EEA citizen exercising their treaty rights

There was so much paperwork from my end it cost £84 just to send it to China.