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Hi @zahra29, unfortunately the request for a reconsideration include the new accommodation evidence despite with MP intervention wasnt accepted. Thus, i will need to make a new application.

Thought i should ask a question. Will this new application be considered as my first application?. Please see below image

Zahra29:
Thanks for the detailed explanation.

The section in the guidance notes refers to instances where one partner is spending limited periods outside the UK. Exceptions can be made if the reason is for work, study etc however the expectation is that where both partners reside in the UK, even if one works in another city, they should have a permanent home together and the relevant documents to evidence this.

It's very positive that you are now on the electoral roll at your joint address plus other documents.

Options - request a reconsideration and include the new accommodation evidence (known as fresh claim) or make a fresh application (which will attract a new application fee).

Please see below the full letter. Anything below here just talks about BRP, what can be done with the visa and further application process.

Yes, i noticed someone who applied for a reconsideration request via sending an email to HO complaints and Public enquiries email and they agreed to reconsider.

The attached from HO guideline is more like our scenario. My wife stay in Manchester while i work in London, however, i travel weekly to manchester. Work is considered as a reasonable reason from tremporarily not living with your partner which i indicated.

For Better context see below question and answer from the application form. Please READ ALL carefully

Q: Do you and your partner currently live together?
A: No

Q:Please explain why you do not currently live with your partner
A: We partly live together because my work is based in London, however, i see my partner weekly and spend days with her. I have included bus ,train, Uber receipts indicates my travel from London to Rochdale to be with my partner. In the future, i am considering roles in North West instead of London (due to cost of living) which are strongly aligned with my career and possibly the industry i work . This will help us to spend more time together as against my consistent weekly travel to London area.

Q: How do you keep in touch with your partner?
A: Travel to spend time with her, Phone calls, Whatsapp messages, Video calls via Whatsapp. I call her morning before heading to work in the
morning, during break and after work closing hours.

Q: Enter details for any periods of time you have not lived with your partner including where you were living, for how long and the reasons you lived apart (this does not include holidays)
A: I only started living with my partner partly from September 2024 (after our traditional and church wedding) because based on our culture, 2 people in an unmarried partnership or relationship are not meant to be living together until they are married. Before marriage we visited each other and didn't live together prior our wedding.

I believe the above will give a better context and will help with the next steps.

NB: I was living in London area before the wedding whilst she has always been in Manchester. After the wedding i always worked a week in London and a week in Manchester (WFH). At the time of the application all my proof of address (payslip, Bank statement, marriage certificate) was in the London address, however i had my Lloyds Bank which has been addressed to the Manchester address since May 2024. I thought it might lead to a clear refusal if i had applied saying we lived together whilst my documents indicated otherwise.

After my application in November, I have a document which indicate now on Electoral register in Manchester in December and i have car insurance in both names and car purchase in both our names. This were all done after the application and i believe will maybe help with next steps.

Zahra29:
No that's not true. A spousal visa application can sometimes qualify for administrative review, or have appeal rights if article 8 is engaged.

In your case they appear to have circumvented both by granting you leave, albeit on a longer pathway, instead of refusing your application.

Can you copy and paste the relevant section at the bottom of the letter where it mentions your next steps/what to do next?

You might be able to file a reconsideration request if they haven't given you an option to review or appeal, but let's confirm what the letter says first.

Edit: I forgot to ask - did you provide the minimum number of documents for you and your spouse as evidence of cohabitation?

Yes, however, it came to my notice that Spousal visa doesn't qualify for Administrative Review. Heard its mostly for Point based visa. True?

There was no mention of Admin Review at the bottom of the letter. I was only told i can't appeal the decision.

Zahra29:
Sorry to hear this. From what you've said, it definitely sounds like some mistakes have been made by the caseworker.

You should have the right to an administrative review - it's usually 14 days from the decision date. The details should be towards the bottom of the letter or email. Are you able to engage the services of a lawyer to assist with drafting and filing the review?

@Zahra29

Please i was informed that i was granted a 10 year Spousal visa route because i dont stay with my spouse. I was informed in the email i didnt meet the 5 year Partner route under Paragraph 1.1a,b,c.

