My ardent prayer is for Baba God to issue me a visa thru my appeal this year for my Msc programme. Looking forward to the outcome in the coming months. For everyone else in the same dilemma , Hold on and be strong! God will favour you!!!,

Amen.
I am in your shoes too. Did u sent ur appeal straight to AIT, if yes, for aw long did it take for then to send the notice of pending appeal to you?
Cheers

@ guseman

Took them about a month to send me the notice. Was kind of suprised 'cos i never expected it that soon. Still waiting for notice on hearing date. Have u gotten urs yet?

Hi all,

I received a reply from BHC Lagos by mail, that they are yet to receive a copy of the outcome from AIT.

Guess I av to call and mail AIT to send d copy to them in Lagos, or send me a mail confirmingg they av sent
sent them d copy whihc I'm sure they have.

Its only God that can help us with these people, imagine going thruogh all this after winning the appeal.

@princekay1
yes its true dat most sweedish and norweigian universities ar free, but look b4 u leap.

My congratulations to all those who have had their appeals allowed since this thread began and my heartiest encouragement to those about to pursue this line of action in their bids to travel to the UK,I hope you would permit me some space to contribute my story to this thread.I have been a silent observer of this discussions for a long time but never shared my travails with this collective preferring to circumnavigate my way through the whole process and play it by ear.VicJustice,Akolawole,mrkpataki,funkybaby and co brought a fresher meaning to the term-knowledge is power!There is a lot of things wrong with the Nigerian project,perhaps the most tragic is our inherent inability to sustain relationships in the pursuit of positive projects,rancour and to use a Nigerianism-"bad belle" eventually ruins the most laudable of efforts but in this case you all were able to sustain a momentum that brought something priceless to the people that browse through this thread-that priceless thing is hope.

My appeal was allowed,in the space of ten minutes,while the representative from home office bounced my twin boys on her knees after they had ransacked her briefcase,the judge said the application was faultless in the first instance,I wish I could share the bundle that I submitted,if you are struck by the meticulous use of my phrases,you can best imagine how the application was so intricately composed.My contribution to this thread is this,if you are refused visas to the UK and indeed any country on a basis that is discriminatory,unfounded and even minimally unfair.Do seek redress!A lot has been said about the time taken to pursue the process but time is not as essential as the restoration of your personal dignity and the need for a recognition by immigration authorities that not all Nigerians fit the CNN sponsored stereotypes.For intending travellers,if you are shallow in Nigeria,thou shalt be shallow in Europe or North America as well,pursue visa matters with becoming decorum,it is not a right,it is a game played with rules,understand those(immigration) rules thoroughly and adapt as necessary.If you choose to subvert the whole process through the use of "creative"documentation:apply the golden rule-Thou should not get caught!If you do,do not scream foul play and demand redress same as those who played fairly and squarely.I have little to add to the advice which has been so accurately and generously dished out on this thread except to say I agree almost in entirety with their answers to legal problems of this sort.Some salient pearls they dropped include:Thou shalt not be desperate.Thou should prepare your documentation meticulously and not be afraid to pursue your rights to appeal if the grounds are justified.Thou should follow up and follow through the process as keenly as possible.Thou should stay on the right side of the law(I can imagine the titters this would elicit because that is supposedly Un-Nigerian),thou should always remember,it is a means to an end not the end itself.UK is NOT paradise,neither is Europe or the US.I dont live in Nigeria and didnt apply from there,if you do,labour under the mindset that you are "guilty until proven innocent" and I read a book once that said "The Guilty are always afraid".My story is this-they refuse even flawless applications.The moral is this-pursue appeals to their natural conclusion.You will triumph at the end of the day.I wish you Godspeed.

Thanks Ariston 4 your advise. For someone like me, I'm clean/truthful in my applications
though the whole process is almost frustrating. I really hope and know that I will triumph soon.

Called AIT, saying BHC, Lagos claimed they have not received the outcome of the appeal,and was told they are not to inform BHC Lagos but the home office. So I think I have to contact the home office to brief their colleagues in Lagos,
of the outcome of my appeal.

Therefore can anyone let me in on their contact address. i.e. BHC, UK.

ALUTA CONTINUA !

