Is this Progress?

[FXR_1340]

When a fiance visa is issued, how long can the recipient of the visa remain in UK?

For example, if the marriage took place in the UK within 3 weeks of the visa being issued, can the foreigner stay until the visa expires ie 6 months? Obviously the recipient is not permitted to work during any period in which a fiance visa is issued.

[CR001]

Yes they can stay. They must apply for FLR(M) spouse visa before the fiance visa (not a marriage visitor visa) expires.

[FXR_1340]

Yes they can stay. They must apply for FLR(M) spouse visa before the fiance visa (not a marriage visitor visa) expires.

Thank you.

quote="CR001"]Not applying for a fiance/spouse visa then?

member/FXR_1340/posts/[/quote]


Plan B.

[FXR_1340]

Yes they can stay. They must apply for FLR(M) spouse visa before the fiance visa (not a marriage visitor visa) expires.

Thank you.

quote="CR001"]Not applying for a fiance/spouse visa then?

member/FXR_1340/posts/

Plan B.[/quote]

Being a keen golfer and just seeing a video of the alligators which wander the Florida golf course, I think I will stick with Plan A. Dont mind getting beaten but dont want to get eaten!!!

[CR001]

LOL

[FXR_1340]

LOL

Have you seen the size of some of those monsters

We'll get our fiance visa then apply for Leave to Remain.

As a matter of intetest, how is the Fiance Visa actually handed over? By email? Will it be in my partners passport when all the papers inc her passport is teturned to me in the UK?

Grateful for some clarification.

[CR001]

It will be a visa vignette pasted in her passport. She will only know if her application is successful when she collects the passport. They don't tell you beforehand.

[FXR_1340]

It will be a visa vignette pasted in her passport. She will only know if her application is successful when she collects the passport. They don't tell you beforehand.

Thanks for your reply but I still dont understand.

Its my understanding that the papers submitted to Sheffield will be sent to me in Scotland. As the US Interview Centre at Elizabeth NJ retained her passport I'm assuming my partners passport will be included in the papers returned to me by Sheffield?

Of course maybe her passport remains in the US and it, along with the visa, is collected in person by her from there? If this is the case I presume she will receive an email(?) to return to the Centre and collect her passport?

Sorry for being so thick but I just dont understand.

[CR001]

She will be notified when her passport is ready. It will NOT be sent to you.

[FXR_1340]

She will be notified when her passport is ready. It will NOT be sent to you.

Thank you for clearing that up.

I thought I would need to have sent the passport to her.....how else would she be able to travel.

This process is such a mine field and very stressful. I, and I am sure, many others, are very grateful to you for helping to explain and make sense of the process.

I cant thank you enough.

[CR001]

You are welcome. Feel free to keep asking any questions you might have in this topic.

[physicskate]

Wait, I'm confused!! What Interview Centre? You mean the USCIS centre where she did her biometrics? After giving her biometrics, she sends the stamped sheet and her passport (along with all of the other documentation and her application and Appendix 2) to Sheffield.

Everything will be returned to the applicant (your fiance) except for the copies of documents that were sent. Did she use the VHS return service?

Are you sure it was not a marriage visitor visa? I don't understand the process you have followed...

[FXR_1340]

Wait, I'm confused!! What Interview Centre? You mean the USCIS centre where she did her biometrics? After giving her biometrics, she sends the stamped sheet and her passport (along with all of the other documentation and her application and Appendix 2) to Sheffield.

Everything will be returned to the applicant (your fiance) except for the copies of documents that were sent. Did she use the VHS return service?

Are you sure it was not a marriage visitor visa? I don't understand the process you have followed...

Yes I think it was a USCIS Centre located in Elizabeth NJ. The papers were checked by the Govt Rep and given back to my partner. She was told to wait 20 working days before sending the package to Sheffield. The package was sent to Sheffield on 14 June. Not sure of what service used to return the papers.

You are saying the copies of papers will be returned to me. I had hoped to receive the originals. From what you write I assume the copies come to me and the originals and my partners passport, with the visa included, will go back to my partner in the US?

I'm confused again

[physicskate]

UKVI will retain the copies. The originals will be returned to the applicant. The US passport will be returned to the applicant. Nothing will be sent to you.

The 'govt rep' is not employed by UKVI (and is in fact a US govt employee who will probably know very little about the UK visa process; they literally just take the photo and fingerprints) and actually gave bad advice! The docs are to be shipped to Sheffield within 5 days of the biometrics being given, but that is neither hither nor tither at this point.

[FXR_1340]

UKVI will retain the copies. The originals will be returned to the applicant. The US passport will be returned to the applicant. Nothing will be sent to you.

The 'govt rep' is not employed by UKVI (and is in fact a US govt employee who will probably know very little about the UK visa process; they literally just take the photo and fingerprints) and actually gave bad advice! The docs are to be shipped to Sheffield within 5 days of the biometrics being given, but that is neither hither nor tither at this point.

5 Days

So we could have been 3 weeks further down the decision road.

Hey ho. Nowt can be done now.

[FXR_1340]

So how does delaying the sending of the paperwork for 20 days (not 5 days as has been said) affect the process and more importantly, the issue of the visa?

Please dont just leave me hangng after the points which have been raised here.

[physicskate]

So how does delaying the sending of the paperwork for 20 days (not 5 days as has been said) affect the process and more importantly, the issue of the visa?

Please dont just leave me hangng after the points which have been raised here.

Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing! It used to be to send your docs within 10 days but was changed to within 5 days sometime around the beginning of the year.

