₦airaland Forum

Opensecret69:
This forum is really informative and helpful. How do i resolve an issue of refused visa application without right of appeal, and it was stated that future applications will be refused if the cause of refusal is not sorted out.

Give details of the refusal here...

Wilson2k8:
i need help from everyone... as it is quite urgent.

My company is running a software development program in the Uk, which i was meant to attend today but my visa was refused. i received my refusal letter on 25th Aug 2017. find refusal comments below;

In making this assessment I have to look at your circumstances and credibility of your trip. The starting point for the assessment of any visa application is the information contained in the visa application form and supporting documents. You have stated on visa application form that you are currently employed as a technology supervisor and that you earn NGN 240, 000 (GBP 515 as per OANDA exchange rate at the time of application) per month. Although you have submitted a letter form XXXX Ltd, in support of your application, this is not satisfactory evidence of your personal circumstances. You have submitted no further evidence of your personal circumstances, any income, assets or property. Furthermore, the Gtbank statement submitted do not support receipt of your income. From the information on your application form and the documents you have submitted, I am therefore not satisfied that your employment and income is as stated. I am therefore not satisfied that your economic status is as declared. Without the evidence we asked for, I am not satisfied that you plan to leave the UK at the end of your visit or that you are genuinely seeking entry as a general visitor for a period not exceeding 6 months Appendix V4.2 (a-e) of the immigration rules.
In addition to the above, you failed to submit any documentation from the company in the UK where your employers company sponsored event will take place.
In light of all of the above I am not satisfied as to your intentions in wishing to travel to the UK. I am not satisfied that you genuinely intend a short visit only to the UK and that you will leave the UK at the end of the visit. Furthermore, I am not satisfied that you will be able to maintain and accommodate yourself adequately in the UK or meet the costs of your return or onward journey from the UK
I am therefore not satisfied you will leave the UK at the end of your visit (V 4.2 (A))
I am therefore not satisfied you will have sufficient funds to cover all reasonable costs in relation to your visit without working or accessing public funds (V4.2(E)).

Any future UK visa applications will be considered on their individual merits. However, you are likely to be refused unless the circumstances of your application change


Note: i submitted my bank statement and very sure it was cleary stated, they probably didnt look through it carefully.Also the company letter states clearly that its a fully sponsored trip. i am not paying for anything, company is paying for all expenses. i intend reapplying today, i have highlighted my salary credit line with a light pen on the gtbank statement submitted also attached my fidelity savings account with balance of 800k i would like to know whatelse to add so i dont get another refusal again. i am paying for priority again. cos the event as started was suppose to be there for 4 weeks but now i would have to miss a week

i have no assets or stocks and am 26years...first time out of the country. I submitted company introductory letter, sponsorship letter, hotels, tickets etc but as at when submitting the appplication we hadnt decided the location of the event venue but now we have

Anyone suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks

Did you submit 6 months payslips Looks like you did not. Payslips is key. From your payslips they will compare your salary with what the bank statements say. Company paying for everything does not mean you should not include evidence of your personal, socio-economic and financial circumstances in your home country. This is how they judge if you are a genuine visitor. A genuine visitor is one that would return to their home country before the visa expires.

Having a legit company you work for and having a legit event in the UK does not mean the visitors are legit. This is their thinking. So it's up to you to demonstrate that your a a genuine visitor. Ensure you have all the details of the event and the location and all for your next application... also address all their concerns one by one...

Solatium:
Have it in mind that these are logical people who are thorough in their doings,they aren't disorganized like us.