@ brownbaby

Hi, i have been sent a notice of pending appeal. The bundle from the ECO would have reached the AIT since it was dated on 11th January 2008 ,though i am yet to recieve any hearing date. Do you have any idea how long it might take before hearing comes up? How will i be informed of the outcome of my appeal?

bei have en refused for the uk student visa for the second time. for teh first time i didnt apeal but this time apeal to ait because this time it was only one reason for the refusal that i have not shown my sponsors out going in coming income although i sent every thing when i apllied. aftremy apeal now i have recieve a notice of pending apeal in which it is written that my apeal has beenregisterded to the ait on 28 december. i wantto know that will i get the visa and how much time it wil take in the process.
I HVE SENT ALL OF MY SPONSOR DOCUMENTS INCLYDIND BANK STATEMENT, COMPANY STATEMENT OF MY UNCLE, COVERING LETTER , SPONSOR LETTER, AND INCOME TAX STATEMENT

Timx and Shanoo:The time taken for processing varies,the average being between 6-7 months.Faster if there are compelling circumstances in which case you would need to get a letter from your school citing that your position is only being kept in the hopes that the matter is soon resolved or words to that effect.Personal experience says that you just have to be patient.Like funkybaby can attest,it can be a very frustrating process when you are waiting.

brownbaby:Sorry I had to rewrite this cos I confused you with funky baby,its all the babies in the house,in anycase there is a much faster way of getting the BHC to respond and it is simply this,if your sponsor is living in the UK,he should get in touch with the MP in charge of his constituency,they are enabled by law to make representations for their constituents in relation to immigration matters,he can do this by phone,fax or registered mail,the latter being most preferred,the MP will in turn get in touch with UKVisas who more often than not expedite the visa issuance.He should include a copy of the determination and cite reasons why you need intervention,i.e the unco-operativeness of the BHC in Lagos,the logistics involved in planning the trip,the ineffectiveness of the customer service arm of the BHC in regard to your case.UKVisas are required by LAW to responded to the MP's inquiry.Hope this helps some?

P.S:Dont mind them(BHC)its beef then again maybe not, the volume of applicants from Nigeria is the highest in the world so I have been told.G'luck!

hi guys,

i've been dating a guy for three years. he lives in london and has his right of abode. just wanted to know, he is currently on vacation in nigeria and wants us to get married soonest but the issue id i won my student visa appeal to the uk in november 2007 and is expecting to be called before the end of february for my visa.

1.should i just wait till i get the visa and get married in the uk or should i get married in nigeria days before leaving for the uk then do another registry wedding in the uk.

2. note we have dated for a while, travelled together to uk on 2 occasions before.

thanks

hi, fortunately today i recieve another letter which is basically to the repondent that ait had given the date to the respondent of 28 dec 2007 of giving all the documents for which they refused me but they didnt send it yeh to them. it is written that the decision wil be taken on the month of march before that if the embasy did not send them the reasons and documents 4 ehich they refuse me the decision wil be taken on the papers which thay have. i want to knwo that how much chances are there for my visa and whatt ype of proof can embasy give to them because they did not even taken my interview also and the documents which i submit to them ar all genion,

Shanoo:So sorry but your post is grammatically confusing,can you rewrite so one gets a clearer idea what you need?

Neksbaby:I assume that your student visa suffices for you to get a COA in the UK for a marriage there however UK law recognises the validity of marriges conducted abroad under the proviso that the country in which the ceremony is conducted recognises such marriages.Do the marriage here. Since your fiance has a right of abode you can apply to extend your stay in the UK,switch in the UK using form FLR(M).Go the the following link for an indepth explanation of the proceedures.

http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/applicationforms/flr/flr(m)_form.pdf

Best of luck.

Thanks shanoo,

i'll guess i'll wait till i get to the uk, apply for a COA. then FLR, but how soon can i get

married in the uk as i envisage being given my student visa and travelling by the end of

february 07. I was told by a friend to wait for at least 8 months so they dont think my

intention was actually to get married (thats why we wanted to have our court weding in

Nigeria 2nd week in february before travelling).

hoping to hear from you soon.

thanks

MADE A MISTAKE IN MY PREVIOUS POST, THE YEAR , I MEANT FEBRUARY 08.
Thanks shanoo,

i'll guess i'll wait till i get to the uk, apply for a COA. get married then apply for FLR, but

how soon can i get married in the uk as i envisage being given my student visa and

travelling by the end of february 08. I was told by a friend to wait for at least 8 months

so they don't think my intention was actually to get married (thats why we wanted to

have our court weding in Nigeria 2nd week in february before travelling).

hoping to hear from you soon.

thanks

Are your posts intended for me or Shanoo?

