Quote Originally Posted by russ01539
Hello Ivor

My friend Tim will be applying for a fiance visa this coming September, for his partner Christy. I have pretty much given him the run down on what to do, what evidence they need to get together, and so far have a pretty impressive file. There should be no problems either with his residency or income, and personally I think he'll get thru it with flying colours.

But there seem to be a couple of things that have changed since last September06-March06 (the period of our application/succesful appeal). ie. we used CAVAS not UKVACS. Also we never had interviews to do either.

Can u tell me please what is/how do they operate UKVACS, and do they still interview ?

Thanks.
Mel and I applied via CAVA, but the docs were returned because of a small problem with Mel's passport. By the time we'd fixed that, just a few days, CAVA had disappeared and we had to learn about UKVACS pretty quickly!

Basically, all applications have to be made via UKVACS, whether you do it personally or via a courier (Aboitiz). UKVACS have a website and the Embassy site also refers to it. It's also a good idea to phone UKVACS to check on the current procedure, because the website is not guaranteed to be up-to-date; they are easy to talk to and helpful.

As for interviews, several people are getting spouse and fiancee visas without interview i.e. on the documentary evidence alone, but don't rely on it! If they do "invite" the fiancee to interview, they should give at least 3 weeks' notice, so if Christy falls into that category then she and Tim need to put in a lot of work together to prepare for it! As I keep saying, it's not difficult, just takes a lot of time and effort to make sure they both understand the procedure inside out and are well aware of the sort of questions that will be asked. Again, the forum and Pete's site will guide them through it like they did many others

Ivor and Mel