littlekitty
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Everything posted by littlekitty
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I wish Andy!!! No I would actually be happy if we got a bit of an estimate from our CO instead! Flights are booked for the man to go offshore (end of his Tourist Visa's coming up) hoping the end of the TV and the PMV grant coincide... We're using the end of his tourist visa as an excuse to head o/s for a little holiday before he has to come back and start work (and before wedding madness begins!) Might have to email the CO in the next couple of days to try to get a bit of an idea of a time frame.... fingers crossed
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Also - Anyone out there got LG as a case officer? I dont see her name pop up that often - also wondering if anyone who has LG has applied around end July/August and have heard from her?
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Hey Snifter, I am originally from Melbourne and as Melbourne was not working out for me career-wise/love-wise, I decided to up and leave and move to Perth for something new (call it a quarter-life crisis perhaps). Within a few months I had met a wonderful English man and landed a job with a large mining company... him and I were inseperable from then on. We considered living in England for a while, but as I had already made a big move across Aus, we thought it best to try the Aus Visa route. Plus the money we can both make here in Perth will really help with the wedding/house deposit. Once fiance gets his visa, we will live and marry in Perth - but we plan to buy a home in Melbourne, closer to my family. I sometimes wonder where I would be now, had we decided to go and live together in England. He is from Yorkshire and I find myself daydreaming about living there... after I visited, I could see us setting up a little home together there. I guess that is always a possibility!
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So exciting seeing August applicants getting notice of their upcoming grants. I am watching this forum like a damn hawk! I am (haha- or should I say, the fiance of) a Sept applicant, so I really cant believe we are almost getting to our month! The end of his tourist visa is fast approaching we would love to know a proposed grant date.... We are going to email our CO soon to see if we can get an answer from her... It cant hurt to email her. She always sends us very short emails so I'm a little intimidated! Just wanna say - August (even early Sept) applicants, speak up if you have any news or notice from your CO (or if you have an upcoming grant)! There are people like me checking this forum every day just to get an insight into everyone else's timelines! Haha thanks!
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That is awesome news Andy! An August applicant... that is really cool! Especially for me as we are Sept applicants and the end of my fiance's tourist visa is fast approaching!!! Let's hope the riming is right and his tourist visa coincides with the grant! Good luck with it all and keep us in the loop about your departure to Aus
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Hey Netbg, congrats, can I ask who your CO was?
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Fiance is here with me on a three month tourist visa at the moment. The end of his tourist visa will bring us to the middle of the 8-9 months wait.... Here's hoping the grant time coincides. It's making us both a bit nervous. So no grants lately? Seems to have gone a bit quiet.... Maybe it is true that they arent going to grant around this time so that they catch up with the 8-9 month wait.
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Starting to get really frustrated about reading the whole 'gap' questions, regarding the gap in grant times. I applied start of Sept, and as I was in the first couple of months to be told 8-9 months, I am frustrated thinking that its going to be more like 9. When I first started coming on this forum, people were waiting 5-6 months for their visas... and they were getting them almost exactly on 5 months (or some earlier.) Then I watched as the timelines went to 6-8 months.... so after they started saying 6-8, people were still getting them around the 6 month mark. So I wonder why the hell July/Aug/Sept applicants are looking at more 9 months than 8 - when really it should be closer to just under 8 months or bang on 8 months.... then maybe oct/Nov/dec applicants would be closer to 9 months?...... it just bugs the hell out of me. How easy is it to get a spouse visa for England - or a Youth Mobility Scheme (WHol) visa when you have an English spouse? its always in the back of my mind....
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Hey guys and girls, Quick update on my end - fiance got an email from ACPO saying they needed to 're-issue' his police certificate (because we questioned some errors/indiscrepencies). Obviously they made a mistake but didnt exactly admit to the mistake. So now we need to give our CO the amended ACPO poilce certificate ASAP. Pretty upsetting that they can make a mistake on something so serious as a character clearance certificate. But it is also such a relief to confirm that it was a mistake on their behalf, as we read that clearing an incorrect police record can take years. So he is now here on a TV, which expires in April, hopefully that will take us to the grant date. Any news from late July/August applicants??????