Anyway,there are strategic advantages to doing it there in Nigeria so yes,do it there,this obliterates the need for a COA to get married in the UK and you can move straight to the FLR(M)process.

Best wishes.

Ariston:

Are your posts intended for me or Shanoo?

Anyway,there are strategic advantages to doing it there in Nigeria so yes,do it there,this obliterates the need for a COA to get married in the UK and you can move straight to the FLR(M)process.

Best wishes.

thanks Ariston for ur prompt reply. they mail was actually intended for you.

1.Do I have to inform the ECO/BHC in nigeria about my change in status (Married) when

im called for the visa ? If yes, what are the implications.

2. its over 43 working days since the student visa appeal was allowed. i called the bhc in

lagos and they said they had stilll not received the determination from home office. i sent

a mail to AIt and they said its left for the home office to send it by diplomatic bag to

lagos,

is there anything i can do to hasten the issuance of the visa or do i just wait patiently.


thanks once again

Hi muyiwabank, saw u online, pls can you also give me answers to my recent post:

1. expecting my student visa end of feb 08 after an allowed appeal in nov 07. my fiance is in nigeria now and has his right of abode. we intend getting married mid february 08, should i go ahead and get married in nigeria or do i wait till i get into the uk?

2. Do i have to inform the ECO of a change in my status when called for my student visa?

3. what are the implications of informing and not.


thanks

neksbaby,

let me help u out.

hi,
i had applied for the student visa for uk and i got refused in the month of september 2007.
then i decided to apeal, and i did it, on january 3 i recieved a letter of notice of pending appeal, after few days on the 26 january i recieved another letter in which it was written to the respondant(eco) that ait asked them to send prof of documents that they refuse me of which reason, but the british high commision have not send them the documents yet, so in that letter it it is written that if british high commission did not send them the papers and prof of documents of refusing me til march 2008 the decision wilbe taken on the followin papersd which ait already have.

i was refused on the basis that visa officer couldnt find my sponsors out coming income, although when i applied 4 a visa i send them the bank statemen, sponsor letter, my sponsors comapny covering letter, but i didnt send them one thing which was his income tax statement,
but when i appealed to the ait i have send them each and every documents of my sponsor including his income tax statement.

i want to know that how man chances are there for me to get the visa on my apeal, i have explained each and every thing in this,

Neksbaby:You seem to be asking the same question in different ways.Yes you can get married here,No it doesnt hold any legal implications for you since it is a student visa as opposed to a fiancee or spouse visa.Your student visa was granted irrespective of your marital status,either way works- get married here,apply for FLR in the UK or get married in the UK after you have obtained a COA although not needed if you get married in the Anglican Church of England in your local parish where you must have stayed for about 6 months or can prove a special relationship with the church.This is very straightfoward.

Shanoo:If there was only one reason given for the refusal and you squarely adressed that,your chances are pretty good,rest easy(and pray).

Thanks Ariston,

@ Timx,

Ariston has answered u correctly. the time varies, mine took 5months. Just keep on praying
and waiting patiently.

@Ariston,

Thanks for the advise. But my sponsor is my father, who is right here in Nigeria.
think I will keep bombarding BHC, lagos with mails and keep praying.
Then, will appreciate if I can get the addres of the home office from anyone.

Thanks.

@ ARISTON, timx and Guseman.

Hello guys, i must commend u all for sharing ur experiences on this forum. i've learnt a lot form this threads.

I was refused a student visa in October'07 and I appealed the decision, i just got a notice of pending appeal from AIT giving the ECO till April 1 to send his bundle and all that, I drafted the grounds of appeal myself cos i felt the I had a good case.

1) The ECO claimed my sponsor's documents largely stood in isolation of his financial circumstances. The ECO said there was no origin of funds, i asked what other origin of funds were required again despite submitting my sponsor's business registration papers, tax clearance certificate, bank statement, Contract award papers when I applied for the visa. My sponsor runs a sole proprietorship business. i concluded the ECO's decision was very discriminatory and baseless!

