Considering moving back to the U.K. Help !?

[Hdawg]

Hi all,

 

I'm new to the forum and can see that a lot of these things may have been asked and discussed already so apologies in advance to those having to repeat themselves.

 

I moved to Australia 12 years ago (Jan 2005) with PR and took Citizenship 2 or so years later, fast forward to 2017 and I now have an Australian Fiancée and 2 Australian born kids (a 6yo & 2yo).

 

Whilst my experience of Oz hasn't been negative I feel that from the offset I have predominantly focused on work as such I found myself in a regional area (QLD.) and what with house reno's, distances from the places we enjoy and a lack of cultural diversity mean that we feel like we have only existed, not lived and certainly not "lived the dream" !

 

Events over the last few weeks have lead us to a point where we are considering a move to the UK, we aren't sure (or simply can't predict) if this would be for a couple of years or longer.

I have all the same fears, doubts and ever changing mindset that everyone else mentions in fact my mind is so busy I struggle to sleep, I don't think I/we will ever know for sure that it is the right decision so it almost feels like making a huge decision on the flip of a coin; I think I can honestly liken the feelings to how you feel leading up to a relationship breakup!

 

That being said my Fiancée is open to give it a go and I have been talking to an employer and have a potential job offer i.e. subject to me saying I want to ago for it, agreeing $'s and start date which if agreed and signed would obviously take one of the biggest worries out of a move.

 

OK lets get to the nitty gritty ... I have been on the Gov.UK website, google search, blogs and this forum and even though I class myself as reasonably intelligent I am struggling to understand the process for visa's etc. I emailed Gov.UK to be told they can't offer advice ? (grrrr... sort your website out then!).

I'm dual citizen so I'm pretty sure I can just get on the plane and go but it isn't clear if I need to contact, inform or fill in any forms in either country (tax, NI, whatever)?

 

Do me and my fiancée get married in advance so that she can go on spouse visa without having to prove the fact that we have lived together for years? then the confusion starts do you need several applications ? ... family of a settled person visa + spouse / defacto ? (why do they even call it family of a settled visa when I'm not even there?)

 

I guess I can apply for my kids British passports in advance but then do they need other visa applications? again I have read and read and gone round and round and got more and more frustrated and confused!

 

Finally if we make the decision, take the job and know exactly what forms and process to follow ... what kind of charges are we looking at and how long to process?

 

Thanks in advance,

[JockinTas]

Hi all,

 

I'm new to the forum and can see that a lot of these things may have been asked and discussed already so apologies in advance to those having to repeat themselves.

 

I moved to Australia 12 years ago (Jan 2005) with PR and took Citizenship 2 or so years later, fast forward to 2017 and I now have an Australian Fiancée and 2 Australian born kids (a 6yo & 2yo).

 

Whilst my experience of Oz hasn't been negative I feel that from the offset I have predominantly focused on work as such I found myself in a regional area (QLD.) and what with house reno's, distances from the places we enjoy and a lack of cultural diversity mean that we feel like we have only existed, not lived and certainly not "lived the dream" !

 

Events over the last few weeks have lead us to a point where we are considering a move to the UK, we aren't sure (or simply can't predict) if this would be for a couple of years or longer.

I have all the same fears, doubts and ever changing mindset that everyone else mentions in fact my mind is so busy I struggle to sleep, I don't think I/we will ever know for sure that it is the right decision so it almost feels like making a huge decision on the flip of a coin; I think I can honestly liken the feelings to how you feel leading up to a relationship breakup!

 

That being said my Fiancée is open to give it a go and I have been talking to an employer and have a potential job offer i.e. subject to me saying I want to ago for it, agreeing $'s and start date which if agreed and signed would obviously take one of the biggest worries out of a move.

 

OK lets get to the nitty gritty ... I have been on the Gov.UK website, google search, blogs and this forum and even though I class myself as reasonably intelligent I am struggling to understand the process for visa's etc. I emailed Gov.UK to be told they can't offer advice ? (grrrr... sort your website out then!).

I'm dual citizen so I'm pretty sure I can just get on the plane and go but it isn't clear if I need to contact, inform or fill in any forms in either country (tax, NI, whatever)?

 

Do me and my fiancée get married in advance so that she can go on spouse visa without having to prove the fact that we have lived together for years? then the confusion starts do you need several applications ? ... family of a settled person visa + spouse / defacto ? (why do they even call it family of a settled visa when I'm not even there?)

 

I guess I can apply for my kids British passports in advance but then do they need other visa applications? again I have read and read and gone round and round and got more and more frustrated and confused!

 

Finally if we make the decision, take the job and know exactly what forms and process to follow ... what kind of charges are we looking at and how long to process?

 

Thanks in advance,

 

I'm sure there will be someone here soon to answer most of your queries. There are lots of people who have successfully moved back to the UK in the same position as yourself and your family.

[Wa7]

I can't answer all your questions but you and your kids simply need British passports and that's it. Ask your partner to double check if they have a British born grandparent because then they can apply for ancestry visa which is an easier process.

