UK Visas and British Citizenship

A fresh wave of ‘scary’ changes was announced on the 16 th October 2014. We are going to outline a few, which in our opinion affect the applicants in our immigration practice. From 20 October 2014: Tier 4 Student category: applicants inside the UK will be able to request an Administrative Review if their application is refused – but not an appeal anymore – which is in- line with the rights of those applying outside the UK. This change was implemented almost immediately – to avoid the rush of applications before the changes come in force. Under the Administrative Review process, a different UKVI caseworker will re-consider the case. Additional documents won’t be allowed unless justified to show why it was a mistake to refuse a visa at first place. An appeal would have taken several months (approx 12 weeks) while an Administrative Review is expected to be taking 28 days. Less time for a maneuver for those with visa refusals, thus making it harder to stay in the country. We...

If you are holding a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) or a Tier 1 (Investor) visa we are offering to help with compliance with the Immigration Rules for the duration of the visa and extensions.     For a yearly fee we help to comply with the Rules (and changes of the Rules). For example, during the 3 years of an initial Entrepreneur visa you have to register a business within specific time limit, create 2 jobs for certain types of people and for the duration of 12 months for each job. An Investor has 3 months to invest the equivalent of GBP 750 000 in the ways specified in the Immigration Rules and it does not include property. The remaining amount of GBP 250 000 does not have to be invested but still has to be maintained in the permitted ways. Investments have to be maintained for the duration of the visa, which includes compensating the value if the market changes. Our compliance service includes:   -  Unlimited number of questions re the Immigration Rules...

Multi Travel Visas is a practicing OISC-accredited immigration company in the City of London. Our next   OISC Level 1 course will be held on weekend 29-30 November at our office in the City of London (Monument area). We are offering 10% off the course fee if you book within 1 week, that’s booking by end of Wednesday 5 November. To book online now please visit our website: http://www.mtv-training.co.uk/ Multi Travel Visas Ltd and its sister company, 1st 4Immigration Ltd, are both accredited by The OISC, ref F201100418 and F200800152 respectively.   You can read   Testimonials on our immigration cases here.   Our tutors are our very own OISC-accredited practicing immigration advisers who handle the real cases during the week and teach on weekends. You can read about them on the   Tutors page. Unlike most traditional courses, ours is conducted using plain language and does not simply contain quotes from the Immigration Rules. We include cases studies...

This category is one of the very few remaining categories, which allows to come to the UK to work. The trick is you will have to work for yourself in your own UK-based business and usually need funds of £200,000. This page contains a simplified summary only, for an advice on your individual circumstances please to book our ADVICE SESSION , either over email (especially if you are outside the UK) or at our office in the City of London, near Monument Underground station. If you already have this visa you may be interested in our COMPLIANCE SERVICE while holding an Entrepreneur visa. You are also welcome to read TESTIMONIALS page. APPLYING OUTSIDE THE UK (ENTRY CLEARANCE): You need to have an equivalent of minimum GBP 200 000 in funds. The funds can be shared with one other person and/or can be from the third parties (sponsors), in which case very specific documents will be needed (and even specific details on those documents). If the funds aren’t in the UK then your bank woul...

We are having clients coming to us following a refusal of their Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) application when switching from Post-Study Work visa inside the UK. Such an application requires the applicant to be in business already, such as having a limited company which is active. The problem is that many applicants are working as contractors, basically as employees in all but name (just self-employed on paper, even with a limited company). Also, in many cases the applicant’s limited company has a contract with a recruitment agency, which in turn places the ‘worker’ (the self-employed contractors) to the companies like Ford or to banks or IT companies. The reason why such applications are being refused – and refused correctly -   is the change in the Entrepreneur visa rules on 11 July 2014. Working as a contractor, ie merely filling what is really an employment vacancy presented as self-employment, is no longer allowed under the Entrepreneur visa category. It is a category for gen...

For most people it is an unimaginable amount of money, yet the UK Government is changing the visa rules for Tier 1 (Investor) migrants. Those who are planning to secure a Tier 1 Investor visa would have to invest not one but two million Pounds! Furthermore, the whole amount of GBP 2 million would have to be invested, not ¾ of it as now. Currently, the remaining ¼ can be used to buy a property in the UK or just kept on a savings account. The new Rules will come in force on 6 November 2014, so if you are a millionaire looking to invest in the UK (with the view of eventually getting a British passport) then you may wish to hurry and apply by 5 th November! If you are outside the UK, the date of application will be the date of payment when you’re submitting your online form, even if your appointment at a visa centre is after 6 November. If you are in the UK, with a visa which allows to switch to an Investor category, then the date of application would be the date of posting your ...

For our colleagues Immigration Advisers and Solicitors: Our online training course is accepted by The OISC and SRA, CPD ref number EJE/14IM. Self-employment Income in Visa Applications (by a Self-employed Immigration Adviser).  6 core hours CPD credit. This course addresses the Rules, issues and documents, which are required for the visa applicants who are self-employed, such as a Sole Trader or an owner of a limited company or a partner in a partnership or  an LLP. We explain how to apply the Rules for self-employed people who are applying for a Spouse/Partner visa including the differences when self-employment was in the UK and outside the UK, when applying for either an Entry Clearance or for a Leave to Remain. Plus for those applying to extend a Tier 1 (General) visa or for an ILR based on it; for those who are applying under the European/EEA law, such as family members applying for an EEA Residence Card (EEA2) or permanent residency (EEA4) or for British Citizenship for ...

For our colleagues Immigration Advisers and Solicitors: Our online training course is accepted by The OISC and SRA, CPD ref number EJE/14IM. Download from our website, study in your own time on any computer, iPad or iPhone, complete the test and we will send your CDP award certificate. British Citizenship for EU/EEA Nationals and their Family Members. 5 hours CPD credit. This course is focused on applications for British Citizenship for European/EEA nationals and their family members. This courses recognises the fact that European law works differently from the UK Immigration Rules, such as on qualifying for residency in the UK and especially for permanent residency. It is particularly important to remember that family members often have 'visa stamps' while they did not have to apply for them, so dates when they are eligible are often different from the dates of expiry of such voluntary visas. We extensively cover the restrictions applied to Eastern European A8 national...

"When I applied for UK citizenship, I was aware of the lengthy wait time for processing new applicants through the Home Office in London. For years, I was hesitant to submit my application knowing I would be required to surrender my current US passport for an uncertain time period. As I travel abroad frequently, I couldn’t afford to be without my passport for an extended period of time. Via a bit of research online, I came across the services of 1 st 4Immigration. Following my inquiry, I was immediately put in touch with Immigration Advisor Joanne Wilson. Joanne helped expedite my application by certifying a copy of my US passport. Surprisingly, via the exchange of overnight postal services, I was only without my passport for approximately one week before it was returned to me. Additionally, Joanne prepared all of my additional application documents and submitted them to the Home Office in London for review. I am delighted to say that within brief period of 3-4 weeks, I r...