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News on my front: the fiance is leaving Heathrow in approx 4 hours! I know my signature says he is already here I got a bit excited. He arrives tomorrow night. Now one more stress - the questions at immigration - especially as he is ticking 'yes' to criminal convictions!!!!!!!! He's only got a 3 month TV and a return ticket so hopefully there wont be any dramas. TOO EXCITED!
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Oh yeah seems that its just taking a bit longer with the length of convictions. I dont think it would hurt to track the application if you have the TRN number, just to get a bit of piece of mind. This is why we didnt work with an agent - I'm too much of a control freak - I need to know everything direct! I think you have different circumstances though because you are pregnant etc. Perhaps a call to your agent might give you a bit of relief. I totally feel for you, it's stressful enough as it is applying etc. and not hearing anything back. Especially with convictions, you automatically assume the worst. DIAC arent there to punish him for his convictions, always remember that - they are always just trying to cover their own backs in case something happens, which makes things take longer! It's crazy how a simple tourist visa can be so complicated!
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Hi Loubear, my fiancé also has a criminal conviction (albeit a juvenile offence) and a mistake on his ACPO certificate of a second offence that we are waiting to be fixed. We were given a timeframe, our CO didnt seem too worried about the juvenile offence, just the mistake that she wants us to have it cleared (we are doing this at the moment). Our 676 visa CO was more concerned about the offences, however we explained the second offence is a mistake and she also urged us to have it looked into - and our 676 (3 month) visa was granted in 4 business days. I would give Aus house a call, explain your situation to the person on the phone and see if you can speak to the case officer of your 676. My fiancé was given the mobile number of our 676 CO. the two CO's then discussed our case. Fiancé arrives Tues May I ask if the conviction punishment totalled more than 12 months? They might just want to look into your case a little more carefully if so. Good luck. Don't be afraid to call twice - I called 3 times waiting for the 676, and got three different answers...
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I'm just sitting here crossing fingers that my fiance gets the visa in 8 months, not 9... his tourist visa will be up in the second week of April, which is the same week as the projected grant date (for 8mths). So if all goes well with timing, he will be able to go offshore for the grant, and not have to spend a month offshore :-\ SO excited that I'll be seeing him next week, got so much fun stuff planned together while he's here on his tourist visa - gunna make the most of him not working! The poor thing is going to get a shock when we are plonked on the beach in 40 degree heat!
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Hey allelsematters, yes I have to agree I do feel like that sometimes. Like why keep fighting this when we could give up and live in the UK.... I have a bit of good news, mixed with bad news as usual. My fiance's 676 CO and our PMV CO have obviously been talking and our PMV CO emailled him asking about what he has done to remove the mistake from his ACPO police check. We were obviously devastated thinking that if our PMV CO had got involved then we DEFINITELY werent getting a Tourist Visa anytime soon. I called Aus House and they said 7-10 days (which took us right to the day fiance was booked to leave England) but she emailled yesterday to say the 676 visa was granted and that his passport should be back to him by the end of this week. There have been no dealings with the 676 CO via email - everything she did was by phone, which makes me think that she was trying to get the visa done before they close. I def have hopes for you, as we had all but given up and that fiance wouldnt be coming for my family's holiday on the 8th Jan. Anyway, my advice is to call the CO (if you have a contact for them) (ours was AC) - fiance was given her mobile number actually and just stress that you really hope this to be resolved by Friday. Pushing it, but then again we thought we were well past the 'pushing it' stage!!!! I am SO excited to have my fiance coming on this camping trip in Aus with my family... its been a family tradition for around 15 years and it will be his first time coming... on the other hand, I do still have to deal with a very depressed young man via Skype who is HATING England and feels like he is in 'prison' even though he will be leaving there in around 3 weeks. This process can do terrible things to people.