We've all been there waiting for visas to come through. Your anxiety will not make the visa processed faster. Processing times have slowed down significantly with even priority USA applicants waiting 6 weeks, 2 months or longer....

Up to date USA to UK timelines can be found on the UK Yankee forum.

[FXR_1340]

So how does delaying the sending of the paperwork for 20 days (not 5 days as has been said) affect the process and more importantly, the issue of the visa?

Please dont just leave me hangng after the points which have been raised here.

Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing! It used to be to send your docs within 10 days but was changed to within 5 days sometime around the beginning of the year.

We've all been there waiting for visas to come through. Your anxiety will not make the visa processed faster. Processing times have slowed down significantly with even priority USA applicants waiting 6 weeks, 2 months or longer....

Up to date USA to UK timelines can be found on the UK Yankee forum.

Thank you for your reply.

I am scratching my head as to how someone on the outside can understand the process when, by the looks of things ("don't send the papers to Sheffield for 20 days" when in fact it s 5 days), the staff doing the checking don't know the rules.

Shocking.

[physicskate]

They are not staff and they do not do any checking. They literally take a photo and fingerprints. At the UCSIS centres they have NOTHING to do with the UK visa service or processing... it's like asking someone at the US post office how much royal mail pay their employees (ok the analogy isn't perfect, but you get the idea - the two are NOT linked or related to each other).

[CR001]

I am scratching my head as to how someone on the outside can understand the process when, by the looks of things ("don't send the papers to Sheffield for 20 days" when in fact it s 5 days), the staff doing the checking don't know the rules.

Shocking.

The 'govt rep' is not employed by UKVI (and is in fact a US govt employee who will probably know very little about the UK visa process; they literally just take the photo and fingerprints) and actually gave bad advice! The docs are to be shipped to Sheffield within 5 days of the biometrics being given, but that is neither hither nor tither at this point.

[FXR_1340]

They are not staff and they do not do any checking. They literally take a photo and fingerprints. At the UCSIS centres they have NOTHING to do with the UK visa service or processing... it's like asking someone at the US post office how much royal mail pay their employees (ok the analogy isn't perfect, but you get the idea - the two are NOT linked or related to each other).

Thanks again for your reply but I cant help think we are dancing on a pin head.

Whether they are staff or not or govt employees or not is by the by.

The fact is they are the point of contact and if they are giving out instructions then the instructions should be correct and accurate.

...and don't forget there is substantial sum of money being paid into the bargain. Is it too much to ask for a bit of accuracy? I don't think so.

I just need to continue the wait and hope all goes well......maybe alligators are not as scarey as I first thought

[FXR_1340]

Well, after all the stress of the last few days it appears my wife to be has received an email from the visa people.

This is what it states:

Further to our recent e-mail confirming the receipt of the above application, we have been unable to locate an international courier account number with the documents submitted. Unfortunately, we are unable to despatch your documents unless an international courier customer account number is supplied.

We are pleased to announce a new service allowing US customers to purchase courier services through our commercial partner. Further information on this service can be found at http://www.vfsglobal.co.uk/usa/user_pay_services.html

In order to purchase a return courier service through VFS please visit their website, http://www.vfsglobal.co.uk/usa/ and select the shopping cart where you will find the option to purchase the required courier service. Once you have completed this transaction please email your Airway Bill to us at VisaSheffield@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk including the words “Courier Account Number” together with your VAF number, which can be found above, in the subject heading.

You are free to choose your own courier service but please be aware that we are no longer able to accept FedEx as one of the International couriers to return documents to the USA or Canada. If you have supplied, or were intending to supply FedEx account details, you will unfortunately have to provide an account with a different courier. This information is reflected on our website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... in-the-usa

We can inform you that a courier account can be created free of charge online, or in most cases over the phone and is used as a payment method instead of using a credit card number (which we cannot use by itself unfortunately). If the international courier account number can be provided, there should be no further issues in despatching the documents once the application is completed.

We would therefore be grateful if you would send our office an account number or airway bill to be used as soon as possible, quoting our above reference in the reply. Please send your response to the following e-mail address: VisaSheffield@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk

To help our staff monitoring incoming emails to the Visa Section, please include the VAF number above, and the words "Courier Account Number". This will speed up the linking of information to your application and help reduce delays.

Please note that your passport must be returned to you in the USA.

Kind regards,

UK Decision Making Centre

Having had a look at the option "http://www.vfsglobal.co.uk/usa/user_pay_services.html". I think we will be using this option for no reason other than it appears first in the email.

Having opened the link there is a "Pay Here" button After that a Captcha security is completed which takes me to another page. This page shows Mission, with the options in drop down boxes. The second drop down box asks which visa is be applied for. I dont know which option to select.

Which option do I select? I think it will be "Special Visitor - Marriage/Civil Partnership" Is this the correct option to chose?

Grateful for help on this.

[CR001]

How are we to know what options you are given?

Which option do I select? I think it will be "Special Visitor - Marriage/Civil Partnership" Is this the correct option to chose?

Note that if applying for a fiance visa, this is NOT a visitor category visa.

[FXR_1340]

How are we to know what options you are given?

Which option do I select? I think it will be "Special Visitor - Marriage/Civil Partnership" Is this the correct option to chose?

Note that if applying for a fiance visa, this is NOT a visitor category visa.

Sorry, I presumed wrongly that a quick click on the link I provided would allow a view of what was available.

I will go back to it and write down the options......there appears to be many of them.

Thanks for the reply

[metanoia]

Select Settlement on next page you'll be given option of sub category where you can choose Fiance Visa