Visa On Hold (how long should we wait?)

[Terpe]

Hello Everyone,

I needed some advice bout our visa problem..Me and my fiancee tried a fiancee visa last year October. Then we received the result saying its on hold because he didnt meet the financial requirement of 18,600 pounds income a year. We are together for 3 years now and both 25 years old. We are having problem with our relationship because of the visa problem. Seems like he is giving up and hopeless and it really hurts me coz we've come too far already to give up.. Any advice what we can do and how long do we need to wait and any of people here have the same problem but they get their visa at the end?

Any advice will be much appreciated

Hi there, welcome aboard Filipino UK

UK Family Immigration Rules require a minimum income of £18,600 to be met by applications from those applying to settle in the UK with their British or settled partner.

I'm sure you know, that the reason your application was not refused but was instead put 'on hold' is due to a current legal challenge against the Home Office on the question of this income threshold level.
The Home Office lodged an appeal against the 5 July 2013 High Court judgment against them and the High Court decision is still under consideration.

The latest data I have (Dec 2013) states that settlement route visa applications made outside of UK and currently on-hold stands at 2,628 cases with FLR cases standing at 386 cases.

To be frank I personally do not see any final determination from the legal process any time soon.
Whatever the court judgment will be it's seems certain that the losing side will then appeal to the Supreme Court. In this case there will be yet another on-hold waiting period of a minimum of 6 months for the Supreme court process to get going and even make a start let alone formulate a final determination

I wouldn't want to bet this case will get decided until after the General Election 2015

If your Fiance can meet the Financial Requirement my advice would be to withdraw your current application, forgo any refund of fees and make a new application.
Application on-hold are those where any refusal would be solely because the Financial Requirement rules of minimum income were not met.....means the rest of your application was fully compliant at that time.

Here's what UKVI state:-

If your application is currently on hold and you want to withdraw it, you may do so. UKVI will not refund your application fee.

If you applied outside the UK and, while your application remains on hold, you want to request the return of your passport to travel, you can do so by contacting your visa application centre.

[dontgiveuponme]

Thanks for the advice guys..and i do some searching earlier and it said that all visa that failed to meet the income requirement is still on hold while the hearing is not yet over. I'm not sure if he can afford another application since he keeps coming here every 6 months..This visa problems is making him really depressed and now hes telling me our life is on hold and its unfair we cant be properly together..We even had a break up last January coz of him being too stressed..I dont know what other options we can do..and it's impossible he can live here in the Philippines coz he cant find a job..But I'll say hes doing good compare to people his age to be able to come here twice a year and to stay 6 to 8 weeks.

[dontgiveuponme]

Thanks for the advice guys and yes ive been reading bout the income threshold hearing and seems like it we need to wait for a long time and its still on hold till the matters will be clarified. I can wait but I'm scared my fiancee cant :( hes too stressed about it and blaming himself for not meeting the financial requirements to the point he become distant and cold :(...He had an income of 21k last year but we never thought not including expenses and he comes here twice a year and stay for 6 to 8 weeks so I'll say hes only 25 but he is very stable and can support me but its just UKBA thats very strict. I can't think of any other options aside from this I'm afraid we cant afford to get a new application yet..I'm trying to be strong and hopefully a good news will be heard soon :(

[Terpe]

.....I can't think of any other options aside from this I'm afraid we cant afford to get a new application yet..I'm trying to be strong and hopefully a good news will be heard soon :(

There is another option that many folks have taken, you both could too.
I'm not going to suggest it's an easy alternative and to be honest the UK government are trying to make it more and more difficult, but at least it's a good alternative and one which you'll be taking together as a couple.

It's commonly called the EEA route (also known as Surinder Singh route)

The basis of this option rests on EU Regulations of Free Movement.

Please click on this link called Free movement for EU citizens and their non-EU family members

There's not a lot to read and most is explained early on. I include this just to give you a basis on the regulation.

You'll need to decide which EU country you want to go to and also how to support yourself. Might be better to consider those countries where English is widely spoken (eg Ireland)

Getting settlement entry to an EU country (outside of UK) for the non-EEA spouse of a British citizen is not too difficult and has some very attractive advantages such as having little overall cost and quite a fast 'application-to-decision' time.

Please do note that before you can exploit this opportunity you will need to be married

Once your husband has 'established' himself in another EU country those rights can be extended to you'll be able to apply for a visa to join or accompany him.
I wouldn't suggest doing this without accommodation and finance as it could get quite expensive to live until your husband secures some employment.

There's still some significant rules to comply with though before you'll be able to secure entry clearance to the UK and also you'll need to be together in your EU country for a significant time.

Firstly, you will need to provide sufficient evidence of actually residing there (your EU country of choice) as a married couple.
Secondly you will need to provide evidence of your husband being either employed or self-employed there.

You can then make an application under European law for a UK Family Permit.
This is essentially free of charge, and free from the onerous conditions set by standard UK Immigration rules (including the financial requirement and English language Test)
You only need to demonstrate that you are married under law and your EEA national husband has been in properly established employment or self-employment.

Now, the question is how long you need to remain in the EU country before coming to the UK.
There are no hard and fast rules, however the UK has recently updated what it's view is. I'll post more on this later if you think it's an option you're interested in, but current best guess is say 6-12 months.

Once you have secured UK entry clearance by way of the UK Family Permit you are free to come to UK and apply for a 5 year Residence Permit.
It's not a legal requirement but I strongly suggest doing it as it helps to formally establish your residency and immigration status
After a 5 year period you'd be eligible for application for Permanent Residence (same as ILR) After 1 year PR you are eligible for application of British Citizenship.

You might find it helpful to click this link on how to Apply for an EEA family permit

I believe this option might appeal to you given your current circumstances. Many UK citizens have taken this path without any problems.

Have a discussion with your fiance about this and think carefully about which EU country would be best for you to use as your 'springboard base'

Hope this helps in you thinking.

Please don't be shy to ask questions about any of the options briefly outlined here.

[Jentobeharrison]

Thanks for the advice guys and yes ive been reading bout the income threshold hearing and seems like it we need to wait for a long time and its still on hold till the matters will be clarified. I can wait but I'm scared my fiancee cant :( hes too stressed about it and blaming himself for not meeting the financial requirements to the point he become distant and cold :(...He had an income of 21k last year but we never thought not including expenses and he comes here twice a year and stay for 6 to 8 weeks so I'll say hes only 25 but he is very stable and can support me but its just UKBA thats very strict. I can't think of any other options aside from this I'm afraid we cant afford to get a new application yet..I'm trying to be strong and hopefully a good news will be heard soon :(

I thought I am the only one experiencing this. I 100% know where you are coming from. We are on the same page (visa on hold excluded)

[Terpe]

....The latest data I have (Dec 2013) states that settlement route visa applications made outside of UK and currently on-hold stands at 2,628 cases with FLR cases standing at 386 cases....

That's a lot of couples whose lives and futures remain 'on-hold' and in the hands of others.

I wonder how many are taking some alternative positive actions.

I can only speak for myself but I'd be doing whatever it takes.

The judicial process will lumber on for some time yet I fear. Sadly