₦airaland Forum

Please see my comments inline (emboldened).

hustla:
Interesting but you have to put it all together and see where I am coming from as this is not the first time I am speaking about it.

I truly understand your consistent standpoint but can immigrants influence the policy direction of the country? Ultimately, it's their country. They make the rules and visitors will either have to comply or walk away.


Can you tell me the immigration strategy for the UK? Will it be the same in 5 yrs? Since I have been here, they have changed policies for the worse at least twice. I know a PSW ban in the future isn't off the table because it is their way. Milk the cow and then discard it, per usual.

Apparently, the UK hasn't had fixed, long-term migration policy in the last 5 - 10 years. The rhetorics of reducing net migration contradicts their actions. But the glaring fact is that they won't be able to achieve that goal, not in the next 5 years. It's even sickening that they grant visas then come back to complain about the number of immigrants. Like wait, did they not pay you to get in? It's crazy! Hence, we can't rule out the interdependence of migration with politics and social nuances.


From where I stand and as of now, for students, it looks like they're out to milk us sotey and yet, complains and complains. I can't say its not better than being in Nigeria, it is.

If you check what each country has to offer students, the UK comfortably has the worst package and yet, the highest fees to pay for everything. PSW in AU was increased from 3 to 5 yrs, at a cost of about AUD1,800, less than the reported £2,900 for students from next year. Canada's PSW also is about £240.

AU and Canada realised students would be battling the effects of this global turmoil you spoke about and asked that students can work more than 20 hrs/ week. UK did not offer or even think of it, instead, Unis increased school fees.

Interesting. But I'm wondering if the UK forced any of the "cows" to come and stay. If people have made this decision it's up to them to see it through or walk away.

I think this thing has a demand and supply dynamics. The UK understands that many 3rd world country professionals want to (desperately) migrate. They see the market, supply the product (visa) to the highest bidder even when their stock is almost running out, they downgrade the quality of their product.

Bro, have you seen the number of people still coming into the UK despite the unfavourable policies and social issues? Dem no go hear and the UK understands, hence, the trend go continue till... Ultimately, na every mallam to him kettle.

I could go on and on but their current strategy exploits students and the least they can do is to stop crying about students every 7 market days as if they do not contribute shingbain to the economy. They want money but they dont want an increase in population, no be juju be that?

There is no perfect country or system but at least some stability is needed

The grass is greener on the other side.

I've heard a couple of unpalatable first & second-hand stories from immigrants in Canada and Australia. Most sound grimmer than the UK experience.

Since COVID hit, the world has been in turmoil and the UK as with other first-world countries are not immune to the realities of that turmoil. Perhaps each country is facing it differently.

Do you know the unemployment rate in Canada and the state of social services and lifestyle? Same with Australia coupled with its tax system.

Agreed, the UK delights in tossing the migration coin at every opportunity but humans are evolutionary and policies are not just switched on and off at will. There are usually time to discuss and decide on them. Immigrants can also be jumping ahead of the unfavourable migration policies and curves or sit back in trepidation of the next migration news or policy.

Immigrants can chose to be reactive to every news piece on migration or just get on with their lives to the fullest whilst they're here. Guess how many immigrants have naturalised in the last ten years? Have the ruling class not been making "bold" migration statements since then?

From where I stand, this is a win-win game for both UK and immigrants. They need us, we need them. Nobody dey force anybody. Either party can flip the coin when they see an alternative. The UK will still be migrant-dependdnt in the next five years - which is a long time for immigrants to establish themselves or re-migrate.

Everyone's end-goal differs and that should ultimately be the motivating factor rather than floating with every news and hinted policy direction. Two of my friends left the UK for the USA this year because na their intent be that. Spoke with one recently and she's complaining about medical insurance. I literally asked her what exactly she wants.

In the long run, na goals matter.

