# UK fiance > spouse visa: have I got this right?



## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

Hello, 

My long-distance partner of 2.5 years (he is Scottish and lives in Scotland, I'm Australian and live in Australia) and I got engaged last month and are now looking at our visa situation. We are in the process of deciding whether or not to settle in Australia or the UK (looking at our career options, lifestyle and best place to start a family), but we're currently doing research into the visa paths in each scenario. I think I've got the Australian visa side of things sussed out, and also had a consult with an immigration lawyer today, but still a little unsure about the UK visa situation.

We've visited each other's countries a few times each in the past couple of years but - as is usually the way with long-distance relationships - we haven't ever been registered as living together and have no joint finances etc, so we can't be classed as 'defacto'.

We're not looking to have a larger celebration with friends and family for another 12 months, but would like to get married now in the eyes of the law, to start the visa process -
so happy just for a registry office situation that deems us officially married for now.

Ultimately, we are trying to work towards each having dual citizenship so we have the choice to live and work in both countries. Obviously this is a long path and rules change, but we are trying to plan well now and make good decisions so that it might someday be possible.

From my research, I think this is the correct process and timings:

I apply for a family visa (fiance) from Australia now (cost £1,464). For this to be granted, he needs to be earning £18,600 per year and we must be intending to continue living together in the UK after I apply
I wait up to 12 weeks for an answer , then go to the UK and we have six months to get married (during which time I cannot work in the UK)
Once married, I can apply to extend my visa (£993 if I am in the UK)
Wait around eight weeks for my visa extension (during which time I can work)
I can then stay for 2 years and 6 months, during which time I can work. I’ll be able to apply to extend again towards the end of that.

*Here are my questions - I would be incredibly grateful if someone can can answer one or all of these:*

1. Can anyone confirm if this is the correct/easiest/quickest/cheapest path and that I have my timings, costs and rules correct? 
2. Is is easy to get the fiance visa? Do you need to supply loads of supporting evidence?
3. How long does it usually take to grant the fiance visa? Do you have to wait until it's granted until you can travel to the UK and get married?
4. How long do you have to be in the UK (and not working) on the fiance visa until you can get married?
5. How long after you get married can you apply for the next visa (spouse?)? 
6. Do you need a lot of supporting evidence for the application for a spouse visa? Would we need to be living together for some time to back it up or could we just apply straight after we are married?
7. At what point would I be able to work once we are married? Do I have to wait for the spouse visa to be granted? How long does that take?
8. Once the the spouse visa is granted and I am given permission to live and work for 2 years and 6 months, am I permitted to travel in that time? Would we be able to live overseas for an extended period of time, or for the whole time?
9. Am I entitled to access the NHS during the time I am in the UK on the fiance and spouse visas?
10. What happens after the 2 years and 6 months? Can I extend again? For how long? At what point can I become a citizen? Are there rules about how long you can spend outside the country before being granted citizenship?
11. If we were to get married elsewhere (say Australia), what does that process look like? What UK visa am I applying for then, what are the wait times like and what am I allowed to do/not do?
12. Has anyone been in the same situation and can say whether the UK or Australian visa process for fiancees/marriage is easier?


I know I have asked a lot of questions :sorry: and I will be eternally grateful to anyone who takes the time to help. I am more than happy to continue doing my own research, but I feel I have gone as far as I can without having a few of these things confirmed. This forum has been invaluable in the past and I hope some knowledgeable people out there can give me some advice to help us navigate this.

Many, many thanks in advance.


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## clever-octopus (May 17, 2015)

This is a lot of questions, some subjective or redundant, but I'll try to give an answer.

1. Sort of. But you can't work whilst your application for FLR(M) (Further Leave to Remain - i.e., switch from a fiance visa to a spouse visa) is processing. You can only begin working once it's been granted.