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Hi guys, quick update on my 676 tourist visa application - fiance has a CO, no email or anything, just a phoencall from a nice lady at Immi saying she was concerned about his police checks (she got all his info from the PMV application on file). She said she needed to speak with her supervisor because he explained to her that there is a mistake on his ACPO Uk police check (record of an offence that he didnt commit, which states he commited an offence in 2009/2008 - he was in Australia at that time) all this has been explained to LG, and we are in the process of trying to get the offence removed from his record. LG has a full statement from my fiance explaining the offence records etc. Anyway, point is... we are now at Wednesday and they still have his passport... She hasnt called him back yet and I'm panicking! I think the TV CO just wants to make sure she has the full story so she is covered. She also asked "Why did you declare the offence if you didnt do it?" haha because if he had of said - "no, I havent commited an offence, that blip on my police check wasnt me!!!" would she have just taken his word for it??? how silly. Hopefully she calls him back as soon as Immi opens in the morning. This is a total mess and I really have no hope that he will get the tourist visa now. I've become so stressed I cant wait til this is all over and my fiance can give me a big hug.
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Ok so paper visa (676) has obviously been received around lunch time Friday (London time) as the money has come out of my account..!! Was so excited to see payment was processed right away. Hope because its only the 3 month visa the fiancé will have it by next Friday, I'm crossing everything! He flies on the 8th jan so lets hope this happens in time! Thanks all for sharing your stories! Since applying for the PMV, fiance leaving to go home to UK, etc. My fiancé and I now have a new outlook on things - imagine WORST CASE SCENARIO - if you think you can handle that happening, and once you have accepted that first, everything good that happens feels like such a bonus.
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More dramas for me with the 676 visa. Fiance tried to apply online and couldnt, so he sent off a paper application ASAP. Anyway, I call Aus house and she tells me paper 676 apps take 4-6 weeks, which is too late for him to get on the flight we booked. Also, he had already posted it by the time I got to call him and tell him. She also tells me some people are having technical difficulties applying for the online 676, so try again today and Monday. So, his paper application will arrive at Aus House today - there was no stopping it once the post office had it. Anyway, I call Aus house back and told them because we were having trouble with the online visa (she said yes, they are def having issues with the site), and said that we have already sent the paper app. She said if he is only applying for 3 months, then he could have a case officer by Monday and it might get done by the end of next week. I damn well hope that is the case! What a nightmare. Our fault for booking flights (non-refundable/no changes allowed) and assuming the online application would work... but hopefully the case officer sees its only 3 months and grants it by the 21st. Fingers crossed!!!
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Yeah we just need to get into the mindset that he IS coming to do the right thing, it's like every answer we put sounds really suss, but really it's not. I know I have read on here that Aus House is closed from 21st Dec... But I cant find that on their website... and I am hoping that they are only closed on the public holidays (which is states on the Aus High Commission website) so that he will have time to get the paper-676 application in. He lives in Yorkshire so it's hard for him to get to London and do it in person... So it looks like mail is our only option. It should get to Aus House by friday, and then I hope that they see his travel date of Jan 8th so that he can get the visa and his passport back in time. Just so frustrating... surely Aus house cant expect everyone to be able to apply online and people still need 676 paper visas over the xmas period......so I cant imagine they would shut up shop and ignore all applications till they get back from break...
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haha thanks guys, love hearing your stories! got the fiancé to apply for e676 last night and disaster has struck.. he kept getting an error saying he had a current application in progress and he can't apply online until he signs in using the application ID and password, which he never recalls using.. let alone use the immi website for visa apps in the past (he has always gone through a third party). we can't get a straight answer from immi in London apart from the fact that they can't reset passwords/IDs. this leaves us 2 options- apply in person or by mail. By mail is freaking me out as he has to send his passport and I'm worried it won't all get back to him in time (as aus house closes soon) and London is 3.5hrs away for him and he needs an appointment to go there. he can't apply fr eVisitor as he has a juvenile conviction. I am just so too stressed for this right now and he is all laid back etc... it's freaking me right out. can't call immi in London til tonight Perth time. might call the Perth office and ask if it's viable to get it back in time before our holiday on the 8th Jan... also, the paper version of the e676 wants all these extra questions answered, which I think puts us at a disadvantage in our situation as they will see all references to me on the app and maybe not deem him a tourist.
