₦airaland Forum

tos:
Hi OP - You do not need a significant savings to file for your hubby. The only thing you need to prove is that your marriage is genuine. However, ensure that you have minimum of £110 left over after all your bills and living expenses every month. You may send a statement of your monthly income and expenses to the BHC to prove that your hubby would not have any need to make recourse to public funds when in the UK.

My wife (who was my sponsor) only had 49p in her accounts and had no job when I did my interview. But fortunately I had a good job with a multinational coy and good savings. The BHC was only concerned about my ability to secure a job when I get to the UK and proof that I was not going to rely on public funds to survive. I presented all my academic certificates and my bank statements showing significant amount of savings. Fortunately you as the sponsor have significant savings and so your hubby does not have to show that he has money to bring to the UK as it was in my case.

You also need to show that you guys will co-habitate when he gets to the UK by presenting documents such as tenancy agreements in your name and a letter from your landlord stating that your hubby is allowed to stay in the house since you rented the house in your name only. Also send your letter of employment and 3 months pay-slips to your hubby to take along to the BHC. He should make attempt to start applying for jobs in the UK immediately and proof of this should be printed and presented as well.

Ensure that you send a notorised copy of the bio-date page of your passport to your hubby to take with him to the BHC and all the pages in your passport showing the entry stamps during all your visits to Nigeria. This will show that you guys knew each other very well before marrying and that the marriage is not one of convinience. I will suggest you do a civil marriage at the Ikoyi Registry in Lagos as it is the most recognised Registry by the BHC. Also ensure that you take a lot of pictures during the marriage and you can identify all the invitees to the marriage by names. Note that you dont have to invite a lot of people to the Registry. A couple of friends and family members should be enough. I remember that we only invited 6 people (two signed as witnesses) to the Registry in our case.

All the documents you are taking to the BHC should be arranged in a folder and postit papers used to identify them as this will make it convinient for your hubby to present them to the ECO when they are being asked for. The form that you will use for the application is VAF4 for settlement.

Though it's a good thing to attend the interview with your hubby but it's not a requirement (I attended my interview alone). The sample of questions that may be asked at the interview are as follows:

- When did you get married?

- What is your partner's date of birth?

- When/where/how did you meet your partner?

- What does your partner do (what kind of job)?

- Where does your partner work?

- When was the last time your partner visited Nigeria?

- When was the last time you were in the UK?

- Where does your partner live in the UK?

- Mention two landmarks close to where your partner lives?

- Can you describe how to get to Central London from your partner's house?

- How many sibblings does your partner have?

- What are the names of your partner's parents? What do they do?

- Can you identify this person from your wedding pictures (note the ECO will point to anyone)?

- What do you do? What company do you work for?

- How much is your monthly income?

- Why do you want to move to the UK and not the other way round?

The list is inexhaustive. Please note that some of the questions that the ECO will ask are already in the application form that your hubby would have submitted. He should make sure that he does not forget anything. Also if there are things that you guys dont know about each other, this is a good time to start telling yourselves.

If you still have any question, i will be happy to help.

thanks alot. I think the only thing is that, we never communicate via email, cos i really have a thing for email, i never check them, but i guess we can start chatting via email now if that will help. and also he is the one that calls me most of the time i would say he makes at least 60% of the call, and most of the time when I ring him, i use a call card,  the only time I've used my contract phone is only for a 2-5 mins conversation as it is expensive on contract to ring international, so pls could you advice me what sort of evidence will i put down, is it the numerous call cards or my contract phone bill? and he Nigeria he uses airtime, so what evidence will he has to put down for this.

2. plus since we've started going out in 2008, ive only been to nigeria to see him once, cos of university and work commitmment, but we've been friends before we decide to start going out. (lol). Also this VAF4 form, can i print it out on the internet?
sorry if I've been abit thick, its just that I dont know how this works an  I'n naive about it. I will be very grateful if someone can help answer my question.

thanaaj

oh thanks alot for your response, it was really helpful. yer my marriage is genuine. just that I'm new to this thing and I dont really have anyone around me who knows how the process works. (lol).

unfortunately we do no communicate by post, and we hardly communicate vai email. guess we better start doing that now.

but another thing im not sure about is how many months pay slip and bank statemet do i need to produce is it 3months worth or 6months?

also approx how much do i need to have left in my account after bills cos i heard they require the sponspor to have at least £600 left after rent and bills in a month for them to qualify, is that so.

i would be really greatful someone could help. thanks.

Really I don't think Nigerians in UK are stingy, i will share my experience, I grew up all my life in the UK, but went to secondary school for 2 yrs and obviosuly makes friends.
I came back to the UK after my secondary school, and i do speak to may be 3 close friends in nigeria, one of them decide to ring me out of the blue saying oh she has a problem that after school shedidnt get into university and she started this buying and selling business, but she needs some fund for me to help her and she will pay be back, and she demand for £2000 and I was like damn girl dats a lot to cough out.

But me being so naive, i said i will borrow her £1000 from my savings. and she said she will return it in 7 months time. since 2004 that i borrowed this girl my money i tried calling her one what she said was, oh is it because of £1000 thats why im ringing her, that afterall i didnt give her all she ask for, that she will give me back when she have it. since then its been 5yrs now, i havnt spoken to this girl and she even change her number.
now tell how i can give people money.

I went oh holiday in april to nigeria, cousins i havent seen before started calling my parent to speak to me demanding Gucci bag, jimmi choo, balenciaga, even me i don't have a jimmi choo not to talk of balenciaga.

i think naija folks in nigeria need to use common sense and even in nigeria im sure not all of them are generous. UK is really expensive, bills here and there to pay for, working hard. even white people complain, not to now talk of a nigerian who is here to work. is not about being a slave, its all about no one is prepared to give money just to anyone else, cos the more you give, the more they ask.

hi.
Im a british citizen, getting married to a nigerian in january, we started dating May 2008. im just a bit confused about this process. I started working full time with the NHS in May this year, on a fixed contract finishing May 2009, but they might extend it according to my manager. and im going back to the university to complete my final project and graduate. The problem now is

1. I earn £1100 permonth after tax, and I pay £510 for my 3bed rented house and all my bills are paid quaterly and not monthly. but I get £400 per month from my parent for my rent.
2. I live in a 3bed rented house and my friend lives their with me and she pays me £300 permonth for her rent. but the tenancy agreement is in my name
3. I have about £3000 in my ISA savings account so far, and hoping to increase it by end of the year

my question is what document do i need to provide, and how many months bank statement do i need to produce, what form does my partner need to fill as I've been seeing different sort of forms and some people said there is a different form for nigerians to fill.

another thing is I met my partner when he came on holiday here in 2004 for the first time, but we were friends, but didnt really keep in touch, so when he came back in 2007 I saw him again and we both exchange numbers before he left for Nigeria and since then we started talking but then didnnt start going out not until may 2008 last year, and i went to visit him in nigeria April 2009 this year. but im scared because we only talk on the phone, we don't communicate via email or anything else, but we do have pictures of us when he was here on visit and when i went to nigeria and also proof that i called him, evevn though he call me most of the time. is tis evidence enough?

PLS HELP.