2. "Easy" is relative. Lots of people get a fiance visa if they have the required evidence. You need evidence of finances (payslips/bank statements/letter from employer), proof of your intent to marry in the UK (deposits, receipts, contact with the venue or registrar), proof of adequate accommodation in the UK (tenancy agreement and permission from the landlord or homeowner for you to move in, plus a recent utility bill or council tax statement), and proof of a genuine relationship (evidence you've visited one another, photos together, proof you've been communicating whilst living apart).

3. Without paying for priority service, usually between a couple of weeks to 3 months. You cannot travel to the UK to get married until you have the visa. You can't even give notice to get married in the UK without the visa.

4. There's a 28 day notice period after giving notice at a designated registry office before the marriage can actually be performed. Scotland has its own marriage regulations separate from England/Wales/NI and you should read them thoroughly: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk

5. You can apply for FLR(M) as a spouse as soon as you have a marriage certificate.

6. The application for a spouse visa is almost exactly the same as the evidence needed for the fiance visa, so you can re-use most evidence, but financial documents will need to be updated (you'll need recent bank statements and payslips) and of course you'll submit a marriage certificate instead of proof of intent to marry.

7. As soon as you have the spouse visa in hand you can undertake work. An employer will need to see your current passport and BRP (biometric residence permit, which is effectively the visa itself) in order to verify your right to work in the UK. If you apply by post or online, it takes up to 8 weeks. You can also apply in person for an extra fee, which usually gets you a same-day decision, but you said you want the cheapest option and it definitely would not be cost effective to apply in person.

8. Yes, you can travel freely with a spouse visa. You can technically go back to living overseas, but for more than brief periods of time spent abroad, you will certainly be delaying your eligibility for Indefinite Leave to Remain and/or British citizenship. You're expected to be living in the UK with your spouse the whole duration of your visa, so if you relocate outside of the UK, whilst your current visa will probably still be valid, you will probably have to start again from the beginning for the 5 year residence requirement for ILR/citizenship.

9. Yes you can access NHS, and you will pay an immigration health surcharge of £200/year with your FLR(M) application. So plan to spend an additional £500 at that point.

10. You can extend again for another 2.5 years. After 5 years' continuous residence in the UK, you apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain. As the spouse of a British citizen, you can apply for citizenship as soon as you have ILR and have passed the Life in the UK test. Yes, the residence requirements for British citizenship are very strict. I won't list them here, as they are easy to google.

11. I don't know about Australian marriage rules. But if you marry in AUS you would just apply for a UK spouse visa, rather than a fiance visa and then a switch to FLR(M). Projected spouse visa wait times are the same as for a fiance visa.

12. Sorry I don't have an Australian perspective here, but we found it was vastly easier to marry in the US and just move to the UK on a spouse visa rather than faff about with another UK visa needed just to get married here, and this we also avoided the UK marriage requirements such as waiting periods/fees.


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

Thanks you so much clever-octopus for taking the time to write such a detailed reply and answer my many questions. It's amazing how one sentence in simple English can sum up many, many official webpages with links sending you all over the place so you end up so far down a rabbit hole you forgot how you got there. I have a few follow up questions from your answers if you, or someone else doesn't mind replying.



clever-octopus said:


> You can't work whilst your application for FLR(M) (Further Leave to Remain - i.e., switch from a fiance visa to a spouse visa) is processing. You can only begin working once it's been granted.


1. So the 'spouse' visa that I would apply for once married (and that everyone refers to as the 'spouse visa') is known as 'FLR(M) (Further Leave to Remain'? And I cannot work from the time I land in the UK to get married until I have been granted FLR(M) (Further Leave to Remain)?




clever-octopus said:


> You need evidence of finances (payslips/bank statements/letter from employer), proof of your intent to marry in the UK (deposits, receipts, contact with the venue or registrar), proof of adequate accommodation in the UK (tenancy agreement and permission from the landlord or homeowner for you to move in, plus a recent utility bill or council tax statement), and proof of a genuine relationship (evidence you've visited one another, photos together, proof you've been communicating whilst living apart).