NOTE:- you do not need to agree with logic and reasoning,but I have made my point.moving oooonnnnnnn

...been a long time coming...

bigbus:
Well, my current visit visa was issued in Sheffield. It says so on the visa. My previous visas were issued in Nigeria (in the days of the black and red VFS bags).
Furthermore, I needed my passport back (similar long delays then) and I went to BDHC to retrieve it. (Two days back and forth before they let me in and a nice competent authority attended to me.) They couldn't give it back, but were able to check and told me specifically that the visa was issued in Sheffield some days back: it still took another week or so for it to arrive in Nigeria and TLS (all couriered via UPS). I can only speak of my own experience; but I think that if you receive your passport with a visa issued in Shefo, your passport has visited UK and while you were waiting.
Part of the delays seemed to be caused by the courier time and logistics. #JustMyTake, #NotForArgument(s).

Exactly what @Ekpotek was saying. The system of issuing visas does not have to agree with our logic.
Oga @Solatium, come and answer 'Present' oooo

Solatium:
Not an argument,we are just crossfertilzing ideas

Ok, if you ask me, I will be of the inclination that visit visas are stamped in the applicant's home country/country of application. This is only adopting logic. I do not know the fact. It is not part of your freedom of information, so they do not owe it to tell applicants where visas are stamped.

Solatium:
Have uou got prove either?

Application to sign out of this argument... Oshey!

Solatium:
Have you got an evidence that passport are moved too? I repeat no one will move millions of passports from different country of the world down to UK and have it muddled up together,have you thought about the logistics of moving them? how about warehousing while in possiof UK authority? how about those who are gonna do the sorting? If moving passports abroad as you asserted,of what importance is keeping their embassies and high commission around the globe?
High cost of visa has nothing to do with movement,so many factors dictate that,the reciprocative agreement between nations.I.e if naija charges £200 for one year multiple entry visa,expect uk to charge the same or something close to that.....Are u saying the US that charges #66k for visa also moves passports?

The debate is obsolete now, am sorry. We do not know where visas are stamped for visitors. However spouse visas are stamped in Sheffield, that am sure of cos they carry sheffield as Isuing Office. If you go by logistics, what about spouse visa applations; we do not how many applications they receive...

Let applicants just be hopeful that what they apply for is what they get. Where the stamping is done is immaterial.

Ezriela:
All,

I am silent reader here. You all are doing a great job.

We will like to spend our Christmas in the UK. What documents do we need? Basically for my husband.

I went last year with my kid,through this forum i got most info and we were granted without my husband.

I work with a salary of 250-300k monthly but my husband does his personal business.

His company is not registered yet but he has a good inflow and outflow in his personal saving account,he does not have a company account yet. I hope this does not matter as I have been reading abt CAC and tax clearance certificate for private owner business.
Please assist a 1st timer.

Your question is complex! Do you seek help with documents for your husband to apply for a visit visa or for both of you to apply?

tmoneyluvsu:
Happy Sunday gurus in the house, I'm trying to book for an hotel on booking.com and it requested for my MasterCard info ,my question is this, will the money be deducted immediately or on the date I book or when I get to the hotel...thanks.

Most hotels have free cancellation. This means you can cancel a booking up to 24 hours before your check in date and you wouldn't be charged. But you must watch out for the options with free cancellation. For a given room, the option with free cancellation is slightly higher than the option to pay without cancellation. Whatever be the case, you are charged on the date the room is booked for. The option without cancellation is charged on the date you were booked to move in whether you turn up or not.

nomad26:
Ekpotek, what about the US visa process? This rubbish doesn't happen because you take your passport with you to an interview and in most cases, a decision is made immediately. After that, max one week and your passport is back in your possession.

Just to be clear, I believe if an embassy says decision time is 15 working days for a PAID service, then people have every right to be angry. An apology email doesn't cut it. In fact, they should be sending complaints to the Home Office and threaten to sue.

Please ekpotek stop defending them, it is irritating.

Mate, if you want the British Embassy to leave your country they go kuku leave, whose loss? They give a 15 working day window and say if your application won't be met within that time they will contact you. Have you asked why some people get their decisions within the timeframe and some others under the same circumstances (different complexities of applications though) get theirs very late

Each country has her way of deciding applications.

