# A list of my UK Spouse Visa Supporting Documents



## Lauren_999

Hi all,

A few days ago I had my UK Spouse Visa approved and am of course over the moon after all the hard work and worry. I couldn't have done it without this forum and the info that was available to me here. In an effort to return the favor I'm posting what I hope is a helpful list of the things I included in my application, as figuring this out was one of my biggest stress creators.

So to put my supporting documents in perspective, I will explain my situation. I met my husband while we were both on vacation in the States (he's British, I'm American). We kept up the relationship from overseas, and he visited me here in the US three times. I visited him in England once, to meet his family after we had become engaged. On his third visit to the US we were married. So one of our biggest concerns was that our dating relationship was rather short, and that we have never lived together in the same country. So we included lots of stuff to prove what they refer to as "Intervening Devotion." Of course another big concern was funds (as is everyone's), but we felt we have a good amount of savings to be ok on that one. But I do plan to work in the UK and contribute to the household, so I included supporting documents about my employability, including my resume, my last job contract, letters of rec, etc., and noted that I had already begun my job search to show that I was serious about getting employed as soon as possible. 

Below is a direct copy/paste of a Table of Contents (it pasted in wonky, and I can't fix the spacing, sorry about that) that was included in the app. Our strategy was to each write a letter explaining our situation (the Letter of Introduction) and intentions, then to "prove" the statements made in each letter, we included the appropriate/relevant documents. We organized it in a 3-ring binder, in the same order as the Table of Contents, and separated into sections as labeled (the Roman numerals) below. 

So, here goes: 

I. Sponsor Information
A. Sponsor’s Letter of Introduction
B. Notarized Copy of Passport Bio Page
C. Originals of Birth Certificate (short and long form)
D. Financial Info (in sealed envelope)
1. Bank statements 
2. P60 
3. Payslips 
E. Evidence of Accommodations
1. Letter from XXX verifying accommodations agreement
2. JXXX’s deeds to home
F. Employment Information
1. Letter of Employment from XYZ Co
2. Employment Contract from XYZ Co

II. Applicant Information
A. Applicant’s Letter of Introduction
B. Passport and two color passport-sized photos
C. Original Birth Certificate 
D. Biometrics Confirmation
E. Work History/Evidence of Employability
1. Resume
2. Most recent job contract 
3. Letters of recommendation from former/current employers
F. Financial History (in sealed envelope)
1. Bank statements 
2. 2010 Tax Forms (State and Federal)
3. Bank Letter / Verification of Deposits
G. Proposed flight itinerary to settle in England in July 2011

III. Applicant-Sponsor Relationship
A. Marriage
1. Original and Certified Copy of Marriage License
2. Wedding photos
3. Wedding invitations, save the date, cards from family, etc.

B. Intervening Devotion
1. Flight confirmations from visits 
2. Skype Video-Call log
3. Gmail e-mail log
4. Facebook messages Log
5. Handwritten letters and postcards
6. Photos from visits spent together

Hope that helps! If you have any questions about the specifics of what I included or why, just ask (for example, I don't think you need the passport copy to be notarized, but we did to be safe). I"m happy to help


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## nhkamptz

Thanks for posting! I'm preparing my application documents and have been worrying about what exactly to include and how to organize everything. 

Very helpful 




Lauren_999 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> A few days ago I had my UK Spouse Visa approved and am of course over the moon after all the hard work and worry. I couldn't have done it without this forum and the info that was available to me here. In an effort to return the favor I'm posting what I hope is a helpful list of the things I included in my application, as figuring this out was one of my biggest stress creators.
> 
> So to put my supporting documents in perspective, I will explain my situation. I met my husband while we were both on vacation in the States (he's British, I'm American). We kept up the relationship from overseas, and he visited me here in the US three times. I visited him in England once, to meet his family after we had become engaged. On his third visit to the US we were married. So one of our biggest concerns was that our dating relationship was rather short, and that we have never lived together in the same country. So we included lots of stuff to prove what they refer to as "Intervening Devotion." Of course another big concern was funds (as is everyone's), but we felt we have a good amount of savings to be ok on that one. But I do plan to work in the UK and contribute to the household, so I included supporting documents about my employability, including my resume, my last job contract, letters of rec, etc., and noted that I had already begun my job search to show that I was serious about getting employed as soon as possible.
> 
> Below is a direct copy/paste of a Table of Contents (it pasted in wonky, and I can't fix the spacing, sorry about that) that was included in the app. Our strategy was to each write a letter explaining our situation (the Letter of Introduction) and intentions, then to "prove" the statements made in each letter, we included the appropriate/relevant documents. We organized it in a 3-ring binder, in the same order as the Table of Contents, and separated into sections as labeled (the Roman numerals) below.
> 
> So, here goes:
> 
> I. Sponsor Information
> A. Sponsor’s Letter of Introduction
> B. Notarized Copy of Passport Bio Page
> C. Originals of Birth Certificate (short and long form)
> D. Financial Info (in sealed envelope)
> 1. Bank statements
> 2. P60
> 3. Payslips
> E. Evidence of Accommodations
> 1. Letter from XXX verifying accommodations agreement
> 2. JXXX’s deeds to home
> F. Employment Information
> 1. Letter of Employment from XYZ Co
> 2. Employment Contract from XYZ Co
> 
> II. Applicant Information
> A. Applicant’s Letter of Introduction
> B. Passport and two color passport-sized photos
> C. Original Birth Certificate
> D. Biometrics Confirmation
> E. Work History/Evidence of Employability
> 1. Resume
> 2. Most recent job contract
> 3. Letters of recommendation from former/current employers
> F. Financial History (in sealed envelope)
> 1. Bank statements
> 2. 2010 Tax Forms (State and Federal)
> 3. Bank Letter / Verification of Deposits
> G. Proposed flight itinerary to settle in England in July 2011
> 
> III. Applicant-Sponsor Relationship
> A. Marriage
> 1. Original and Certified Copy of Marriage License
> 2. Wedding photos
> 3. Wedding invitations, save the date, cards from family, etc.
> 
> B. Intervening Devotion
> 1. Flight confirmations from visits
> 2. Skype Video-Call log
> 3. Gmail e-mail log
> 4. Facebook messages Log
> 5. Handwritten letters and postcards
> 6. Photos from visits spent together
> 
> Hope that helps! If you have any questions about the specifics of what I included or why, just ask (for example, I don't think you need the passport copy to be notarized, but we did to be safe). I"m happy to help


----------



## Joppa

Indeed, very helpful, but remember everyone's application, and thus supporting documents, will be different depending on personal circumstances.


----------



## laurayang

Lauren_999 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> A few days ago I had my UK Spouse Visa approved and am of course over the moon after all the hard work and worry. I couldn't have done it without this forum and the info that was available to me here. In an effort to return the favor I'm posting what I hope is a helpful list of the things I included in my application, as figuring this out was one of my biggest stress creators.
> 
> So to put my supporting documents in perspective, I will explain my situation. I met my husband while we were both on vacation in the States (he's British, I'm American). We kept up the relationship from overseas, and he visited me here in the US three times. I visited him in England once, to meet his family after we had become engaged. On his third visit to the US we were married. So one of our biggest concerns was that our dating relationship was rather short, and that we have never lived together in the same country. So we included lots of stuff to prove what they refer to as "Intervening Devotion." Of course another big concern was funds (as is everyone's), but we felt we have a good amount of savings to be ok on that one. But I do plan to work in the UK and contribute to the household, so I included supporting documents about my employability, including my resume, my last job contract, letters of rec, etc., and noted that I had already begun my job search to show that I was serious about getting employed as soon as possible.
> 
> Below is a direct copy/paste of a Table of Contents (it pasted in wonky, and I can't fix the spacing, sorry about that) that was included in the app. Our strategy was to each write a letter explaining our situation (the Letter of Introduction) and intentions, then to "prove" the statements made in each letter, we included the appropriate/relevant documents. We organized it in a 3-ring binder, in the same order as the Table of Contents, and separated into sections as labeled (the Roman numerals) below.
> 
> So, here goes:
> 
> I. Sponsor Information
> A. Sponsor’s Letter of Introduction
> B. Notarized Copy of Passport Bio Page
> C. Originals of Birth Certificate (short and long form)
> D. Financial Info (in sealed envelope)
> 1. Bank statements
> 2. P60
> 3. Payslips
> E. Evidence of Accommodations
> 1. Letter from XXX verifying accommodations agreement
> 2. JXXX’s deeds to home
> F. Employment Information
> 1. Letter of Employment from XYZ Co
> 2. Employment Contract from XYZ Co
> 
> II. Applicant Information
> A. Applicant’s Letter of Introduction
> B. Passport and two color passport-sized photos
> C. Original Birth Certificate
> D. Biometrics Confirmation
> E. Work History/Evidence of Employability
> 1. Resume
> 2. Most recent job contract
> 3. Letters of recommendation from former/current employers
> F. Financial History (in sealed envelope)
> 1. Bank statements
> 2. 2010 Tax Forms (State and Federal)
> 3. Bank Letter / Verification of Deposits
> G. Proposed flight itinerary to settle in England in July 2011
> 
> III. Applicant-Sponsor Relationship
> A. Marriage
> 1. Original and Certified Copy of Marriage License
> 2. Wedding photos
> 3. Wedding invitations, save the date, cards from family, etc.
> 
> B. Intervening Devotion
> 1. Flight confirmations from visits
> 2. Skype Video-Call log
> 3. Gmail e-mail log
> 4. Facebook messages Log
> 5. Handwritten letters and postcards
> 6. Photos from visits spent together
> 
> Hope that helps! If you have any questions about the specifics of what I included or why, just ask (for example, I don't think you need the passport copy to be notarized, but we did to be safe). I"m happy to help