 

If and when you leave just pay your bills and do a final tax return. I am sure others will come along with some advice.

 

It may be better for you to be married if you go down the spouse visa route but I am not 100% on this.

[ScottieGirl]

Welcome to my world of sleepless nights! I am going back in a few weeks and had a verbal offer of a job which fell through just after Xmas. As you say having a job takes a lot of stress out of the move. I imagine your potential employer will want a firm start date so my advice would be take the job then deal with all the paperwork. I can't answer the questions around spouse visa but if you have a written offer of employment it will help with whatever visa is required. Since you have 2 children with your fiancee proving your relationship can't be that hard. Famous last words......

[VERYSTORMY]

Children are automatic dual nationals, so yes, just get passports.

 

For yourself, you just get on a plane.

 

For your partner you need to comply with one of the financial criteria. There are two. First, you need to prove you have a job paying £18600 per year and have either been earning that for the last six months or have to move without him for six months and earn it in the UK. The other stream is savings which requires showing £63,000 in savings held for the last six months or you have £63,000 from the sale of a house.

 

Depending on which applies, depends on which you apply for.

 

Processing is pretty quick - from what I have seen on forums about eight to twelve weeks.

[Quoll]

If you can avoid the spouse visa then do try and do so - there are (according to one of my friends here who is on a spouse visa) some downsides to it - like access to public funds for example. Some benefits that you and the kids are eligible for may not be available to you because they could be seen as your fiancée having support from those funds. Do some family history research and hope that she has a UK born parent (in which case she can be a citizen by descent) or grandparent (to get an ancestry visa) because those are much easier to get. If neither, then check to see if there is any European ancestry because a European passport will still get her in and you can worry about longevity later. Good luck

[Hdawg]

Wow ... wasn't expecting replies that quick! :-)

 

@ Wa7 Ancestry visa not an option for the Mrs.

@ ScottieGirl - sorry to hear about the job, hope something else comes along soon, I do tend to find things have a way of working themselves out! Yes it wouldn't be difficult to prove our relationship just more nonsense hoops to jump through Vs. 1 certificate?

@ VERYSTORMY - the job will pay more than that however obviously not for the last 6 months; I thought that I read on that awesome :-/ Gov.UK site that if no 6 months history you could prove you had been earning above that threshold over here and/or show combined $'s from your new salary + savings?

 

cheers,

[Hdawg]

Wow ... wasn't expecting replies that quick! :-)

 

@ Wa7 Ancestry visa not an option for the Mrs.

@ ScottieGirl - sorry to hear about the job, hope something else comes along soon, I do tend to find things have a way of working themselves out! Yes it wouldn't be difficult to prove our relationship just more nonsense hoops to jump through Vs. 1 certificate?

@ VERYSTORMY - the job will pay more than that however obviously not for the last 6 months; I thought that I read on that awesome :-/ Gov.UK site that if no 6 months history you could prove you had been earning above that threshold over here and/or show combined $'s from your new salary + savings?

 

cheers,

[Hdawg]

@ Quoll - thanks however unfortunately ancestry or European route is not an option (within parent/grandparent generation); I'm not sure I understand how her being there as my spouse on a spouse visa would affect benefits (not that we are supposed to understand), surely if I'm British, my kids are British by descent, I am married to their mother (with a visa of somekind), working and paying tax that should tick all the boxes? :-/

 

I just checked and you may be correct reference benefits ... although I checked that awesome Gov.Uk website and maybe we can ... its as clear as mud !

Edited March 9, 2017 by Hdawg

[Quoll]

@ Quoll - thanks however unfortunately ancestry or European route is not an option (within parent/grandparent generation); I'm not sure I understand how her being there as my spouse on a spouse visa would affect benefits (not that we are supposed to understand), surely if I'm British, my kids are British by descent, I am married to their mother (with a visa of somekind), working and paying tax that should tick all the boxes? :-/

 

I just checked and you may be correct reference benefits ... although I checked that awesome Gov.Uk website and maybe we can ... its as clear as mud !

 

Yes I was surprised but my Canadian friend tells me there are some regular benefits her English husband and child cannot access because that would be seen as supporting her. Cant remember which benefits though! The other thing she mentioned was that they have to go through the verification process periodically as well to ensure that the conditions are still being met. Real pain in the backside according to her!

[VERYSTORMY]

I have sent you a private message

[Hdawg]

Does anyone know what the pro's cons of applying for my partner as either a spouse or defacto are? i.e. is it going to benefit us or simplify the process at all if we get married before applying?

[JazzyAbby]

I'm fairly certain a fiancé visa is only valid for 6 months. Long enough for your fiancé to enter the country and hold a wedding. After you're married she would need to return home to apply for a spouse visa.

if you mean ticking de facto instead of spouse on the spouse visa application the only difficulty will be in proving your relationship and convincing the Officer that gets your application that your relationship will continue once she's granted permission to live in the UK.

if you've got children and longevity to your relationship then I see no issue there.

 

good luck