₦airaland Forum

ReesheesuKnack:
Glad to be here.
Please can someone help .

My current Tier-2 visa will end on November 24 this year.
I will be eligible for ILR thereafter (Alhamdillahi ).
Please my dear people, how soon before expiry can I put in my ILR application?

Please help.

Congratulations!

Earliest date you can apply is October 27th. Hope you have passed your "Life in the UK" Test though?

Collins4u1:
okay post and mention me please.. thank you

Credit Cards (CCs) are one of the best Credit Tools you can have but yes, like every good thing, it does have its dangers.

Most folks here are trying to build Credit Score and to be very honest, CCs are the easiest way to do so. There are so many other ways, of course, and you should do them: Registering in the Electoral Register, Setting up Direct Debits for Utility Bills, Phone/SIM Contracts, etc but from experience since these are not Credit facilities, they may not boost your score as much as a CC.

The rules of CC usage are simple: ensure you pay at least the minimum balance (usually 10% of your usage as at the statement date). So if your cycle is 1st to 30th of every month, on the 30th, you get a statement saying you have used £2,000 and you are given a grace period (typically extra 14 to 23 days) to pay back 10% or more, and whatever balance is unpaid, interest will be charged to the card after the grace period. During this grace period, the next cycle has obviously started running. And the next month balance will sum of what you spent in the month, plus the unpaid balance from the previous month and the interest added. IF YOU DON'T PAY THIS MINIMUM, YOU HAVE DEFAULTED.

Now, the main reasons why CCs are a brilliant facility are evident:
1. Their Interest-free periods means you can use them without ever paying interests: to do this, you must pay everything in full as the interest only starts counting on the unpaid balance after the grace period. An exception is usually Cash Withdrawals, Interest on Cash Withdrawals start counting immediately. Another evil trick of Cash Withdrawal is usually that their interest is higher. There's another evil of Cash Withdrawals but it might be a little technical to explain in this post. Just avoid Cash Withdrawals if you don't want interest
2. CCs are revolving, meaning they are like Overdrafts, not Term Loans, so if I have a limit of £6k, when I spend it and repay, my full limit is re-instated, so I don’t need to re-apply (ever) unless I void the contract.
3. Rewards: Most CCs earn you Miles, Points, etc for usage and referrals.
4. Fees: Many CCs come with little or no extra fees to the Cardholder. I could go on and on.

So, pretty much, you can use your Debit Card for only Cash Withdrawal and use Cash for non-Card payments, while you use your CC for everything else and pay little or no interest while building your credit score.

Now, as beautiful as it sounds, in my 7 years as a Credit Card Product Manager, I have seen so many people wallow in heavy credit card debts. The truth is most humans are not just disciplined enough to handle such an allowance of funds. They deep their hands into it at the slightest opportunity and end up living above their means. CCs are very addictive so don't get a CC if you love to spend, the CC provider would love you and keep increasing your limit and you may land in a gloomy state: you earn just £2k monthly and are given a £6k CC, as you spend and spend, they keep increasing the limit and before you know it, you have a £20k CC fully spent on that Funeral you sponsored inyou sponsored in Oshogbo and that trip to Turkey. How will you pay You break the card and start paying back £600 monthly, but that covers only the interest and the amount is NOT reducing every month. You realize you are stuck and have fallen for our trap and that is how we make our interest income and cover for those who are using the card wisely.

I'm sorry this post was really long, I even had to cut this short because I could go on and on about the benefits of CC (purchase protection, chargeback, acceptance, etc), the financially wise know this and hardly ever use Debit Cards but enjoy the benefits of a CC. The financially foolish use CCs to have fun for a few years or months and spend the rest of their lives as slaves to it. The choice is yours!

EDIT: For those who want the easy-to-get AMEX card with NO FIXED fees, you can use my referral link below. You get points for British Airways flights and and Holiday bookings. You get 8,000 points while I get 6,000:

https://americanexpress.com/en-gb/referral/jEDIDASmvK?XL=MNMNS

Collins4u1:
where can I see the post?

Uhmmm... it's in the old thread. I can't quote it from here. Let me repost.

@ ProfJYK

I have indeed gotten goodies from AMEX Card. I keep saving offers I may need. I use it for shopping, groceries, etc.

I still think the biggest source of points are referrals from Nairaland though. The post I made about how to use Credit Cards without paying interest and the benefits was quite popular. So I added my link later.