I indicated i partly stay with her as i have to always travel for work to London from Manchester. I included all train, bus and uber receipts in my application. This makes part of 1.1a. Living together is a fundamental requirement of the spouse visa, however, there are exceptions when a partner has to travel for work.

It was stated i applied in 9th May, 2024. However, I applied online on 20th October and did my Biometrics on 15th November. Comes off as a mix up.

1.1b states that The applicant must be in the UK with valid leave to remain, except where exceptions apply. I was covered by 3C Immigration act of 1971. My visa only expired on the 9th of January and i did my biometrics on the 15th of November, I dont understand why i was considered as not having a valid leave to remain.

1.1c The UK sponsor must meet the minimum income requirement. I alone earn about double of the minimum income requirement. Together with my wife 3x. I was really disturbed how they arrived at this conclusion.

I was told i cant appeal the decision but can i get an administrative review?

Zahra29:
Same advice applies. Based on your response they might accelerate your application but if you don't hear back quickly you could try reaching out to your MP to speed up the decision.

Zahra29:
Same advice applies. Based on your response they might accelerate your application but if you don't hear back quickly you could try reaching out to your MP to speed up the decision.

@Zahra29 @missjekyll @justwise i think @mayo47 might be somewhat right as the email came from FLRMSafeguarding@homeoffice.gov.uk and was sent by a "named casework" with the title "Safeguarding Lead: In Country Routes"

justwise:
This is typical of HO , the reply the op got has nothing to do with the initial email. This is not about safeguarding, I went through this with them when I was applying for my wife’s visa. The op needs two or more emails before someone actually read it and replies accordingly

So after not getting a feedback after 10 weeks (after biometrics), Last week I thought of sending an email to Home Office Complaints. I received the below email in about 1hour after my sent email.


The email received

Dear XXXX,

Thank you for your application for leave to remain in the UK as a spouse.

We are wanting to safeguard and support yourself and your partner.

In order to do so, we require the following information:

How is Ms XXXX current mental health?

Is Ms XXXX currently taking any medication or undergoing any treatment for her mental health?

If yes. please list any prescribed medication and dosage.

What are the details of Ms XXXX UK GP including address & phone number?

Please respond to this email as soon as possible.

Once this information has been received, we will be able to pass the case back to the Decision Maker to continue with the consideration.

For Context see question in the my application:

Q: Are there any factors which would make it difficult or impossible for you to integrate and establish a private life in that country?

A: Yes

Please explain fully

A: Yes, the time it might take to secure a full time job, the language barrier as well as the mental health effect it will have on my partner

This is the only mention of "mental health" in the application.

Zahra29:
Hi, apologies I missed your post.

The 8 weeks timeline is after biometrics but it can often take longer for family visa applications unfortunately, unless you pay for a priority service.

Your application was quite straightforward if I remember correctly so it should hopefully be decided within 3 months.

@Zahra29

Any idea

Kromium:
Yes, expiry is 9th January

I applied for the Spousal Visa on October 21st and concluded my biometrics November 15th.

However, couple of days after biometrics i received an email stating i will receive feedback on or before December 15th.

On 10th December, i received an email from (iccaseprepexclusions@homeoffice.gov.uk) i wouldnt be able to receive a feedback within the standard 8 weeks.

The first and second email comes off as automated emails as the timeline aligns with my initial online submission. The 8 weeks considered as timeline for application is after biometrics right or initial online application submission.

@Zahra29

Yes, expiry is 9th January

I applied for the Spousal Visa on October 21st and concluded my biometrics November 15th.

However, couple of days after biometrics i received an email stating i will receive feedback on or before December 15th.

On 10th December, i received an email from (iccaseprepexclusions@homeoffice.gov.uk) i wouldnt be able to receive a feedback within the standard 8 weeks.

The first and second email comes off as automated emails as the timeline aligns with my initial online submission. The 8 weeks considered as timeline for application is after biometrics right or initial online application submission.

@Zahra29

Zahra29:
Congratulations 🎉 Glad to hear it worked out.

It's a good idea to apply early, but it doesn't matter if you get a response before your PSW expires. As long as you make your an in-time application, your current visa will remain valid.

