Post
by Dawie » Fri Apr 13, 2007 11:32 am
I can only speak from the experiences of South Africans I know who have applied for working holiday visas, but the general attitude of the British embassies towards working holiday visas is that the applicant has to be completey self-sufficient when it comes to supporting themselves. If you do a search on this board you will find people who have posted stories about being refused working holiday visas because they had funds in their bank accounts that appeared to have been deposited expressly for the purpose of showing they had sufficient funds to support themselves, which is, of course, what many people do. They get their parents or friends to put money in their bank accounts to bulk them up, and then as soon as they get the visa they give the money back to their parents or friends. They British embassies are wise to this ploy and will quickly pick up on it. Typically they expect the money to have been in your account for 3 months or more.
Another classic mistake is telling the entry clearence officer that someone will be sponsoring you in the UK or supporting you in some way. Do not under any circumstances do this! The visa will almost certainly be refused. Do not tell them that you have a job lined up either as this could cast doubts as to your intentions in the UK. Remember that with a working holiday visa any work is supposed to be INCIDENTAL to the holiday, not the main reason for coming to the UK.
The embassy will be looking for intent to come back to your home country after your visa has expired. Do not give them any reason to think you intend to settle in the UK. Typically they want to see evidence that you will have a job waiting for you in your home country when you return, or that you own property, etc.
Hope this helps.
In a few years time we'll look back on immigration control like we look back on American prohibition in the thirties - futile and counter-productive.