2. Are you talking about bank statements from Australia?
3. How can you provide 'deposits, receipts, contact with the venue or registrar' for a fiance visa if you aren't allowed to even give notice to get married in the UK without the visa?
4. If I was moving in with my fiance (he owns the home) what accommodation proof would be adequate?
5. When you say 'plus a recent utility bill or council tax statement' do you mean one from Australia or one of his from his home in Scotland? As I am obviously not on any bills for his house there.




clever-octopus said:


> Without paying for priority service, usually between a couple of weeks to 3 months. You cannot travel to the UK to get married until you have the visa. You can't even give notice to get married in the UK without the visa.


I didn't even know you could pay for a priority service. That's good to know - thank you. I will look into costs and times.




clever-octopus said:


> There's a 28 day notice period after giving notice at a designated registry office before the marriage can actually be performed. Scotland has its own marriage regulations separate from England/Wales/NI and you should read them thoroughly: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk


6. Thank you, I will look into Scotland's marriage regulations. Do I have to be in the country for 28 days or can, theoretically, we give notice and I arrive a few days before the wedding? 7. Are 'town hall' or 'registry' weddings a thing in the UK? If we want to just get married officially but have the proper celebration in 12 months.




clever-octopus said:


> 6. The application for a spouse visa is almost exactly the same as the evidence needed for the fiance visa, so you can re-use most evidence, but financial documents will need to be updated (you'll need recent bank statements and payslips) and of course you'll submit a marriage certificate instead of proof of intent to marry.


8. Thanks for this information. Is it advisable to be living together for a certain amount of time for this application or could, theoretically, I arrive in the UK, we get married within a few weeks of me arriving and the I apply for the spouse visa as soon as we have the wedding certificate - all with just, for example, a month of me officially living with him on the fiance visa?




clever-octopus said:


> As soon as you have the spouse visa in hand you can undertake work. An employer will need to see your current passport and BRP (biometric residence permit, which is effectively the visa itself) in order to verify your right to work in the UK. If you apply by post or online, it takes up to 8 weeks. You can also apply in person for an extra fee, which usually gets you a same-day decision, but you said you want the cheapest option.


9. Thank you, I didn't know applying in person could expedite things so quickly. To clarify, are you saying that you can have the spouse visa same-day if you do apply in person?




clever-octopus said:


> I don't know about Australian marriage rules. But if you marry in AUS you would just apply for a UK spouse visa, rather than a fiance visa and then a switch to FLR(M). Projected spouse visa wait times are the same as for a fiance visa.


10. Could taking this path and applying in person mean, as you mentioned above, that I could get the spouse visa/FLR(M) same day? Do I have to apply for this offshore? Or is there a way for me to be in the UK as a married couple while we await the spouse visa to come through?




clever-octopus said:


> Sorry I don't have an Australian perspective here, but we found it was vastly easier to marry in the US and just move to the UK on a spouse visa rather than faff about with another UK visa needed just to get married here, and avoided the UK marriage requirements such as waiting periods/fees.


So far the UK pathway seems like the easier option in that it's cheaper and less waiting times. Given we can't be classed as defacto, for Australian we'd need to apply for the 'prospective marriage visa' (PMV), then the partner visa after we are married - so it's a two step process for us that way too. Though wait times are longer and it's a more expensive process in Australia, you do have the benefit of being able to work on the PMV and you have nine months to get married as opposed to six in the UK. Whether or not one requires a much more complicated and time-consuming application than the other, I don't know.

Again, thank you so much for taking the time to reply. I really appreciate your help. Op top of trying to understand all the steps involved, it's also a matter of trying to work out all the timings and waiting periods when you also both have full time jobs and can't necessarily just leave work or your life to sit around and wait in another country for decisions to be made!


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

It has also been suggested I go over and get married in the UK on the marriage visitor visa, making sure I still have all your ties to Australia (like my job and house etc.) and that I'm returning (ie a return ticket).

Then I can apply for a spouse visa. I've been told I would probably need to explain why I didn't just do the fiance visa route, but that I could say we changed our plans on where we were going to live etc.

Has anyone done this, or have any advice on going down this path?

