Proving ties to home country for a parent

mussiD · Post by **mussiD** » Thu May 11, 2023 5:59 am

Hi all,

I have started an application for my mother to come and visit us in the UK for a short while. She is widowed as my father passed away couple of years ago. She has never been in the UK and it is her first UK application. Hence want to make sure we do not get rejection and keep her records clean for future applications.

I am on a work permit and I am indicating that I will sponsor her visit fully. I am showing proof of my payslips, bank statements, letter from employer, invitation letter etc. I think we are good on this side.

As my mother is retired (used to work as a teacher) and only receives £200 worth of monthly pensions, I am struggling as to what to show as proof of her ties to the country and that she is financially independent.

Would the below work?

1. Showing her pension income and bank statements with ending balance of around £1,000. £200 is enough in home country standards for one person for one month but is it enough for UK visa application given I am fully funding her visit?
2. I do send her varying amount of money monthly on top of £200 pension income (source of above mentioned £1,000). Should I state that in the application as I am thinking this might negatively affect her application as this may be interpreted as she is not financially stable?
3. There is a question "What is the total amount of money you spend each month?" How to answer this question as if I say £200 does this mean she is breaking even and not financially independent? Or if I say £100 do we then have to show proof of savings of £100 per months? Is HO that mathematical when assessing this?
4. I am stating in the application that I am fully funding the trip and she is only contributing £10 (I had to enter some nominal amount as otherwise application will not progress). Or should we state that she is contributing £1,000?
5. In addition, I am including proof that she owns a property. Also including birth certificates of my siblings to show that she has other children in her home country that she needs to go back to. Are these enough to prove tie to home country?

Your help would greatly be appreciated!

Thank you

Post by **Ticktack** » Thu May 11, 2023 11:54 am

mussiD wrote: ↑
Thu May 11, 2023 5:59 am
Hi all,

I have started an application for my mother to come and visit us in the UK for a short while. She is widowed as my father passed away couple of years ago. She has never been in the UK and it is her first UK application. Hence want to make sure we do not get rejection and keep her records clean for future applications.

I am on a work permit and I am indicating that I will sponsor her visit fully. I am showing proof of my payslips, bank statements, letter from employer, invitation letter etc. I think we are good on this side.

As my mother is retired (used to work as a teacher) and only receives £200 worth of monthly pensions, I am struggling as to what to show as proof of her ties to the country and that she is financially independent.

Would the below work?

1. Showing her pension income and bank statements with ending balance of around £1,000. £200 is enough in home country standards for one person for one month but is it enough for UK visa application given I am fully funding her visit? That's fine. Also show her retirement letter.
2. I do send her varying amount of money monthly on top of £200 pension income (source of above mentioned £1,000). Should I state that in the application as I am thinking this might negatively affect her application as this may be interpreted as she is not financially stable? You can say that. She's your mother after all.
3. There is a question "What is the total amount of money you spend each month?" How to answer this question as if I say £200 does this mean she is breaking even and not financially independent? Or if I say £100 do we then have to show proof of savings of £100 per months? Is HO that mathematical when assessing this? You could even cut it to £75. I'm also hoping that she doesn't expend all every single month.
4. I am stating in the application that I am fully funding the trip and she is only contributing £10 (I had to enter some nominal amount as otherwise application will not progress) That's fine.. Or should we state that she is contributing £1,000?
5. In addition, I am including proof that she owns a property. Also including birth certificates of my siblings to show that she has other children in her home country that she needs to go back to. Are these enough to prove tie to home country? It should suffice.

Your help would greatly be appreciated!

Thank you

FYI, it would be nice if you have a healthy account yourself. Well above £5K.

mussiD · Post by **mussiD** » Thu May 11, 2023 11:36 pm

Thanks Ticktack much appreciated.

3. There is a question "What is the total amount of money you spend each month?" How to answer this question as if I say £200 does this mean she is breaking even and not financially independent? Or if I say £100 do we then have to show proof of savings of £100 per months? Is HO that mathematical when assessing this? You could even cut it to £75. I'm also hoping that she doesn't expend all every single month.
Regarding the above, she does not spend all but she also has not kept the cash in the account but converted into cash $ so there is no certain cash balance maintained in the account. I have transferred £1,000 which we are going to show as a closing balance. Is this a problem?

Post by **AmazonianX** » Fri May 12, 2023 1:28 am

mussiD wrote: ↑
Thu May 11, 2023 11:36 pm
Thanks Ticktack much appreciated.

3. There is a question "What is the total amount of money you spend each month?" How to answer this question as if I say £200 does this mean she is breaking even and not financially independent? Or if I say £100 do we then have to show proof of savings of £100 per months? Is HO that mathematical when assessing this? You could even cut it to £75. I'm also hoping that she doesn't expend all every single month.
Regarding the above, she does not spend all but she also has not kept the cash in the account but converted into cash $ so there is no certain cash balance maintained in the account. I have transferred £1,000 which we are going to show as a closing balance. Is this a problem?

If you have done any payment in proximity to intended application time which is not consistent with usual trend for the account can pose a problem.
The CW could see this and pick up on it as not a real depiction of her financial circumstances.

Post by **Frontier Mole** » Fri May 12, 2023 10:34 am

There is a very fine line when financial support is made by third parties regardless of the relationship with those third parties. The view mostly taken is that if there is any dependency for third party amounts on an ongoing basis the individual is seen as not being able to support themselves.

Yes it is a kindness to support your parents however it does detract from their perceived ability to support themselves and that leads to a concern that they will not return. This is particularly the case with aged parents where the general thought is that there is little benefit to remain in their home country versus the opportunities, particularly the NHS, the UK would offer.

I would concentrate on the ties to the home country rather than point to the financial side of things.

lolo2 · Post by **lolo2** » Fri May 12, 2023 11:04 am

Sending a lot of money just before the application can be seen as an attempt to make up the finances, avoid doing so!

You sponsorship has to be clearly explained in the invitation letter and the application form, in terms of what sort of support you're providing and why.

Keep her (and your) finances in the same way (consistent) that they have been the months before the application. As she spends almost her entire income in the month, this is where your finances will play a role, provided you have a healthy financial situation and enough savings to support her trip.

mussiD wrote: ↑
Thu May 11, 2023 5:59 am
5. In addition, I am including proof that she owns a property. Also including birth certificates of my siblings to show that she has other children in her home country that she needs to go back to. Are these enough to prove tie to home country?

Your help would greatly be appreciated!

Thank you

This is key here, a property or any other asset she might have: a car, a business, etc. will definitely help.

I am not sure about the birth certificates of your siblings (I could think of this if they are still under her care), but I guess there is no harm on sending these.

Try to follow the instructions in the guidance. UK visitors visa: guide to supporting documents

Many tend to think that sending more documents than required will strengthen the application but that's not always the case... can even have the opposite effect!

You might wish to have a look at this other post: visitor visa - old post

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Proving ties to home country for a parent

Proving ties to home country for a parent

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