Help on Family Visitor Visa for my mother

[Lois_Lane]

Hello,

I'd like to ask for help and advice on Family Visitor Visa requirements for my mother.

I have some information on the documents required. But i also need to understand what else can i provide for the application to have greater probability of getting approved.

I came here to UK on my Spouse Visa in March 2011. I gave birth to my baby boy Jonathan in June 16, 2011. We applied domestic helper visa for my Filipina nanny to be here with us in July 2011 and got denied. We hired a barrister and appealed and thank God we won. :-)

Now, I am 5 months pregnant. I am due in Febuary 2013. I would like to have my mom here with me before i give birth. It's different to have a mother by my side in this important event of my life.

My mom is working right now but we decided for her to retire this December 2012 on her 60th birthday. She can't take 6 months leave to be here and we thought it's time for her to stop working and just focus on her kids. I am her 2nd child. I still have younger sisters (2 - ages 22 and 24) who needs her guidance and her presence in Manila. She works in the Province (Samar) right now and when she retires, she'll be joining my sisters in Manila. My husband and I are financially supporting my sisters in Manila. One sister is still studying in College (BS Accountancy) and the other one just graduated. So, we think it's time for my mom to join my sisters in Manila after she retires. We also want her to be here for 6 months starting January 2013, a month before i give birth.

Does anyone know if my mom has a high probability of getting the family visit visa? What else do we submit in order to succeed?

Your advice would be soo much appreciated.

Thank you.

[raynaputi]

You need to convince the ECO/ECM that your mom has reasons to go back to the Philippines (i.e. properties, work, etc.) and won't overstay here in the UK. It's not a guaranty that she would be granted with a visa but it's one way of showing she has ties in the Philippines. Family visit visas are easier to acquire though than the general visit visas. But still you need to show everything you have to prove to them she would return to the Philippines.

[Lois_Lane]

Thank you.

My mom has a house in the province and i have younger sisters whom she will be staying with when she goes back after 6 months. She is going to retire this December 2012. They don't allow her leave of absence for more than 2 weeks and it's also time for her to retire and focus on her children and grandkids.

Will that be enough? Will we have more chances because of this?

[Terpe]

Thank you.

My mom has a house in the province and i have younger sisters whom she will be staying with when she goes back after 6 months. She is going to retire this December 2012. They don't allow her leave of absence for more than 2 weeks and it's also time for her to retire and focus on her children and grandkids.

Will that be enough? Will we have more chances because of this?

Well it's good she has property and close family back home. It's also good it's a family visa and she will visit to see her grandson.
Having said that, as Rayna said it's really not easy to predict just how the ECO will see it.

I'm going to copy some information that I posted in another thread.
I'm sorry if it duplicates information you already know, but hopefully you'll find it useful even it it just confirms what you already know.

Securing a tourist visit visa is notoriously problematic for many reasons.
Not least because approval or refusal of General Visitor (tourist) visa applications is principally based on the discretion of the ECO.
Basically there is no appeal process.

The major complication is the need by the applicant to prove a non-immigrant intent. Applicants wishing to come to the UK under a tourist visit must clearly demonstrate that they do not intend to remain in the UK on a permanent basis. Immigration law places this burden of proof on the applicant.
In order to grant a temporary visa, the ECO must be satisfied that the applicant has strong social, economic and family ties abroad that would compel them to leave the UK at the end of the temporary stay.

Unfortunately, in most cases it becomes difficult to overcome this presumption.

The UKBA page specifically for UK Visit Visa's can be found here with additional detailed information which can be found here and also explains what you are allowed to do while you are in the UK as a visitor.
It's well worth taking a look around and checking out all of the links provided.
Anyone coming to the UK as a visitor, will usually be granted a visa with a validity for up to 6 months stay.