As always, there are no perfect systems/countries there are just better ones. Choose the one you can cope with.

hustla:


Apparent to the blind and deaf that once they came on air to say they intend to fund so and so with what they make from students, their sapa don start

Make we dey observe but i know things will still get very bad and they'll completely stop post study or something drastic to stop legal migration to their country

Before that time, make local man don exit their country. Just saw one fella on twitter who took the intra coy transfer route to Canada from UK.

Lots of people I know are going the Canada / Au PR route too

Thanks guys.

Just a follow up question.

As we won't be stating she's a petty trader but a homemaker bla bla bla, is it okay to just put N1 in the spots where they asked how much spends each month and how much she hopes to spend during the visit.

@eolme I get your point but she's not just coming for a social visit na for omugwo. So, one month won't cut it.

babajeje123:
You don't need to submit her bank statement. Just put it in your letter that you are sponsoring her trip and her living cost in the UK. It's okay to mention she's a petty trader however this doesn't prove that she has a strong tie back home. So you need to proof that she has strong ties and would return home before or at the expiration of her visa.

eolme:
There is no need stating she is a petty trading and adding a bank statement for her. Simply apply that she is a home maker and full time house wife. Her ties back home will be her husband and other family members back home. If there are landed properties in her name, it can be included.
Also I don't think it is wise to state in the application she will be staying for five months. One month is okay on the application. Someone with good ties back home should not ideally visit for 5 months.

Viruses:
No need to say she's a petty trader to avoid needing to prove anything but attach her bank statement and say she'll spend like £25 from her money during the trip. That's what I did although I said mine will spend £100 of her personal money because she had some money and I said she's a retiree.

Good afternoon, everyone.

Just looking for some experienced insight with inviting a home-maker and petty trader mum to the UK.

I and my partner will be fully funding her visit, hence, we are thinking of not stating she's a petty trader so as not to raise dust around account statement and business docs, as she's got none.

We're currently completing the visa application and stated that she has #1 savings and plans to spend #1 in the UK as we'll be taking care of everything. I think she has about 100K in her account. Previously monthly up-keep had been sent to her husband until last month.

Q1: Should we state she's a petty trader and submit her personal bank statement or just be mute on the trader aspect?

Q2: We want her to spend five months and some days before leaving, is it okay to state that in app as well?

Thanks!

This was previously discussed here. Click on the contributors' ID to see other thoughts and the initial question.

Peerielass:
Seriously I was about to say the same thing. Personal loans are usually cheaper than PCP and Higher Purchase deals. Loan rates will vary between 2.5% to 7.5% depending on circumstances, credit history and eligibility.

Tier4Dependant:
When getting a car on finance, which is better btwn HP and PCP?

Good afternoon, everyone.

Just looking for some experienced insight with inviting a home-maker and petty trader mum to the UK.

I and my partner will be fully funding her visit, hence, we are thinking of not stating she's a petty trader so as not to raise dust around account statement and business docs, as she's got none.

We're currently completing the visa application and stated that she has #1 savings and plans to spend #1 in the UK as we'll be taking care of everything. I think she has about 100K in her account. Previously monthly up-keep had been sent to her husband until last month.

Q1: Should we state she's a petty trader and submit her personal bank statement too?

Q2: We want her to spend five months and some days before leaving, is it okay to state that in app as well?

Thanks!

Suella is gone!

Rishi reshuffles cabinet.

Suella's political rascality was grossly unbecoming and irking. I'd have been gutted Rishi and his party didn't make a firm decision. Actors like her embolden 'anyhowness' within and outside government.

But hey, another Suella will soon bring up. There's always one everywhere.

Thanks!

missjekyll:
Zero comebacks from reporting. Council may not come for months though. Tories have broken everything. There has never been a better time to be a criminal than now. Prisons are full to the brim

Has anyone reported flyingtipping to the local council?

About a week ago, someone dumped a sofa on the walkway outside my apartment (I'm in the downstairs apartment). Pretty much the same way people drop unwanted stuff for free pick-up.

Someone just knocked on my door now asking if I'm the one that dumped it there. Surprised at the question, I answered I wasn't the one. She advised calling the council to inform them so they can come pick it up.