I seem to have been upgraded or it's general: My referrals now get 8,000 points while I get 6,000 so feel free to sign up, you might just get a free flight soon:

https://americanexpress.com/en-gb/referral/jEDIDASmvK?XL=MNMNS

How do I respond to the mentions in part 2?

kwakudtraveller:
My former coworker was sold a faulty car by a private seller and she did bank transfer, can she get her money back through the bank?

No. A faulty item sold is not termed as fraud so the Bank might not arbitrate.

DrObum:
Good morning people,

Please what’s the procedure for getting a Nigerian passport for a child born in the U.K.?
Do they need the mandatory NIN like adults or can theirs be done without it as minors?
Thanks

They need NIN

ProfJYK:
In my experience, it didnt. Though i only applied for a new one 1 full year into my Amex journey. got into barclaycard when they were running double welcome bonus and i couldnt resist.

but if a higher limit is your only target, you can apply to increase your amex limit every 90 days by up to X3 built mine from 1k to 5k and then afterwards, they started writing to me offering limit increases without me needing to apply.

on another note, BA Amex Companion Voucher is sweet. two people can go abuja and come for 160GBP.

We learn everyday. I didn't realise I could apply for limit increase. Thought I would be offered like most Cards. I saw your post and applied to increase to £10k and it was granted. Now I don't have to struggle to stay below 25%.

Need to plan to use my points. I have over 100k points and a Companion Voucher. With this, I can travel to Dubai or further with my family for FREE.

Last week, I stayed at a lovely hotel and got £75 refund based on the offer on the AMEX Card.

Lastly, I don't know if it's a special offer but if you use my code, you get 8,000 points while I get 6,000:

https://americanexpress.com/en-gb/referral/jEDIDASmvK?XL=MNMNS

Lexusgs430:
The best time to buy a property, was yesterday....... The other best time, is today......... 😜🤣

Yes o... Not financial advice, but which would you advice: Get a lower rate fixed for 5 years OR Get a higher rate fixed for 2 years?

Quite tricky since Rates could be higher or lower in 2 years.

yomisley:
Greetings to you all,

I have a question regarding the possibility of someone on a tier 2 visa in the Care industry engaging in Uber as a side hustle as a self-employed individual. I am considering obtaining my UK driver's license and registering my car for Uber.

Short Answer: No, unfortunately.

bigtt76:
Aqua 😂

Lool... Fair enough. Aqua offered me a card without my application a few months after I got my AMEX. They have since increased the limit twice

hyzich:
Tbh, I've decided not to bother myself with credit card acquisition again because I've tried applying but I always get rejected. This is my 5th month in UK and 2nd month working full time even my bank rejected. Don't know what to do again really

With each attempt, your score gets a hit and reduces further. It's best to stay away from credit applications for some months to let your score breathe. In the meantime, do other things to increase your score.

I know many people get Cards within few months of arrival. But for most, it might not be the case especially. It's best not to keep trying in the initial months.

harddrive2012:
I don’t know why you say AmericanExpress is easy to get. Seems to be one of the toughest card to get.

Toughest, you say... Can you name other cards that are easier?

labiola:
This condition no pure atall. I live in house no 7, house no 6 is put out for sales. I got an offer after removing £8k from initial asking price, only for the lenders who had previously given us decision in principle said they can lend us money because we never reach two years for uk. The thing pain me oh.

Wow.

Solumtoya:
So Credit Cards (CCs) are one of the best Credit Tools you can have but yes, like every good thing, it does have its dangers.

Most folks here are trying to build Credit Score and to be very honest, CCs are the easiest way to do so. There are so many other ways, of course, and you should do them: Registering in the Electoral Register, Setting up Direct Debits for Utility Bills, Phone/SIM Contracts, etc but from experience since these are not Credit facilities, they may not boost your score as much as a CC.

The rules of CC usage are simple: ensure you pay at least the minimum balance (usually 10% of your usage as at the statement date). So if your cycle is 1st to 30th of every month, on the 30th, you get a statement saying you have used £2,000 and you are given a grace period (typically extra 14 to 23 days) to pay back 10% or more, and whatever balance is unpaid, interest will be charged to the card after the grace period. During this grace period, the next cycle has obviously started running. And the next month balance will sum of what you spent in the month, plus the unpaid balance from the previous month and the interest added. IF YOU DON'T PAY THIS MINIMUM, YOU HAVE DEFAULTED.

