Application to extend stay in the UK as a partner: form FLR(M)

Recently, we had to apply to extend my wife's Spouse Visa for UK. I can say that it has been a relatively painless experience. It has been however, an expensive experience. The application costed £811 and the UK Healthcare Surcharge was £500 (£200 per year). There were some other charges for the Biometric Residence Permit Card and so on. All in all it has become quite expensive but not more difficult.

We followed everything to the letter outlined on the GOV website. We downloaded the Application Form FLR(M) and the guidance notes that goes with it from HERE. Provided all the paperwork required in the application. Sent it away. Within a week we had a letter inviting my wife to go and have her Biometric details given at a Post Office that has the facilities. For us the nearest Post Office was in Romsey. Nice parking space not far from the Post Office. The process took less than 5 minutes. And then the Post Office does the rest.

We then waited for almost 8 weeks and the Biometric Card came through. There was no visa in the Passport, so you will need the Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) when entering in to the UK again. And that is all. All our original paperwork was returned as we did not provide scanned copies. Some paperwork was retained that was intended only for that application like references and such.

The main things that we had to be very careful about is the financial situation and the veracity of our relationship. These two things need ample evidence. You must provide more than required almost to leave no doubt about it. We even got references from respectable people that know us about our relationship.

I am glad that we did not need a solicitor, because that would have costed us much more. We were able to read carefully and provide everything required.

Hope your experience is as easy and fruitful.

Italy (schengen) Visa for Natasha from the UK

Ok, so we want to go to Italy for a few days to visit some friends. Me and our son Joshua are British Citizens, but Natasha is Ukrainian. So she needs a Schengen visa to go to Italy. After having looked at the http://it.vfsglobal.co.uk for information, we have discovered that she could get a EEA/EU Family (Short Stay Up To 90 Days) type visa, which is free. So for her to get that visa, she needed to prove her relationship to the British co-traveller. So naturally, I thought that would be me. In order for her to prove her relationship to me, we had to translate and legalise our Marriage Certificate, which is Ukrainian. If it was a British Marriage Certificate, would have been much easier. Translating and legalising the Marriage Certificate and her Birth Certificate costed us almost £300. All the time and trouble that it took was crazy. But finally we had all the paperwork we need for the visa and for her to prove her relationship with me. Whilst packing the paperwork for the visa before our trip to London to the visa office, I thought to take a copy of Joshua's passport and Birth Certificate just in case.When we got there, I said to the visa officer, well this is my wife and we are travelling together and this is our son who will need to be fed by his mum on the trip. So the visa officer asks for Joshua's passport and Birth Certificate. Then she asks for the plane tickets and that is it. She needed nothing else, because Joshua is British and her name is on the Birth Certificate hence the relationship between her and Joshua's as his mother is proven.

We walked away from the application centre both relieved and upset. Relieved that it was all OK and that the paperwork that we had on us was acceptable. But upset since we went to so much trouble for nothing. We did not have to translate all the documents since we could easily prove her relationship to Joshua through the birth certificate.

So if you have a child together who is British, then you can get a Schengen visa by providing the child's birth certificate to prove your relationship to a British national. Of course don't forget all the other things like copies of everything and photos and so on.

Getting ready for work in the UK

So once you have got your National Insurance Number, it is time to get yourself a bank account. In the UK you can get many different bank accounts, but the one that you will need in order to start work, is a 'Current Account'.

According to Google, the definition of a current account goes as follows:

an account with a bank or building society from which money may be withdrawn without notice, typically an active account catering for frequent deposits and withdrawals by cheque

 More info about current accounts can be read here: http://www.moneysupermarket.com/current-accounts/what-is-a-current-account/ Although, cheques these days are not that widely used. And some shops don't accept them any more.

Most banks do current accounts so you will just need a document with your address on it (could be your National Insurance Number letter) and a form of Photo ID such as your Passport, Driving License, etc. With these two documents, you can walk into most banks and get your self a current account there and then.

A current account in the UK will come with two numbers: Account Number and Sort Code. They will look as follows:

Account Number: ######## e.g. 15425687
Sort Code: ##-##-## e.g. 54-78-25

Once you have these two numbers, you can then give them to your employer and your money will get deposited straight into your account at the end of the month, depending on how your salary / wage is paid and when.