Anyone 'sponsoring' a visitor to UK should also review the UKBA webpage Sponsoring a General Visitor

In principle, you must be able to show that:-

- you are 18 or over
- you intend to visit the UK for no more than 6 months
- you intend to leave the UK at the end of your visit
- you have enough money to support and accommodate yourself without working or help from public funds, or you and any dependants will be supported and accommodated by relatives or friends
- you can meet the cost of the return or onward journey
- you are not in transit to a country outside the 'Common Travel Area' (Ireland, the UK, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands).
- you do not intend to take paid or unpaid employment, produce goods or provide services, including the selling of goods or services directly to members of the public
- you do not intend to do a course of study
- you do not intend to marry or register a civil partnership, or give notice of marriage or civil partnership
- you do not intend to carry out the activities of a business visitor, a sports visitor or an entertainer visitor
- you do not intend to receive private medical treatment


You can downdload the application form and guidance notes from this page

Understand how to apply by reviewing the page Applying for a UK visa in the Philippines

Concerning the actual documents you'll need to submit in evidence, it really does come down to your personal circumstance but generally must contain:-
- information about you
- information about your finances and employment
- your accommodation and travel details
- information about your visit to the UK

As examples of the type of documents that could be supplied Here is the UKBA Guide to Supporting Documents for visiting the UK

For the General Visitor the application should be supported with some of the following documents for a sucessful application:-

- if you are employed, a letter from your employer granting leave of absence from your job for a specified period - the letter should also say how long you have been employed by that employer, in what job(s), and when you are expected back at work
- if you are self-employed, evidence of your business activities and financial standing
- evidence of any property you own in your home country
- if you are a student, a letter from your school or college stating the course you are on, its start and finish dates, and the dates of the holiday period when you intend to visit the United Kingdom
- evidence of any family or social ties and responsibilities to return home to
- evidence of any firm travel plans you have made
- bank statements going back over a period of several months
- evidence of savings/funds available to you during your stay
- evidence you can financially maintain and accommodate yourself in the UK with or without assistance from family/friends living in the UK but without resource to public funding or employment.

Your sponsor can help greatly by providing an invitation/supporting letter to confirm the support they will be providing in terms of financial assistance and/or accommodation.

If the sponsor is intending to totally support the visit this is a listing of fairly typical supporting documents that should be provided:-

- 6 months Bank statements
- 6 months pay slips
- Proff of address (eg utility bill, Council Tax etc)
- Accommodation details (including owner's agreement / rental agreement)
- Sponsors passport copy (Photo page, any relevant stamp pages)
- P60 (if available)
- The main reasons for wanting the applicant to travel at the specific time

The first and foremost thing that you need to keep in mind when applying for a visa for UK, is that you should have an intention to return to your home country. Have a well thought out travel plan. Date of Travel, duration of stay and reasons for travelling.

The absolute keys are going to be:-

- Reasons to return home that outweigh reasons to stay
- Financials

Reasons to return home and strong/complelling ties differ from country to country, city to city, individual to individual.
Some examples of ties can be a job, a house, social and family relationships, a bank account, possessions etc
The ECO will be looking to see if the aspects of your life that bind you to your country outweigh those aspects that may cause you to be unwilling to return to your home country, or to attempt to change or extend your visa status.

The very positive aspect of family visit visa application is that of it's very low cost. Additionally, significantly more seem to get approved than regular tourist visa's.
So nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Get that application in asap. Usually the decisions are made within 1-3 weeks so shouldn't be a long waiting.

Good luck

[Lois_Lane]

Thank you. :-) Appreciate the help so much. :-)

[gWaPito]

Hello,

I'd like to ask for help and advice on Family Visitor Visa requirements for my mother.

I have some information on the documents required. But i also need to understand what else can i provide for the application to have greater probability of getting approved.

I came here to UK on my Spouse Visa in March 2011. I gave birth to my baby boy Jonathan in June 16, 2011. We applied domestic helper visa for my Filipina nanny to be here with us in July 2011 and got denied. We hired a barrister and appealed and thank God we won. :-)

Now, I am 5 months pregnant. I am due in Febuary 2013. I would like to have my mom here with me before i give birth. It's different to have a mother by my side in this important event of my life.

My mom is working right now but we decided for her to retire this December 2012 on her 60th birthday. She can't take 6 months leave to be here and we thought it's time for her to stop working and just focus on her kids. I am her 2nd child. I still have younger sisters (2 - ages 22 and 24) who needs her guidance and her presence in Manila. She works in the Province (Samar) right now and when she retires, she'll be joining my sisters in Manila. My husband and I are financially supporting my sisters in Manila. One sister is still studying in College (BS Accountancy) and the other one just graduated. So, we think it's time for my mom to join my sisters in Manila after she retires. We also want her to be here for 6 months starting January 2013, a month before i give birth.