What about Holland (the Netherlands)? You can't get a visa at their high commission anywhere in Nigeria now. You have to go to French Embassy or so...

What about Nigeria House in London? It took me 3 months to get my passport renewed after biometrics, as they were out of stock on passport booklets. Should I go and sue the Nigerian Govt?

blza:
The grand mother shouldn't have submitted any bank statements . Sometimes people just kill their applications by providing irrelevant documentations that could have been avoided.

Not true. I agree with you that people can harm their applications, but not providing enough also stabs you.

Did you read the refusal letter? The ECO said the bank statement was the only doc the applicant submitted as her personal circumstances and they found this not enough. If you say she shouldn't have submitted, that would have meant all her documents would have come from UK. What then serves as her ties. The ECO wanted more than bank statements.

tmoneyluvsu:
Actually I made the transfer with the same account I'll be using for my application and I tagged it "borrowed". Now the person will pay back soon.
(Its 300k in naira not £)

Sorry my bad, I forgot to use naira sign.. lol

Solatium:
Your passports never leave the shores of this country.no one will move thousands of passports from different nations down to Sheffield or London because they want to put stickers on it.....The decisions are made via central e-systems and the visa printed at their respective embassies and high commission and stick on passport

Inasmuch as what you say hints on logic, do you have any proof?

ekpotek:
Each application is decided on its own merit. The most important factor is the ability of the applicant to show enough commitment to return weather sponsored or not. If the ECO can not be assured that your financial (sources of income) or social ties (marriage, children) is sufficient to make you return is automatic refusal. The OP had a soonsor, whereas his finances even under employment was weak, even in a stable employment. The OP must show that he/she can still be able undertake a high profile vacation in the UK using his own fund. Being sponsored is relative as there is no 100% guarantee that the sponsor must fulfill this commitment. Assuming the OP was issued a visa and something happen that the sponsor can no longer meet the commitment, will the OP decline to visit? No the OP will source of fund to make the trip anyhow. For elderly, even without employment, the ECO will normal view the relevancy of the trip, weather it is mandatory or not.

I agree with you one hundred per cent...

toscott:
But really why is it this hard? Afterall it is said that the passports are at the Embassy here cos they stamp it here. Should it be this difficult?

How did you get to know visas are stamped in the applicant's country of application; at the embassy? I didn't know this...

blza:
I do not believe an applicant being fully sponsored needs to prove they have sufficient funds to fund the trip. A lot of common sense needs to be applied when making visa applications in general. For young/younger people in active employment, there is an instant red flag if their trip is being sponsored (paid for by the invitee). In this instance, it is important for the young person in active employment or business to show their invome [UKVI class this as the main tie in their country of residence and then family ties (marriage)]. general reason being that a younger person is likely to become an overstayer as they are prone to seek for "greener pastures". Now if the young person who is in employment/business has a very low income and very low savings... the ECO becomes more weary. This doesn't mean it's an auto refusal. ECO also puts into consideration relationship to the person invitee, purpose of that invitation , their status in the U.K., financial circumstances in the U.K. Someone on a low income or relying on public funds is not the ideal sponsor.

Application for an elderly/retiree being fully sponsored is treated Differently. How they are related to the UK sponsor also matters a lot and of course the financial status of the sponsor comes into play. The onus is on the sponsor to ensure there is appropriate funds/evidence in support of the application. The elderly doesn't need to supply any finance documentations as evidence.