You do not need a Credit Card in order to start work. In fact you do not really need a Credit Card at all. Your current Account will come with a Debit Card which can be used in the same way and in the same places as a Credit Card.

Once you get paid, you can go to any ATM (Cash Machine) and withdraw your cash. In most cases there is a limit of how much cash you can withdraw per day. This limit usually is somewhere around £250 - £300. The other way is the way I do it, which is to bank on-line. I go on the internet and do all my banking there rather than go to a bank.I can pay people money, transfer money between accounts and so on.

If your address changes you must inform the bank.

REMEMBER: Your card will have a PIN Code. You must not give it to anyone. Not even the Police, the Bank, or anyone.

And now you are set! Enjoy working in the UK. 

Slavery in the UK

A couple of days ago, I saw this news article on the BBC News website "Up to 13,000 slaves working in the UK". That really hit me, knowing the difficulties that people leave behind when coming to a country like the UK, in the search for a better life. Initially, I thought that it can't be right. First of all, people in the UK would not do that “these” days. But the truth is that many people in Britain are not British. They have come with their own ideologies and views on this kind of things. Now I am not saying that the biggest contributor of modern day slavery in the UK are people from outside the UK. However, based on my limited experience, I think that a considerable amount is contributed exactly by people that are from outside the UK.
Only recently I heard of a Romanian national who was told that there is a job for him here in the UK awaiting. He came, was met by the people he organised his trip through. They took him to a house and said that the job is not quite ready yet, but that meanwhile to earn for his bread he could deliver empty charity bugs. 1000 bugs would be £30, which in many cases would not be paid anyway. That is awful! However, these people have to work because they have no money to return home and no money to eat. People get tricked into these things.
The other big avenue is prostitution. It is said that in Moldova about 80% of girls from orphanages end up in prostitution, because the system just spits them out at the age of 18 or even younger. These girls then have no-one and nowhere to go but into prostitution. They are then transported illegally to countries like the UK. We can say "Oh, how terrible!" but the truth is, there is demand. Take away the demand and the problem is more or less sorted overnight.
It is a shame that these things are still happening. I think we should stop blaming the police and keep vigilant about these things. Try and help people that are in these situations.
If you find yourself in a situation like that and you are afraid to ask for help because of all the threats these people have made to you. You cannot continue in that way. There are people and a place of safety if only you ask. Ask for help!
Also, if you are thinking to travel to the UK for work, make sure you have a plan B in case you end up in a case of slavery. Make sure you have someone in the UK that you can ring for help. If you are from the EU you can go to a Job Centre in your town and ask for help there. Alternatively, leave a comment here.

Minimum Income Requirement (MIR)

In 2012, the government introduced some new measures with regards to the immigration rules. One of which is the Minimum Income Requirement (MIR), which specifies the minimum amount of yearly income a person should earn to qualify as a sponsor for their non-European UK spouse visa application.
The MIR is £18,600.00 for the spouse only, and goes up to £22,400.00 for the spouse and one child. Then £2,400.00 for the second child and each one after that. Since then, the government has been challenged about this new requirement, but unsuccessfully.
Of course the money can be raised not just from the salaried income, but from a number of other options like savings and so on. I am having trouble deciding if this is fair or not. As a sponsor, you have to make sure you take care of your spouse for 5 years without any access to the public purse. Can that be done on a salary less than £18,600.00?
Well lets see... £18,600.00 / 12 months = £1,550.00 - £143.33 tax = £1,300.23
Rent for a studio flat in my part of the UK is lets say £450 plus utility bills of about £150 leaves us with about £700. Lets say we want a few commodities like a mobile phone, internet, etc, which leaves us with £600. Food wise me and Natasha spend about £200 - £250 a month (we have no takeaways at all) which leaves us about £350.
£350 for day to day eventualities is just about enough but not enough to save much. So is £18,600.00 enough?
Well, lets look at another statistic. According to the Mirror http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/uk-average-salary-26500-figures-3002995 the current average UK salary is £26,500.00. In the same article though, the Mirrior states that "...Four in five new jobs are in sectors averaging under £16,640 for a 40-hour week..." which means that on average, four in five britons fall below the government requirement. So should the government lower the bar? Would that be responsible of them?
What do you think? Leave your comments below.
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