I'm happy to report it to the council for onward evacuation, but wanted to check if anyone has had a similar experience and if there might a bounce back on me for reporting.

If you've recently travelled to Paris, you may have returned with bedbugs.

Drive into a gas station and you should be to pump from £1.

You can get something like this later: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ring-RAC610-Analogue-Compressor-Inflation/dp/B0030FBSQ2/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?crid=29ZWJ5XV9ENJV&keywords=tyre+inflator+air+compressor&qid=1696354460&sprefix=tyre+%2Caps%2C154&sr=8-3

It's advisable to check your tyre pressure once in two weeks.

Viruses:
Cam someone please recommend a car tire pump?

My car is giving me low tire pressure warning.

With this explanation, you have a case and you can appeal.

humbleprof19:
Parking should be free for me at the car park as a resident. The apartment manager took my car plates and registered it when i bought the car in April. I believe this is an error because the fine is for just a day in August. I still live and park there, how come there are no other fines if my car isnt on their system.

Which insurers are rejecting you and on what basis?

How long were you driving before moving to the UK and how long have you been in the UK?

What's the average quote you've received? And what's "cheap" to you?

You might be getting high rates based on your age, employment and family status, location and other risk factors.

By the way, I don't understand what you mean by international license. Your regular Naija license can be used for the first year of your residence.

If you've not already done that, you can use the quote aggregators below to get multiple offers;

https://www.comparethemarket.com/

https://www.moneysupermarket.com/

https://www.confused.com/

CotenantNIG:
hello guys how can i get a cheap car insurance in the uk
its either am rejected or its too expensive
I have an international license

My Job requires I have a car and a drivers license

You can use either WorldRemit or Wise.

evalovely:
Hello everyone

Can someone please help with this:
What is the best way or platform of sending money to Canada from UK

Many thanks

Perfect.


Please what's the best way to reach you? If you can, please share a contact number or address. Thanks

bittertongue:
am coming this month and my wife sells Ankara

Evening everyone.

Please is there anyone coming from Nigeria this month or early next month? I'd appreciate if you can help me buy and bring Ankara from Nigeria. I'll pay for all logistics.

Kindly mention me if you can help with this.

Thanks.

Yes, we got mechanics from ClickMechanic to go physically inspect the cars. You'll need to provide details and location of the car and they'll go inspect, then send pictures and report with recommendation. Average fee was £120. It's pretty similar to the inspection service in Naija.

Honestly, there isn't a rule of thumb for negotiating in free markets. Just know what you can afford and the value of the goods. Once you buy it, no point regretting. For a 3k car, I'll start at 2k with the aim to have a deal 2.5k at most. But it depends on the value and state of the car.

We used a Bluetooth OBD2 scanner for electrical/engine checks. Check suspensions, bodywork, hoods and all. Then test drive. Make sure the gears are changing well, et al.

All the best.

Schoolhike:
Thanks for your detailed explanation,

Did you invite Clickmechanic to physically inspect the car or what, could you provide more info?

In regards to negotiations, from how much to how much did you negotiate, because it really affected me last year when I bought a car, I later noticed that I paid over 500£ for the car value, could you give me an example say the listing price is like 3000£, like how much do you think I can start my negotiation, I don’t actually have much experience negotiating with White as I always believe the listing price is the last.

How did you go about the mechanical and electrical test, is it just a physical check or inspection from test drive only.

Could you list things to check for other than normal checks like MOT history?

I wasn’t really happy that I cant use my former car anymore as a result of accident. I spent a lot to get the car into a very good condition after spending 1.5k£ to fix all necessary things. It was when I’m about to start enjoying the car that this unfortunate accident happen.

Can’t imagine buying another car and start seeing issues with the car.

With 50% pass rate across the UK, I bet the conversations about driving aren't needless. If it's pretty straightforward, the pass rate would reflect same.

Look around; YouTube, Reddit, Facebook, X, there are loads of content and convo on driving generating massive reactions.

It even more important for migrants to have these convo as most have been used to a different driving terrain/rules back home.

