ilr

[stevewool]

whos doing theirs and whos had theirs back, just wondering how long people are waiting for the answer, and is it worth paying the extra just for peace of mind

[lastlid]

We are lucky. No extra required here. Just the straight 991 quid, regardless of whether it is posted or hand delivered.

[tone]

£991 wow that's just daylight robbery.
What was the turnaround - 3 months?
Tone

[stevie c]

Hi Steve been awhile since I have had time to post here due to shift work :NoNo: but florsel has been logging on playing the arcade.....Anyway Florsel applied for her ILR this October & we too cannot decide to apply by post or in person as it a big difference in price :NoNo:

[lastlid]

£991 wow that's just daylight robbery.
What was the turnaround - 3 months?
Tone

When it happens it will be about a week apparently.

[Moy]

still waiting:cwm3:

[imagine]

daylight robberry:NoNo:

[Moy]

:rolleyes::D

[Arthur Little]

£1,000 ... almost! And :iagree: ... it IS daylight robbery. But - when you're left with no option other than to stump up such a COLOSSAL amount of money to apply by post - MY personal feeling is ... :anerikke: ... you might as well go "the whole hog" by forking out the extra 300 quid for your sanity's sake - rather than endure the sheer torture of waiting for anything up to 3 months - or possibly even longer. That's what WE did (in spite of my being a pensioner) and never once regretted going down the PEO route. :nono-1-1: However, at the end of the day, the final decision must rest with the couples concerned ... largely based, of course, on their other [unrelated] financial commitments - depending on where their priorities lie.

[imagine]

well theres so many here gone through and going through so much, i can only think of it as an obstical course and at times looks like an assult course for some,
and i know they will all pay it along with the rest of the pain,

guess thats :luv13::D

[lastlid]

£1,000 ... almost! And :iagree: ... it IS daylight robbery. But - when you're left with no option other than to stump up such a COLOSSAL amount of money to apply by post - MY personal feeling is ... :anerikke: ... you might as well go "the whole hog" by forking out the extra 300 quid for your sanity's sake - rather than endure the sheer torture of waiting for anything up to 3 months - or possibly even longer. That's what WE did (in spite of my being a pensioner) and never once regretted going down the PEO route. :nono-1-1: However, at the end of the day, the final decision must rest with the couples concerned ... largely based, of course, on their other [unrelated] financial commitments - depending on where their priorities lie.

That extra £300 seems to be excessive for what these folk do on a day to day basis anyway. I can understand a surcharge but £300 is taking the peace. I don't know if we in the IOM will end up with a similar surcharge but thankfully, currently, there is no such thing here.

[DaveUK]

That extra £300 seems to be excessive for what these folk do on a day to day basis anyway. I can understand a surcharge but £300 is taking the peace. I don't know if we in the IOM will end up with a similar surcharge but thankfully, currently, there is no such thing here.

If they started offering that surcharge in the IOM fella, that would definitely be taking the mick! I struggle to understand why it takes them a week here to make a decision! I can't believe that "IOM Immigration" can be THAT busy! :)

[Terpe]

Whether ILR is done by post or by personal interview at PEO is really a personal decision that can only be made if the budget is available. It will have no impact on the final decision.
Only on when that decision is made.
One issue that often comes up is that of not having your passport returned until the ILR is actually added. This has proven to be a problem to some folks here on the forum.
Do think carefully about any travel plans you have during the 6 months after ILR application.

Unless you're extremely careful about the process you follow for getting your passport returned, even under emergency situations, you may find your application treated as abandoned. That's not something to even think about!

Personally, I would always target personal interview at PEO as the best strategy. Having the desicion made and the ILR done and dusted on the same day is (to me) a huge benefit and lets you move on so much easier.

However, a word of warning to anyone wanting to go the same day route....Do make absolutely certain that the application is:-
- Completely straightforward with zero complications
- fully compliant on every aspect
- fully supported with ALL unquestionable documents

If there is even the slightest need for any verification or checking by a 'backroom caseworker' then you will not get any decision. Your application will go directly to the bottom of the 'post' pile and there will be NO refunds.

