Step Children

[deckard97f]

Hi There,

I was wondering if you could me with this.

My wife and daughter came to the UK about 5 years ago, wife has ILR daughter is British.

My wife has two kids still in the Phillippines from a previous partner who was never on the scene ( he walked away) At the time we could not afford to bring them here.

Now at last i believe we are ready to be reunited as one family.

Question is as they are both under 16 how do they apply for visa's surely an adult has to sign forms etc.

Your help would be grealy appreciate, anyone that has experience of this.

Thanks is advance

Deck

[joebloggs]

yes the same form you used for your wife all them years ago.. - as they are under 18, they will be dependents of your wife, so you'll probably need to co-sponsor them, does your wife work?

is the father named on their birth cert ? who have they been living with for the last 5yrs? do you send money to them ?

you need to prove your wife has 'sole responsibility ' for them, could be a problem after living 5yrs apart.

[deckard97f]

Hi Joe,

Thanks for the quick response.

My wife has a part time job and i work full time.

There is no father on the birth certs he is not around and never has been, the kids live with very good friends of my wife.
We send them remittance every month and go out their once a year

How do they fill out the forms if they are underage, i;m not sure how to apply?

Do they have to go the embassy?

Deck

[joebloggs]

how old are they ?
they might get asked to attend an interview depending on their age, but i doubt it.

UKBA might state that your wife's friend has sole responsibility of them and not your wife, so explain to her friend, its possible she will get a call from the ECO, if they they do call her, she needs to explain that the children were only left with her temporary and she never had sole responsibility.

info is here ..
http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/partners-families/citizens-settled/children/applying-visa/

[deckard97f]

They are 16 and 13.

So we apply online from the UK.

We dont need to fly out their?

We can do everything from the UK

[joebloggs]

yes you can fill it in online, get everything ready here and send it to her friend, as everything must be submitted to the embassy in the phils.

no you dont need to go, if they are called for an interview they can go with an adult.

[deckard97f]

Cheers

[grahamw48]

They will not be permitted to fly out of the Philippines without being accompanied by an 'approved' adult...probably their mother (People trafficking laws).

I would advise that she goes there and sorts the whole thing out in the Phils, then if they receive visas, accompany them back to the UK.

[deckard97f]

There is a question on the application form which says will they be travelling accompanied or not.
The oldest kid is 16, it was our intention that they travel alone, do you think this will affect the application or do you think it would be better if the wife went out there and brough them back

Thanks

[grahamw48]

Firstly I would refer you to my post immediately above yours.

Next I would suggest that you carefully read the page in this link:

.
http://www.dswd.gov.ph/faqs/travel-clearance-for-minors/

Even if all paperwork is completed correctly and all correct documentation supplied, the immigration can turn back at the airport any Filipino citizen they feel like, especially in the case young women and any minor.

Again, for the sake of an airfare, I recommend that your wife accompanies them, (and preferably sorts out their travel documents over there too) but it's up to you. :anerikke:

[Janedan0913]

Your wife's children can come here in UK without their mother flying there. As long as you get the proper documents. Just go to the Philippine Embassy and let them stamp the firm which is Affidavit of Support and Consent to Travel and Special Power of Attorney, this means that the mother has the sole responsibility to her children. After that get a DSWD Travel Clearance for Children together with that Affidavit from the Philippine Embassy. Then you can book the plane tickets of your wife's children. You can book them as unaccompanied minor but you have to pay their ticket as an adult fare because the flight attendants will look after them throughout the long haul flight. My friend did all this because she cant come home due to heavily pregnant 3 years ago.
I am only sharing my friend's experience towards minor travelling alone. But it is still up to you what you will do in the end. Good luck to all. :Hellooo:

[deckard97f]

Hi Everyone really appreciate your help, we have reached a strange point in the application.
When we apply online it asks us what appendix we will fill in.
Online it says that we should be filling in Appendix 2, however if we look at the hard copy VAF4 it says that we should be filling in Apendix 1

HELP

Deck

[deckard97f]

anybody

[Terpe]

anybody

I think your stepchildren should complete Appendix 1 as they are making application as children of settled parents (ILR or UK Citizen) granted entry under the 'old-rules' in force before 9 July 2012
The children will be granted same visa as the settled parent, ie ILE (Indefinite Leave to Enter)

Appendix 2 (Financial Requirements) as applicable to children, only needs to be used if the parent and the child are making an application together now, or if the parent is already in the UK and entered under the Immigration Rules in force on and after 09 July 2012 with only limited leave to remain.

