Forum Immigration UK

[VMC]

My husband (a UK citizen) and I married in 2001 here in the US. We didn't really research immigration before marriage, and were told that there would be no problem with him extending his visa waiver into residency here. A few weeks after our marriage we were informed he would have to leave the country or face deportment. We didn't have regular access to online resources at the time, and despite being fairly educated people, we still don't know if we made the right decision in having him return home.

In the years that have followed, he has travelled here frequently, sometimes staying a full three months. I am disabled and semi-estranged from my family, so I couldn't sponsor or obtain sponsorship for him to come to the US as a resident. During this time, my husband had difficulties, despite his master's degree, to find a permanent position. However, after years of working with temp agencies, he has finally secured a permanent salaried position that will be seen as adequate to support us both in the UK.

We are getting the last of the paperwork together. He has an appointment on Thursday to get paperwork and his passport certified. However, I am a little worried about the accommodation requirement.

Right now he lives in a large bedroom in a flat rented by his parents. His brother also lives in the flat in another bedroom. Between the two of them, they pretty much pay the bills as his dad is having some pretty serious health problems and his mum is recovering from cancer treatment. Plus he helps me with my bills on this side. Years ago, he spoke to a solicitor about accommodation, and she said that it should be fine. I am a little less confident about that, and I am wondering if we should have him rent a small apartment to help our application. Right now he has a letter from his parents allowing us to stay there until we secure an apartment and a letter from the council allowing us to stay there with his parents. They live in London, so us supporting yet another apartment (3 in part or total) before I even have entry clearance is something we'd like to avoid if possible.

My questions are:
1)Would a room in an apartment that we'd have exclusive use of be enough to satisfy the accommodation requirement?
2)If not, how big does the place have to be?
3)If this or any other part of our application is seen as not satisfactory, will we be given the opportunity to fix what is wrong or will we have to go through the whole process again?

We have a very strong relationship. If we didn't, we wouldn't still be together after so many years of just relying on IMs, Emails, phone calls, and visits. We want to start a family and finally settle down. However, I am still nervous about different parts of the application process and not getting it right.

[Triple H]

Adequate' accommodation mainly means accommodation that is not overcrowded, although if the accommodation is seriously flawed in some other way that may also mean it is inadequate. Overcrowding is judged according to the table below, where rooms are proper rooms - not, for example, a kitchen or bathroom.A child under the age of one does not count as a person and a child between one and ten counts as half a person:In addition, the spouses must show that they own the accommodation or will occupy it exclusively,meaning that they have a private space that is theirs alone.This can include a room or rooms in a shared house or in a parent's house.

Rooms.......................Persons Permitted
1........................................2
2........................................3
3........................................5
4........................................7.5
5........................................10

3)If this or any other part of our application is seen as not satisfactory, will we be given the opportunity to fix what is wrong or will we have to go through the whole process again?

There is no fix.Applications are usually refused.

[VMC]

Ok thank you. I am a little worried about a couple other parts of our application (we were married by a Justice of the Peace, my passport, issued after my marriage is in my maiden name--don't ask), but we are just going to have to get it done. I am glad now that we can explain that there are 3 bedrooms, five people, and we will have exclusive use of one bed and one bathroom.

Maybe I will post the list of things we will include with the application when I am ready to send it off.

Thanks for your help so far.

[VMC]

I just got my entry clearance today. Thank you for your help.

[Triple H]