₦airaland Forum

Mrs F: @ girlfio and missjiji any update on yur visas??!

Hi Mrs F. Well, I sent an email to the Sheffield office a couple days ago, they've just confirmed that my husband's passport has now been sent back to the Lekki VAC in Lagos, so he's going down there to collect it. He'll be home soon, PRAISE GOD!!

comfortmuniru: oh thanks justwise, i added the datapage of his british passport certified by a lawyer, should i add my statement of account and fixed deposit account statement.? thanks

It sounds like you have all the right documents here. I got married at the same registry office as you. I have some fond memories of that crazy lovely place Just make sure that some of your photos include the registry office sign in the background. If you're concerned that you don't have enough photos, emails, communications to evidence your relationship then a letter from someone you both know, maybe a close aunty/uncle/cousin/friend might be an idea. The letter just needs to note that they have been aware of your relationship for however many years. That they've known the both of you and have witnessed the development of your relationship from boyfriend/girlfriend to husband/wife. I advised some friends of mine to do the same because they were light on evidence and they got their visa.

Trusting God that it will all work out well for you my deary.

mato-justo

woooooohooooooo PRAISE GOD!!! I'm so very happy for you. As you celebrated with others God was just preparing you for this very moment. This truly is amazing news, especially after all that happened with the application going to the wrong place and everything, nothing can ever stop what God has purposed for you. Happy, happy days!!

Ebeano49: I sent my wife's bank statement to Sheffield by email yesterday and got a reply today confirming that the statement has been attached to her appeal. The somewhat surprising thing though is that their reply email was signed off my a named ECO and his exact address in Sheffield. Could it mean that my wife's appeal is now being reviewed This is the 11th week. God, I beg you to please take control.

I have heard that its the ECOs that do all the checks and then present their findings to the ECM for final sign off. Its possible that the statement was sent to that particular ECO because he is currently doing the investigations on your case. It seems a bit earlier than they would usually start doing their review but you never know, these guys seem to work to the beat of their own drum! Trusting God that you'll get your good news real soon

leeon2011: Hi
@girlfoi
@ justwise
Can u give me Mp letter format plz
I dont know what to write so plz any one can help me

I don't have a template for an MP letter but the expectation is that these letters are only really effective if your case is being managed poorly by the immigration office. In particular where there are clear breeches of your human rights. From your last post I can see that you have now been given a date for your appeal hearing in November. I would say your efforts would be best placed in gathering evidence to meet the points of your refusal. Not sure of the reasons why your application was refused but if you focus on putting all the documents together you should then be in a stronger position to support your case in court.

damyoyepitan: Hi girlflo and others ,pls I wanted to find out the next step aftr lodging an appeal and review and when we expect to hear from dem back concerning the dates and all.

Once you've lodged the appeal with AIT [Leicester] it should take between 6 to 8 weeks for them to process the payment and then send your appeal bundle to the Sheffield Office. It might be worth giving the Leicester office a call to get an update if your concerned about any delay. If you don't have an appeal reference number your spouse should still be able to check using the applicants date of birth. Once Sheffield has received your appeal you should then receive an appeal notice which will give you the 19 week deadline date. Expectation is that around the 14 week point your case will start to be reviewed by the ECM depending on their workloads.

@jenni1108
Basically, I just focused on the reasons why we were refused and asked why we were not offered the opportunity to submit the additional documents before being forced down the appeal route. I started the email off by saying "We would like to make a petition for the early review of our appeal. Our reasons are as follows and are based on the management of our initial application and directly linked to each of the reasons why we were refused." Then I listed below each of the reasons why we were refused and under each heading put forward my concerns around the decision made.

Bank Statements - I said that although they were printed from my online account that this did not diminish their authenticity. I said that they have the authorisation to check directly with the bank to confirm my bank account status. Payslips - Although they were not on headed paper I asked why they did not use the NI number to determine my employment status. They have access to the systems to do that, I just don't understand why they didn't use them. Finally for the accommodation I stated that I understood I hadn't submitted enough evidence but I am also aware that there is an option for the ECO to contact the appellant or the sponsor to submit additional evidence within a 7 day period. I asked why we were not given the opportunity to verify our accommodation status before being refused. I ended by saying that due to the inactions of the ECO with our initial application we should not be subject to the full force of the appeal process. I asked that this all be taken in to account with the scheduling of our case for review. I mentioned that we had proven eligibility for a significant portion of the visa requirements and would expect that this should add weight to our request for an early review.