Now, the main reasons why CCs are a brilliant facility are evident:
1. Their Interest-free periods means you can use them without ever paying interests: to do this, you must pay everything in full as the interest only starts counting on the unpaid balance after the grace period. An exception is usually Cash Withdrawals, Interest on Cash Withdrawals start counting immediately. Another evil trick of Cash Withdrawal is usually that their interest is higher. There's another evil of Cash Withdrawals but it might be a little technical to explain in this post. Just avoid Cash Withdrawals if you don't want interest
2. CCs are revolving, meaning they are like Overdrafts, not Term Loans, so if I have a limit of £6k, when I spend it and repay, my full limit is re-instated, so I don’t need to re-apply (ever) unless I void the contract. 3. Rewards: Most CCs earn you Miles, Points, etc for usage and referrals.
4. Fees: Many CCs come with little or no extra fees to the Cardholder. I could go on and on.

So, pretty much, you can use your Debit Card for only Cash Withdrawal and use Cash for non-Card payments, while you use your CC for everything else and pay little or no interest while building your credit score.

Now, as beautiful as it sounds, in my 7 years as a Credit Card Product Manager, I have seen so many people wallow in heavy credit card debts. The truth is most humans are not just disciplined enough to handle such an allowance of funds. They deep their hands into it at the slightest opportunity and end up living above their means. CCs are very addictive so don't get a CC if you love to spend, the CC provider would love you and keep increasing your limit and you may land in a gloomy state: you earn just £2k monthly and are given a £6k CC, as you spend and spend, they keep increasing the limit and before you know it, you have a £20k CC fully spent on that Funeral you sponsored in Oshogbo and that trip to Turkey. How will you pay You break the card and start paying back £600 monthly, but that covers only the interest and the amount is NOT reducing every month. You realize you are stuck and have fallen for our trap and that is how we make our interest income and cover for those who are using the card wisely.

I'm sorry this post was really long, I even had to cut this short because I could go on and on about the benefits of CC (purchase protection, chargeback, acceptance, etc), the financially wise know this and hardly ever use Debit Cards but enjoy the benefits of a CC. The financially foolish use CCs to have fun for a few years or months and spend the rest of their lives as slaves to it. The choice is yours!

EDIT: For those who want the easy-to-get AMEX card with NO FIXED fees, you can use my referral link below. You get points for British Airways flights and Holiday bookings:

https://americanexpress.com/en-gb/referral/jEDIDAcKK3?XL=MNANS

Bluebella, there you go

bluebella:
Greetings to everyone that has and is still contributing their wealth of knowledge to this platform. I appreciate you all. God bless your minds.

Please someone should point me to the page where credit card usage was well explained.

Secondly and most importantly I want someone who can mentor me in Project Management, someone with UK experience (2-3years).
I haven’t been lucky with the interviews of recent and it’s affecting my mental health.

I made a post on credit card usage last year

seyejohn94:
🔑 Hey there! Need a mortgage on a Tier 2 visa with less than 1 year in the UK? No worries, I got you covered! 🏠

Just wanted to give a shoutout to Strike, the mortgage broker that can hook you up with lenders who don't demand a whopping 25% deposit. Yup, you heard it right! You can score a sweet 10% Loan-to-Value (LTV) ratio. The catch? Make sure your combined income hits that £100k mark. 💰

By the way, if you have any questions, Bhavini is your go-to person. She's super helpful and has dealt with tons of Nigerians, so she knows the ropes. 😊

Oh, one thing to keep in mind: I'm not personally involved with this mortgage broker, but I just had to share this awesome find with you. Don't miss out on the chance to turn your homeownership dreams into reality! Hit up Strike and ask for Bhavini. 📞

Not bad... £100k income isn't beans sha

justwise:
@fatima04

Abeg help us with a new part of this thread

Lai lai o, we must enter 1000!

Page 1000 yet?

Aphrodite007:
Ah I’m present oo! Sorry been flirting with the Canada thread because I wan leave una, run comot from this country.

Loads of things are wrong with the system that me I can’t shout about because if naija was ok, I won’t be here in the first place!!

My recent annoyance (ignoring the cost of living) is that it seems PSV is a scam. Most companies aren’t a recruiting graduates on PSV simply cos they may need sponsorship eventually.. but how come care homes are giving sponsorship like pure water??

So experienced people that ran from naija due to end SARS/buhari will come here and their only career for the next 5 years will be care? Haba! (PS nothing wrong with working in care but some of us did it as students not a career path. I’m offended they are stealing peoples potential!)