Congratulations, Lauren!! Really happy for you!!! I am doing the application tomorrow in person!! Fingers across!!


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## Lauren_999

Joppa said:


> Indeed, very helpful, but remember everyone's application, and thus supporting documents, will be different depending on personal circumstances.


Yes, exactly. That's why I gave background on my situation.


----------



## Joppa

Lauren_999 said:


> Yes, exactly. That's why I gave background on my situation.


I want people to make a note of your documents, but they shouldn't feel they have to get theirs exactly like yours. And they shouldn't feel they have to get all the documents you have, and feel by so doing they are sure to get their visa issued. Their circumstances may be such that they may require *additional *documents not shown here, and their absence can mean the difference between success and failure.

They should start by looking at the official UK Visa Service list of supporting documents (if they are applying outside UK) or UK Border Agency site for those applying in UK, draw up their list of documents, and then look at your list to see how in similar circumstances they may present their evidence in a certain way. There is no one right way, and people will do things differently and still be successful. Many people complain that the official list isn't detailed or specific enough, but the immigration service don't want to be too prescriptive - they want applicants to use their judgement to decide what is relevant and how best to present their evidence.


----------



## laurayang

Lauren_999 said:


> Yes, exactly. That's why I gave background on my situation.


Hi Lauren, I am successful applying for my FLR(M) visa. I supplied my documents based on your list. Really helpful!! Thank you very much!!! They didn't look at the document I provided to prove our relationship though. But anyway, thank you very much


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## Nora-QS

*Query about Communication evidence*

Hi Lauren 999,

I just signed up to this forum after searching the web for info about what to include when applying for spousal visa. My fiance and I are getting married in four week's time D yay!) in the US and after much consultation with both the US lawyers & UK immigration advisers, we both felt that it was best for my fiance to move to the UK to be with me due to crazy lengthy complexity of the US immigration procedures. Your advice below is a superb guideline for us as we can use it to suit our situation. We would like to ask your advice since you've been through the process. We met each other on new year's day 2009 and have been on a long distance relationship since then and we're just desperate to be together and start our family here in the UK. We've flown four times to see each other and he flew to London to propose to me on Christmas day last year  The issue here is regarding the evidence of contact. Back then in 2009, we didn't expect that we would end up marrying each other, so we didn't have much evidence of contact except for a few messages that we exchanged via fb between Jan - Dec 2009. Some of the messages we went to each were ..ehem a little private but nothing xrated of course! We want to include those messages to prove that our relationship started since 2009 but do not really wish for the immigration officers to read some of the intimate messages. Can we blacken out some bits of the messages and include an accompanying note to explain why? Will this affect our application do you think?

Another final query, is it essential that we submit every single phonecalls/bills made from every single month? As my BT bills are mostly online, I don't have records from every single month but I do have majority of them and most of them are stored in Skype as we sent text/calls/video-skype a lot. Will they accept evidence from online phone billings? We thought of including conversations that shows that we were making wedding plans etc. Will that be enough? We've even thought of including original & copies of receipts from engagement, wedding rings, e-mails exchanged between our wedding officiants, my bridal make-up artist etc. We just want to make sure that his spousal visa will be approve as we just want to be together. It's been too long being apart. It's ridiculous that we have to prove like crazy that our relationship is genuine! Aaargh!! Also, how much money does he need to show in his checking and savings account? Is there a specified amount? As a sponsor in the UK, I have sufficient amount to display. Thanks so much for taking the time to answer my questions but I just found your info below so reassuring. I was stressing out in tears about what to do! Can't believe it's so hard just to want to be together with the one you love. Oh yes, a Big Congrats for getting your visa approved! Happy days!!! :clap2:




Lauren_999 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> A few days ago I had my UK Spouse Visa approved and am of course over the moon after all the hard work and worry. I couldn't have done it without this forum and the info that was available to me here. In an effort to return the favor I'm posting what I hope is a helpful list of the things I included in my application, as figuring this out was one of my biggest stress creators.
> 
> So to put my supporting documents in perspective, I will explain my situation. I met my husband while we were both on vacation in the States (he's British, I'm American). We kept up the relationship from overseas, and he visited me here in the US three times. I visited him in England once, to meet his family after we had become engaged. On his third visit to the US we were married. So one of our biggest concerns was that our dating relationship was rather short, and that we have never lived together in the same country. So we included lots of stuff to prove what they refer to as "Intervening Devotion." Of course another big concern was funds (as is everyone's), but we felt we have a good amount of savings to be ok on that one. But I do plan to work in the UK and contribute to the household, so I included supporting documents about my employability, including my resume, my last job contract, letters of rec, etc., and noted that I had already begun my job search to show that I was serious about getting employed as soon as possible.
> 
> Below is a direct copy/paste of a Table of Contents (it pasted in wonky, and I can't fix the spacing, sorry about that) that was included in the app. Our strategy was to each write a letter explaining our situation (the Letter of Introduction) and intentions, then to "prove" the statements made in each letter, we included the appropriate/relevant documents. We organized it in a 3-ring binder, in the same order as the Table of Contents, and separated into sections as labeled (the Roman numerals) below.
> 
> So, here goes:
> 
> I. Sponsor Information
> A. Sponsor’s Letter of Introduction
> B. Notarized Copy of Passport Bio Page
> C. Originals of Birth Certificate (short and long form)
> D. Financial Info (in sealed envelope)
> 1. Bank statements
> 2. P60
> 3. Payslips
> E. Evidence of Accommodations
> 1. Letter from XXX verifying accommodations agreement
> 2. JXXX’s deeds to home
> F. Employment Information
> 1. Letter of Employment from XYZ Co
> 2. Employment Contract from XYZ Co
> 
> II. Applicant Information
> A. Applicant’s Letter of Introduction
> B. Passport and two color passport-sized photos
> C. Original Birth Certificate
> D. Biometrics Confirmation
> E. Work History/Evidence of Employability
> 1. Resume
> 2. Most recent job contract
> 3. Letters of recommendation from former/current employers
> F. Financial History (in sealed envelope)
> 1. Bank statements
> 2. 2010 Tax Forms (State and Federal)
> 3. Bank Letter / Verification of Deposits
> G. Proposed flight itinerary to settle in England in July 2011
> 
> III. Applicant-Sponsor Relationship
> A. Marriage
> 1. Original and Certified Copy of Marriage License
> 2. Wedding photos
> 3. Wedding invitations, save the date, cards from family, etc.
> 
> B. Intervening Devotion
> 1. Flight confirmations from visits
> 2. Skype Video-Call log
> 3. Gmail e-mail log
> 4. Facebook messages Log
> 5. Handwritten letters and postcards
> 6. Photos from visits spent together
> 
> Hope that helps! If you have any questions about the specifics of what I included or why, just ask (for example, I don't think you need the passport copy to be notarized, but we did to be safe). I"m happy to help


----------



## Lauren_999

Hi Nora,

First of all, congratulations! Second of all, I know exactly how you feel -- the pain and frustration of being apart as well as the stress of figuring this maze of paperwork out so you can just be together!

As you will read just about every where, every situation's different but I will certainly advise on what we did and why, and you can decide if that feels right for you two.