Now this did not result in our case being reviewed any earlier but it kept us visible and made it clear that we knew our rights, were aware of their internal governance and therefore would fight if our case would continue to be mismanaged. Hope this helps. If you want to post the email before you send it I can have a read and help you out with any wordings or policies you can use.

darlene 10: @girlfio am so happy for u * dancing seriously* have been waiting for dis good news.tot dey wud have overturned by d 15th week because I knew der reason was so flimsy .dis rily a blessed visa. Pls u mentioned in one of ur post dat u sent some additional documents to sheffield after d appeal bundle was sent to d tribunal can u send me a mail format to request for dat.tanx

I just sent an email to Sheffield making sure that the appeal ref, date of birth and name of the appellant was in the subject heading. Basically I wanted to submit some additional information to give evidence that the address that I'd submitted was suitable. So I just said something along the lines of..."One of the reasons our case was refused was because I had not provided enough evidence to deem the accommodation suitable. Although I've already submitted evidence to support our case with the initial bundle, I would like to ask that the attached documents also be included as part of the ECM review for our application." They should reply to you with the notification that the items have been added to your case for review, if they don't then just send them another email a couple of days later to ask if your request has been submitted.

mato-justo:
@girlfio,am more than happy to hear dis,our God is Awesome!!!!!!!!,i cant stop dancing a david dance...........@girlfio if their is any word more than happy and exictment that name is surpose to be use to qualify me now.i have been looking forward to dat day to hear this good news.@girlfio infact am short of words.today will also be one of my happiest day evendue am not the one that receive this good news yet,but i know by God grace my case has already been done,i will be the next to receive a good new too. I say congratulation!!!!!!! once again. This is my mail and my contaact incase u wish to contact me any time any day. E-mail mato_justo@yahoo.com, phone number, 07088575483.

@missjiji,i say a big congratulation to dat too.i declare it a bless visa in jesus name.the rest of us still waiting shall be called up or receive the good news too.@girlfio,am still more than happy for u o......

Thanks so much mato, I'll be celebrating with you with the same great news for your case real soon. Its such a relief. Thanks for your contact details, we should hook up when you come to the UK. God is so good, He has not and will not change. What He has done for me He will do for you all.

missjiji: Hummm girlflo - congrats o! Guess today is overturning day!

My whole process 5months, review date -28th of August- I got a call today - I submitted passport in Abuja today! Was told to come back though.

God is awesome!

I thank everyone in the house for encouragement and information - Good news is coming your way.

This is amazing news missjiji, praise God, I'm so very happy for you. I'm sure you'll be handing in that passport real soon!

Ebeano49: @ Girlfio ... A very big Congratulations!!! Enjoy the well deserved good news and thanks for all your helpful advise to folks on this forum. Time to sit back, relax and enjoy your marriage.

Please continue to remember those of us still waiting for positive outcome in your prayers. Congratulations again.

I won't forget anyone, as long as God permits me to be on this forum, I'll be here to support others still waiting for their good news. You will all continue to be in my prayers

loomjet: @ Girlfio

Wowwwwwwwwwwwww!!! This is great news! Congratulation . To God be the glory. I was still speaking to my wife this morning and i told her u are next on this forum. I even told her before the end of the week u will recieve a positive result. Congratulation once again.
When was your 19weeks purpose to end?

Thank you so much, all of your support has meant so very much to me. In Jesus name you and all our forum mates will receive the same positive result. The 19 week period was due to end on 14th October so we were either in the 17th or 16th week period if they included the week of the 14th Oct.

Got some great news today people, they've sent us the email notifying that my husbands refusal has been overturned!! We've just got to arrange for his passport to be sent to Sheffield now for the visa. I'm so lost for words, this has been such a difficult process and even though there reasons for our refusal were flimsy, its still so easy to doubt that you'll get a positive result. We were refused because my bank statements were printed from my online account so I had to get them stamped by the bank. My payslips were not on headed paper so I also had to supply them with a letter on headed paper determining the validity of my payslips. Then finally I didn't supply them with enough information proving that the address where we were going to live was suitable. I just give thanks to God that He has fought this fight on our behalf. My greatest encouragement to everyone is that you find your faith in God, He will guide your footsteps and lead you to that place of victory. Thanks to everyone for your support, love you guys like family.

mato-justo:
@matadaz,am so much happy for u,the lord has finally show is favour upon ur Appeal,i really thank God for that. Still waiting for the rest of us with appeal issues to be Allowed, Especially girlfio. Mine is still under review now,i pray b4 29/10/2013 i will receive a positive result just like u just did now by God grace.i say congratulations once again.