I love you all, but UK problem, ike a gwosiri’m -sorry igbo isn’t my first language- (it sha means my power have finish).

You make a good point about PSW. That's where Canada beats the UK hands down as relocation choice. The fact that many Professionals have to switch to Care just to be able to remain in the Country. These are people with huge potentials in other fields.

I have a friend who got a fantastic job unwilling to sponsor, he was lucky that his wife was interested in doing a PhD after PSW. If not, if time ran out on him, it would have been Care.

The Global Talent Visa was supposed to curb the challenge but even that is not easy to get at all.

Wish you well in your Canada waka o.

Healhtyliving:
We worked with L&C mortgages and they were so professional throughout the process. We also didn’t have to pay them. Our lender did and we were informed from the start.

Thank you, Lender was Halifax?

Lexusgs430:
Congratulations....... 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

No matter how hard it might be....... Every new generation Nigerian, in the UK. MUST buy their property........

Back in the day's, our parents relied on the council, for council flats....... This narrative MUST change (either by default or situation).......

It would not be easy, but nothing good comes easy .......🤣🤣😂

RENT MONEY IS DEAD MONEY...... Why do you want to continually pay your landlord's mortgage.......

NB: Skipton is offering 0% deposit mortgage deals (you would still have other costs to pay).....

What's your excuse ......😜🤣😂

Nice! Please give us Mortgage advisor that can work with Tier 2 folks without requiring 25%

koonbey:
This thing is ultimately a matter of personal preference. I, for one, lived in Lekki and worked in VI and hated every minute of it. I hated Lagos as a whole and in fact the fact that being at the top of my field in Nigeria required being in Lagos, was one of the reasons I left Nigeria to the UK where I can live in a suburban area far away from concrete jungles and yet still work at the heights of my chosen field. I love being able to get from my home near the city centre to a quietly pristine beach in ±20 minutes, and within ±8 minutes, to a dedicated cycling route where I can cycle for literally hundreds of kilometres almost without ever having to share a lane with a car. The thought of spending an hour+ crammed in the tube on a daily commute to work is almost physically painful to me.

I don't dislike London as much as I hated Lagos, but I am similarly determined never to live there.

Opinions and personal preference aside, what is clear is that the equation of cities outside London to being like Jigawa or whatnot is patently false, and that is the point some of us have been making - to avoid newbies running with the wrong impression that it's London or nowhere, similar to how it's Lagos/Abuja or nowhere, back home.

I keep responding...

I don't wanna live in London either. Just wanna live close enough to access the huge opportunities that exist there for me in my field.

Of course, it's not London or nowhere neither is it Lagos/Abuja or nowhere. It's all PERSONAL choice. There are jobs everywhere: in Jigawa or Newcastle (not comparing them o ). 90% of the Companies I want to work with are in London so it makes sense for me (personal choice). Many of us work with the NHS, and don’t need to work in London as opportunities exist everywhere.

As for where I live, we both love to cycle so we have that in common and my resident City favours it too. Even in London, I don't use the tube, London is the City with the highest density of Cyclists. I cycle with the Commercial cycles in London, they're surprisingly affordable if you use them often.

As for the newbies, if you love to work in London, you're welcome, don't get the wrong idea that it will make you poor or that you have to live there.

Las las, we go dey alright. The land is green

BorisJohnson:
I am interested in that £8 one Biko..

Oya manage this one of £9.50 You can still get 13% discount if you join their loyalty programme or 30% discount with the coachcard.

erico2k2:
They seem to forget that some of us own up to three properties in London and when one is sold it buys up to three properties in manchester or birmingham! £8 to london from wales now You are milking it ahah

I wanted to bring up this point but thought it might be a little complex to explain via text here.

The person earning high in the South that buys the expensive property isn't foolish: he is able to build equity much faster which he can use to buy cheaper properties to let up North. So that statement yesterday about earning less and doing better in the North all because housing is more affordable was just a little funny to me.

As for Wales, it's not an edge case o. I know so many people who live in Wales and do a 90-min train ride or a 3-hour National Express trip to London on days they go to the office. 3 hours no reach Lagos traffic na.

Earlier this year, Google paid $1bn for a new office location in London as they're betting on people eventually returning to the office. Many big Tech firms are on hybrid and most are not Remote.

Speaking of property, with the way London is blowing up and becoming one of the most expensive Cities in the world, getting a property closeby isn't the worst idea. A friend of mine got a BTL property in Cambridge, close to London some years back. The value has skyrocketed and is approaching £1m for a normal 3 bed house.