Facebook messages: this one is hard because FB has since changed their message feature. We were able to search within the message window on FB and (similar to Gmail) it would pull up a list of _each message thread_ which only stated the subject line and date it was started. We then took a screen shot of that list. This solved the issue of proving the frequency of contact without disclosing the content of the messages. However, I believe FB has since changed their feature so I'm not positive you can do that. If you can't, I say pull up a few of those messages, screen shot the to/from and date portions and save them as images. Once printed, I think it should be OK to black out any personal content you don't feel comfortable having a stranger read. And yes, include a note to explain. That's what I would do in your situation. 

Call logs: My husband and I did not submit any mobile or landline phone call logs. It was too expensive to call each other, so we only submitted our Skype video call logs in addition to your Gmail logs and FB message logs. But we had tons of those logged so I'm not sure how that would affect your application. 

As for proving your relationship is genuine, after working on this for several months and reading blogs and government sites, I honestly got the impression (this is just my personal opinion, I'm no lawyer), that as long as nothing is overly suspicious, the "proving" of the relationship isn't as daunting as it seems. By the time you apply for the spouse visa, you'll have wedding photos and cards from family, etc. So wedding planning messages aren't necessarily required (but certainly can't hurt -- if it made me feel better to include something I wasn't sure I needed, I did it, for peace of mind). 

Funds: As the sponsor, the burden is more on your funds than his, and if you're comfortable with what you have that should be fine. Everyone stresses over the amount but there is no clear answer. I had about $4000 in savings but my husband had substantially more and that worked for us. 

And remember you can always explain anything that doesn't seem clear or you think needs background info in your Sponsorship and Applicant Letters (Applicant Letter is not required but I did one). For example, in my Applicant Letter, I explained that my bank statements reflected a car loan with an outstanding balance, but that I planned to sell the car before I moved which would pay off that debt and add to my savings. 

Hope this helps, I really do. I really do know how you feel. We were so overjoyed at the engagement then the reality of the work and effort of what we had ahead really knocked us back. It seemed impossible at first and I shed a few tears of frustration myself. I'm sure you'll have your happy ending! Best of luck.
Lauren


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## Nora-QS

*A Big Thank You!*

Dear Lauren,

Thank you ever so much for your quick reply. I didn't expect to get a reply so soon and once again, thanks for taking your time to reply in detail to my queries. It is so reassuring and comforting to know that there are people who have been in our situation. I will check on FB to see if I can pull out the list of threads instead to show the various dates. We practically phone each other almost everyday but I don't have all my BT bills from each month as its online and the data are not kept for long. However, we do have tons of logs from our skype chats, IMs and video chats plus phonecalls/texts that we made via skype. We're not sure if we should include every single logs as its since 2010 till now. I have read somewhere that we can include only logs that show evidence of us making plans for our wedding etc. 

I have sufficient funds from my checking and savings to prove that I am able to sponsor my fiance without recourse to public funds. He's financial situation is not as strong as he is also a financial carer for his mom and younger brother but he's working extra hours to raise and save as much as he can. So, I guess my strong financial status should compensate what is lacking in his since I am the sponsor.

Do I need to also write a cover letter as a sponsor? My fiance intends to write a cover letter to accompany his application briefly explaining how we met, what our plans for the future etc. Thank you so, so much for your support and time. I am so happy for both of you and wish you both the very best for your future here in the UK. It must be such a great relief after all that crazy red tape hassle just to be together. At least we know that the man we're marrying is definitely worth the hassle if they're also willing to go through this madness with us  Take care Lauren and enjoy the hot weather! Nora




Lauren_999 said:


> Hi Nora,
> 
> First of all, congratulations! Second of all, I know exactly how you feel -- the pain and frustration of being apart as well as the stress of figuring this maze of paperwork out so you can just be together!
> 
> As you will read just about every where, every situation's different but I will certainly advise on what we did and why, and you can decide if that feels right for you two.
> 
> Facebook messages: this one is hard because FB has since changed their message feature. We were able to search within the message window on FB and (similar to Gmail) it would pull up a list of _each message thread_ which only stated the subject line and date it was started. We then took a screen shot of that list. This solved the issue of proving the frequency of contact without disclosing the content of the messages. However, I believe FB has since changed their feature so I'm not positive you can do that. If you can't, I say pull up a few of those messages, screen shot the to/from and date portions and save them as images. Once printed, I think it should be OK to black out any personal content you don't feel comfortable having a stranger read. And yes, include a note to explain. That's what I would do in your situation.
> 
> Call logs: My husband and I did not submit any mobile or landline phone call logs. It was too expensive to call each other, so we only submitted our Skype video call logs in addition to your Gmail logs and FB message logs. But we had tons of those logged so I'm not sure how that would affect your application.
> 
> As for proving your relationship is genuine, after working on this for several months and reading blogs and government sites, I honestly got the impression (this is just my personal opinion, I'm no lawyer), that as long as nothing is overly suspicious, the "proving" of the relationship isn't as daunting as it seems. By the time you apply for the spouse visa, you'll have wedding photos and cards from family, etc. So wedding planning messages aren't necessarily required (but certainly can't hurt -- if it made me feel better to include something I wasn't sure I needed, I did it, for peace of mind).
> 
> Funds: As the sponsor, the burden is more on your funds than his, and if you're comfortable with what you have that should be fine. Everyone stresses over the amount but there is no clear answer. I had about $4000 in savings but my husband had substantially more and that worked for us.
> 
> And remember you can always explain anything that doesn't seem clear or you think needs background info in your Sponsorship and Applicant Letters (Applicant Letter is not required but I did one). For example, in my Applicant Letter, I explained that my bank statements reflected a car loan with an outstanding balance, but that I planned to sell the car before I moved which would pay off that debt and add to my savings.
> 
> Hope this helps, I really do. I really do know how you feel. We were so overjoyed at the engagement then the reality of the work and effort of what we had ahead really knocked us back. It seemed impossible at first and I shed a few tears of frustration myself. I'm sure you'll have your happy ending! Best of luck.
> Lauren


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## katyg

*UK spouse visa*

Hi Lauren, Big congrat to you. I'm actually looking at the unmarried partner visa cos we've been together for like 4.5 years. We've all the relationship evidence but are a bit worried on the finance side. Would you have any advice on this? thanks


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## derfo

Hi katyg,
I have myself applied for a Settlement (Fiance) visa last week. In terms of finances, there is no set figure which qualifies someone. You need to show that together, you + your partner, have enough funds that access to public funds is not required. Have you looked at having a co-sponsor?


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## caliqueen

did anyone include a travel reservation...?
i did not and i'm apprehensive about it...
it was not listed on the supporting documents... since UKBA explicitly state to *not* make travel arrangements until a visa is issued, i did not submit any proposed travel itinerary or reservation...

thanks for any replies

also, for the record, here is my list of supporting docs (originals + copies were submitted)
settlement visa, married 13+ years, US citizen applicant, UK born citizen
===
1.	INFORMATION ABOUT APPLICANT
• Introduction letter from Applicant
• Introduction letter from Sponsor
• Passport of applicant
• Expired passport of applicant
• Application for UK Entry Clearance – Settlement Visa
• Completed Questions 80 and 81 for Part 6 (Travel History) of Settlement Visa Application (I had to type all of this onto separate pages because there wasn't enough room on the online entry form for all of my travel in the past 10 years)
• Passport Photograph of applicant
• Evidence of Biometrics Processing
• Marriage Certificate
• Birth Certificate of applicant
• Letter from applicant's employer as evidence of current employment

2.	FINANCES AND EMPLOYMENT – BANK STATEMENTS
• Bank Account Balance Summaries for our two joint checking accounts with 3 months of bank statements
• notarized joint account summary with balance information plus 3 months of savings account statements from April to June 30, 2011 
• 401K retirement savings quarterly statements covering October 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011 
• traditional IRA retirement savings account statements covering January 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011

3. FINANCES AND EMPLOYMENT – PAYSLIPS
• applicant payslips dating from January 1, 2011 
• applicant resume/CV and university academic record as evidence of employability

4. FINANCES AND EMPLOYMNET – TAX RETURNS
• U.S. Federal and California State tax returns for the tax years 2010, 2009 and 2008 for applicant & sponsor (married, filing jointly)

5. ACCOMMODATION DETAILS
• Letter from applicant's mother + stepfather stating that we may live with them. The letter includes details on their home residence. An oil bill is also attached as proof of their residency. 

6. INFORMATION ABOUT MY SPONSOR – EMPLOYMENT
• City of Los Angeles Tax Registration Certificate for sponsor's business
• Bank Deposit Account Balance Summaries and Account statements for sponsor business accounts from April 1, 2011 to June 30, 2011 
• Copies of a sampling of sponsor's business contracts 
• Sponsor’s university graduation certificate 
• Character reference 

7. INFORMATION ABOUT MY SPONSOR – UK STATUS
• Copy of sponsor's bio-data page of UK Passport
• Copy of sponsor's birth certificate 

8. EVIDENCE OF SPONSOR RELATIONSHIP – CHARACTER REFERENCE LETTER
Letter from UK community stakeholder attesting to our relationship, character, etc.

