Getting married in the UK is not always an answer to getting a UK visa. Marami ang mga may maling akala na basta daw kasal na, e ok na. In fact, there are even TNTs who supposed to be married in a wedding ceremony, invited friends and families on their big day, but surprisingly, arrested and detained by the Home Office Enforcement Police. Kaya maganda alamin natin kung paano mag-apply ng visa as a partner in the UK.

First thing you have to do is to make sure that your relationship is genuine, subsisting and intended to be permanent. Ibig sabihin dapat genuine or totoo ang relasyon at ‘subsisting’ -nagpapatuloy. Bagamat maganda na kasal talaga but there are times when the Immigration Office will say:

we believe that you are lawfully married, but we do not believe that your relationship is genuine and subsisting.

Imagine kasal na pero di pa rin sila naniniwala totoo kayo!

Pwedeng kasal na, pero hindi pa rin naniniwala ang Home Office na totoo at nagpapatuloy ang inyong relasyon. There are many documents you can provide to substantiate your claim and increase the merits of your application. Tandaan na ang magic number sa Home Office to establish a committed relationship is 24 months cohabitation. Dapat dalawang taon (2 years) na kayong magkasama sa iisang bubong.

In a legal framework, you must provide documentary evidence to confirm cohabitation. Kelangan may mga documents throughout those intervening years to prove mutual devotion hindi pwedeng wala or kokonte. The more the better, I would say – lalo na kung lampas na dalawang taon na kayong nagsasama. It is very important to submit original documents as photocopies will not be considered as valid. The burden to demonstrate that your relationship is durable is upon and your partner.

Provide these documents:

• Letter of support from your partner – say how and why the relationship started and developed; why this relationship is special; why the partner is special, milestone of the relationship – for example moving in or going on holiday together and their future plans; provide reasons why leaving the UK is not feasible – for example due to medical and health reasons or any care arrangements in the UK that relocating and migrating outside the UK is not an option (this is very important);
• Your personal statement about the relationship as well
• Letters from friends and family – why do they believe the relationship is loving, can they confirm that the couple are living at the same address? have they been in some parties and occasions that the couple were together? what will be the impact if the TNT applicant is removed from the UK?
• Financial documents – provide payslips; bank statements, certificate of employment, P60 tax certificates
• Tenancy Agreement /Council Tax
• Letter from the landlord
• Proof of relationship – photographs of the relationship with captions;
• Marriage certificate, if applicable
• Birth certificate of the child, if applicable
• any joint bank accounts or joint financial investments
• letters from any church or organisation membership
• Evidence of contacts – communications, Skype, Facebook Messenger, chats.

It is always a good practice to incorporate case laws and legal principles into the case. That’s what lawyers do to get the ratio or reasons for many cases and apply it to the Applicant’s personal circumstances.

In many of my application, I normally put the case of Chikwamba [2008] UKHL 40 where the House of Lords held in a nutshell that it would not be necessary to require a Zimbabwean migrant to return to Zimbabwe and apply from there to return to the UK. It is disproportionate and unjustly harsh.

The success is always of course dependent on a case to case basis. But I find that if you can articulate why returning to your country of origin is unreasonable – then say whatever you feel, meron ka bang mga anak dito, may inaalagaan ka ba? or may sakit? or may kintatakutan ka ba? Because those and many more could fall under compassionate circumstances.

In Court, I normally prepare my own case and legally represent my client before a judge. There are many case laws that can assist in making a strong application such as: Razgar, Agyarko, Huang, Chikwamba, Zambrano, Chen, Jeusenne, EM Lebanon, MA Pakistan, TZ Pakistan or Mostafa etc – an astute lawyer can use these case laws to corroborate with the Applicant’s case or appeal along side with the provisions of the Immigration Rules such as EX1, Gen 3.1 and paragraph 276ADE can come into play. Dapat din na Suitable at Eligible ang Applicant. Ibig sabihin walang criminality, deceptions and fraud. An applicant must be a person of good character. Napakahalaga nyan.

Also, if there are any qualifications, educational and professional achievements that you can offer to the UK, make a CV and say that you can be an ‘asset’ to the UK if and when given the opportunity to work here legally. I also include a Sponsorship Undertaking to ensure that if and when a visa is granted, the Applicant will not be a burden to the public purse by asking additional benefits.

If you read Section 117B of the Immigration Act 2014, it says that:

It is in the public interest, and in particular in the interests of the economic well-being of the United Kingdom, that persons who seek to enter or remain in the United Kingdom are able to speak English and are financially independent, because they are —(a) are less of a burden on taxpayers, and (b)are better able to integrate into society.

An Applicant needs to provide also a certificate that he or she has a good command of English. There are many institutions that provide English Certificates which you can find online.

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By: Lindoven Magsino of Queen’s Park Solicitors | Mobile: 07446888377 | Email: donm@queensparksolicitors.co.uk