As long as it is well-priced, getting a more expensive (than the North) property in a City close to the London is not the waste of money y'all portray it to be.

HollyMadison:
UK and Nigeria are not the same. It’s wrong to equate London to Lagos, Sunderland to jigawa,, you’re not helping yourself…. electricity, water, internet, jobs etc are everywhere in UK.

You don’t have to move to the north and start looking for jobs. Apply to jobs in the north or remote/hybrid first, and relocate if you get something with good pay.

Choking yourselves in London will only restrict your growth. People in the north are using half of your London 6 figure salary to take care of their families and get on the property ladder.

I’m not trying to debate, just open your mind and spread your wings.

You guys make a good point actually.

BUT, you forget some of us actually love the bubbly life and cultural diversity of working in London. Even in Lagos, I worked in 4 different Companies and they were all in Victoria Island and all through, lived in Lekki. People always lectured me to move to the Mainland but I told them "not everyone will stay on the Mainland". It's a choice, an expensive one that comes with pros and cons but it's a choice regardless.

Working in London is just what some of us want. My former job was Remote and I hated it. I prefer Hybrid where I can be colocated with teammates and collaborate physically. I love the "beauty" of working out of the 12th floor of a high-rise building in Canary Wharf, etc. Maybe when I get older, I will consider working in quieter Cities. I want my Youthful working years here for now.

And no, "working in London isn't choking my growth", you are terribly wrong on that. No, you can't say "I'm not helping myself". And yes, I can get on the property ladder as easily as (or easier than) my mates in the North. Lots of assumptions.

Now you also assumed we wanna LIVE in London. Nope, not me. UK is different from Nigeria, US, Canada in its beautiful transport which means I can live as far as Northampton in a house of 200k or rent of £800 and get to London in 1 hour for work if I need to. In fact, I can live in Wales and get to London with £8!

The conversation is to get good Cities that are close enough and yet affordable enough for those of us who choose to work in London. I'm not sure how that means "my mind is not open" or "my wings are not spread"

Peerielass:
Is this your guy married by any chance and does he have kids? By the time you factor in higher rate tax, mortgage costs, school fees for the kids in London, commuting costs, etc, he will be better off on a £50k salary in Middlesbrough.

Fair point.

Mortgage costs is the only issue but he's building equity with it and can always pull it out.

Schooling for kids is free. Commuting costs is negligible depending on how close he lives.

And that talk about higher tax rate always shocks me! I know folks who refuse to earn more so they don't enter the higher tax rate. £50k is about £3k monthly while £90k is about £5k monthly. Why would one consider tax rate when it's on the increment only?

You can't say for sure he will be better off with £50k in Middlesbrough

London, like New York or Lagos, is expensive and we would mostly wanna stay away from it.

But it is also filled with opportunities that keep many of us thriving.

I know one Nigerian guy that got a Tech role paying like £70k in London. He was at it for less than a year before switching to one of the big banks on a close to 6-digit offer. And there are so many of such roles asking to employ and sponsor him in London. Telling him to move to Middlesbrough would be a joke.

Peerielass:
[/b]

I don’t agree with the BiB especially in these days of remote working where some folks are relocating to the Caribbeans and Spanish Islands etc to achieve a better work/life balance. I don’t even understand the fixation with London when you can get better value for your money elsewhere and also enjoy better quality of life at the same time.

You don't have to agree. Just check Google. Many people here are on a Visa so can't go to the "Spanish islands". No one is fixated on London but when an immigrant gets 5 offers and 4 are in London and the one outside London doesn't sponsor, the Caribbeans become a distant dream.

erico2k2:
Vast majority of people who live in them cities you just mention live there but work in London as they commute via train, driving is a no no for them. If you are professional in a certain discipline or trade then you can live anywhere and still earn as if you live in London, if not London it is. take for example if you are from Niger republic and want to come to Nigeria for work, it would be Lagos, Abuja and PHC isnt it?

I just used "90-minute drive" to represent a place where the commuting distance won't be too expensive. Sure, most people don't drive to London.

I've been looking at Milton Keynes though. Not too cheap but fair. Good schools too and family friendly. Another consideration is outskirts of Reading

Bourne007:
Coventry and Northampton are options. Birmingham, Leicester, Nottingham can be within 90 minutes by train

Yeah, but those are like £1,000 to £2,000 in transport fares monthly. You make a good point with Coventry and Northampton though.