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Woo hoo! I love coming on here and seeing grants in a row like that! That's so cool guys, congrats! :biggrin: A little bit of good news for me this morning too - got the "OK" from LG that she will let my fiance know when to leave Aus "closer to the grant" to activate our PMV in April... So he will be here in less than 4 weeks if all goes well at the airport He's applying for the e676 tonight. Thanks for the advice everyone - if anyone else is doing the tourist visa route, dont be a stranger - make sure you post on here so I dont feel like I'm the only one! I'm sure in 3 or so weeks I'm gunna be freaked out about the whole airport thing. I know in the back of mind I know it will be OK.. but there's always those niggling little worries.
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Thanks GeorgeD, I think it's best if he just applies for the 3 month - that will take us to April and he will leave the country (Bali) to wait for the grant. That way he HAS come as a tourist (going on holidays with me/my family in Jan etc) and that he intends to leave after the 3 months (if that comes before the grant). We're happy to spend 3 months together even if that means he has to wait in Bali for the grant. Worst case scenario is that he doesnt get his visa and he's stuck in Bali and has to head back to England, haha... not funny but always a possibility! Now I only have four weeks til I meet him in Melbourne and I will do the anxious wait at the airport to see if he comes through the doors or gets bailed up by a grumpy immigration officer!
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No, the more people that are in the same situation as me the better! It's good to heard everyone else's unique situations. When we found out about the 8-9 month wait, we were both looking into all the scenarios of how we could be together etc. And we decided that we could easily do the time apart - but ever since I visited him, I have felt like he is missing out on so much.... I have a few family things coming up in Jan/Feb/March so I want him to attend as him and my brother have just started to really become good mates and my brother doesnt have many other males in the family! So are you guys being assessed for the PMV (as per your signature)? If he can only get three months, and he comes second week of Jan we are pushing it a bit - that will give him to the first week of April til the e676 expires - and the grant time is April/May. He knows there is a possibility that we wont get the grant til May and he may have to stay out of the country til he gets the grant (he could be in Asia up to a month if its delayed!). All that would not be an issues obviously if he can get the 6 month visa - which I am waiting to hear back from GeorgeD if this will be a possibility!! Haha GeorgeD should work for DIAC....
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Thanks GeorgeD, I knew you would come back with a good detailed response. After I read that I had a quick look at the eVisitor (free) visa, and it said "applicants with a criminal conviction are likely to be denied this type of visa" - which means my fiance, as he has a juvenille offence on his record that our CO says he will always need to declare. So I think the e676 is the way to go. He's going to apply once we get an email back from our CO acknowledging our plans. I am just concerned that when he arrives at the border, he has on his landing card that he intends to stay for 90 days, but he has in his possession a return ticket for two weeks after he arrives in Aus (he was originally only coming for two weeks). I guess that's fine as people change their minds etc and can change tickets if they change their plans. I'm glad you said "visiting family" as I said the 'F' (fiance) word at immigration in the UK and was GRILLED with 1000 questions. Wanted to know specific details. Fair enough, but hell - I want him to come here, not have me stay there! Last time my fiance left the country to renew a tourist visa to stay with me for 3 more months, (he was only out of the country a week in between) he never got questioned, but he ALWAYS gets singled out - he has tattoos, etc and he always gets picked for the drug/bomb checks haha so I can imagine they would automatically assume he's doing something dodgy. I guess I would like to know what are his chances of getting the 6 month e676? Do they require more information for that? Or will they just say no (because he's had a few tourist visas in the past) and give him the 3 month instead by default? Thanks a million guys. Hopefully there are a few more people wanting to do this route over the next couple of weeks so that there is someone else on her as nervous as me!!
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Oh no, will you not be able to get the cheapest flight you can get in the meantime???
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I know GeorgeD will be able to help me with this: say we go ahead with the tourist visa- which does the fiancé apply for: ETA, eVisitor, or the e676 Tourist Visa? They all sound the same to me! Also, my question is when he applies does he say he is waiting on a PMV? Also, when he arrives at the airport shall he say that too? He obviously isn't going to stay past the 3 months if the PMV is not granted, but he is genuinely coming and doing touristy stuff while we wait (I am taking him on my yearly family holiday, showing him my home town, going to birthdays etc of family members) so shall he just state all those things when he arrives at the airport? Either way the person at the border might not be happy. Thanks in advance everyone, I would never want him to jeopardise his PMV application by doing this.