Finally, just remember that you may apply for your ILR 28 days before the end of your qualifying period.
Under 'old rules' the qualifying period is 24 months living in UK
Under 'new rules' the qualifying period is 60 months!!
Good luck to all

[lordna]

Applied for ILR for wife and daughter on 14th May this year, got confirmation letter dated 22nd May, invited to do Biometrics on the 23rd July which we completed on 30th July. Still waiting to hear.
We used the settlement checking service which IMHO is well worth the money at £80 extra. This saves you photocopying all your documents as they do it for you. Also they check you have submitted all the right documents and paid the fee.
If you dont need your passport in a hurry then i cant see it as too much problem waiting. If they dont grant you ILR then the wait doesnt matter as you would have had longer together! If they do then all well and good...whats the hurry?

[sars_notd_virus]

whos doing theirs and whos had theirs back, just wondering how long people are waiting for the answer, and is it worth paying the extra just for peace of mind

I Applied premium service (PEO Croydon) last JUly and got all my documents back and my passport together with the Biometric Residence Card (ILR) for exactly seven days wait:xxgrinning--00xx3:

btw, the UKBA got loads of backlogs causing their system to crash ,...for me it is worh paying extra than the agony and stress of waiting.

[lastlid]

If there is even the slightest need for any verification or checking by a 'backroom caseworker' then you will not get any decision. Your application will go directly to the bottom of the 'post' pile and there will be refunds.



:D

[lastlid]

We used the settlement checking service which IMHO is well worth the money at £80 extra. This saves you photocopying all your documents as they do it for you. Also they check you have submitted all the right documents and paid the fee.


Yesterday I had a chat with an Immigration officer here in the IOM and he implied that they check the paperwork at the point of submission without a fee imposed. I am going to pay them a visit tomorrow and double-check on that.

[Terpe]

Post #13 corrected

...........and there will be NO refunds

[DaveUK]

Yesterday I had a chat with an Immigration officer here in the IOM and he implied that they check the paperwork at the point of submission without a fee imposed. I am going to pay them a visit tomorrow and double-check on that.

They checked my wife's documentation when she submitted it fella as he told me I'd provided a lot more evidence than most apparently! That single statement gave me a lot of confidence at the time :) There was no additional fee.

[lastlid]

They checked my wife's documentation when she submitted it fella as he told me I'd provided a lot more evidence than most apparently! That single statement gave me a lot of confidence at the time :) There was no additional fee.

:xxgrinning--00xx3: I see. What did you supply that was considered to be significantly more? More than the normal amount of addressed documents, sort of thing?

[DaveUK]

:xxgrinning--00xx3: I see. What did you supply that was considered to be significantly more? More than the normal amount of addressed documents, sort of thing?

The whole 20 pieces of evidence from 5 different official sources, we couldn't stick to, so we provided what we could.

In joint names we had gas bills, electricity bills and printed online bank statements as we have a joint account. We also provided our current tenancy agreement in joint names. In the covering letter, we pointed out why my wife was only on the recent agreement due to her not being in the country when the original one was signed. Bit of an obvious point admittedly, but was taking all precautions! :)

To bolster the evidence as I was concerned about the lack of sources, I also provided every e-mail confirmation for any flights we'd taken that were booked in both our names.

In seperate names, I tried to keep the sources the same and items that were dated around the same time. In reality though, the only thing we had like this were our payslips.

All the other stuff we provided was in seperate names and from random sources at random times during the previous 2 years, eg

A couple of letters I received about my car insurance in my name.
My wife's NHS registration card
We both had a few letters from the Income Tax department, but at random dates.
We also had a couple of random "trying to sell you another service" type letters each from the bank from different dates.
And a couple of other random things that I can't remember right now.

As I mentioned, we had a covering letter in which we explained why certain things were or weren't provided. Things like, for the first 6 months my wife was here, we had gas central heating so had provided gas bills in joint names. We then moved to an all electric apartment which is why the gas bills only covered the first 6 months and then stopped, etc.