9. EVIDENCE OF SPONSOR RELATIONSHIP – PHOTOGRAPHS / CORRESPONDENCE
• Various photos, personal letters and greeting cards that demonstrate our relationship.

10. EVIDENCE OF SPONSOR RELATIONSHIP – COHABITATION
• Lease agreements of the residences that we have lived in together. 
===

i'm on the edge of my seat... sent off my app/docs today for priority processing.


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## derfo

I did include a printout of my planned itinerary. They use the details for the "start date of the visa". I am not sure if the visa start date is set to three months from issue date or if the start date is the issue date if _no _itinerary is attached.


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## tbonetedh

*our strategy....*

I am the one planning to move to be with her in the UK with a fiance visa. We have been following this forum for months and our clock is ticking... we have been gathering our papers.

We were planning on following this strategy...

1. Get her documentation together from her in my hands, in advance
2. Submit online application with payment
3. Wait for response about Biometrics and needed supplemental paperwork
4. Submit paperwork to match the list their request.

I will have all the signed and original documents from her in hand here - before I apply (around August 10 - planning to fly in november and marry on boxing day), but will send nothing in until I hear back from them in New York.

Is this a feasible strategy??

thanx for all your help...


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## mongobean

Thank you Lauren_999 and caliqueen for posting your list of submitted documents, very helpful for me because I'll be doing the same in a few months time.


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## MonkeyWoman

Hi 

I have similar stories to both of you and wondered if any of you or anyone else could help! 

I am British and my now husband is American. We have been in a long distance relationship for 4 years however I have known him for 7 years. my fiance and I got married in the US last month and intend for him to move over here to the UK. I am back living in the UK and he is still living in the US. 

I know we have to apply for the spouse visa but I understand there are 2 options - 
1 = applying from outside of the UK and 
2 = applying when in the UK. 

At the moment I am a student nurse (qualify in 5 months) and have 2 part time jobs, he works for Honda as a Service writer. Once I qualify I intend to get a job as a nurse but as yet have no proof of full time employment. We are therefore worried because we do not have savings and are not financially well off. We were going to use his brother as evidence of a person who we could rely on financially to prove we would not use the UK government as a source of income if needed to support our application.

The cost of the visa to apply from outside the UK is £810 whereas it is about £350 to apply inside the UK. So we were thinking he could come over here as a tourist(??) so he can look for a permenant job and at the same time apply for the visa whilst inside the UK. Is this a possibility or will he get rejected at the airport because he will only have a one-way ticket?! 

I don't seem to know where to look to find out rules and explanations of what we should be doing! Can anyone give any suggestions?

Thanks


----------



## MonkeyWoman

I think I have found another thread on here that answers my questions! From what I gather he cannot switch from visitor visa to spousal visa without returning back to the USA and applying for the visa in his own country. 

Thanks anyway!


----------



## Joppa

MonkeyWoman said:


> Hi
> 
> I have similar stories to both of you and wondered if any of you or anyone else could help!
> 
> I am British and my now husband is American. We have been in a long distance relationship for 4 years however I have known him for 7 years. my fiance and I got married in the US last month and intend for him to move over here to the UK. I am back living in the UK and he is still living in the US.
> 
> I know we have to apply for the spouse visa but I understand there are 2 options -
> 1 = applying from outside of the UK and
> 2 = applying when in the UK.
> 
> At the moment I am a student nurse (qualify in 5 months) and have 2 part time jobs, he works for Honda as a Service writer. Once I qualify I intend to get a job as a nurse but as yet have no proof of full time employment. We are therefore worried because we do not have savings and are not financially well off. We were going to use his brother as evidence of a person who we could rely on financially to prove we would not use the UK government as a source of income if needed to support our application.
> 
> The cost of the visa to apply from outside the UK is £810 whereas it is about £350 to apply inside the UK. So we were thinking he could come over here as a tourist(??) so he can look for a permenant job and at the same time apply for the visa whilst inside the UK. Is this a possibility or will he get rejected at the airport because he will only have a one-way ticket?!
> 
> I don't seem to know where to look to find out rules and explanations of what we should be doing! Can anyone give any suggestions?


You are correct in saying that spouse visa can only be applied for outside UK, in US in this case. The only exception is if you were a non-UK EEA citizen and working in UK.

Lack of finance will be an issue, and quite a critical one. In the revision of immigration rules, there is going to be a minimum income the visa sponsor (you in this case) must have in order to support your husband. It's best to work on the assumption that in combined savings, your UK income and any help from outside should come to around the level of average salary, which is around £25,000, more in London. So your options include wait until you qualify and get a nursing job (you need 3 months' worth of pay slips) or have plenty saved up. If you are going to put forward his brother (in US?) as external sponsor, that won't be accepted by UKBA as he doesn't live in UK. He can give you gift of money, which should be put into savings in either name and should be identified as such. It must be a genuine gift so he will be unable to reclaim it if he changes his mind. But you shouldn't rely on his brother's help to bring the amout to the required lvel - treat it as a bonus, and you should have enough funds of your own without.


----------



## tbonetedh

*Part One - fiance visa approval report, paperwork*



tbonetedh said:


> I am the one planning to move to be with her in the UK with a fiance visa. We have been following this forum for months and our clock is ticking... we have been gathering our papers.
> 
> We were planning on following this strategy...
> 
> 1. Get her documentation together from her in my hands, in advance
> 2. Submit online application with payment
> 3. Wait for response about Biometrics and needed supplemental paperwork
> 4. Submit paperwork to match the list their request.
> 
> I will have all the signed and original documents from her in hand here - before I apply (around August 10 - planning to fly in november and marry on boxing day), but will send nothing in until I hear back from them in New York.
> 
> Is this a feasible strategy??
> 
> thanx for all your help...


FIANCE VISA FINAL REPORT

1. We had been monitoring UK Expat for a year as well as reading and rereading the UKBA website guidance so she mailed a pack of her documents to me back in June.
She even included copies of HER bank account info, tho as it turned out we did not need, nor submit, these.
2. When you begin filling in your online application it says you have 7 days to complete it, however what we did was to start it, and just fill in a few sections. And each time we saved and started the 7 day counter started again. I shared my log-in info with her and we would fill out a couple sections - back and forth, while we were on the phone. We had already printed and filled out the paper copy so we had the info at hand. We took almost three weeks to get it done online.
When we were done, and the money was safely in the bank we hit the "pay now" button. It was actually about 200 dollars less than I had estimated - they must be working with an older exchange rate.
IMMEDIATELY there were two additional emails.
ONE was the information about setting the biometric appointment. The schedule showed openings in the following few days. I selected one and got back a confirmation email almost immediately. Be sure you print and take this confirmation form with you to your biometrics appointment. We were a little spooked about this whole "biometrics" thing.
What they do is take your fingerprints on a glass scanner, and sit you down for a digital photo. This took less than 5 minutes.
THE SECOND email was the standard list of required documents...
here it is...

* IMPORTANT: Please ensure that you submit a full printed copy of your online application. Your printed application form should be signed and dated where applicable.
* SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS: You should read the 'Guide to Supporting Documents' to help you decide which documents will be useful in supporting the statements that you have made on your visa application form (VAF). The guide for your application type can be found here: UK Border Agency | Supporting documents
* your current passport
* your old passport or a copy of it
* One recent colour passport photograph (not more than six months old) Please note: scanned or copies of photos are not acceptable
* a written invitation from your sponsor in the UK (if applicable) and a copy of their British passport/EU passport or UK residence permit
* After you have attended your appointment please send your documents to: British Consulate General, New York, 845 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022
* completed online application form
* evidence of contact between you and your sponsor for example letters, email, telephone bills, etc.
* evidence of funds available to you, in the form of detailed bank statements covering at least the last three months
* evidence of your current accommodation, for example mortgage or tenancy documents, utility bills, etc.
* evidence of your sponsors accommodation in the UK, for example mortgage or tenancy documents, etc.
* evidence of your sponsors employment or intended employment in the UK, for example a contract or offer of employment, salary slips, etc.
* Flight reservation/itinerary showing your intended datesinto and out of the United Kingdom. Do not purchase your ticket before the visa is issued
* If you are in the US - Valid US Immigration Status (originals not copies) e.g. Permanent Resident Card, Advance Parole Document, H1B visa, F1 with I-20 etc
* If you are resident in another country dealt with by the British Consulate-General in New York and are not a citizen of that country please submit evidence of your legal immigration status
* Immigration status (Original not copy):e.g. Permanent residence card, Valid I-94 H1-B - L-1 - B-1 I-20 (Signed on reverse side) IAP-66 Employment authorisation card with advance parole document

I used their list as my outline exactly... 
Here was my reply...