@Biza, I somewhat agree with you apart from your last sentence. Someone on this forum recently posted the refusal letters for her mother inlaw that had low funds in her account. It was gonna be sponsored by the UK resident. The ECO stated categorically that the applicant, a grandmother even, only submitted bank statement with low funds as the only evidence of her personal/financial circumstances. Borrowing from your logic, why did they even consider her bank statement and her funds

More so, like you rightly said, a younger adult in employment has their job as their primary tie to their home country. If one's livelihood coming from their employment is from low funds, they consider that tie as very shaky. It is not auto refusal though, like u said, but you must be on point on other factors. Once the young adult is employed with relatively low income, the ECO would consider their living and scrutinise the income whether it is enough to ordinarily take care of such a one in a monthly and if it is deemed as insufficient then the ECO may not see the applicant as genuine. As you talked about common sense, what stops one with low income in Nigeria from refusing to come back to the same home country and low funds after their trip abroad, when they could hide and remain in the UK and look for illegal work This is how the ECO reasons. We do not need to reason it out with common sense but to go into the mind of the ECO and beat them to it.

tmoneyluvsu:
Pls gurus in the house,does the fact that my salary comes late ,like on 10th sometimes affects my visa application?
And also, can I receive cash up to 300k in my Acc without been accused of lump sum.
I earn 325k per month.

Your salary coming late does not matter at all; some people are paid beginning of a month (for the previous month), middle or end; as long as it is reflected in your payslip and bank statement.

As for the £300,000 non salary transfer, personally I would say avoid it. If it is money owed you, you could provide the sender an alternative account to pay into, collect it cash or defer the payment until after your visa application. Ordinarily as your monthly income is more than the £300k one off payment, it might not matter much but you would have to explain the source of it. Now, this is the trick; it is down to the ECO to see sense in your explanation or not. Instead of going through that huddle why not just avoid it...

aragon2xl:
Finally woke up to some good news
After waiting 59working days(june 7)
Training i was going to attend already passed since july 7th
No one was called for verification of my documents including my school and the trainers and even my sister i intend to visit after the training, i hope this would turn out well

You would do well to block off some of your personal details and not post it all here as it may not be controlled here.

I believe your sister is not your main reason for wishing to travel to the UK and I believe she is not exclusively paying for the trip; hence they may not call. But that doesn't mean another applicant in the exact same circumstances as you wouldn't have their Uk host contacted.

KemBee86:
Hello my brother, am here again with my questions. I am about to fill the form for MIL and I have some questions.
1. Which type of visa should I pick is it family visit visa or tourism?
2. Can I use my email to register for her because she doesn't have an email and
Lastly. The part that said cost of accomodation should I put 0.00 since we are providing accomodation and like how much should I put for feeding and maintenance for 2 weeks trip?

Thank you for always been there! God bless you.

You are welcome sir!

1. General tourism visa

Visa Application sites (I used the new system/link as I found it easier, I paid with my UK Visa card for $120)

Old system
https://www.visa4uk.fco.gov.uk/home/welcome

New system
https://visas-immigration.service.gov.uk/product/uk-visit-visa

2. Yes, you can use your email address (I used mine). If you use your email address you would always be prompt in checking mails as against using some email for your mother inlaw where no one would be readily available to check mails.
3. I did not see anything like cost of accommodation in my case (full sponsorship); I only saw cost of trip which includes accommodation, flight, feeding and general care/maintenance. If you are prompted to say how much the trip would cost, you then have to sum up the break-downs.

As an estimate, return flight could be £600. £800 should be enough for all expenses regarding her trip. Others here can estimate for you too.

McGibson:
Justwise brightingsus Ekpotek tatpat

I was denied visa. the reason is this

I would say rather sad, but what does the refusal letter say?

Stormyweather:
thanks this is enlightening. The sponsor is paying everything. As far as the flight fare. How does she maintain regularity in the application? What's the best chance to increase it?

I do not understand what u mean by regularity in the application and chance of increase

The fact that the UK sponsor would pay for everything does not mean the applicant would not have funds in their account. Do not make that mistake pls.

Stormyweather:
thanks a lot sir. Who will the sponsor submit all of these to? And us there a minimum amount advised of the applicant to own?

The sponsor needs to send the documents to the applicant well in time before their appointment. The applicant would then combine those with their own documents to make an application pack. Mind you, the documents would be scanned at the appointment and given back to the applicant. Only scanned copies are sent to Sheffield by TLS.