So apparently, that was a lot more than they normally get given which kind of surprised me a little as I had a slight concern there wasn't enough! But then again, I had the same feelings when my wife applied for her spouse visa and that worked out great! :D

[lastlid]

To bolster the evidence as I was concerned about the lack of sources, I also provided every e-mail confirmation for any flights we'd taken that were booked in both our names.

Sounds like a good move. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[lastlid]

So apparently, that was a lot more than they normally get given which kind of surprised me a little as I had a slight concern there wasn't enough! But then again, I had the same feelings when my wife applied for her spouse visa and that worked out great! :D

I understand what you mean. I imagine somebody who wasn't already primed on this and had to cobble together evidence at the 11th hour retrospectively / in hindsight. They would probably struggle....

[gWaPito]

We applied premium rate same day service back in November at the Cardiff office...cost for my wife was around 1400.

We didn't fancy the thought of being without passport for Goodness knows how long.

Rip off indeed..but we knew all about the coming visa expenses anyways..just gotta take it on the chin and move on with your life :)

We gotta shell out another grand this November for her citizenship...at least we only gotta travel to our local registry office and most importantly, she gets to keep her passport but not the £ 1000 :)

[lordna]

Yesterday I had a chat with an Immigration officer here in the IOM and he implied that they check the paperwork at the point of submission without a fee imposed. I am going to pay them a visit tomorrow and double-check on that.

Well here in the UK if your not in IOM, the choices are:- 1) 'same day service' which takes a week 2) Submit papers through the settlement checking service or 3) post documents directly to UKBA in which case nothing is checked beforehand.

At least using 2) you know your payment has been accepted and your documents have been checked .

[gWaPito]

Well here in the UK if your not in IOM, the choices are:- 1) 'same day service' which takes a week 2) Submit papers through the settlement checking service or 3) post documents directly to UKBA in which case nothing is checked beforehand.

At least using 2) you know your payment has been accepted and your documents have been checked .

In our case 'same day service' mean't being told that our granted ILR will be received within 72hrs...it actually arrived 24hrs later.:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[stevewool]

same day i think is best for us:)

[Terpe]

same day i think is best for us:)

I think so too Steve. :xxgrinning--00xx3:
Just double check everything before attending and all will be fine. Yours, like most, is a straightforward case.
Where's you nearest PEO?
We went to Croydon by train. Very easy journey for us.

[stevewool]

sheffield city, so just a 40 minute drive,to me its walking out the door knowing you have it and just get on with the next chapter of life,thats got to be worth the extra payment, or put it another way its half a mortgage payment extra

[Terpe]

...to me its walking out the door knowing you have it and just get on with the next chapter of life,thats got to be worth the extra payment....

That's where I sit too.
Can always include it as an ILR saving budget once arrived in UK to ease the pain.
It's getting very expensive now without good forward planning.

[stevewool]

you are right Peter, you have to budget and plan way ahead, years not months, i dont think anyone at the times realize what the cost for our love for our partners, my family and work colleges are amazed at the money we have to pay, but Emma is worth all i have for what she has given me,

[Arthur Little]

That extra £300 seems to be excessive

:yeahthat: may be SO ... :anerikke: ... but the BASIC bloody fee is the BIGGEST rip-off in the first place! :angry:



for what these folk do on a day to day basis anyway. I can understand a surcharge but £300 is taking the peace. I don't know if we in the IOM will end up with a similar surcharge but thankfully, currently, there is no such thing here.

Let's not forget that the surcharge is there primarily to act as a disincentive ... in other words, it ISN'T so much a case of taking the piss :NoNo: - rather it's to DISCOURAGE too many people availing themselves of the Premium Service. Sure ... staff are accustomed to dealing with INDIVIDUAL applicants face to face day in and day out - by prior arrangement. But there are bound to be [literally] hundreds of thousands of immigrants seeking Permanent Residence throughout the UK at any given time. :rolleyes: That's why an APPOINTMENTS System exists. And presumably WHY (as I've already pointed out above) the surcharge is set at such a high rate. Imagine the chaos there'd be if every one of those applicants turned up unannounced - expecting priority treatment - it would be a humanly impossible undertaking for the limited number of UKBA officials to cope with the sheer demand and carry out their necessary checks effectively.