(Continued in Part Two)


----------



## tbonetedh

*Part two - fiance visa final report*



tbonetedh said:


> I am the one planning to move to be with her in the UK with a fiance visa. We have been following this forum for months and our clock is ticking... we have been gathering our papers.
> 
> We were planning on following this strategy...
> 
> 1. Get her documentation together from her in my hands, in advance
> 2. Submit online application with payment
> 3. Wait for response about Biometrics and needed supplemental paperwork
> 4. Submit paperwork to match the list their request.
> 
> I will have all the signed and original documents from her in hand here - before I apply (around August 10 - planning to fly in november and marry on boxing day), but will send nothing in until I hear back from them in New York.
> 
> Is this a feasible strategy??
> 
> thanx for all your help...



Continued from Part One



Dear Sir/Madam:

Per the instructions of the email forwarded to me from your office I have prepared the following documents to support my application for a Settlement – Fiance VISA to allow me to move to the UK with the intention of marrying Ms A and settling there permanently. In each section the original documents are at the beginning, with the copied documents set off with a clip.

Here is your list:

(Note: I had included our simple two page letter of how we met in the very front. It was not included in the contents - it was more of a preamble...)

Section Contents

A.	IMPORTANT: Please ensure that you submit a full printed copy of your online application. Your printed application form should be signed and dated where applicable.

B.	Your current passport

C.	Your old passport or a copy of it

D.	One recent colour passport photograph (not more than six months old) Please note: scanned or copies of photos are not acceptable

E.	A written invitation from your sponsor in the UK (if applicable) and a copy of their British passport/EU passport or UK residence permit
I have included a letter from Ms A as well as a certified copy of her British passport and Birth Certificate.

F.	After you have attended your appointment please send your documents to: British Consulate General, New York, 845 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022
I have included the receipt for having attended my Biometrics appointment, 19.08.2011 here in Yakima.

G.	Completed online application form
See “A” above.

H.	Evidence of contact between you and your sponsor for example letters, email, telephone bills, etc.
I have a copy of A's travel reservation with 
British Air, when she came to visit me for 11 days in February 2011.
I have the receipt for the Bed and Breakfast which we shared 
during her first few days in Seattle/Ballard.
I have included the day-by-day agenda for her visit.
The last several days of her trip she stayed with a personal friend here in Yakima as well as in my home.
I have included copies of several pages of a special photo 
memory album of her visit which I made for A for her 
birthday in June. Several of these photos show us together. I have also included the entire photo album, which is starting to come apart from having been shown to so many friends here.
As our relationship has matured our mode of communication 
modes have changed as well. 
I have included a listing of the emails we have exchanged in the past almost 14 months. You will notice that many of the topics have a small number in parenthesis – this represents the actual number of messages back and forth concerning that topical thread.
I have included txting billings from August to October of 2010. 
Until we had met face to face in February we did not talk on the 
phone, but only with email and txting.
I have included my phone records for March 2011, as well as for May and June, with the calls to and from A marked with yellow.

I.	Evidence of funds available to you, in the form of detailed bank statements covering at least the last three months.
I have enclosed copies of these from my bank, printed and stamped by the Bank Employee. Additionally, between now and when I travel in November I am on track to save another ... dollars.



J.	Evidence of your current accommodation, for example mortgage or tenancy documents, utility bills, etc.
I have presented a letter from my Priest, where I have been staying since June 1.

K.	Evidence of your sponsor’s accommodation in the UK, for example mortgage or tenancy documents, etc.
I have documents showing the kind of housing Ms A has in Milton Keynes as well as permission for me to join her. Additionally, I have included her council tax form.

L.	Evidence of your sponsor’s employment or intended employment in the UK, for example a contract or offer of employment, salary slips, etc.
Ms A has had the same stable employment for years in Milton Keynes. I have included a copy of her P60, as well as several recent wage slips.

M.	Flight reservation/itinerary showing your intended dates into and out of the United Kingdom. Do not purchase your ticket before the visa is issued.
I have included a print-out from the British Air website for a one-way ticket showing their schedule the day I am hoping to travel.

N.	If you are in the US - Valid US Immigration Status (originals not copies) e.g. Permanent Resident Card, Advance Parole Document, H1B visa, F1 with I-20 etc.
I was born in the US. As a native born citizen, I have no need of these documents.

O.	If you are resident in another country dealt with by the British Consulate-General in New York and are not a citizen of that country please submit evidence of your legal immigration status
I was born in the US. As a native born citizen, I have no need of these documents.

P.	Immigration status (Original not copy):e.g. Permanent residence card, Valid I-94 H1-B - L-1 - B-1 I-20 (Signed on reverse side) IAP-66 Employment authorisation card with advance parole document.
I was born in the US. As a native born citizen, I have no need of these documents.



Additional Materials to support my Settlement-Fiance VISA application include.

Q.	I have included an email invitation I sent to 200 of my friends inviting them to our wedding on 26.12.2011 in Milton Keynes.
I have included email correspondence exchange from the Vicar in Milton Keynes, AJ, in which we discuss our wedding plans. In this sequence he agrees to an appointment with us on November 18 at 11:00 am in his office. This is 24 hours after I am scheduled to arrive in the UK.
I have also included the hand written receipt from Rev J for the deposit on the church for the wedding. 
I have included our application form that those who are divorced must fill out for a church wedding.
Next is a letter from SL in the Church of England, Oxford Diocese office in Oxford discussing the process we must go through to be married in the church. This was mailed to A and she forwarded it to me.
Following this is a letter from Pastor J to Ms L, in which he supports our application to marry in the church.
Then there is the basic Marriage Application to arrange to be married in the church, which A filled out for Pastor J.
There is also an email exchange between Ms L in the Diocese office where we set an appointment to meet on November 24 to take care of the necessary paperwork for the wedding to proceed.

R.	I have included copies of the final divorce documents from A and my divorces, showing that we are free to remarry at this time. 

S.	Copies of my University Transcript showing my having completed my studies for my University Degree.

T.	Copies of my CV, showing the skills I have which will assist me in obtaining employment in the United Kingdom.
I have also included information about several local UK employment openings that are examples of the kind of work that would easily fit within my professional experience.
I understand that I will be unable to work in the UK until I have upgraded my VISA and obtained my FLR(M).
I have included a copy of my notice to my current employer, about the Termination of my Employment effective 14.11.2011.

U.	This is an invitation from some of my friends who A met when she was here. They are inviting us, as a couple, to their wedding reception party.

V.	This is an advertisement I placed in ... hometown newspaper the week of our one-year anniversary of our meeting online.

*************

the one thing I almost missed but did at the last minute was a two page narrative describing how we met. I emailed this to A, she edited it... (lol) printed and signed it and scanned it back to me. So it had both our "original" signatures on it.

*************

I presented the whole package in a concertina folder packet, with the copies paper-clipped in each section. The completed package was just under 8 pounds weight. I probably over did it - I usually do... lol However, our application was approved in 5 working days - with no expedited service, so it was definitely worth the extra effort. At times I felt like I was putting together a major business proposal... LOL

they sent an email on day 5 that I had been approved and it was delivered - next day air - the next day... yyyaaaaa!!!! with all the document originals - they kept the copies.

One note... I submitted my banking records as asked, and I had A's records but since they did not ask we did not submit them. However if this would be an important part of the decision making process you might submit them in your case.

*********

I hope some find this long treatise helpful... good luck, stop by for lunch in MK after the first of the year...


----------



## Kitara

Yeah.. it is very frustrating.. Especially my husband is in UK and i am alone in Singapore sorting the massive and maze document.. i even broke into tears doing this.. it is even more difficult than planning a wedding! 



