UK Citizen in love with South African - my options?

[Please help]

Dear All

I never thought I would be writting down my problems to absolute strangers but I have read your replies to people's queries and think that you are all fantastic - nothing short of that.

I fell in love with a South African during her 2 year working holiday visa, I was with her for over a year and lived with her in my flat for 8 months before she returned home to see her family, to stay within her visa restrictions and not to prejudice any future applications for us to be together legally in the UK.

I want to marry this lady in time but I want it to be in our own time, when we have saved and planned for it etc. Accordingly, we were unable to apply for any relationship based visa and were advised by our Citizens Advice Bureau that we could get a Visitors Visa and that I would just have to financially support her during those 6 months. Unfortunately, to make a long story short she was refused entry at the UK airport and I went back to South Africa with her to apply again at the British Embassy but when I returned to the UK (due to job) she has been rejected again.

I own my own flat, I am financially independent, have no criminal record and am a very genuine person in a very genuine relationship and I would really appreciate anybody offering some genuine words of advice. What are my options? Even if I married would'nt they just hit me with a marriage of convenience? Essentially it seems to me that Immigration Officers don't want to listen to me - they just want me to apply for what's available or get lost.

Yours faithfully,

[eliasuk4u]

Do not post multiple postings.

[Siggi]

Have you tried to get a fiancee visa, this might be the answer to your problem.