# Documents Needed for Fiance Visa



## aja293 (Sep 6, 2011)

Hello everyone! I am new on this site, and would really appreciate your help. I am American, my fiance is British, and I have just registered for a fiance visa. My fiance and I are trying to get our documents together to send in. We seem to be getting a lot of contradicting advice. 

For example, we read that we need to send in verified photocopies of every document we are sending in, and then we heard that this is not neccessary for Americans. We have read about five different document checklists, all saying different things! We understand that every application is unique, but we are also extremely frightened that we will make a mistake and have our application get delayed or rejected. Is there a definitive guide somewhere for a document checklist for Americans? We would appreciate your help more than words can say. 

Thank you in advance for your time.


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

aja293 said:


> Hello everyone! I am new on this site, and would really appreciate your help. I am American, my fiance is British, and I have just registered for a fiance visa. My fiance and I are trying to get our documents together to send in. We seem to be getting a lot of contradicting advice.
> 
> For example, we read that we need to send in verified photocopies of every document we are sending in, and then we heard that this is not neccessary for Americans. We have read about five different document checklists, all saying different things! We understand that every application is unique, but we are also extremely frightened that we will make a mistake and have our application get delayed or rejected. Is there a definitive guide somewhere for a document checklist for Americans? We would appreciate your help more than words can say.


UKBA site is currently off-line, but if you go to www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk and choose Visa and Immigration and then Supporting documents, there is a link to Settlement which gives a list of documents. Just send in those that apply to your situation, as the same list also covers those already married, unmarried partners and same-sex partners.

You should send originals with photocopy. Your British partner's passport can be just a photocopy of the bio pages with a photo.


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## aja293 (Sep 6, 2011)

Thank you so much Joppa! We really appreciate it!


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## wynos25 (Apr 19, 2009)

Hi,

I just received my finace visa 2 days ago, so am still clear on what I sent. If you have any questions beyond this please ask. I'm no expert, but know how you are feeling. But by all means, I sent no more than 30 pages of information.

From me:
The application
Passport
Biometrics
2 passport photos
6 months bank statements
6 months of Unemployment Insurance payment stubs (Currently unemployed)
Photos of my partner and myself
relevent emails from my partner and myself.

My partner:
Copy of my partners' biometric page from his passport
Mortgage information
A statement from his employer dictating his wage (This was actually for his mortgage and was 2 years old).

No documents were satisfied.

Returned to me, with my visa, was 1 of the passport pictures, each of the pictures.

It took 20 business days from the day I submitted my application to receiving an email that my visa had been issued. The package from NY was overnighted next day.

I hope this helps you. Any other questions, please feel free to ask.


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## erinlea47 (Sep 26, 2011)

Hello! I was wondering if anyone could answer a few questions I have about the UK fiance visa...they've all probably been asked before...I'm just so stressed out about this whole process!

Do I have to get the copy of my partner's passport notarized? Or can I just send in a regular copy?

He has written and signed a letter stating that I will be living with him before and after we get married and that he will support me...does he have to fill out any kind of official form as well? Or is the letter good enough?

I'm worried about money...I have enough saved up for the visa and plane ticket and I"m only going to England six weeks before the wedding so I can work as much as possible before we get married. My fiance earns about £1,600/month and we each have a little in savings, but not very much. Is this going to be enough? Or will they require us to have more in savings?

Is it worth paying the extra to have the application expedited? I'm applying in October and not leaving until the end of January...will that be enough time? 

I appreciate any help anyone can give me and I apologize if it's all been asked and answered before...I'm so worried I'm going to miss something and it's hard to find straight answers on the official page....

Thank you!


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## erinlea47 (Sep 26, 2011)

wynos25 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I just received my finace visa 2 days ago, so am still clear on what I sent. If you have any questions beyond this please ask. I'm no expert, but know how you are feeling. But by all means, I sent no more than 30 pages of information.
> 
> ...


Hi! Just a quick question...what do you mean when you say, "no documents were satisfied?"


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

erinlea47 said:


> Hello! I was wondering if anyone could answer a few questions I have about the UK fiance visa...they've all probably been asked before...I'm just so stressed out about this whole process!
> 
> Do I have to get the copy of my partner's passport notarized? Or can I just send in a regular copy?


Just a photocopy of bio pages with photo. They have electronic access to British passport details if they want to check up.



> He has written and signed a letter stating that I will be living with him before and after we get married and that he will support me...does he have to fill out any kind of official form as well? Or is the letter good enough?


In addition to the letter, you will have to enter his financial details on the application form, plus supporting documents in a separate pack. It's assumed he will support you financially.



> I'm worried about money...I have enough saved up for the visa and plane ticket and I"m only going to England six weeks before the wedding so I can work as much as possible before we get married. My fiance earns about £1,600/month and we each have a little in savings, but not very much. Is this going to be enough? Or will they require us to have more in savings?