Probably the major challenge will be to prove 'sole responsibility'.
If you're not sure about this terminology the make a search under 'sole responsibility'

Hope that helps

I hope that those members who recently did this will also comment on their experiences.

[deckard97f]

Problem is when you apply online it tells you to use Appendix 2?

Dont know what to do

Deck

[Terpe]

Problem is when you apply online it tells you to use Appendix 2?

Dont know what to do

Deck

Talk to VFS.
Many folks have done that and everyone has mentioned how polite and helpful they are.

[Terpe]

Deck,
As I mentioned before, it clearly states on Appendix 2 that:-


YOU SHOULD COMPLETE THIS FORM IF YOU WISH TO COME TO THE UK AS....

The child of a parent who is applying for entry clearance as a partner or the child who is applying to join their parent who is already in the UK and has been granted limited leave as partner granted under the Immigration Rules in force on 09 July 2012

This does not apply in your case. Furthermore, this is the Financial Requirements form which also does not apply to your case.

Appendix 1 states that:-


YOU SHOULD COMPLETE THIS FORM IF YOU WISH TO COME TO THE UK AS..

- The adult dependant relative of a person who is present and settled in the UK; or
- The adult dependant relative of a person with limited leave to enter or remain in the UK as a refugee or as the beneficiary of humanitarian protection; or

- The child of settled parents or with one parent who has limited leave as a partner or parent granted under the Rules in force before 9 July 2012.

IF YOU ARE NOT COMING TO THE UK UNDER ONE OF THESE CATEGORIES, YOU ARE COMPLETING THE WRONG APPENDIX.

Your application is "The child of settled parents or with one parent who has limited leave as a partner or parent granted under the Rules in force before 9 July 2012."


I went through the initial stages on online application. Here's how I approached it:-

Type of Visa = Settlement

Purpose of Application = Settlement

Type of Application = Child or Other dependant of Settled Person

Then there follows a message:-


[I] Settlement

This inline form is based on the paper VAF4A settlement.
You should only use this online form if you are coming to the UK to settle

After you have completed the online form you must complete the relevant appendix which can be found on the[I] UK Border Agency Website (http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/applicationforms/visas/12-other-visas)


I cannot find anywhere that actually stipulates you must use Appendix 2.

Of course I didn't actually complete all of the online form.

Please check the data inputs I used and see if it is different to that used by you.

Hope this will help you

BTW please do click that link above in the quote called "UK Border Agency Website" and you'll see all the forms.

[mymy1921]

Firstly I would refer you to my post immediately above yours.

Next I would suggest that you carefully read the page in this link:

.
http://www.dswd.gov.ph/faqs/travel-clearance-for-minors/

Even if all paperwork is completed correctly and all correct documentation supplied, the immigration can turn back at the airport any Filipino citizen they feel like, especially in the case young women and any minor.

Again, for the sake of an airfare, I recommend that your wife accompanies them, (and preferably sorts out their travel documents over there too) but it's up to you. :anerikke:
Hi, i have been away in this forum for almost 2yrs now, sorry for that, been kinda busy, about your post, i've been confused about minor travelling w/ som1 not his mom or dad! Coz i asked thelocal dswd hir in r place bout travel clearance,they said only minor filipino GOING OUT of phils nid it and if a minor is w/ som1 NOT his parents arriving or coming back to phils let's say from vacation abroad it is alright with the immigration, can u guys enlighten me, hehe,tnx :Cuckoo:

[grahamw48]

Yes, that sounds right.

Immigration would be more concerned with Filipino minors LEAVING the country, as they are trying to prevent 'human trafficking'. Additionally, airlines will check that anyone travelling has the correct visa/permissions/type of ticket,etc before allowing to board (otherwise they can be heavily fined by the destination country).

So, if someone is arriving in the Phils, all these checks will already have taken place.