2) The ECO said my sponsor is responsible for other people ( just 2 young kids) I defended this by saying my sponsor is my uncle-my mom's younger brother. he stated clearly in his sponsorship letter that he had set out a particular amount for my education and his two kids. i wonder why d ECO overlooked this declarations!

3)this was my strongest ground of appeal. The ECO goofed by insinuating that funds that there was no evidence of funds for my three year course of study (18,000pounds/yr i.e 54,000pounds for 3yrs) Meanwhile I applied for a 1year masters course. I simply concluded the ECO used templates and easily pasted those reasons without reviwing my application because these details were clearly stated in the admission letter, or was it a mere blunder? (laughing)

4) The ECO said the statement of account submitted wasnt in my sponsors name but in his company name. I defended that by saying his business papers establish the fact that he is the only one that has access to his funds since he's a sole proprietor. I also attached a letter from his bank confirming him as the authorized signatory to the account.

Those were the grounds ohh, i hope i treated them well? My school resumes in September i hope the whole thing wont take too much time.
What are the chances that the appeal will be allowed?

I pray the ECO should overturn the decision once he realises his mistake! and Is there any need to send his statement of account to the AIT before the hearing?

I'm waiting for ur replies, ARISTON, MR. PATAKI, VOR,

quote author=tlamp link=topic=30156.msg1899718#msg1899718 date=1201625221]
@ ARISTON, timx and Guseman.

Hello guys, i must commend u all for sharing your experiences on this forum. i've learnt a lot form this threads.

I was refused a student visa in October'07 and I appealed the decision, i just got a notice of pending appeal from AIT giving the ECO till April 1 to send his bundle and all that, I drafted the grounds of appeal myself because i felt the I had a good case.

1) The ECO claimed my sponsor's documents largely stood in isolation of his financial circumstances. The ECO said there was no origin of funds, i asked what other origin of funds were required again despite submitting my sponsor's business registration papers, tax clearance certificate, bank statement, Contract award papers when I applied for the visa. My sponsor runs a sole proprietorship business. i concluded the ECO's decision was very discriminatory and baseless!

2) The ECO said my sponsor is responsible for other people ( just 2 young kids) I defended this by saying my sponsor is my uncle-my mom's younger brother. he stated clearly in his sponsorship letter that he had set out a particular amount for my education and his two kids. i wonder why d ECO overlooked this declarations!

3)this was my strongest ground of appeal. The ECO goofed by insinuating that funds that there was no evidence of funds for my three year course of study (18,000pounds/yr i.e 54,000pounds for 3yrs) Meanwhile I applied for a 1year masters course. I simply concluded the ECO used templates and easily pasted those reasons without reviwing my application because these details were clearly stated in the admission letter, or was it a mere blunder? (laughing)

4) The ECO said the statement of account submitted wasnt in my sponsors name but in his company name. I defended that by saying his business papers establish the fact that he is the only one that has access to his funds since he's a sole proprietor. I also attached a letter from his bank confirming him as the authorized signatory to the account.

Those were the grounds ohh, i hope i treated them well? My school resumes in September i hope the whole thing wont take too much time.
What are the chances that the appeal will be allowed?

I pray the ECO should overturn the decision once he realises his mistake! and Is there any need to send his statement of account to the AIT before the hearing?

I'm waiting for your replies, ARISTON, MR. PATAKI, VOR,
[quote][/quote]


so unfortunate that Britain can treat Nigerians like this. just imagine!

@Neksbaby
Read Through your post and i actually do wish you all the best with your appeal and all that.But you claim to have been to the uk B4 with your Fience, if yes what does getting married have to do with the british embassy, I think we Nigerians practically let the British embassy dictate evrything bout our life while they are busy enjoying themselves, i wonder if its not this same uk that am currently in that you wanna travel to anyways I think you getting married to your Fience has absolutly nothing to do with The embassy aight what would be would be and more over he has a right of abode as you already said. You have being to the uk nowwwwwwwwwwww this aint heaven o you should know that so please get married when ur ready not when the british embassy is ready if not you might have to ask them for permission to give birth.

