Does my husband lose marriage visa if we go abroad to work?

[Quincey31]

Hi,

I am British and my husband is here in the UK on a marriage visa. We are considering going to Dubai to work for a year (or 2 at the most).

Would doing this invalidate his marriage visa? We would then return to the UK to settle permanently so we would hope to apply for citizenship next. I really don't want to have to go through the marriage visa application process again and we definitely don't want to risk losing the visa altogether.

If you are unable to help but can give me the correct number to call, that would also be much appreciated!

Thanks for reading.

[CR001]

Before your husband can apply for citizenship, he would need to apply for ILR, which is settlement.

What is the issue date and expiry date of his visa?
Did you apply before 9th July 2012 or after as the rules have changed?

[Quincey31]

Hi,

Thanks a lot for your reply.
The issue date is 27/04/2012 and the expiry date is 25/04/2014. Yes, we applied before 9th July and received it before then.

[batleykhan]

If he does not return to UK before visa expires, then I am afraid he will have to reapply for a new one and start the procedure all over again.

If he comes back before visa expires, he has to apply for FLR and live in the UK, for the same time he was absent from it, to meet the next criteria of settlement which is the ILR stage. ( i.e complete two years residency)

Only when ILR is granted, can he apply for the last and final stage which is British citizenship

[Quincey31]

Great, thanks for taking the time to reply!

We are still getting our heads round the process. So if we go but return before April 14 when his visa expires, he applies for FLR on his return. Would he have had to do that anyway or is this only because he left the country?

What does FLR entail/cost?!

[CR001]

He would only have to apply for further leave to remain (FLR) if you leave and return before his visa expires, to make up for the time that you and your husband were out of the UK. If his visa expires before you return to the UK, he will need to apply for entry clearance as a spouse again as he did when he originally applied.

If you decide to remain in the UK, he can apply for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) 28 days before his visa expires. Then if he has been in the UK for 2 years when ILR is granted, he needs to maintain ILR in the UK for 12 months to qualify for naturalisation as British Citizen. Residential qualifying time for citizenship as spouse of BC is 3 years on any visa but you must have ILR to apply.

[Quincey31]

That all makes sense. Really appreciate your help!

[CR001]

Please do remember that the rules have changed for this category of visa and you will have much more to prove if applying from outside the UK. Not sure if the new rules will apply for FLR as his current visa was applied for before 9th July.

[Obie]

Well under the old rules, the married couples are not required to have lived in the UK for a complete period of 2 years for the non-national to qualify for ILR.

Provided they have been living together, and the reason for absence was for work purpose, i believe time spend abroad, does not need to be redeemed for ILR to be obtained.

[Quincey31]

Hi all, many thanks for the replies.

We are continuing to look at our options so I have final question if thatès OK and apologies if it's an obvious one!

If we wanted to work somewhere in Europe rather than Dubai would that make a difference to my husband's visa situation? We have been looking at overseas jobs in general so if staying closer to home makes it more doable, we would be really happy to consider it.

Thanks again.