How is applying for the UK spouse visa after being married in another country different than applying after having the UK fiance visa, in terms of application process and waiting times?


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## clever-octopus (May 17, 2015)

1. Correct on both counts. "Spouse visa" is kind of a colloquial term. It just means you have a visa granted on the basis of being the spouse of a British citizen. 

6. You don't really need to be in the country to wait out the whole 28 day period, but as you need to give notice together in person, I'm not sure what benefit there would be to travelling during the notice period. Yes you could certainly get married at the registry office, you don't need to have an elaborate ceremony

8. There's no requirement to live together at this point, but you should be collecting evidence of cohabitation from the day you start living together. Don't go 'paperless' for any bills, and collect all post addressed to you individually or jointly, as when you apply for your spouse visa extension in 2.5 years, you will need to prove that you have been living together for the duration of your spouse visa.

9. Yes

10. No, you can only get a same-day decision with an in-person appointment if you are applying from within the UK (i.e., extending your existing leave, or switching from a fiance visa to a spouse visa). If you apply from outside the UK, you must be prepared to wait to travel until you receive your visa. Remember also that you are sending in your ORIGINAL passport with the visa application, so you won't realistically be able to travel internationally during the application processing time.

The prospective marriage visa and partner visa in Australia are specifically for the intent to immigrate to Australia; if you are ultimately looking to move to the UK then you don't need immigrant visas for Australia in order to have your marriage performed. Unlike the UK, I don't think Australia even requires you to have a specific visa to get married (you can get married as a tourist/visitor). So maybe getting married in Australia and then applying for a UK spouse visa (rather than fiance visa + flr(m)) will be the most straightforward option.


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

clever-octopus said:


> You don't really need to be in the country to wait out the whole 28 day period, but as you need to give notice together in person, I'm not sure what benefit there would be to travelling during the notice period. Yes you could certainly get married at the registry office, you don't need to have an elaborate ceremony.


Ah, I didn't know you both needed to give notice in person. Thank you.




clever-octopus said:


> There's no requirement to live together at this point, but you should be collecting evidence of cohabitation from the day you start living together. Don't go 'paperless' for any bills, and collect all post addressed to you individually or jointly, as when you apply for your spouse visa extension in 2.5 years, you will need to prove that you have been living together for the duration of your spouse visa.


Right, so evidence of living together for a significant amount of time isn't necessary for being granted a spouse visa? It is for the Australian partner visa, which is why I was curious.





clever-octopus said:


> No, you can only get a same-day decision with an in-person appointment if you are applying from within the UK (i.e., extending your existing leave, or switching from a fiance visa to a spouse visa). If you apply from outside the UK, you must be prepared to wait to travel until you receive your visa. Remember also that you are sending in your ORIGINAL passport with the visa application, so you won't realistically be able to travel internationally during the application processing time.


Oh lawd, it hadn't even occurred to me I'd have to send my passport off! It's my most prized possession. How terrifying!  Haha! Have you heard how long processing times for an offshore spouse visa generally are?




clever-octopus said:


> The prospective marriage visa and partner visa in Australia are specifically for the intent to immigrate to Australia; if you are ultimately looking to move to the UK then you don't need immigrant visas for Australia in order to have your marriage performed. Unlike the UK, I don't think Australia even requires you to have a specific visa to get married (you can get married as a tourist/visitor). So maybe getting married in Australia and then applying for a UK spouse visa (rather than fiance visa + flr(m)) will be the most straightforward option.


Yes, this is correct, you can get married on a tourist visa - it's just recommended you go the PMV path if you are planning to then apply for the partner visa as it's not the best look getting married on a tourist visa rather than going the 'official' path. You also need to give 28 days notice, so I need to find out if both partners need to be present for this. I'll give the registry a call tomorrow.

Thanks again clever-octopus - you've been a great help


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## clever-octopus (May 17, 2015)

> Right, so evidence of living together for a significant amount of time isn't necessary for being granted a spouse visa?


