UK Visa for Non EU National after marriage to UK National

Hi all

This is my 1st post on here, I was looking for some visa advice

I am a British National and British Passport holder, I currently work overseas in the Netherlands however my permanent address is in Scotland

I am looking for some information regarding UK visa requirements for my girlfriend (soon to be wife), she is a Non-EU National, she is a Gabonese passport holder and currently resides in Gabon. I worked in Gabon for 4 years, this is how I met my girlfriend, we plan to get married later this year in Gabon

I would like to find out the correct steps to apply for a UK visa after our marriage in order for her to reside with me in the UK

I have had a look on-line at the UK Visas & Immigration website but I am not sure what is the correct visa to apply for

Would we have to apply for a spouse visa or would it be a visitor visa first and then apply for a spouse visa when she is in the UK?

She has never visited the UK so this is why I am thinking we would need to apply for a visitor visa first, but then when we are married should it be a spouse visa?

I’ve thought about getting in touch with an Immigration Lawyer but I wanted to find out if anyone on here could advise first

Any feedback would be welcome

Thanks

Lucas

Perhaps an EEA family permit under the surinder singh route, if she is going to live with you in the Netherlands for a while after marriage.

Alternatively, after marriage, she may apply for a spouse visa when you are moving back to the UK.

Hi Vinny

Thanks for your reply

I had never heard of the Surinder Singh route, just had a read just now, very interesting

I have been planning for her to come here to the Netherlands after our marriage, however I am getting increasingly frustrated with various Dutch Embassies in the West African region, I’ve had initial correspondence from a couple of Embassies but nothing now for about 4 weeks, I know exactly what we have to do for her to be able to come here but over the last week or so I’ve been thinking it might be easier and less hassle to go back to the UK, at the end of the day that is where I have bought a house and that is where I would like to see us settle

I just want to explore all my options at the moment, one thing I noticed about the UK visa is about the English Language requirement these days, apparently you have to meet a certain English requirement, my girlfriends English is very basic to say the least and I don’t think she’d get through a test, one thing I did notice is there is no English Language Test Centre currently in Gabon so I don’t think she would have to do it, however what if she came here to the Netherlands for a couple of months, if we then applied for a UK spouse visa from here would she then be required to take the test here in the Netherlands?

I would say she probably would

Cheers

Lucas