Lauren_999 said:


> Hi Nora,
> 
> First of all, congratulations! Second of all, I know exactly how you feel -- the pain and frustration of being apart as well as the stress of figuring this maze of paperwork out so you can just be together!
> 
> As you will read just about every where, every situation's different but I will certainly advise on what we did and why, and you can decide if that feels right for you two.
> 
> Facebook messages: this one is hard because FB has since changed their message feature. We were able to search within the message window on FB and (similar to Gmail) it would pull up a list of _each message thread_ which only stated the subject line and date it was started. We then took a screen shot of that list. This solved the issue of proving the frequency of contact without disclosing the content of the messages. However, I believe FB has since changed their feature so I'm not positive you can do that. If you can't, I say pull up a few of those messages, screen shot the to/from and date portions and save them as images. Once printed, I think it should be OK to black out any personal content you don't feel comfortable having a stranger read. And yes, include a note to explain. That's what I would do in your situation.
> 
> Call logs: My husband and I did not submit any mobile or landline phone call logs. It was too expensive to call each other, so we only submitted our Skype video call logs in addition to your Gmail logs and FB message logs. But we had tons of those logged so I'm not sure how that would affect your application.
> 
> As for proving your relationship is genuine, after working on this for several months and reading blogs and government sites, I honestly got the impression (this is just my personal opinion, I'm no lawyer), that as long as nothing is overly suspicious, the "proving" of the relationship isn't as daunting as it seems. By the time you apply for the spouse visa, you'll have wedding photos and cards from family, etc. So wedding planning messages aren't necessarily required (but certainly can't hurt -- if it made me feel better to include something I wasn't sure I needed, I did it, for peace of mind).
> 
> Funds: As the sponsor, the burden is more on your funds than his, and if you're comfortable with what you have that should be fine. Everyone stresses over the amount but there is no clear answer. I had about $4000 in savings but my husband had substantially more and that worked for us.
> 
> And remember you can always explain anything that doesn't seem clear or you think needs background info in your Sponsorship and Applicant Letters (Applicant Letter is not required but I did one). For example, in my Applicant Letter, I explained that my bank statements reflected a car loan with an outstanding balance, but that I planned to sell the car before I moved which would pay off that debt and add to my savings.
> 
> Hope this helps, I really do. I really do know how you feel. We were so overjoyed at the engagement then the reality of the work and effort of what we had ahead really knocked us back. It seemed impossible at first and I shed a few tears of frustration myself. I'm sure you'll have your happy ending! Best of luck.
> Lauren


----------



## Kitara

What is Evidence of Biometrics Processing? 

The appointment printed sheet for biometrics?


----------



## tbonetedh

tbonetedh said:


> Continued from Part One
> 
> 
> 
> Dear Sir/Madam:
> 
> Per the instructions of the email forwarded to me from your office I have prepared the following documents to support my application for a Settlement – Fiance VISA to allow me to move to the UK with the intention of marrying Ms A and settling there permanently. In each section the original documents are at the beginning, with the copied documents set off with a clip.
> 
> Here is your list:
> 
> (Note: I had included our simple two page letter of how we met in the very front. It was not included in the contents - it was more of a preamble...)
> 
> Section Contents
> 
> A.	IMPORTANT: Please ensure that you submit a full printed copy of your online application. Your printed application form should be signed and dated where applicable.
> 
> B.	Your current passport
> 
> C.	Your old passport or a copy of it
> 
> D.	One recent colour passport photograph (not more than six months old) Please note: scanned or copies of photos are not acceptable
> 
> E.	A written invitation from your sponsor in the UK (if applicable) and a copy of their British passport/EU passport or UK residence permit
> I have included a letter from Ms A as well as a certified copy of her British passport and Birth Certificate.
> 
> F.	After you have attended your appointment please send your documents to: British Consulate General, New York, 845 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022
> I have included the receipt for having attended my Biometrics appointment, 19.08.2011 here in Yakima.
> 
> G.	Completed online application form
> See “A” above.
> 
> H.	Evidence of contact between you and your sponsor for example letters, email, telephone bills, etc.
> I have a copy of A's travel reservation with
> British Air, when she came to visit me for 11 days in February 2011.
> I have the receipt for the Bed and Breakfast which we shared
> during her first few days in Seattle/Ballard.
> I have included the day-by-day agenda for her visit.
> The last several days of her trip she stayed with a personal friend here in Yakima as well as in my home.
> I have included copies of several pages of a special photo
> memory album of her visit which I made for A for her
> birthday in June. Several of these photos show us together. I have also included the entire photo album, which is starting to come apart from having been shown to so many friends here.
> As our relationship has matured our mode of communication
> modes have changed as well.
> I have included a listing of the emails we have exchanged in the past almost 14 months. You will notice that many of the topics have a small number in parenthesis – this represents the actual number of messages back and forth concerning that topical thread.
> I have included txting billings from August to October of 2010.
> Until we had met face to face in February we did not talk on the
> phone, but only with email and txting.
> I have included my phone records for March 2011, as well as for May and June, with the calls to and from A marked with yellow.
> 
> I.	Evidence of funds available to you, in the form of detailed bank statements covering at least the last three months.
> I have enclosed copies of these from my bank, printed and stamped by the Bank Employee. Additionally, between now and when I travel in November I am on track to save another ... dollars.
> 
> 
> 
> J.	Evidence of your current accommodation, for example mortgage or tenancy documents, utility bills, etc.
> I have presented a letter from my Priest, where I have been staying since June 1.
> 
> K.	Evidence of your sponsor’s accommodation in the UK, for example mortgage or tenancy documents, etc.
> I have documents showing the kind of housing Ms A has in Milton Keynes as well as permission for me to join her. Additionally, I have included her council tax form.
> 
> L.	Evidence of your sponsor’s employment or intended employment in the UK, for example a contract or offer of employment, salary slips, etc.
> Ms A has had the same stable employment for years in Milton Keynes. I have included a copy of her P60, as well as several recent wage slips.
> 
> M.	Flight reservation/itinerary showing your intended dates into and out of the United Kingdom. Do not purchase your ticket before the visa is issued.
> I have included a print-out from the British Air website for a one-way ticket showing their schedule the day I am hoping to travel.
> 
> N.	If you are in the US - Valid US Immigration Status (originals not copies) e.g. Permanent Resident Card, Advance Parole Document, H1B visa, F1 with I-20 etc.
> I was born in the US. As a native born citizen, I have no need of these documents.
> 
> O.	If you are resident in another country dealt with by the British Consulate-General in New York and are not a citizen of that country please submit evidence of your legal immigration status
> I was born in the US. As a native born citizen, I have no need of these documents.
> 
> P.	Immigration status (Original not copy):e.g. Permanent residence card, Valid I-94 H1-B - L-1 - B-1 I-20 (Signed on reverse side) IAP-66 Employment authorisation card with advance parole document.
> I was born in the US. As a native born citizen, I have no need of these documents.
> 
> 
> 
> Additional Materials to support my Settlement-Fiance VISA application include.
> 
> Q.	I have included an email invitation I sent to 200 of my friends inviting them to our wedding on 26.12.2011 in Milton Keynes.
> I have included email correspondence exchange from the Vicar in Milton Keynes, AJ, in which we discuss our wedding plans. In this sequence he agrees to an appointment with us on November 18 at 11:00 am in his office. This is 24 hours after I am scheduled to arrive in the UK.
> I have also included the hand written receipt from Rev J for the deposit on the church for the wedding.
> I have included our application form that those who are divorced must fill out for a church wedding.
> Next is a letter from SL in the Church of England, Oxford Diocese office in Oxford discussing the process we must go through to be married in the church. This was mailed to A and she forwarded it to me.
> Following this is a letter from Pastor J to Ms L, in which he supports our application to marry in the church.
> Then there is the basic Marriage Application to arrange to be married in the church, which A filled out for Pastor J.
> There is also an email exchange between Ms L in the Diocese office where we set an appointment to meet on November 24 to take care of the necessary paperwork for the wedding to proceed.
> 
> R.	I have included copies of the final divorce documents from A and my divorces, showing that we are free to remarry at this time.
> 
> S.	Copies of my University Transcript showing my having completed my studies for my University Degree.
> 
> T.	Copies of my CV, showing the skills I have which will assist me in obtaining employment in the United Kingdom.
> I have also included information about several local UK employment openings that are examples of the kind of work that would easily fit within my professional experience.
> I understand that I will be unable to work in the UK until I have upgraded my VISA and obtained my FLR(M).
> I have included a copy of my notice to my current employer, about the Termination of my Employment effective 14.11.2011.
> 
> U.	This is an invitation from some of my friends who A met when she was here. They are inviting us, as a couple, to their wedding reception party.
> 
> V.	This is an advertisement I placed in ... hometown newspaper the week of our one-year anniversary of our meeting online.
> 
> *************
> 
> the one thing I almost missed but did at the last minute was a two page narrative describing how we met. I emailed this to A, she edited it... (lol) printed and signed it and scanned it back to me. So it had both our "original" signatures on it.
> 
> *************
> 
> I presented the whole package in a concertina folder packet, with the copies paper-clipped in each section. The completed package was just under 8 pounds weight. I probably over did it - I usually do... lol However, our application was approved in 5 working days - with no expedited service, so it was definitely worth the extra effort. At times I felt like I was putting together a major business proposal... LOL
> 
> they sent an email on day 5 that I had been approved and it was delivered - next day air - the next day... yyyaaaaa!!!! with all the document originals - they kept the copies.
> 
> One note... I submitted my banking records as asked, and I had A's records but since they did not ask we did not submit them. However if this would be an important part of the decision making process you might submit them in your case.
> 
> *********
> 
> I hope some find this long treatise helpful... good luck, stop by for lunch in MK after the first of the year...




