Post
by Lucapooka » Mon Mar 26, 2012 1:06 pm
You can`t apply for settlement inside the UK if you are merely visiting. That immigration status does not permit switching. So, per your scenario, after the marriage (* but see information below), you would need to leave the UK and apply for settlement from the USA or another country for which you have a residence permit. Otherwise if you intend to marry and settle in the UK you could apply for a fiancee-settlement visa that will allow you to enter the UK, marry and then apply for settlement from inside the UK. You could apply for this in Ireland given that you will have a residence visa for Ireland. You should only apply for settlement if you intend to settle now (rather than make occasional trips between your studies in Europe, as you seem to suggest). You would not be eligible for reduced uni fees in the UK for at least 3 years, and then only if you get ILR (which comes after two years of residence in a settlement category but the rules are expected to change soon).
*If you want to visit the UK to marry (but not settle) you are obliged to apply for a marriage visit visa. If you try to enter without a marriage visa you will be refused entry (if you mention the true purpose of your visit). Obviously people do enter the UK and marry without such visas but they don`t reveal their intentions to the UK Border Force when they arrive. I think at 76 pounds, the cost of the marriage visit visa (non-settlement) is worth having as it removes any doubt about your entry. The cost of the fiancee (settlement) visa is 810 pounds.