We celebrate with those that have the good news, they too will celebrate with us when we receive ours.

Matadaz: @ justwise, johnwray, girlfio and everyone in the house

To God Almighty be all the Glory.

My Appeal was allowed last week Thursday and got the determination this Tuesday.
I really want to say a very big THANKS to justwise,johnwray,lamorsy,Girlfio and all the other
Members of the House.

I pray to God to pls continues His Favour upon the members of this House,amin.
To the new Members,try read up the post,most of what U need for ur application are here.

Thanx alot to the House.

Oh wow, Praise God, I'm so very happy for you. This is really an encouragement to those that persevere, in the end it will all work out in your favour. I pray that the UK welcomes you with open arms, you deserve it.

dappyfresh: I appealed about 8 weeks ago...and I just got the email on the 17th saying that I should come to abuja to collect my documents....they didn't say anything about passport....please I have missed my family all of them for 6 years ...have been schooling alone in nigeria...the email also read all efforts to reach applicant failed....please a have not slept since then .....what can I do.....see what nigeria has caused oo...nepa

I'm guessing that you made an application for a family visit visa. In which case I expect the appeal was sent to the Abuja office for consideration. The best thing to do at this stage would be to first collect your documents, I expect that along with your papers there should be a summary of their response to your submitted appeal. If you only get your documents back and no indication of the outcome of your appeal then you can send an email to the Abuja office requesting an update.

missjiji: Girlfio- good morning!

Please kindly explain further on the point you raised that " The UKBA have been mandated to decrease the number of cases overturned by the court" I tried checking on Google - no luck - Does this mean the UKBA wants the Judge to overturn less cases or that they want less cases to be sent to court for further hearing?

Thanks girl!.

Hi missjiji. It costs the UKBA to take a case to court. That is the reason why they have the ECM review the case before it gets to that stage. They want to see judges overturn less cases because then this will justify their additional spend. This doesn't mean that they want to see less cases get sent to court, they just want to be sure of a win. This means that as long as you provide strong evidence to support your eligibility for the visa you are less likely to have your case sent to court, its not in their interests to do that. Unfortunately this is not always the case but the hope is that the vast majority of us that meet the requirements and can support our refusals with documentary evidences should not expect the case to progress through the court system.

mato-justo:
@justwise,girlfio,johnwray and adetorosey,pls kindly need ur help on this, as Adviced, i email the sheffield office yesterday just to have an update abt my Appeal which the deadline to be reviewed is 29/10/2013 by the original person that refused my application in the first place. So the sheffield office replied me back today, email stated.

Dear mr xxxxxxx

Thanks you for your email.

Iam unable to give you an update on your Appeal as it is not being processed in sheffield.your application was decided in Lagos,and that is where your Appeal has gone to. My visa categorie is family visit visa and not settlement visa,i think is only settlement visa issues is been handle in sheffield office.pls anybody with the lagos embassy email address and their phone number for me to reach them on for the followup on my appeal. I will really appreciate if i can get dat pls.

The contact details should be as follows for the Lagos office:

visa.lagos@fco.gov.uk or consular.lagos@fco.gov.uk
Tel numbers: +234 (1) 2619537 or 2619531 or 2619541 (telephone numbers were taken from this forum early on so they may have changed)

Trusting God that you'll get the answers you're looking for.

leeon2011: @girlfio ,
@ JOHNWRAY
@ JUSTWISE

I want you to ask that I get my hearing date and I have all doccument ready do you think that if I submit now and immigration judge will overturned there decision . Before hearing date


Any chances ??

I have heard that there are some cases where the ECM will overturn the refusal even after they've made the initial assessment that the case should go to court. I can only imagine this would happen in cases where they have not reviewed the evidence they have received fairly or if the applicant can clearly determine that their decision is in breech of immigration law/policy. The UKBA have been mandated to decrease the number of cases overturned by the court so if it is clear that they won't win a case then they may make a decision to overturn before it gets to court. Im not sure that submitting additional documents would cause them to change their decision as these should generally be submitted as part of the court case. It would probably be better if you could prove that they should reconsider their decision based on the information they've already received.

bunita11218: @halle 26. i am just new on this forum please my deadline is also 4th of Oct please how did you expedite your appeal.please kindly inform me because i cant wait to be with my husband.