DONE, MARRIED 23 HOURS AGO... moving into our future together... in the UK
next stop is to upgrade my VISA from Fiancé to FLR (M)

spending a few days in buckingham at The White Hart...


----------



## doctorofphysick

Hello Lauren_999, thank you for posting all this information. It is a big help to all of us who are planning spouse visa applications. I just have two little questions.

I see on the list of evidence you put Gmail e-mail log. Does that mean you printed out just the list of messages you received or did you print each individual e-mail between you and your husband?

Also I see you put Skype Video-Call log, did you print this yourself or pay a legal company to do it for you?

Thank you very much for your help and time and thank you again for sharing this information with us all.


----------



## Lauren_999

Hi

You’re welcome – I know how stressful it is to figure out what exactly to include and I hope this acts as a helpful guide. Obviously you know what’s best to include for your situation, and this is just what me and my husband did (I think I have to say that  ).

Now to answer your questions.

We only included printed off screen shots of the inbox. To make sure it showed only messages between myself and my husband, I did a search within Gmail for his name, then took the screen shot of the results, making sure each shot included the date. (For privacy, you can turn off the preview message feature in your gmail before taking the screen shot or just black out the first line of the message once it’s printed off – in my opinion there was no reason to share any part of our personal messages; we only aimed to prove that we were in constant contact from X date to Y date, as we stated elsewhere in our application).

For our Skype records, we just printed it off ourselves. I don’t recall that it required contacting Skype – if I remember correctly it was available to view online and again we just took screen shots and printed them. Why would a legal company be necessary? As in to notarize that it is authentic? If you feel this step is necessary, you may be able to contact Skype and ask for a certified copy of your call history (no idea if they actually do this, but might, for a charge). I would imagine unless there are red flags elsewhere in your application, they would have no reason to believe the call log was doctored or faked. 

Hope this helps and good luck!


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## Kitara

VFS center asked me to remove email, mobile and skype record as we are married..


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## doctorofphysick

Thank you very very much for the extra information Lauren_999, it was very helpful Just one final thing I forgot to ask you before, did you include photocopies of the handwritten letters and postcards?


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## Essie

B. Notarized Copy of Passport Bio Page
[/QUOTE said:


> How did you get a notairized copy? My husband will possibly need the original in case he has to go back before the visa arrives.


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## AnAmericanInScotland

Essie said:


> How did you get a notairized copy? My husband will possibly need the original in case he has to go back before the visa arrives.


A *simple photocopy* of the bio page *is all you need*-it doesn't need to be notarised or certified. 

Some applicants do go the extra money to have something notarised/certified, but it isn't a requirement.

Go to the CVS or local library, slap the bio page down on the faceplate and hit '3' so you have an extra just in case.

Then put one copy of the copies in the application packet.


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## Joppa

AnAmericanInScotland said:


> A *simple photocopy* of the bio page *is all you need*-it doesn't need to be notarised or certified.
> 
> Some applicants do go the extra money to have something notarised/certified, but it isn't a requirement.
> 
> Go to the CVS or local library, slap the bio page down on the faceplate and hit '3' so you have an extra just in case.
> 
> Then put one copy of the copies in the application packet.


This is because UKBA has electronic access to UK passport database so can verify facts if they want to. The same isn't true of non-UK passport, so if your sponsor has any other kind of passport, notarisation/certification is a good idea, and in some cases it's required (such as for EEA family permit if the sponsor doesn't have residence certificate).


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## newlight1

In relation to the post, with applying for a UK fiance visa what evidence is needed by the two people to prove they can marry?

FOr instance, someone who has been divorced? would a decree absolute be fine? 

What documents are needed to be orginals and which can be copies and which need to be certified copies?


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## teuchter

newlight1 said:


> In relation to the post, with applying for a UK fiance visa what evidence is needed by the two people to prove they can marry?
> 
> FOr instance, someone who has been divorced? would a decree absolute be fine?
> 
> What documents are needed to be orginals and which can be copies and which need to be certified copies?


Yes, a decree absolute is fine.

All supporting documents must be originals. See here: UK Border Agency | Documents required. Enclose copies if you want the originals to be returned to you.

teuchter


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## d_ellis1989

Hey everyone I just wanted to let you know that this thread was extremely helpful when I was applying for my UK spouse visa!! Here is the list of documents I used for my supporting documents:

Index of Supporting Documents- Form VAF4A- UK Spouse Visa
I. Sponsor Information
A. Sponsor’s Letter of Introduction
B. Notarized Copy of Passport Bio Page & Military Identification
C. Original of Birth Certificate & Expired Passport
D. Letter of acknowledgement from British Army regarding spouse visa application
E. Letter of Employment from British Army
F. Evidence of Accommodations
1. Service Family Accommodation (housing) Application 
2. Acceptance Letter from British Army verifying accommodations
3. Housing contract for Service Family Accommodation 
G. Financial Info 
1. Pay slips
2. P60 
3. Bank Statements

II. Applicant Information
A. Applicant’s Letter of Introduction
B. Current Passport and Certified Copy of Birth Certificate
C. Proposed flight itinerary to settle in England August 2012
D. Work History/Evidence of Employability
1. Letter of recommendation from employer
2. Resume
3. Promotional Model Resume
4. Email Log Evidencing Job Search w/University of Washington
5. Official and unofficial college transcripts from University of Washington
6. Dean's Letter and National Honor Society Certificate
E. Financial History
1. Account summaries and deposit receipts with images evidencing checks made to Luke & I
2. Bank Statements 
III. Supplemental Information
A. Parent's Letter approving financial backing if necessary and confirming relationship
B. Financial Info
1. Pay Slips
2. Bank Statements
3. Credit Card Statements confirming wedding payments made

IV. Applicant-Sponsor Relationship
A. Marriage
1. Marriage Certificate
2. Wedding photos
3. Wedding invitation, program, bills from wedding, etc.
B. Intervening Devotion
1. Flight confirmations from visits 
2. Skype + Email + Facebook Logs
5. Handwritten letters & cards
6. Photobook made from visits spent together

This process can be daunting and stressful and you really don't know how much until you go through it! My husband and I were so afraid that my visa would not get accepted for some small reason because of all the horror stories we have heard. I think the most important thing you can do for your visa application is to have everything well organized! I paid for the priority service and my visa was approved in less than 36 hours  Here is the timeline of events for my application:

Completed the online application: Friday June 29th, 2012
Biometrics Appointment: Friday July 6th, 2012
Mailed off application w/supporting documents: Friday July 6th, 2012 (2nd day air via UPS $50)
Received by the UKBA: Tuesday July 10th, 2012
Approved: Thursday July 12th, 2012

I want to make a note that I applied in my maiden name although some of documents (plane ticket, drivers license) are in my married name and that was fine! That was one of my major concerns with the application. Good luck to you all!!


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## liam85

Thats a great list!

When you say "Proposed flight itinerary to settle in England August 2012", what was this? I was just going to print off an internet page showing flight prices on the day my fiancee wishes to travel.

You also say: "Letter of acknowledgement from British Army regarding spouse visa application". I am also in the army, what did this letter say?


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## d_ellis1989

The proposed flight itinerary is my actual flight itinerary for the ticket I booked to the UK. I put proposed as it is stated on the UKBA website that you should not book your ticket until your visa has been approved.

If you go to your welfare office and speak to them about the situation; bringing your fiancee over on a fiance visa, they should write a letter of intent for you and they will also confirm that you are in the military and your dates of employment. Do you have a date for the wedding set yet? In the letter they also stated that we intended to marry on....... That is what my husband did, not sure if it works the same for a fiance/fiancee but hopefully they can do something similar!

Also with my husband being in the British Army I was able to put "HM FORCES DEPENDENT" on my documents which they supposedly analyze a bit differently than applicants who are not dependents of people in the HM Forces. I'm not sure if you could put that on a fiance visa though as she would not technically be your dependent until you are married, as much evidence you can put that you are in the army and bringing her over I'm sure would be helpful!