Does anyone know if my mom has a high probability of getting the family visit visa? What else do we submit in order to succeed?

Your advice would be soo much appreciated.

Thank you.

I've just done one of these for my mother in law...going by what you have posted you have every chance of success if the jigsaw is put together properly.

Unlike a settlement visa which in my experience is straight forward compared to this visa being, you have to show without a shadow of a doubt that your mother well go back home on or before here visa expires.

I tell you, that's easier said than done...property and business alone wasn't going to be enough in our case, according to our solicitor to secure a visa....solid family ties also had to be proven by way of certified ID's, photos and supporting letters from those family members.

You also got to convince the authorities in your invitation that your mother wont be used to care for your children....again, ideally if you are not working, easily proven with submission of your NI Number coupled with a healthy bank balance should suffice that one.

Your mother's age is of benefit as well...she's hardly going to do a runner.

What we did to obtain this visa was to employ a visa specialist costing us in the region of £400.....the requirements were too vague unlike a settlement...an experienced hand was what was needed.

Yes, cost of this visa way cheaper than a settlement but much more time consuming.

Really, I wouldn't worry...you tick all the boxes.

Good Luck

[Lois_Lane]

Thank you so much for your advice. Appreciate it much. :-)

We are deciding not to hire a barrister or solicitor to help us. Especially getting advice here. :-)

I am not currently employed and I have a nanny, a filipina as well (with domestic worker visa). So, i think that's good. It's really emotional support that I need from my mother and my kids love to be around my mother and playing with her and sharing things with her. My husband and I want to take advantage of the opportunity that I'm the only one married in my family and our kids need to experience more of my mom too. Not to mention that, I miss my mom so badly. :-) Anyway, we are really excited to get her here. :-)

Thanks again for all your advice. :-)

[gWaPito]

Thank you so much for your advice. Appreciate it much. :-)

We are deciding not to hire a barrister or solicitor to help us. Especially getting advice here. :-)

I am not currently employed and I have a nanny, a filipina as well (with domestic worker visa). So, i think that's good. It's really emotional support that I need from my mother and my kids love to be around my mother and playing with her and sharing things with her. My husband and I want to take advantage of the opportunity that I'm the only one married in my family and our kids need to experience more of my mom too. Not to mention that, I miss my mom so badly. :-) Anyway, we are really excited to get her here. :-)

Thanks again for all your advice. :-)

I'll be more than glad to help .....why spend your hard earned money when you can get it for free here ...ive been helped on here at the expense of other members paying for it, I should return the complement to others....like I said, Ive recently got one of these family visit visas so know exactly what they want to read.....especially the content in the invitation letter...really important.

Still, when you are ready I'll answer your questions.

[Lois_Lane]

Thank you so much. :-)

I need advice on the content of the invitation letter. I will probably be asking more later about other things...

What a great help. Blesss you!!! :-)

[gWaPito]

Thank you so much. :-)

I need advice on the content of the invitation letter. I will probably be asking more later about other things...

What a great help. Blesss you!!! :-)

Sure thing...going by what you've said I'll write it up over weekend.

[Terpe]

Thank you so much. :-)

I need advice on the content of the invitation letter. I will probably be asking more later about other things...

What a great help. Blesss you!!! :-)

Hi Lois_Lane,

Unfortunately gWaPito was unable to get that example invitation letter done.
This weekend time just ran out too fast for him. They were real busy preparing for their Philippine holiday trip.
He's very sorry for that and although he'll be on holiday until November 28 he told me he'll get it done for you when he gets back if it helps.

I'm know if it was possible he would have gotten it finished for you, but I'm pretty sure you'll know just how time runs out so fast with other things when you're preparing for a family trip like this.
With 2 small children it's a big operation to have everything planned out for the journey.

Hope you can understand.

[Terpe]

I really wish I knew a secret method and I'd share it with you. But there's just not a winning formula.

Having said that, let me say that in 10 years and 6 family visa applications we've never experienced a refusal. Maybe just lucky. Sometimes we felt there was not enough evidence but always came good.

You already have the key information on what you need to do.
It's always going to be stressful for you and down to what the ECO believes.

But just do your best, be honest and creative on why they will return.

[Lois_Lane]

Thank you. :-)