At this stage in the process I would have thought that your case has either or is due to be shortly reviewed by the ECM. Have you emailed the Sheffield office to find out if they have an update on your case?

missjiji: Hi Girlfio - whats the update with your appeal? any news yet?

Hi missjiji, no news as yet, trusting God that we will get the news we've been looking for soon. Going in to week 16 now, gonna be any day now......Waiting is hard man, couldn't do this without God. He has kept my husband and I well and I pray the same for all of you. It may not feel like it sometimes but there will come a date when this will all end well for you.

loomjet: Hello Justwise , Johnwray, Girlfio and also forum mates, Am thinking of reapplying again next month and i have started putting documents together. Am just thinking, what if they refuse my application the second time, can i appeal ? can i have 2 appeals on going? Or do i have to wait for the outcome of the first appeal which the deadline is in Dec. Please i really want to know if i can have to appeal ongoing just incase the silly ukba people find another excuss to eat my money and refuse my application the second time. Many Thanks Good people.

Since you have an appeal on going they are likely to spend a bit more time on your new application and could therefore take in excess of 3 months which is worth baring in mind. I would think that the only time where a fresh application is favourable is if you are now in a better position to meet the requirements than you were when you made your initial application. If your circumstances have not changed then I would advise that you focus on your current appeal, at least you know what you are dealing with. Use the money that you would have spent on another application to visit your spouse instead. Don't give it to the UKBA for them to then find something else to refuse you on.

@target007

I am so sorry, I can't believe this has happened, I was so sure after I saw your comprehensive list of submitted documents that you had this one in the bag. I just don't understand why it took them so long to come to these ridiculous conclusions. I know you must be upset but now its just time to get all your documents together so that you get this appeal submitted as soon as possible.

1. The guidelines for this visa clearly state that there is a requirement that you have met face to face. It does not give measurement of how long after you've met that you are permitted to get married. This can not be used to determine the validity of your relationship. When you respond to this point make sure you refer them to the phone records you submit and other communications before you met. Your relationship developed over that period and note that before you met you had made a commitment to each other.

2. Note here that before you got married your divorce was finalised and documents have been submitted as proof. The process of divorce took over 1 year and therefore the suggestion that I got married too soon after separating from my first wife is not valid. Again draw their attention to the phone records and other communications stating that documents have been submitted that prove the legitimacy of your relationship over a period of time.

3. Johnwray has given you some great advise around getting the call card documents. In this section I would also re-submit any other communications you sent with the initial application. In your statement draw their attention to all these documents that support the status of your relationship.

I'll be praying for you guys, let me know if there is anything else you need help with

leeon2011: @girlfio
I received a email 2 day from tribunal n they say this

The Tribunal will shortly be writing to all the relevant parties, so that preparations can be made for an Immigration Judge to consider the appeal here in the United Kingdom

What that means n what trying to say :

It sounds like your case is due to go to court to be presented before the immigration judge for a decision. I'm not sure how this part of the process works but you should shortly receive a date for the hearing. You can put in a new application but you will need to be sure that you are in a position to meet all the points raised in your refusal. They will scrutinise any new application because of this refusal so you have to be confident that you can prove you meet all the requirements for this visa. You could be better off just concentrating on proving your current case and putting together a package that will respond strongly to the refusal points raised.

MrsBee: Please advise on who to address the letter to and how to send it (email or by post) and also handwritten or typed? Thanks again.

I would think that since the decision for your application was made in Sheffield that you should be able to send the email there [visasheffield@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk]. I would advise email over post, it will get to them quicker. Just make sure you put in the subject heading the application reference number, the names on the application, date of births and that it is a request for a review of the refusal. In the body of the email, address your email to the Entry Clearance Manager. Remember that you can only ask that they reconsider their decision based on the documents already submitted.

MrsBee: Thank you @girlfio, do you think we should bother with writing to them or should we just bone them for now? although I can't even imagine myself going through that stressful and time-consuming visa application process again, so reapplying is not an option for now. Already considering Dubai for vacation. Also a friend advised that we get new passports to avoid other visa applications in future to be affected because they stamped the last pages of our passport and ruled across it.

