Really needing some advice

[Darren]

Hello to all.

I'm sure you must have heard so many times of questions regarding bringing a Filipina to the U.K.

Our situation is that I met my now wife whilst on a contract in the State of Kuwait just over a year ago. I have now finished the contract there, and my wife has returned to the Philippines. I have been to visit my wife four times already just returning from two weeks on the 25th March 2008.

The obstacle we have is, I am a contractor (ex-pat) and have no permanent address in the U.K, though I can use my parents or sisters address. Next I don't have a bank account in the U.K, and I cant get statements from my middle eastern accounts. Does anyone think it would be best to get my sister to sponsor my wife, as she is in full time employment, and we only want a visit visa.

Shall I pull the trigger now, or is there any hope for us to be together???

Its so annoying that I can land in Manila, and just go in to that beautiful place whilst its so hard to get my wife here...Grrr!!!

I would be deeply grateful for any suggestions or comments.

Regards

Darren

[Darren]

Hi,
I'm in a difficult situation as I met my Filipina asawa ko, in the state of Kuwait February last year, and want to bring her to England. I have been to the Philippines four times already, and married in Quezon City.

The challenge is that I have now finished my contract in Kuwait, and returned to the UK. I have no bank account in the UK also no permanent address here. Would it be easier to ask my sister to sponsor my wife on a visit visa, as my sister has a fixed address and in full time work???

I have tried to contact the embassy several times but to no avail.

I would be very grateful for any helpful comments.

Best regards

Darren.

[ginapeterb]

Hello Darren,

Sorry to hear about your situation, sadly your sister may not sponsor your wife to enter the United Kingdom.

The rules regarding your wife's entry into the UK can at some time be frustrating for someone like yourself who has links with the UK but is not resident in the UK.

Because you have been in the state of Kuwait for your last 12 months, you are effectively not a UK Resident, this may seem odd in that you have a British travel document, but that entitles you to right of abode, but does not classify you as a person who fits the rules for bringing your wife to the UK.

To have entry clearance for your wife, you must be someone who is "Presently settled in the United Kingdom."

One of the pre-requisites for obtaining entry clearance for your wife is that you must be able to support your wife in the UK, without recourse to public funds, secondly you must be able to accomodate your wife in the UK, again without recourse to state housing facilities.

My suggestion for now is to use your parents address as your accomodation in the UK.

Taking this step by step, I would first, obtain your parents consent, that they are happy for you and your wife to live in their house, by obtaining a letter of consent signed by your parents, stating that they are happy for you to live with them.

The next step is your employment status and details of your income, if you cannot obtain evidence from your middle east bank account that you have sufficient capital savings available to you to care for your wife when she arrives in the UK, then you must find another way of showing the evidence.

You must set up a UK bank account, and show your savings or income or your chances of obtaining a visa may be limited.

Your sister may not sponsor your wife on an entry clearance visa, since the visa is classed as a spouse entry visa, and the husband or wife who is settled in the UK must be the one supporting and sponsoring the applicant.

However if you just require a visitors visa for your wife, you should be able to apply for this in the normal way, your wife would need to s how that she has adequate funds to support herself during any visit, as this is a relative visit visa, the chances of you obtaining it are pretty good, your wife does not need to show any evidence of accomodation, but she may need to tell entry clearance officers where she will stay.

I also have a good tip for you, when your wife fills in the visitor visa application form, be careful about the question regarding the amount of time she will spend in the UK.

If the question, "How long will you stay in the UK " Comes up, make sure she truthfully answers it, i.e. don't put down, 1 month, when the intention is 6 months or 3 months.

This may cause problems at a later date.

I wish you well, but just remember, when it comes to a visitor visa, these visa's do not require a UK Sponsor, as they are not settlement visa's

[Darren]

Thank you very much Pete,

Your advise is very much appreciated!!!

I never knew it would be so difficult to bring my wife to the U.K. Its been so distressing! I have been reading some of the posts, and found encouragement from them knowing I'm not alone in this situation.

I thank you again for your reply Pete! What a great site