indefinite leave to remain

[joebloggs]

your wife can apply for ILR in 6 months ??

yes i think your wife is too late to take the course, and finding a course may not be that easy..

only 2 things you can do now i think, is buy her the life in uk book, only 5 chapters to read, if i remember correctly, start reading when she's back in uk, go on some websites which have sample tests, and asap put her in for the test, max 1 or 2 months time, and is she fails, it gives her time to attempt it a few more times, so not as much pressure, worth risking £34 until she passes, instead of spending £500 on FLR and the form filling and evidence gathering

or if she cannot pass then she will have to apply for FLR, something you really don't want to do, waste of time and money

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/uk...geandlifeinuk/

have a look on ebay, you can buy books with just the chapters 2-6 your wife needs to study in 160pages in paperback, and a test cd for around £7

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Life-in-the-UK...6.c0.m14.l1318

of course there are others around and on ebay, and i'm not recommending this, as i've never seen the product, but i bought something similar to this, and the wife and stepson both passed the test first time within 3wks but that was when you only needed to read 3 chapters of it.

[john sergison]

thanks for the information JOE BLOGGS and everyone else.

my main problem is that i think that my wifes english is good , all the family and nieghbours have long conversations with her and have no real problems , my wife sometimes does not understand things like "doing my head in " or" rabbiting on" but this is not english language.
she has no problem in her work also.

so what is the bench mark for acceptable english and how would you prove it.

regards john

[IainBusby]

thanks for the information JOE BLOGGS and everyone else.

my main problem is that i think that my wifes english is good , all the family and nieghbours have long conversations with her and have no real problems , my wife sometimes does not understand things like "doing my head in " or" rabbiting on" but this is not english language.
she has no problem in her work also.

so what is the bench mark for acceptable english and how would you prove it.

regards john

When it comes to the "Life in the UK" test, it doesn't really matter how good your wife's english is as the majority of the test consists of questions that most Brits would be hard pressed to answer and I think most Brits would agree that they are totally irellevent to real life in the UK as we know it. If you don't believe me, just go online and look at some of the sample questions.

Iain.

[joebloggs]

thanks for the information JOE BLOGGS and everyone else.

my main problem is that i think that my wifes english is good , all the family and nieghbours have long conversations with her and have no real problems , my wife sometimes does not understand things like "doing my head in " or" rabbiting on" but this is not english language.
she has no problem in her work also.

so what is the bench mark for acceptable english and how would you prove it.

regards john

as long as she can read English, then she should be able to pass the test, it's multi choice, so it's a matter of remembering facts and figures,so the answer will be in front of her

your wife proves it by passing the test. most filipino's i would expect to pass the first time or within a few attempts

[5olidsnake]

practice test

[joebloggs]

and another good website is

http://www.lifeintheuk.org/

and the gov one is

http://www.lifeintheuktest.gov.uk/

i wouldn't worry too much, get the misses to start reading, and using the pc to test her, and a month or so book her the test, if she fails no problems, its only £34 and she will know what to expect next time, when she passes

[Fountainhead]

practice test

Just tried that myself. I done the first 6 pages of questions and I passed 3 and failed 3 and I've lived in the UK all my life. It seems utterly pointless and unfair to me. I reckon if you made the entire population of this country sit that test well over 50% would fail.

I also found some of the questions poorly written and unclear. For example...

Members in the Welsh Assembly can speak English and Welsh, and all publications of the Assembly are in both language

Is that asking if all assembly members have the ability to speak both languages or is it asking if it is true that some speak English and some speak
Welsh?

[joebloggs]

i don't think the idea of doing some sort of test or course is a bad idea, many immigrants who have lived here for years and have made the uk thier home, but they cannot read, write or speak english.

if the person already has a understanding of english, then the life in the uk test can be taken to prove it, and as they need to be tested on some subject, why not the uk ?

for those who think they cannot pass the test, they can do an English course combining the citizenship info.

it's a waste of time for brits who speak english and maybe for those immigrants who can take the test straight away, but i'm sure it's not for those who are on the English and citizenship course, by the time they finish the course they will have a better understanding of english

[Ann07]

thanks for the links guys as i am preparing my test soon

[IainBusby]

i don't think the idea of doing some sort of test or course is a bad idea, many immigrants who have lived here for years and have made the uk thier home, but they cannot read, write or speak english.

if the person already has a understanding of english, then the life in the uk test can be taken to prove it, and as they need to be tested on some subject, why not the uk ?

for those who think they cannot pass the test, they can do an English course combining the citizenship info.

it's a waste of time for brits who speak english and maybe for those immigrants who can take the test straight away, but i'm sure it's not for those who are on the English and citizenship course, by the time they finish the course they will have a better understanding of english

I think they should scrap the current test and replace it with a test that concentrates more on the person's grasp of the English language both written and spoken. Then couple this with a series of questions based around what is seen as culturally acceptable and culturally unacceptable behaviour in this country.
Iain.

[andypaul]

i don't think the idea of doing some sort of test or course is a bad idea, many immigrants who have lived here for years and have made the uk thier home, but they cannot read, write or speak english.

if the person already has a understanding of english, then the life in the uk test can be taken to prove it, and as they need to be tested on some subject, why not the uk ?

for those who think they cannot pass the test, they can do an English course combining the citizenship info.

it's a waste of time for brits who speak english and maybe for those immigrants who can take the test straight away, but i'm sure it's not for those who are on the English and citizenship course, by the time they finish the course they will have a better understanding of english

The goverment are dammed if they do and dammed if they dont.

The test if you look at it practically means the person has to understand how to read english and have a basic understanding of British ways.

Many of the Questions are a little daft.

But many people who have moved to the UK have no idea there is any thing to the UK apart from the place there live in the route to and from the airport.

I do know of people mainly though their chilldren who have lived in say southall all their life and simply never gone to anywhere outside of a small radius of there home and used Heathrow to go back and forth to the mother country.

Many people who have moved here from abroad if they dont have a western or westernized partner or family members will have no idea of the rules and rights they have. Even know much about the Uk in general.

You cant make everyone go to school for six months it just cant happen. So the life in the Uk test has a point. Nearly all Phills with a decent education from back in phil with a little application to studying the book and practise tests will be fine. A far lot better of than many races/nationalites for example Thais find it hard as they have a different script and many i presume are taught in thai at school not a form of english as most phills are.

If i had my way i would bring in the Ielts exam as it tests on reading, writing, speaking and listening.
But as the exam cost over 80 quid and needs qualified examiners it would be unfeasiable due to the numbers involved if done once here in the UK