There is no minimum requirement an applicant must have in their account, but the ECO would weigh the applicant's circumstances to ascertain if it's reasonably logical or logically reasonable. First find out how much the trip would cost in pounds and who would be paying what towards it, usually between the applicant and the sponsor.

Stormyweather:
yes sir, she would be staying with the sponsor and he is also a citizen. In the form printed out, sge I asked how much is her earning, how much her husband would provide etc. Please what's the best way to handle this? Do they need her bank statement of account? What's the best way to achieve all of these. Thanks a lot sir

Well, in that case the UK sponsor/host needs to provide their passport, proof of accommodation like utility bill, etc; bank statements and payslips, proof of relationship with the applicant amongst other things.

Yes, the applicant must provide their bank statement as this is ticking one of the boxes of their ties to Nigeria.

missoredipe:
Dear Ekpotek and Justwise,

Thank you once again for all the three Uk visas I applied for in the past and all the three were successful. Please I need your help for one of my good friends she contacted me that her mum's visa has been denied 3 different times. Her husband is British and she is on spouse visa too. Could you please kindly advise us on what to do. Please find the three refusal letters attached. I would be awaiting your response and other people can contribute too. We are hoping to apply for her Mum by the end of the year and we don't want to make the same mistake again. Thank you all.

First of all, how old is this applicant?(though age doesn't really account for much here)

What is the space in time between these applications and refusals?

Stating she would spend over 4 months in the Uk was a red flag as that's potential for overstaying but the refusal could have been avoided if the applicant provided evidence of their personal and financial circumstances in Nigeria. Also the closing balance from first application was low and the ECO was unsure of the applicant's maintenance and livelihood.

'Personal circumstances' entails an applicant's family ties and whether the family members are resident in Nigeria, the applicant's living (where they live and the circumstances around ownership or rent of the house), how the applicant feeds (from employment or support from family), any savings or investments which give an applicant strong connections to their home country.

Sadly the applicant chose the wrong way of correcting the first refusal by inflating sums they couldn't defend as income. To correct the first refusal they could have given it ample time before reapplying. Then the family members would pay her maintenance money steadily for 6 months into her account to support the claim she's supported by family (that's if the claim of self emplyment is untrue). Furthermore the applicant quoted she was self employed earning £224 monthly and then £904 within a short period. Ah Ah!!! What a boom in business It is gonna be difficult correcting this impression now. Iif you make a claim you earn a certain amount and your bank statement does not reflect this, it is automatic refusal unless you can prove otherwise.

I would advise the applicant gives it some time before reapplying. Also reduce the amount of time to spend in the UK.

My final questions for now are:
1. Is the claim of £904 monthly earnings true?
2. Did the applicant's son inlaw (sponsor) receive any calls from the ECO throughout the applications?

Iolo:
Hi All,

Kindly advise.

Is it advisable to apply for a UK visa for my wife and I with her passport still bearing her maiden name?

We have kicked-off the process for change of name on her passport, however, I'm not getting any guarantees as to when the passport can be ready.

Do we just apply for the visa like that or keep waiting till the passport is out.

It is not a must you do the change of name. In fact in the UK ladies don't really do change of name unless when their husbands are late and they want to revert back to their maiden name.

When my wife joined me her passport was in her maiden name and the visa was stamped on it. Then, her passport only had like one year validity left. So as the passport expired we renewed the passport but filled her surname as my surname with a copy of our marriage certificate. The new passport has her surname changed to mine, we did not do anything called 'change of name'.

As long as you include your marriage certificate, which bears your wife's maiden name and your name; her passport can still be in her maiden name whilst you two apply for your visas. But keep an eye on the passport numbers you use and don't complicate things.

Nonetheless, if you are not in a hurry and can wait, then you could still change the passport prior to applying.