Good luck and let me know if you need any other advice!!


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## liam85

Thanks for the reply, I am going to see the welfare office next week and hopefully they will provide me this letter! Thanks. I've mentioned quite alot I am HM Forces in my letter and she has in hers too so hopefully this might help.

I'm still confused about this itinerary, was that just the proposed flight times, airline etc of the ticket you intended too book, or like a little plan or something for your journey to the UK?

Many thanks


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## d_ellis1989

No it was my actual flight itinerary, I booked my ticket months ago and just kinda crossed my fingers the application would get approved!


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## liam85

OK, brave haha.

Did you come to the UK on a Fiancee visa or were you already married?


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## d_ellis1989

No I have not actually been to the UK yet! We found that it was much more expensive to go to the UK on a fiance visa, get married, and change it to a spouse visa than it was to just get married in the US so we got married in the US (Las Vegas) instead. You can get married on a visitors visa in the US which makes it free and easy!

Here is our story:
We met online October 2011, took a leap of faith and met in person December 2011 in the US and knew that we could not live without each other. We started making wedding arrangements January 2012 for June 16th, 2012 in Las Vegas. My husband came out to America once again before our wedding for two weeks from March-April 2012 and then back for all of June 2012. We spent all the months from January-July gathering the documents for the visa and mailed it off July 6th, 2012 (completed the online application June 29th and biometrics appointment July 6th). When I go over in August it will be my first time to the UK, although we have spent only 8 weeks total together in the past 9 months our relationship has been well documented, this and finances are probably the two most important parts of the application; legitimacy of the relationship and not requiring access to public funds when your spouse/fiance joins you in the UK. We barely met the minimum finances required but my husband having a steady income from the military and service family accomodation provided showed that we would not require the access to public funds as I also hope to find employment in the UK when I move there.


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## xiaoqiaodan

For Evidence of accommodations, did you include a property inspection report, proving that the house will not be overcrowded? Cant decide if I need to do this!!!!

Thanks


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## Leanna

xiaoqiaodan said:


> For Evidence of accommodations, did you include a property inspection report, proving that the house will not be overcrowded? Cant decide if I need to do this!!!!
> 
> Thanks


Please don't multi post your question in several forums. Best to stick to your own thread, where I have answered your question, and not to spam several forums.


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## Ley

Fab news,it is so stressful when applying and not knowing what documents to support your application. Well done !!! the information will be very useful when applying for a spouse visa. l wish I had known about the forum to get help and advice from other people's experience. I live in Spain and just received my spouse visa yesterday . l was pleased but I think it is not the right visa.I applied for a settlement spouse visa as we have been married for over 4 years and lived outside UK . I didn't know what to do ..... Rang the world bridge centre and was informed to send a email and they would forward it to Madrid. I did that today and waiting to see what will happen . It is fantastic how everyone is helpful ,shares the knowledge and points out the rules of the immigration to direct people when in doubt about what is required. Keep posting to help others if only I had known earlier about the forum . I would not have been so frustrated ,confused and stressed. I managed to apply on line and had every supporting document required.(not sure how I manage it) Hopefully it was an administrative error on my visa.


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## nicktca

I know everyone situations are different, but is there an official preferred UKBA order that these docs should be placed in? I thought I saw it on their site, now I can't seem to find it.


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## WestCoastCanadianGirl

No specific order per se, but things should be grouped together... payslips/bank info and sponsor employment info/p60 should go together; Skype/email/FB chats together etc

I would also place the application form and your Worldbridge stuff on top, followed by your passport(s) (include expired ones, if you've got them) and letter of introduction/sponsor letter next and then everything else after that, putting copies directly behind their original.

Basically, just send a tidy stack of documents... the visa section will organise the documents for processing. No need to send them in a binder or in plastic page protectors - not only does this increase the package weight and your shipping costs, it is more work for the ECO staff who have to remove each page before it can be adjudicated. If you feel the need to bind things, it's best to use either string or paperclips.

Good luck to you!


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## Anxious_wife

Thanks, very helpful!


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## bradluke22

*SHORT Birth Certificate*

Hello,

Can someone please help, my wife is from New York and is getting our paperwork together for her UK Spouse Visa. Can anyone let me know if my Short Birth Certificate original will suffice? Many thanks! :fingerscrossed:

Luke


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## Sel

bradluke22 said:


> Hello,
> 
> Can someone please help, my wife is from New York and is getting our paperwork together for her UK Spouse Visa. Can anyone let me know if my Short Birth Certificate original will suffice? Many thanks! :fingerscrossed:
> 
> Luke


If you are a UK citzen then your birth certificate is not required as all your personal information can be found by the UKBA from the passport data system using your passport number.


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## Xtinamay13

Lauren_999 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> A few days ago I had my UK Spouse Visa approved and am of course over the moon after all the hard work and worry. I couldn't have done it without this forum and the info that was available to me here. In an effort to return the favor I'm posting what I hope is a helpful list of the things I included in my application, as figuring this out was one of my biggest stress creators.
> 
> So to put my supporting documents in perspective, I will explain my situation. I met my husband while we were both on vacation in the States (he's British, I'm American). We kept up the relationship from overseas, and he visited me here in the US three times. I visited him in England once, to meet his family after we had become engaged. On his third visit to the US we were married. So one of our biggest concerns was that our dating relationship was rather short, and that we have never lived together in the same country. So we included lots of stuff to prove what they refer to as "Intervening Devotion." Of course another big concern was funds (as is everyone's), but we felt we have a good amount of savings to be ok on that one. But I do plan to work in the UK and contribute to the household, so I included supporting documents about my employability, including my resume, my last job contract, letters of rec, etc., and noted that I had already begun my job search to show that I was serious about getting employed as soon as possible.
> 
> Below is a direct copy/paste of a Table of Contents (it pasted in wonky, and I can't fix the spacing, sorry about that) that was included in the app. Our strategy was to each write a letter explaining our situation (the Letter of Introduction) and intentions, then to "prove" the statements made in each letter, we included the appropriate/relevant documents. We organized it in a 3-ring binder, in the same order as the Table of Contents, and separated into sections as labeled (the Roman numerals) below.
> 
> So, here goes:
> 
> I. Sponsor Information
> A. Sponsor’s Letter of Introduction
> B. Notarized Copy of Passport Bio Page
> C. Originals of Birth Certificate (short and long form)
> D. Financial Info (in sealed envelope)
> 1. Bank statements
> 2. P60
> 3. Payslips
> E. Evidence of Accommodations
> 1. Letter from XXX verifying accommodations agreement
> 2. JXXX’s deeds to home
> F. Employment Information
> 1. Letter of Employment from XYZ Co
> 2. Employment Contract from XYZ Co
> 
> II. Applicant Information
> A. Applicant’s Letter of Introduction
> B. Passport and two color passport-sized photos
> C. Original Birth Certificate
> D. Biometrics Confirmation
> E. Work History/Evidence of Employability
> 1. Resume
> 2. Most recent job contract
> 3. Letters of recommendation from former/current employers
> F. Financial History (in sealed envelope)
> 1. Bank statements
> 2. 2010 Tax Forms (State and Federal)
> 3. Bank Letter / Verification of Deposits
> G. Proposed flight itinerary to settle in England in July 2011
> 
> III. Applicant-Sponsor Relationship
> A. Marriage
> 1. Original and Certified Copy of Marriage License
> 2. Wedding photos
> 3. Wedding invitations, save the date, cards from family, etc.
> 
> B. Intervening Devotion
> 1. Flight confirmations from visits
> 2. Skype Video-Call log
> 3. Gmail e-mail log
> 4. Facebook messages Log
> 5. Handwritten letters and postcards
> 6. Photos from visits spent together
> 
> Hope that helps! If you have any questions about the specifics of what I included or why, just ask (for example, I don't think you need the passport copy to be notarized, but we did to be safe). I"m happy to help


How much did your package weigh in total?


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## nyclon

It's a 2 year old post and completely irrelevant as the rules and requirements changed just over a year ago.


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## mandrake299

Your list is very comprehensive but my situation is a little different since I am receiving DLA and only require 'adequate maintenance' which after my household costs I think is having an excess of £112.00 per week. My question is apart from the requested documentation for this, ie evidence of my benefits, bank statements etc.. would I be expected to show a Monthly Budget showing incomings and outgoings. If its not necessary then I prefer not to. Can you help me with this question? Thanks


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## Joppa

No, it's specifically stated you don't need it.


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