Same applies to Credit Cards. Financial intelligence isn't a generic life skill. You need knowledge. Moreso, for immigrants who haven't been exposed to credit facilities in all his/her 30+ years before moving here, but knows credit could either make or mar his/her life, I bet they'll go all out for more insight on it.

People are at different stages of life and that would reflect in their understanding and knowledge quest.

Won't be surprised if someone still comes around to ask either of these questions in the next 2 days. Perhaps, doing some back reading on the issues might help them.

jedisco:
There's so much ado about driving and credit cards on this fora. A huge deal is made out both.

For driving, it's straightforward. First is to recognise that many pass this test daily. The unsaid reason why most fail the practical is almost always fear. Most times, one must have driven that route multiple times with their instructor. Same thing your instructor tells you is what they'd ask. Perception is impo.

Regarding manual/auto. My advise is always to learn what car type you're used to or going to buy. In my time, I tried tinkering with a manual for a day and left it. Wasn't worth the stress and told myself if I needed to drive a manual in future, I can redo the test which would be easier then. Suffice to say, I've never had need to drive a manual vehicle. With ULEZ and move to electric, most cars would soon be autos eitherway.

All said, I wonder is a sticky on these two would help repeat questions bound to come in future.

If the offer is too good to be true, then, run!

For Facebook market, our strategy was to target private sellers within 10/20 miles radius as against "dealers".

Suffice to say, due diligence is required either when dealing with a private or third-party seller. For instance, we met a dealer who had loads of automatic cars. We test drive like two and we were going to make a deal on one but upon running the plate number, nothing came up on gov.uk. It was suspicious. The seller tried to convince us that the car was registered and listed on gov.uk and we were probably using the wrong link but he was showing us the reg details on his phone.

At that point, we became skeptical as there was no footprint of the car anywhere. Then, I recall reading stories of stolen cars with swapped plate numbers and VIN. It just seemed all dodgy of a deal. We had to let go.

For Autotrader, all the potential ones we saw were far away; 50 - 150 miles away from. We used ClickMechanic for a couple of inspections. The reports and detailed pictures were damning with strong advisory not to purchase. At first, the inspections felt like a waste of money but they usually unveil massive issues that would have been swept under as the cars were looking lovely in picture and description.

The car we eventually bought was from a private seller within our community via Facebook market. We tested the mechanical and electrical bits ourselves and decided it was fit for purpose. Also, your negotiation skills will be handy in closing the deal for your preferred choice.

Hope this helps!

Schoolhike:
How did you filter off those scammers, Lots of prices I’m seeing are not real, too low for the actual car.

Once you message them, the next thing is they will send you an email to contact

No, I used my instructor's car.

Automatic cars are not predominant in the UK auto market, hence, they're rarely available and expensive.

You might need to increase your budget or downgrade the year/model you're searching for.

If you're currently not looking, you can search on Facebook market. We got a couple of fantastic offers there and even better than autotrader. However, availability/accessibility will be dependent on promixity/location. All the best.

Noworries11:
Please did you use your own car?
Someone encouraged me to get my own car perhaps this would help master the car prior to the test.
To get a good auto car for £2k na tug of war but lots of manual to grab even below the £2k budget.
Make una help

This is always been my position on getting a manual license so you can drive both.

What's the point getting a manual license when you'll only be driving an auto? The requirements for driving a car in the UK are not straightforward.

This might motivate someone, I passed my driving test today (first time) without any minor. It's possible, you can do it.

kode12:
Gist. This is not the US where you can just drive any car. Unless you're going to buy a manual car after your test, while train for manual and then buy an automatic? Even most company cars these days are auto. If you need to get a rental or van, there are automatic options so why bother yourself?

😂 Did you collect your full salary?

If yes, they've added it already. Abi you wan collect x2 pay per day for not coming to work?

Meogom:
Yea, thanks. I knw thats the meaning, but I thought it was supposed to be added to the salary, but the salary remains unchanged

Any contact of who can fast track an already captured application in Festac?

kolawolemonsuru:
EXPRESS IS 15K-20K

If you're under 40, you can open a LISA account.