[lastlid]

:yeahthat: may be SO ... :anerikke: ... but the BASIC bloody fee is the BIGGEST rip-off in the first place! :angry:




Let's not forget that the surcharge is there primarily to act as a disincentive ... in other words, it ISN'T so much a case of taking the piss - rather it's to DISCOURAGE too many people availing themselves of the Premium Service. Sure ... staff are accustomed to dealing with INDIVIDUAL cases face to face - by prior arrangement. But there are bound to be [literally] hundreds of thousands of immigrants seeking Permanent Residence throughout the UK at any given time. That's why an APPOINTMENTS System exists. And presumably WHY (as I've already pointed out above) the surcharge is set at such a high rate. Imagine the chaos there'd be if every one of those applicants turned up unannounced - expecting priority treatment - it would be a humanly impossible undertaking for the limited number of UKBA officials to cope with the sheer demand and carry out their necessary checks effectively.

They could simply use an appointment system without a surcharge or such an exorbitant surcharge. Then that situation you described, Arthur, would not occur.

Besides, at £991 , everyone should get priority treatment. And at £991 quid a shot they can afford to take on extra staff to process the paperwork in a more timely fashion.

[lastlid]

That's where I sit too.
Can always include it as an ILR saving budget once arrived in UK to ease the pain.
It's getting very expensive now without good forward planning.

And I agree too. I fully understand why Steve will simply pay it.

[gWaPito]

Itz basically to keep out the riff raff...i'd make it 3k instead of what we paid. Excellent value, I say:xxgrinning--00xx3: In all the years to come you are gonna make it all back in spades...:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[lastlid]

Itz basically to keep out the riff raff...i'd make it 3k instead of what we paid. Excellent value, I say:xxgrinning--00xx3: In all the years to come you are gonna make it all back in spades...:xxgrinning--00xx3:

Back to the I am alright Jack approach. What about those that aren't riff raff but find 3k difficult to raise?

[Terpe]

Funnily enough, that 3k investment for settlement is almost here.

Under new rules:-
PEO FLR second stage after 30 months = £867
PEO ILR after 60 months = £1377

Means £2244 after initial visa entry clearance. That's at 2012 prices.

Postal FLR second stage after 30 months = £561
Postal ILR after 60 months = £991

Means £1552 after initial visa entry clearance

Makes me wonder where it will be 60 months down the line.
Any offers?

[stevewool]

just glad its happening now not in the next few years for me and Emma

[tone]

Sickening to be honest - those numbers are disgraceful. Putting it into context its nothing for the love of your wife.
But I am slightly amazed that the gathering of UK citizenship is a further £1000! So after the ILR if my Wife wishes to become a British Citizen she will need to:-
-Attend the citizenship thing at the council
-apply for a UK passport
These two things cost £1000?

We have another year left before ILR is due so I have some time to save up..

And crazily I want to get out in 8-10 years anyay!

[Terpe]

.....And crazily I want to get out in 8-10 years anyay!

In many important ways that's even more reason to secure British Citizenship.

Plenty of folks without that citizenship unable to return to UK together after 2 years being away with spouse on ILR.

[Arthur Little]

Plenty of folks without that citizenship unable to return to UK together after 2 years being away with spouse on ILR.

Ah ... YES :rolleyes: ... so I'm led to believe. :gp:, Peter! Thanks for drawing members' attention to this ALL-IMPORTANT consideration.

[gWaPito]

Back to the I am alright Jack approach. What about those that aren't riff raff but find 3k difficult to raise?

Honestly Lastlid, you need an injection of humour! :D I was just making light of a bad situation.:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[tone]

In many important ways that's even more reason to secure British Citizenship.

Plenty of folks without that citizenship unable to return to UK together after 2 years being away with spouse on ILR.


Thanks for highlighting that mate, it's clearly important.

[stevewool]

thats one of the reasons we are going down that line too, citizenship, may get to go to other places in the world and holding a brittish pastport it does make it easy

[tone]

Steve
Absolutely how many places in the world can you turn up and just get a stamp with a Brit passport.
We'll certainly be gong down hat route then repatriating with dual citizenship after.
Our plan is to buy some property there within a few years.

Tone