Stormyweather:
she would stay with the person. He is married with kids and I think he is doing well. Please some light on it depends on the person

If the applicant would be staying with the UK sponsor who has a legal status, then the burden of accommodation and the cost towards it would have been taken care of.

Stormyweather:
Good morning guys, I'm new here. Please can the gurus answer this question. My mum got an invite from her nephew to come to the UK. My question is, what does she need and how much should be in her account? Like how much is she supposed to have in order to be granted visa? Thanks for this in advance.

Depends on who is sponsoring the trip and where she would stay in the UK

uptown17:
dear house,
my friend told me his passport has not been returned since may 3. he once got an email saying his application was not straight forward.
he has called the UK line(s) given to him after complaining at TLS, the receiver promised to escalate.
please can someone advise further on what further steps could be taken

thank you

Has the applicant confirmed that a decision has been made on their application?

Infiosa:
Hello people, my friend got a mail for documents collection from TLS today but she has lost check list slip she was given during d biometrics. What can she do to get her document at TLS ?

Without that checklist they won't attend to you, that's why they stress YOU MUST KEEP IT SAFE.

To get her passport back, she must go to court and swear affidavit. With affidavit, they will release the passport to her.

When I invited my wife, though on a spouse/settlement visa, she was to send me the documents from her side so I could send all to Sheffield, she sent me her checklist from Nigeria in error. But she made a photocopy of the checklist, she went to TLS with the checklist photocopy and they refused and insisted she got affidavit from court. Then she rushed off to obtain it. She was given her passport after she presented a sworn affidavit that the checklist was misplaced.

McGibson:
please I am requested to bring this for my passport pick and I want to go tomorrow.

If collecting yourself:
Your Application Checklist
Original Photographic ID
Copy of Your Photographic ID.

my question is. Which one is Original Photographic ID? and which one is Copy of your Photographic ID?

please explain @ brightingsus Tatpat Ekpotek justwise.

Photographic ID is a form of ID that has your face on it, for eg a drivers licence. I can't say your passport as you don't have it. The original photographic ID is the actual ID. Make a photocopy of it and go with the photocopy and the original. Also do not forget the checklist you got from the biometrics appointment.

KemBee86:
Hello brightingsus, just finished compiling the list and sent to Nigeria, had to wait over 2 weeks before I got bank statement from uk bank. I will fill the form this weekend. Will keep you posted. Tnx a lot for the list. It was detailed.

Alright, good job!

dayosaba:
Hello house,
My Sons visit Visa was refused Though i will be making a fresh application immediately. He applied alongside my wife on July 4. while his has been decided, my wife's is still pending.

The Decision states:
You state you will visit the Uk with your parent (Singular. While in the application it was stated both parents). In light of their(plural) refusal (Yes my wife was denied also in 2015 but she reapplied alongside my son,. Moreso, i am a Uk citizen with a copyof my passport attached to hisdocuments, so how was ever possible for me to be denied). I am not satisfied that you are genuinely seeking entry for a purpose that is permited by the visitor routes or that you intend to leave the UK on completion of your visit(i Run a private hospital and i attached a letter stating my position as well as the CAC of the hospital. Also stated clearly we are going for a Family vacation). I am not satisfied that there are sufficient funds to adequately cover the cost of your visit and maintain and accomodate you for the duration of your visit, or meet the cost of your onward or return journey(Bank statements of over 8million and sponsorship was attached, likewise a letter, bank statement and utility bill from our host(my sister) in Uk were also attached). I am not satisfied that adequate arrangements have been made for your travel to , reception and care in the Uk......

Any future visa applications you make will be considered on their individual merits, however you are likely to be refused unless;
1. your person circumstances change significantly between now and your next application.
2. you provide compelling new evidence with your next application.

Note: This application is for a 10month Old ooo.

Hello sir, was your UK host (your sister) called by the ECO? The UK sponsors are usually called...