Goingbacktouk

Thanks for the advice! I think I'm going to just go with the immigration agent that seems to give us the best advice - absolutely can't believe the joke of a system!

I'm British born, but lived in Australia from November 2010 until March 2014. I returned home at the end of March as my father is unwell. My fiancé is Australian. I was under the impression that I had to return back to the UK and work for six months earning over £18,600 before I could apply for his unmarried partner visa. However, I'm getting told different things by different immigration agents... One is saying that we won't be able to apply for that visa as we aren't allowed to have been apart for six months (even though he visited for a month April to May and is coming at the end of this month for a month) and others are saying that that's OK as we have seen each other within the six months... One suggested I add my wages up from Australia and what I've earned in my new job, (so August 2013 - August 2014), but they fall just short of the required £18,600 as we spent some time travelling and I only started working here mid May, so I can't apply now. Some are saying that we have to wait until mid-November - e.g. when I've been working for six months and then we'll have to apply for the fiancé visa and that's the only option. Which isn't ideal as he wouldn't be able to work until we got married. Does anyone else know anything different?!

I actually bought it in the UK, just before I came over to Australia, but I might contact Currys and see if they have it on their system. The photos thing is a good idea! I've got a lot on here, so I could just take screenshots I guess! Thanks for the suggestions!

Hi everyone! I've booked a MoveCube for March... I have a computer that I'm putting in it, how do I proved I've owned it for more than 6 months? (I'm not sure where the receipt is). I've actually owned it for four years, so not sure if there's a way around this! Thanks!

Hi Pommian, Thanks for your quick reply - I loved what you put in the other forum about why you wanted to go back to the UK! Looks like I won't be able to claim my super back then... I'm planning to buy my first house when I move back and it would have been handy. Getting my other money out quick before the exchange rate gets any worse, wish I'd had the money this time last year, but oh well, nothing will get rid of my excitement of going home - except maybe the stress of getting my Australian partner over there!! When are you moving back?

Hi, Just a quick question, I have PR in Australia, but I'm moving back to the UK. Can I claim my super back once I'm in England? Or do I need to wait a while? Thanks, Helen

Pommian - you just summed up exactly why I'm going home in April - who cares if it's 'tougher' in England when you can moan about it with true friends and family in the pub!!

Hi Kazz, Just wondering if you had any luck with this? I'm moving back to the UK in a few months and wondering how my Diploma in Youth Work will stand up in the UK!

Hi Snifter, it says on the UK immigration website that you are not able to swap visas once you are there. I'm not sure if there are ways around this, so think that's why we need professional help. Quinkla - I know, it's ridiculous, there's one thing being 'tough on immigration' but not when it affects British-born citizens. I've just emailed the Daily Mail the following: Hi, I'm emailing you as I want to draw attention to what is happening to a lot of British citizens living in other parts of the world, such as Australia, who want to return home. I've been living in Australia for the last 3 years with my Australian-born partner, unfortunately my dad is sick and we need to move home to the UK. Something which we had planned to do anyway in the future, but now the need is more urgent. I thought this would be quite a straight-forward process, after all, Australia is part of the Commonwealth. This, however, is not the case. In order for my partner to get a visa to come with me I need to have been working in the UK for 6 months earning at least £18,600 so I can 'sponsor' him to come, OR we need to have over £62,000 in the bank. We have savings, but not that much and obviously I'm living in Australia, so I haven't had a job for 6 months in the UK. Also, it doesn't matter if your family promise to house you, feed you etc. They simply don't care. If I have a job offer for £18,600 and can show earnings in Australia for the last year, that is OK too. But they do not take into account what my partner has earned. Also, I suspect it would be quite difficult to get a job offer whilst I'm not in the country! They don't take into account that he is a qualified helicopter pilot, or that he served in the commonwealth Navy for over 6 years, (including several months in the UK!) - so we would not be a burden on tax-payers - I've never claimed benefits in my life, nor do I intend to. If this didn't make me angry enough, I found out that if I was an EU national from another country I could come to the UK and bring a non-EU partner with me. WHAT?! That's right, EU citizens, NOT BORN in the UK have more rights IN THE UK than me. This is forcing some British citizens to go and live in places like Spain for 3 months with their non-EU partners and then exercise their EU rights to bring their partner with them. I know the UK needs to get tough on immigration, but how can it be tougher on people born and bred in the UK who simply want to come home with a partner born in our Commonwealth than someone else born in Europe? It's absolutely disgraceful and breaching several human rights. It looks like my option is to return home for 6 months on my own and find a job over the threshold and then sponsor my partner to come over? Which means I will have limited support off my partner during a very difficult time. Not to mention that we will have to pay almost £2000 to apply for the visa, but if I was from another EU country (you guessed it) there would be no fee. Maybe the best thing to do would be to come home and seek asylum? Any assistance you could offer in drawing attention to this would be much appreciated. I read the Daily Mail online literally every day from Australia and I'm not just saying that, it's great for staying in touch with what's going on back home.

Thanks for your reply Quinkla. The problem is we don't meet the financial requirements - e.g. the amount in savings, or the earning £18,600 for 6 months in the UK. Unless I secure a job when I come back first. I'm just so angry that other members of the EU can bring partners into the UK, but British citizens can't, it's absolutely ridiculous!

Hi, thanks for your quick response! I've done quite a lot of research and he can work on the UK WHV for the whole two years I believe. The problem is I don't believe that he can swap visas when he's on the UK WHV like I did when I was on the Australian one. I've read some horror stories online of families separated and people going to live in Spain/Italy etc for a few months so they have more rights to bring a non-European partner back into the UK. I think professional advice will be needed!

Hi everyone, I've been in Australia just over 3 years, I'm a British citizen, but I have my Australian residency. Unfortunately, my Dad is ill, so need to return to the UK and want to take my Australian partner with me. I thought it would be fairly straightforward, but it seems that it's not! My partner doesn't have any British grandparents - just great-grandparents, so can't claim the ancestry visa. He is under 31 though, could he get a working holiday visa? The plan would be for me to return first and then he would come afterwards as he's currently finishing his helicopter licence. Can anyone recommend any good migration agents? We used a great one to help me get my residency here, but they don't help with visas the other way. Thanks for reading!