After my close look on a few posts here and views, I think it would be thoughtful of me to share my problem with the house and see how much chance I stand on wining my Appeal case, Grounds prepared by me. This is my second time of appealing though; but I was refused THIS time due to the fact that,

1) I presented my Uncle/sponsor statements (both Business & personal
accounts) which are buoyant and properly ran , but ECO went ahead by questioning the origin of the said some huge amount that was deposited in a single day (3 large transaction that worths 26m), this is out of point to me, because initially the account had effected large sum that was counting up to 30m before and
they did not say anything abut it, ECO couldn't even have anything to comment about the Personal account that has a balance of 6m, which I think it's more important as to his personal info, Some other sponsor's submitted info are his Tax Clearance, Cert of Incorporation, as a proprietor of a real estate agency and letter of is intention as sponsor.

2a) The ECO noted a careless mistake on my part about the difference in my date of birth on WAEC certificate (July 6) and my application form and passport DOB (November 15th), both of the same year though. I could not notice this error even in my first application ,not even ECO noticed this, until it was spotted now by ECO in my second application. So I had to prepared the grounds of appeal that WAEC was actually the brain behind the error and I did 2 court affidavits ,one directed to the Tribunal to prove my real date of birth and the second to WAEC to show that they were actually the one at fault,though WAEC are yet to admit this and I am still in puzzle the way to go about it, but I went ahead and sent this copy to the tribunal which show I have tried to contact WAEC and they will do something about this. I explained hat ECO should have confirmed directly from Waec if he's in doubt of the authenticity, instead of make assumption that it's a counterfeit.

b. I sent to AIT , my Birth Cert to see if that clear the mess .Can somebody tell me if i stand any good chance of winning the appeal despite this complicated part with the DOB error, because they could easily think it's forgery and in fairness to God, it was just out of a silly mistake during my registration for weac then, not intentional.

3) I discovered from my First failed Appeal case that a letter was sent to me that I could make any further/ additional written submission if I wish, That came about few weeks to the date of my hearing. So I intend to contact my lawyer to see if any additional info he can sum up to help this case, and I am asking the house to advise too.


Please advise me! I need your advice Mr.Pataki, Ariston , Von,

ve read the whole thread and i ve a big question, how do you pple do your admission when appealing,i mean with the duration of 5months 4months that am seeing,does it mean you still ve your addmission pending, my is just 1 reason too.but i was thinking by the time i appeal the school would ve resumed and i was not given any extension.so how do i go about it.do i deffer my admmision to sept and start the appeal that i can see can take several months or i should just reapply by sept

@ Ajile2

Write your school and inform them u r appealing d decision of the ECO. Ask for deferment till Sept.

Dantecmu:

@Neksbaby
Read Through your post and i actually do wish you all the best with your appeal and all that.But you claim to have been to the uk B4 with your Fience, if yes what does getting married have to do with the british embassy, I think we Nigerians practically let the British embassy dictate evrything bout our life while they are busy enjoying themselves, i wonder if its not this same uk that am currently in that you want to travel to anyways I think you getting married to your Fience has absolutly nothing to do with The embassy aight what would be would be and more over he has a right of abode as you already said. You have being to the uk nowwwwwwwwwwww this aint heaven o you should know that so please get married when your ready not when the british embassy is ready if not you might have to ask them for permission to give birth.

guess u got me wrong.

1.my travelling with my fiance then was on visiting visa. we were just dating then no plans to get married . just decided to in dec07 when he came for xmas holiday

2. i wanted to verify d following

(A)i applied for a student visa in march 07( i was single then), got refused and won my appeal and hopfully shd get it my end of feb08

(B) im to get married to my fiance prospectively days after getting my student visa. I wanted to know the pros and cons of marrying in nigeria and applying directly for FLR or shd i just wait and get married in the uk and gong through COA since i can do that on a student visa.

Nobody is dictating anything,

if u have any more suggestions that will be nice and must i apply for FLR immediately i enter the uk?

thanks

In a lighter mood,   

a i sinle ologini, ile d'ile ekute[color=#990000][/color]

where is MrPataki, Akolawole, Funkybaby, Vicjustice, LondonCool, VOR. This thread or the whole travel section is not the same without you guys. Vicjustice, see who has now become the defacto on immigration matters.

MrPataki,


where r u? this thread is now boring!