Right, many people choose not to live together before marriage for a variety of reasons. Like Australia, cohabitation is required if you're to apply as UNMARRIED partners, but if you're married to one another, there's no evidence needed of premarital cohabitation. Australia doesn't require this either (otherwise it would be impossible for most international married couples to immigrate)



> Have you heard how long processing times for an offshore spouse visa generally are?


I have answered this question already in my first response (3.)


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

clever-octopus said:


> Australia doesn't require this either (otherwise it would be impossible for most international married couples to immigrate)


Theoretically this is correct and I think you would be ok if you have a strong application, but the migration lawyer I spoke to today said without any previous pre-marriage cohabitation, a partner application would be stronger with post-marriage cohabitation - for the onshore partner visa at least. I am still far from an expert at this though, so it could be just one person's opinion!



clever-octopus said:


> I have answered this question already in my first response (3.)


My apologies, you did, thank you! 

You have been incredibly helpful with all this clever-octopus, thank you - I feel like I've broken through the wall I had hit.

Did you also happen to see my separate question about the marriage visitor visa above? Have you heard of anyone going down this path?


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## clever-octopus (May 17, 2015)

Lots of people get a marriage visit visa for the sole purpose of getting married in the UK. However, this comes with the additional burden of having to prove that you intend to leave the UK after you marry, so most people use a marriage visit visa when they only want to have a marriage performed in the UK but they plan to live in another country. It's not an immigrant visa, and thus you will have to leave the UK within 6 months. It's functionally similar to a fiance visa (allows you to marry within 6 months), except with a fiance visa you can apply to remain in the UK. 

You can apply for a marriage visit visa if you want, specifically if you wish to get married here but aren't yet ready to immigrate to the UK for whatever reason. 

You are welcome, I really hope everything goes smoothly for you.


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## nctami72 (Dec 12, 2016)

In Scotland, only one person is required to give notice. She can send her paperwork to her fiance and he can give notice. She doesn't even need to be there. This only applies for Scotland.


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

clever-octopus said:


> Lots of people get a marriage visit visa for the sole purpose of getting married in the UK. However, this comes with the additional burden of having to prove that you intend to leave the UK after you marry, so most people use a marriage visit visa when they only want to have a marriage performed in the UK but they plan to live in another country. It's not an immigrant visa, and thus you will have to leave the UK within 6 months. It's functionally similar to a fiance visa (allows you to marry within 6 months), except with a fiance visa you can apply to remain in the UK.
> 
> You can apply for a marriage visit visa if you want, specifically if you wish to get married here but aren't yet ready to immigrate to the UK for whatever reason.
> 
> You are welcome, I really hope everything goes smoothly for you.


Yes, the only reason I considered it an option was so that we could get the official 'marriage' out of the way by taking a holiday to the UK - and then I could come back and tie up loose ends, work etc. before going back for good once the spouse visa is cleared to move in with my partner and plan the celebration that we'd actually consider the wedding. I'd have enough proof, I'd think, as I'd have an airfare back and my lease, a job etc. Mostly it would be a money-saving thing (though perhaps when flights are factored into it, it wouldn't actually be a saving!) - and also a more direct entry for him to Australia if we did actually decide to settle here in Australia.

Anyway, thanks again. I'll be sure to pay it forward when I emerge from the other side and can offer similarly confused people some expert advice! :cool2:


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

nctami72 said:


> In Scotland, only one person is required to give notice. She can send her paperwork to her fiance and he can give notice. She doesn't even need to be there. This only applies for Scotland.


Oh is that so nctami72? I'll look further into this to confirm. Thank you for the tip!


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## nctami72 (Dec 12, 2016)

Yes, it will be in the Scottish wedding regulations you were given a link to.

I know 100% this is fact because I just got married to a Scot 2 weeks ago and he gave notice on his own after I sent him all of my paperwork and documents. 



TazCaz said:


> nctami72 said:
> 
> 
> > In Scotland, only one person is required to give notice. She can send her paperwork to her fiance and he can give notice. She doesn't even need to be there. This only applies for Scotland.
> ...


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