With that you can get up to £1000 in bonus per tax year.

https://www.gov.uk/lifetime-isa

If above 40, you can try Cash ISA, Nutmeg, Monzo Pot, Chase Savings, Loxbox.

harddrive2012:
Abeg I wan ask an advisable savings method/platform for a new immigrant in Uk that won’t be easily assessable (more like locked savings) and could help with mortgage in future.
Thanks

Prime suppose leverage this trend for more visibility and social good.🤣

#AreYouThePRIMESuspect

#DontBeThePRIMESuspect

tshoboy:
Bants aside. The person who has been accused of flytipping should take it seriously. That’s an expensive fine.

Really?

Thought the insurer pays directly to the service provider even if it's one chosen by the insured. So, you can either have them take the car to one their listed garages (they pay directly) or take it any of your preferred and present the invoice then they pay.

Please enlighten me.

Santa2:
Bros..Naa only one life you get. Chop life,buy that car . By the way was discussing with someone that got her ran into. she opted to repair her car herself, The insurance paid it to her(15k). she eventually fixed it for about 6k.

True! It's possible but some crazy fee. Thanks.

koonbey:
You can, but there will likely be fees for the conversion to GBP by your bank here, in addition to the usual wire transfer charges.

kode12:
You can transfer from a Nigerian dom account to a UK account.

No, you can't transfer from Nigerian USD account to a UK account.

However, you have two options;

1. Bring your USD debit card and withdraw pounds at UK ATMs. Think of the market exchange rate (USD/GBP) and the withdrawal fee ($3 per withdrawal).

2. Exchange your dollar to Naira in Nigeria. Keep it in your Naira account. When you come, open a LemFi (Lemonade) account and convert the Naira to Pounds. Caveat; Naira's instability might be an advantage or otherwise. Mostly like the latter.

For your on-arrival expenses, I'd advise exchanging and bringing a minimum of £100 in cash from Nigeria. Worst case scenario, you can exchange Naira to Pounds INSIDE the airport if you're unable to get prior to your travel date.

Best wishes.😉

Focus99:
Can I transfer dollar from my Nigeria UBA dollar account to a UK bank account?

I will be in UK in 20days time and I'm really confused on how to go about transport payment from Heathrow to my destination, house rent payment and tuition enrollment fee. Should I come with cash? Even £ is scare in Nigeria OR I can transfer from my dollar account to UK account when I open one

Elders in the house make una help me the whole japa thing is daunting God abeg

Lasting I'm looking out for couple accomodation anywhere in east sussex

Cruise line, blue skies.

Congrats. Best wishes with the outstanding processes.

If I may ask, which area is the property located? The average cost for a 4-bed here is 500K, meaning I need about 75K for deposit.

ukay2:
Don't worry you'll soon get....small small

My Mortgage was accepted last week by Halifax...doing solicitor documentation now.
Deposit was 15% for £390k 4 bed detached house.

Happy Weekend!

Just had a discussion with a friend and it'll be nice to get more informed input.

Is it advisable for a first timer to get an apartment instead of a semi/detached house?

Essentially, pricing/affordability is responsible for this apartment consideration over a semi/detached structure. For context, the average newly built 2/3bed semi/detached house here starts at 400,000. But the apartment costs (2/3 beds, newly built) starts at 250,000. Apparently, it'll take a shorter time to raise the deposit for an apartment and the need to get more value for rent over time.

Another consideration is leaving the current location, due to pricey properties, to somewhere with lower rates and similar opportunities in terms of work. Some areas have full house (newly built) for 250K.

What are your thoughts please?

Interesting.

Just curious where the vignette will be stamped.

Do you have a link to this info on gov.uk? Couldn't place my hands on any. Thanks

giselle237:
thanks for the info.
Also to state, you dont need a passport to apply for the dependent visa/brp if they were born here. The birth certificate is sufficient.