Edit - you should doublecheck the expiry date of your PSW visa. I suspect 31 Dec is the generic expiry date of your BRP due to the eVisa migration, and not the actual end date of your visa.

PSW Visa actually expires 9th January 2025

Zahra29:
Congratulations 🎉 Glad to hear it worked out.

It's a good idea to apply early, but it doesn't matter if you get a response before your PSW expires. As long as you make your an in-time application, your current visa will remain valid.

Edit - you should doublecheck the expiry date of your PSW visa. I suspect 31 Dec is the generic expiry date of your BRP due to the eVisa migration, and not the actual end date of your visa.

As @zahra advised the wedding held in Nigeria, the wedding photos, other documents were able to further help the Home Office issuing us a complaince decision and now have been given go ahead to marry at the registry in 2weeks. I am planning to apply online for the spousal visa soon so i can choose a date for appointment on last week of October if possible. This might require me to delay uploading/submission of my documents till few days before appointment when i have received the marriage certificate. I am trying to apply early online so i can get a feeback within 60 days of visa application. which still within the validity of my visa. My PSW expires 31st Dec
 

Zahra29:
As ReesheesuKnack advised, it is best to follow through and comply with the 70 day investigation.

However I think that getting married in Nigeria in September will work in your favour and help substantiate your relationship. You could frame it as the wedding in Nigeria is to adhere to your customs and tradition, and also gives you the opportunity to celebrate with all your family and friends and introduce them to your fiancée while the registry wedding is to have a small celebration with those in the UK.
The church wedding certificate is different to the registry certificate, so you can provide this as further evidence to the investigation that your relationship is genuine and subsisting.

Make sure you notify Home Office of your plans to get married (church and traditional) in September.

Thanks for the reply, Yes that's the plan. We would still be going with our September plan. Hopeful, we get the marraige notice sorted on October 10 (Also considering we have experience from the 1st). Then we will be looking for the next available date for the court ceremony where will receive the marriage certificate on the ceremony day thereafter i apply. Spousal Visa takes maximum 8 weeks if in the UK so will have HO do all that in November&December (or i do the Priority visa if concerned about the application time). As someone asked earlier we meet all other criteria for Spousal visa especially the finance requirement as we both earn more than 4x the present salary required.

Zahra29:
As ReesheesuKnack advised, it is best to follow through and comply with the 70 day investigation.

However I think that getting married in Nigeria in September will work in your favour and help substantiate your relationship. You could frame it as the wedding in Nigeria is to adhere to your customs and tradition, and also gives you the opportunity to celebrate with all your family and friends and introduce them to your fiancée while the registry wedding is to have a small celebration with those in the UK.
The church wedding certificate is different to the registry certificate, so you can provide this as further evidence to the investigation that your relationship is genuine and subsisting.

Make sure you notify Home Office of your plans to get married (church and traditional) in September.

Hello All,

I am faced with an issue and will require advise on this. I have been trying to get married through UK registry via the council to a British citizen since May this year. Because an immigrant is involved, our marriage notice application had to be reviewed by the Home Office. Hoe Office replied saying they will increase the notice from the usual 28 days to 70 days to investigate if its a sham marriage.

They requested a couple of documents such as 6 months bank accounts and credit card statement for the interview which i mostly had all my bank accounts printed but only went with my active credit card statement (I had others but rarely used it). Unknowingly to me they already did a search and discovered i didnt submit the inactive credit card statement. Thus because of this we were issued a non-compliance document and were told to start over again.

We started process for the 2nd marriage notice interview on August 1st but was yet issued another document requesting a 70 days investigation time ending October 10th. We are going to Nigeria for traditional and church wedding in September. The issue now is my PSW ends December 31st. Thus, i am thinking if it will not be seen to be dodgy going for a Nigerian court wedding for a marriage certificate whilst they might have the data information that i have earlier applied to a UK registry for court wedding which underwent investigation.

Thought of this considering, i will need the marriage certificate to apply for a Spousal visa and will need to apply or get a reply for the Spousal visa before December as my supervisor at work seldom ask about next plan considering they're unwilling to sponsor back office staff.

Will appreciate your comments

@zahra29 @justwise