Can we convince the ECO of an honest mistake in visitor visa

[lohith]

Hello ImmigrationBoard,
First up, thanks for this forum that helps thousands of people with much needed information and advice in immigration. I am new here and I am presenting quite an unique case related to visitor visa.

Summary: Rejection of Standard Visitor Visa and then a rejection of Family Visitor Visa.
Rejection was due to mistake of not clearly mentioning the reason of the visit and due to lack of evidence

Help required on: We desperately need advice on our chances of explaining why the mistake was made. And on whether or not to apply for visitor visa for the 3rd time. We have a very detailed cover letter and sponsor letter explaining our circumstances and the reason for the mistake. (Points C and D below)

Details of the visas:

I have an ILR and I was on an overseas assignment in my home country. I got married in September 2016 (arranged marriage) and I moved to UK for the same employer in Nov 2016.

1) Standard Visitor Visa:
My wife and myself wanted to visit UK for our honeymoon for which we applied a standard visitor visa just days before the marriage.
Since I was not in the UK, a Standard Visitor visa application (Rejected in September 2016) was made with one of our friend’s invite letter (as we do not have any family/relative in the UK). My Spouse had mentioned her marital status as Single as the application was made before marriage and she will be travelling alone, as I did not need a visitor visa to travel. The rejection was because of a) my wife’s immigration history (it was her first international travel) b) Major deposits in her account prior to the date of application c) Weak sponsor letter, not detailing the accommodation conditions. Her intent to leave the UK was not convincing.
Our mistake was that we did not mention our intention of honeymoon in this application.

2) Family Visitor Visa: I moved to the UK on Nov 2016 and since my overseas salary was not meeting the financial requirement for sponsoring Spouse visa “Joining the family in the UK”, we had to apply for Family Visitor Visa. We had provided only marriage certificate as marriage evidence and we only mentioned our intention of honeymoon (and had not supported this intention with evidence). One major reason to doubt the marriage was the date of the first rejection was close to our date of marriage.

I have consulted an immigration solicitor and she is suggesting that it’s a long shot at obtaining the visa the 3rd attempt because it has been refused 2 times.
But for the next application, I have gathered all the compelling/missing evidences to the items we were refused on. I have a very descriptive cover and sponsor letter detailing our case and supported with below evidences (please note points C and D)
A) Proof of Marriage: Wedding card, Photographs, etc
B) Proof that our marriage was already fixed for the September 2016, much before the date of the first visitor visa rejection and even before the application date (August 2016): Engagement pics, Phone logs, chat history, emails, facebook wedding event, videos on youtube, etc
C) Proof that purpose of the First Visitor Visa with an intended date of travel was in fact applied to visit UK for honeymoon:
1. Travel tickets of our honeymoon to Bali, exactly on the intended dates mentioned in the first application.
2. Company leave letters
3. Pictures in Bali
D) Proof to support the intent of leaving the UK after visitor visa
My spouse will be eligible for “Joining the family in the UK” VISA in May 2017.
We do not want default on an opportunity of legally entering into the UK by overstaying on a Family Visitor VISA. In order to apply for “Joining the family in the UK”, I will have to come back and make an application from India.

Our explanation of the mistake:
Application was made on our own, in haste and was submitted on a fast track service. We did not use the “additional information” section to detail the reason of our visit was also for honeymoon.
We request you to pardon our ignorance while making the first application. We did not have the right counsel or the experience regarding visa applications.

Thanks,
Lohith

[CR001]

Unfortunately, they were your mistakes and ignorance is no excuse so the refusal are correct.

She will unlikely be successful for a 3rd visa, no matter how much explaining you do. UKVI base their decisions on the facts and the paperwork submitted, not on emotion.

Your best option is to keep records of continued contact with your spouse and apply for the spouse visa when you meet the requirements. There is no need for your to go to home country to apply, your wife applies not you. You can do it online from the UK and send the form to your wife to sign.

[lohith]

Hello ImmigrationBoard,
First up, thanks for this forum that helps thousands of people with much needed information and advice in immigration. I am new here and I am presenting quite an unique case related to visitor visa.

Summary: Rejection of Standard Visitor Visa and then a rejection of Family Visitor Visa.
Rejection was due to mistake of not clearly mentioning the reason of the visit and due to lack of evidence

Help required on: We desperately need advice on our chances of explaining why the mistake was made. And on whether or not to apply for visitor visa for the 3rd time. We have a very detailed cover letter and sponsor letter explaining our circumstances and the reason for the mistake. (Points C and D below)

Details of the visas:

I have an ILR and I was on an overseas assignment in my home country. I got married in September 2016 (arranged marriage) and I moved to UK for the same employer in Nov 2016.

1) Standard Visitor Visa:
My wife and myself wanted to visit UK for our honeymoon for which we applied a standard visitor visa just days before the marriage.
Since I was not in the UK, a Standard Visitor visa application (Rejected in September 2016) was made with one of our friend’s invite letter (as we do not have any family/relative in the UK). My Spouse had mentioned her marital status as Single as the application was made before marriage and she will be travelling alone, as I did not need a visitor visa to travel. The rejection was because of a) my wife’s immigration history (it was her first international travel) b) Major deposits in her account prior to the date of application c) Weak sponsor letter, not detailing the accommodation conditions. Her intent to leave the UK was not convincing.
Our mistake was that we did not mention our intention of honeymoon in this application.

2) Family Visitor Visa: I moved to the UK on Nov 2016 and since my overseas salary was not meeting the financial requirement for sponsoring Spouse visa “Joining the family in the UK”, we had to apply for Family Visitor Visa. We had provided only marriage certificate as marriage evidence and we only mentioned our intention of honeymoon (and had not supported this intention with evidence). One major reason to doubt the marriage was the date of the first rejection was close to our date of marriage.

I have consulted an immigration solicitor and she is suggesting that it’s a long shot at obtaining the visa the 3rd attempt because it has been refused 2 times.
But for the next application, I have gathered all the compelling/missing evidences to the items we were refused on. I have a very descriptive cover and sponsor letter detailing our case and supported with below evidences (please note points C and D)
A) Proof of Marriage: Wedding card, Photographs, etc
B) Proof that our marriage was already fixed for the September 2016, much before the date of the first visitor visa rejection and even before the application date (August 2016): Engagement pics, Phone logs, chat history, emails, facebook wedding event, videos on youtube, etc
C) Proof that purpose of the First Visitor Visa with an intended date of travel was in fact applied to visit UK for honeymoon:
1. Travel tickets of our honeymoon to Bali, exactly on the intended dates mentioned in the first application.
2. Company leave letters
3. Pictures in Bali
D) Proof to support the intent of leaving the UK after visitor visa
My spouse will be eligible for “Joining the family in the UK” VISA in May 2017.
We do not want default on an opportunity of legally entering into the UK by overstaying on a Family Visitor VISA. In order to apply for “Joining the family in the UK”, I will have to come back and make an application from India.

Our explanation of the mistake:
Application was made on our own, in haste and was submitted on a fast track service. We did not use the “additional information” section to detail the reason of our visit was also for honeymoon.
We request you to pardon our ignorance while making the first application. We did not have the right counsel or the experience regarding visa applications.

Thanks,
L0hith