You can still write to them, no harm in that. Maybe you can just explain the reasons for the money that was deposited and respond to each of the points they've raised in the refusal. Make it clear that you were looking forward to spending time in the UK and are disappointed that you have not been afforded the opportunity. Ask why no mention was made about the 500k, was this considered as part of the application. Not sure about the passport thing, I would have thought that they would still have your names on file when you make your next application, I could be wrong though.

@MrsBee

Looks like the main issue here is the deposit of the money between 29/7 and 7/8. If you didn't explain the reason for this deposit in your application then this would have likely been one of the significant reasons why your application was refused. Unfortunately the opportunities for appeal are limited, I would advise that since you are looking to visit the UK purely for tourist reasons that you look to possibly spending some time visiting other countries. Build up your travelling history, this should improve your credibility going forward. They may look at another application at this stage as desperate and may again refuse on the basis that they expect you are not coming to the UK for only tourist purposes. I know how upsetting it is to get refused but there is a whole wide world out there, if the UK visa people don't want your money, take it elsewhere!

leeon2011: Hello my deadline has bn passed over 5 week I call them twice in week n they give different ans all the time
This year is Weaste of my life

I know, this process can be so frustrating. They've advised that they should be getting back to you with the decision by 6 weeks after the deadline, so lets hope they get back to you soon. It might be worth giving them a call at the beginning of next week just to confirm that you should be expecting a response shortly.

missjiji: Hello people!! So my deadline passed like 2weeks ago, and everytime I call them they always say - we havent gotten to your case yet-
Today when I called the lady said we are currently reviewing your case, we will call you when we've made a decision -

Now the thing is - Even though its is what it sounds like and i think i know what she meant by 'we are currently reviewing your case, we will call you when we've made a decision' - but with this BHC and visa thing - sometimes I find out that i get confused with English, either I dont understand or it means something totally different - lol - As in I refuse to go crazy -

Please does this mean o! - they are now reviewing my case like right now - or just saying that as what they would normally say ?
and we will call you when we ve made a decision - please is it not when they want to overturn they call one? - or do they call one to say they will proceed to court?

Abeg ignore my dumbness - called since 11am - the words just kept coming with different meaning in my head..

Thanks

I think you got it right, they are currently reviewing your case and will contact you once a decision has been made. I'm not sure about calling you with the outcome of the review, I thought that either way you would receive notification of the decision via email or its posted to the representative of the appeal. I could be wrong though, maybe someone else on here has received a phone call instead and can advise you. All in all, you should get some answers soon which is a blessing. I pray it all works out well for you.

bubblygirl78: Thanks everyone. Will do as advised.

@mrs. F. Really? Thot it even made it faster. Anyway no probz. Will go ahead. Thanksa lot.

Also, since I have an appeal pending, if the courtdate comes before I get my pp back do u guys think there is any point showing up for the hearing?

What do u suggest?

I would advise that you continue with the hearing i.e. represent if you don't get a response from the new application before the hearing date. If you don't contest against the refusal points raised they may use these against you in your new application.

@peacenlove

The role of the ECO in cases of general/tourist visas is to prove with reasonable doubt that the applicant has reason to return to their country of origin. That could be why they mentioned about owning property and having children, these are often strong reasons that will give the ECO confidence that the applicant will return home. The income from her job should have also directly corresponded to the amount earned each month stipulated on the application form, they generally question the authenticity of your application if this is not the case. Also if you are coming as a tourist it is the expectation of the visa office that the applicant, unless a dependant, is solely responsible for their upkeep. They will therefore take their incomes/savings in to account. I could be wrong but unless you were making an application for her to come in to this country as your dependant your finances would not have been considered as part of the application. In a nut shell, in order to respond to the points raised in the refusal you would have to re-submit documents and therefore an administrative review would not be appropriate. You could submit a new application but I would advise that you refer to entry requirements for a tourist visa and only consider this if she has the income to support herself and also has strong ties to Nigeria that you can prove

leeon2011: Hi girlfio


They say 6 week And all ready passed 4 week and I want to know that if tribunal give me date when should they give this year or next year

And one more thing if I do new application then still I keep my appeal because if they give next year I cant wait

Plz give me best advice

Generally court dates are scheduled 5 months after you receive the letter which will give you the reasons why the decision was made to maintain the refusal. It is likely that the date they will give you at this stage will be in early 2014.

Yes you can make a new application whilst your appeal is still running. Its worth noting though that once you've been refused they will heavily scrutinise any new application so make sure you meet all the points of the refusal and provide all necessary documentations.

I pray this all works out for you in the end.