Not knowing your full details, it's difficult to be precise but it looks as though you need more money to meet visa requirements. £1,600 net a month may be just enough if he is getting free accommodation, but not if he has to pay rent and other bills out of it. Generally speaking, you need at least £2,000 a month for up to 6 months, plus combined savings (maybe £3000-£4000). If you can get free or subsidised accommodation living with relatives etc, that will help to and details should be entered.



> Is it worth paying the extra to have the application expedited? I'm applying in October and not leaving until the end of January...will that be enough time?


Currently the turnaround time seems pretty short (around a week) without priority, but nobody can tell what will be like when you come to apply. 3 months is usually more than adequate - maximum you are made to wait is around 10-12 weeks, but again no guarantees. So in the end it's up to you.


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## erinlea47 (Sep 26, 2011)

Thank you very much for the info Joppa! I will try and get some more money together before I make my application. Fortunately, I just got a second job so that should help.

Trying to figure all this out is kind of a nightmare!


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## wynos25 (Apr 19, 2009)

erinlea47 said:


> Hi! Just a quick question...what do you mean when you say, "no documents were satisfied?"


Sorry! Meant to type no documents were notarized.


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## erinlea47 (Sep 26, 2011)

wynos25 said:


> Sorry! Meant to type no documents were notarized.


That makes sense, thanks! Also, congrats on getting your visa!!


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## kkidd85 (Sep 11, 2011)

Joppa said:


> Not knowing your full details, it's difficult to be precise but it looks as though you need more money to meet visa requirements. £1,600 net a month may be just enough if he is getting free accommodation, but not if he has to pay rent and other bills out of it. Generally speaking, you need at least £2,000 a month for up to 6 months, plus combined savings (maybe £3000-£4000). If you can get free or subsidised accommodation living with relatives etc, that will help to and details should be entered.


Joppa, you've given me the impression in other threads I've posted on that I'd be ok finacially... and I'm actually in the same boat as her. We'll bring in 1,400 GBP a month (net) and have about 4-5,000 in savings. After our rent and council tax, we're left with more than enough to satisfy the weekly guide of 106 GBP (we're left with about 200 GBP a week before all of our other bills). After all bills and necessity (petrol/food), we have about 250 GBP a month just for whatever... to throw into savings if we want. We were convinced that this would satisfy the UKBA...

Which leads me to ask... should I include a budget? And again, they only consider that weekly guide of 106 GBP after rent and council tax only, right?

We're just getting really close to applying, so I want to make sure we're ok!


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## kkidd85 (Sep 11, 2011)

The 2,000GBP a month seems a bit steep. I thought our 1,400GBP a month would be enough (this is after taxes and his student loan), because on our budget and with our bills (550 rent; 118 council tax; 100 utility; 0 car insurance - parents pay; 50 petrol - he carpools; 0 credit cards; 150 other loan payments; 150 food - we'll be fed by his parents on weekends; 45 for both cell phones). We are left with 237 to just have in our account. Isn't being that much in the positive after all necessary payments a good thing? 

I know that we can say all we want to the UKBA that we're sensible... and it won't really matter. But, it's obviously do-able for us to have 1,400 a month.

His parents are paying for our car insurance and road tax... should we have his parents state that in a letter so the UKBA see that we have less expenses?


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

kkidd85 said:


> The 2,000GBP a month seems a bit steep. I thought our 1,400GBP a month would be enough (this is after taxes and his student loan), because on our budget and with our bills (550 rent; 118 council tax; 100 utility; 0 car insurance - parents pay; 50 petrol - he carpools; 0 credit cards; 150 other loan payments; 150 food - we'll be fed by his parents on weekends; 45 for both cell phones). We are left with 237 to just have in our account. Isn't being that much in the positive after all necessary payments a good thing?
> 
> I know that we can say all we want to the UKBA that we're sensible... and it won't really matter. But, it's obviously do-able for us to have 1,400 a month.
> 
> His parents are paying for our car insurance and road tax... should we have his parents state that in a letter so the UKBA see that we have less expenses?


Do remember I'm not UKBA and don't make a decision, but I'm going by other people's experience and what I know of UKBA's take on finance and maintenance _*as a general rule*_. Slight variations in personal circumstances can make all the difference between success and failure. Whether your income is considered sufficient is up to the ECO examining your case. It may be or may not be. I normally state £2000 to £2500 to be a good average to work with. Some may get approved with less, some may be denied even with more. It all depends. As it's not exact science but based on someon'e view and judgement (but all denials have to be approved by a superior officer), inequality inevitably happens, esp between consulates in different countries and continents, even if they all work under the same rules - some degree of discretion is exercised by individual officers. That's why it's so difficult to be sure about the outcome of any application. There are some clear-cut cases where I'd be very surprised if people get refused, and other cases where I'd be astounded if people get approved. It's the middle ground, the grey area, where you just cannot tell until you apply and get a decision.

So I suggest you supply the very best application you can, and show clearly all the ins and outs of your finance, and trust the good judgement of whoever will be looking into your case.


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