So my wife and I made the trek down to Lunar House in Croydon this week. She was applying for ILR via Set-M. She is foreign and I'm British.
To start from the end she got it but not without a lot of unnecessary stress and hassle on the part of the IO officials.
I'm posting this to try and help others that may follow a similar route.
My wife and I had meticulously combed through the documents in the weeks running up to the PEO application. We prepared a very strong set of initial documents but we also prepared a comprehensive set of backup documents incase we needed them for some unforeseen reason.
Our plan was to hand over the initial documents but not give them any more than what was required. Well the backup documents saved us several times that day.
Here is our story, we arrived at Lunar House 30 minutes early and went through the security screening. After that we waited in line for fifteen minutes for the first set of inspections. It is the initial inspection to see if you are eligible to continue the process.
The IO inspection officer asked for the application form, passports, address documents and life in the UK test but she didn't ask for our financial records.
One minute into our appointment and we had a problem. There was no record of my wife passing ‘the life in the UK test’ in their computer system. The IO officer tried to make us rebook a new appointment and come back another day but we stood our ground. My wife had taken and passed the test exactly two weeks and five hours before our PEO appointment. But the IO officer was trying to say it was less than two weeks. Luckily the pass date is shown on the pass certificate. After some debate the department manager said they would initially accept the paper result until they could verify the computer result, hopefully later that day, so we could proceed.
Well I felt we were not getting off to a good start.
Next the six documents proving shared residency. The IO officer wasn't happy with one of our documents. It was a letter from our private health insurance company showing both of us covered under the policy but it was printed without any coloured ink on the pages. The IO officer didn't like the document and said it could be a copy and wanted another document. Ok so we dipped into our backup file and handed over an HSBC bank statement with its nice red coloured letterhead. "No" was her reply, "this document isn't strong enough." Strong enough? I pointed out that all the forms we had handed over were listed on the application form as approved documents. Bank statements are clearly listed as approved documents. She told me in her foreign accent not to argue and to get another stronger form.
She said we had to prove that we lived together and that a bank statement is not a strong enough document.
I was starting to get annoyed but kept my cool and pulled out another document. As soon as we handed it over it was rejected, then another document was rejected, then another. It was clear she was on a roll.
It took a bit of hunting but we finally gave her a random government issued document that was acceptable. It was a HM Revenue & Customs general advice document that was addressed to me. Surely that is not a very strong document and it had no mention of my wife on it. Crazy...
The key issue is that if we hadn't come armed with a bunch of additional documents we would have been kicked out, despite having all the correct documents to begin with.
Next we got a form with a waiting number and instructions to pay. The number was 113. I had a funny feeling about the number 13.
Paying was quick and painful, £950 with no guaranty of actually getting ILR.
We then sat in the waiting area and began our long journey. I had come prepared for a long wait and we would get one. An hour in and there was an announcement that they were short staffed today and that processing was approximately two hours behind at that time. This was pretty clear, as there was only about five windows actually functioning. Ok fine.... We can handle it.
Another few hours and the power in the entire building failed. No lights, no power, no computers to process the applications etc. The officers basically stopped working and pulled down the blinds on their booths and that was that.
Meanwhile the public sat and waited wondering what was going on. Announcements were not initially made to us and we didn’t have a clue what was going on. After about an hour we were told that if they couldn't get the power back up and running within an hour we would have to come back another day.
The main reason was that they couldn’t accurately secure the building.
Secure people from breaking in or trying to escape we wondered?
Some how I can’t imagine too many people wanted to break into that insane asylum.
But there was some hope, an hour later and the power came back on in stages and the applications start again.
After another few hours of waiting and we were called to the counter. We handed over the Set-M form, documents, ‘life in the UK test’ and our passports but as with the earlier IO Officer this employee also didn't ask for our finances.
After checking and double checking and rechecking the passports she decided that she wanted something from me. I really couldn't understand what she was trying to say. She had a very strong foreign accent and it was difficult to make out what she wanted. I don't know if that upset her but she didn't look happy with us.
We finally understood what she was asking. She wanted more documents addressed to me. Again we had given her exactly the correct number of documents required and I explained this and pointed out the rules on the Set-M form. She told me very directly there was no use saying anything, just get the documents or your wife won't get her ILR. So I just handed over a bunch more documents and she was satisfied.
Next we ran into the life in the UK problem again. She then had to physically go to another department to check on it as the official proof still hadn't arrived.
By that time we had been at the Lunatic House the whole day and it was bang on 5.30pm. I figured that most of the workers would want to go home pronto. Sure enough...When the IO officer came back from her investigation she said that they would give my wife her ILR after all despite not having the official life in the UK computer records.
Oddly enough both IO officers never bothered to ask for our financial records. On the set-m form I was even listed as unemployed with no income.
Before we went for the PEO appointment we figured that my finances might be our biggest stumbling block, but nope. It was the address documents that caused the greatest problem, despite being correct from the start.
Anyway we got what we went there for so I think we should be happy with the result. As a Brit it was a real eye opener to see how it works. To jump through so many hoops while the goal posts moved, despite all our planning. It was a pretty stressful day but I'm sure there are others out there having to deal with much worse at the PEO offices.
I guess my message for people about to go through the process is be prepared.
Even if you think you have everything lined up the IO Officer might not see it that way. There may be a situation that you didn’t expect so try to plan for the unexpected.
Just before your PEO appointment read all the application rules again closely. Check online to ensure the Set-M form hasn’t changed recently. Get all your documents lined up. Prepare a load of backup documents incase your initial versions get rejected or the IO officers want more. Do your "life in the UK test" more than two weeks prior to your PEO application. But don’t do it too early and ensure you make a PEO appointment before your visa expires. Expect to wait a long time on the day and have lot and lots of patients with the IO officers.
As my good friend who happens to work for the Home Office said, 'Lunar House is full of absolutely incompetent people.'
Good luck people.
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