UK Visas and British Citizenship

We are asked this question almost every day! The purpose of a Spouse/Partner visa is for the foreign partner to reside in the UK with their British/settled spouse/partner. So, are there limits on how many days you (or your British spouse) can spend outside the UK while on this visa? Some think it is 90 days, others – 180 days per year. Both are wrong. The former is the old limit for work visas and the latter is the current limit for the visas under the Points-Based System. Neither applies to spouses and partners. The answer is: there is no specified limit on absences. In other words, there is no minimum number of days, such as “180 per year”. The only rule is that the UK remains your main home and each case has to be assessed on its merit. How does it work in practice? In our immigration practice we have to assess each case individually. For example, a case where a British spouse was sent, by their UK employer, to work in Hong Kong for 6 months, while remaining an employee for a UK co...

We have just updated our very popular Online OISC Level 1 course! You can download it to your computer and study in your own time. No need to travel to a classroom, no need to wait for the next date. You can start your immigration training right now! We are a practicing OISC-accredited immigration company, we have designed this training material   to be of practical help for those who are preparing for OISC accreditation at Level 1 and for compulsory Level 1 Assessment. Or perhaps to those who are planning to open a UK immigration consultancy based overseas. It would also be of interest for practicing advisers and immigration lawyers as well as for community group advisers, council or Citizens Advice Bureau workers, volunteers etc. This is not a boring coverage of the Immigration Rules! We tried to keep the language as simple and entertaining as possible. See the Contents and Extracts on our website!   Download the course now: http://www.1st4...

From the point of view of immigration law practice this is a very big change and for many EEA nationals, and their family members, it means an additional visa application (extra fee, extra pack of documents etc).   The change is in the British nationality legislation, not in the EEA law, so it only affects those who are planning to apply for British Citizenship. On the other hand, many EEA nationals and especially their non-EEA family members plan to do exactly that.     EEA nationals and their direct family members (spouses, civil partners, children under 21 yo, dependent parents) gain automatic rights to reside in the UK, the right deriving from the European law. Subject to some conditions, such as exercising Treaty rights in the UK, but not subject to having to apply for a ‘visa stamp’. Visa stamp or not, they get their rights. It includes non-EEA direct family members, even though most still apply for a Residence Card.   After 5 years they qualify...

We are looking for an experienced Immigration Adviser with the current OISC accreditation. Level 1 would be sufficient but a higher level is welcome. Having a valid accreditation is compulsory (or recent one if you left your previous employment 2-3 months ago, so it can be transferred). We have a small team, so it is important to be well-organised and capable to work without supervision. Good written and spoken English is required as well as good customer service and computer skills (Excel, Outlook).   Main categories we deal with: spouse/partner visas and related issues, Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) and Tier 2, ILR, EEA law, British Citizenship. We are looking for an adviser with a proven casework experience and will be testing the knowledge of the Immigration Rules (particularly ability to find the answers on the Rules, such as who can switch to a visa, how to qualify for ILR etc). Competitive salary is available for the right and hard-working candidat...

The change is in the British nationality legislation regarding EEA nationals and their family members. It came in force on 12 November 2015 and has completely overhauled the way we used to work when helping EEA nationals and their family members to apply for British Citizenship. EEA nationals and their direct family members (spouses, civil partners, children under 21 yo, dependant parents) gain automatic rights to reside in the UK, the right deriving from the European law. Subject to some conditions, such as exercising Treaty rights in the UK, but not subject to having to apply for a ‘visa stamp’. Visa stamp or not, they get their rights. It includes non-EEA direct family members, even though most still apply for a Residence Card. After 5 years they qualify for permanent residency, EEA equivalent of Indefinite Leave, again automatically, without having to apply for a document confirming it (those who applied did so voluntarily). With ILR or without, it was possible to apply for...

As part of our services we offer advice session, which can be at our office (Monument area in The City of London) or over email. This is available to the migrants as well as to fellow immigrations advisers and solicitors, based in the UK or abroad. Email advice has become very popular because it is available to anyone anywhere in the world, plus answers are written and you can refer to them later without a fear of forgetting or misunderstanding the advice given. You can also show it to your partner or to your employer. We promise to provide answers to your queries by the end of the next working day after receipt of advice fee, which is at the average market price of £150 and is counted towards our service fee if you proceed with an application through us later. Advice fee can be paid online on our website or to our bank account. Examples on the issues we can advise during the session:   How you and your British spouse/partner can meet t...

This course has a particular emphasis on Tier 2 General and Tier 1 Entrepreneur visa categories, applying for a Sponsor Licence and using Tier 2 Code of Practice as well as qualifying for an Indefinite Leave in these routes. It also covers (often forgotten in training) rules for family members of PBS migrants. You can earn 7 core CPD hours credit, subject to the successful completion of the test after the course. As a practicing company, we are offering to share our experience to help you deal with the applications of Points-Based System migrants, their family members and ILR applications based on PBS categories. 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 t...