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I'm looking a little ahead, less than a year, by which time my wife & I will have been married for four years. We were married overseas and have lived together ever since & always overseas. I often think it's time to get back to Europe - for some time I thought it would be simpler to move to Spain exercising freedom of movement family rights but that has its own complications/shortcomings in the long term.

As the 4yr mark comes within sight, the UK route becomes that much more appealing so I have begun to consider entry with ILE, with or without the Life in the UK Test in hand. I understand that it would be a possibility to sit the test whilst on a short stay visit in the UK. If we did not take that route I am led to believe that my wife would be granted something like ILE subject to KOL pass within 27 months. As I weigh this up I wonder, if we do not possess KOL and later obtain it once settled, is it a simple matter of going to an office somewhere and showing the certificate for a change to ILR without condition or is it an application process with the associated hefty fees?

I've seen conflicting comments on this and would appreciate any first hand knowledge on the process. The former of the possibilities (no fee) is perhaps wishful thinking however it has been mentioned elsewhere. Just to add that I am aware all this is also subject to the usual prerequisites for evidence of sufficient funds/salary & accommodation.

Many thanks.

Probably better to satisfy the KOL requirements (during a short visit) before applying for a spouse visa with ILE endorsement; as I believe that a subsequent SET(M) application will not be free.

Thank you for your concise and very informative sentence! It seems much better to try and obtain the KOL pass before applying. Hefty fees aside (which could be better invested on that short-stay trip), I think it makes sense to enter 'unconditionally'.

Thanks again.

Bear in mind before your wife take the test it needs considerable study.
It's not an English language test as the questions cover social history, customs, politics and the law, statistics etc.

Absolutely! She understands & speaks English quite well (even doing quite well at first attempt at a couple of rounds of the test). Naturally, if she was due to take the real test, I would buy her the handbook.