Recommendation for a UK Immigraton Lawyer?

[7Llewelyn]

Hello PH

I'm British and married to a non-EU citizen. We're looking to settle in the UK soon and I hoping someone can recommend an immigration lawyer to help us with the spousal visa application.

I've done a search on PH and a few years ago a gentlemen called Paul L Simon was recommended - http://www.plsimon.co.uk/

Does anyone have any other more recent recommendations to share?

Thanks in advance,

Richard.

[anonymous-user]

7Llewelyn said:

I've done a search on PH and a few years ago

Is this a regular thing then?

[PAULJ5555]

V6Pushfit said:

7Llewelyn said:

I've done a search on PH and a few years ago

Is this a regular thing then?

I think he means somebody else's query from years before.

Why not search google?

[Atomic12C]

No need for a lawyer I would have thought.

Just go to the government website for the latest forms/info and follow the application process in the correct order; that is the most important thing.


I would have thought a lawyer only came in to play when things aren't going the way you want. ie. whereby you follow the correct process and there is a negative decision made that doesn't have a good base of argument.

[spookly]

I'd probably try somewhere other than a motoring forum TBH. Thai brides'r'us might have a section

Not saying your mrs is a mail order bride... just saying they might have a forum page on said topic :-)

[7Llewelyn]

Haha, I should've have known my question would have brought all the comedians out to play!

I was asking for a recommendation for an immigration lawyer not critique on my lifestyle! Not a mail-order bride and no I don't do this every few years!

Yes you can apply via the UK government website but the visa costs £1500.00 so not something you want to mess up - the application process and requirements not at all straightforward so I think it's better to employ the assistance of a specialist lawyer.

[Atomic12C]

I would have thought a lawyer is a much more expensive route than simply using the government website and the 'checking service' that is available on submission of the forms.

But of course its your choice.

[onedsla]

Do you / will you meet the following criteria? If so, an immigration lawyer should not be necessary. I married an American and found the whole process very straight forward (but more expensive that I'd have liked).

You must prove that you and your partner are 18 or over and in a genuine relationship.

You must be one of the following:

married or civil partners
living together in a relationship for 2 years
engaged to be married or to become civil partners
You must prove that any previous relationships you or your partner had are permanently broken down.

You must also meet the financial requirement of:

£18,600 per year if you’re applying only for yourself
£22,400 per year for you and one child
£2,400 per year for each additional child


The last bit is the tricky one if you are not currently in the UK. Do you have a job in the UK to come to? If not, you are probably right to discuss options with an immigration lawyer.

[TwigtheWonderkid]

7Llewelyn said:

I was asking for a recommendation for an immigration lawyer not critique on my lifestyle!

Sorry, but on PH, the 2 are inextricably linked.

[Du1point8]

7Llewelyn said:

Haha, I should've have known my question would have brought all the comedians out to play!

I was asking for a recommendation for an immigration lawyer not critique on my lifestyle! Not a mail-order bride and no I don't do this every few years!

Yes you can apply via the UK government website but the visa costs £1500.00 so not something you want to mess up - the application process and requirements not at all straightforward so I think it's better to employ the assistance of a specialist lawyer.

The lawyer cost can be quite substantial... for example I did a 457 Visa in Aus... If I did it myself it would be $2000 (2 of us), because company got a lawyer to do it, the final cost is over $5k.

[Jasandjules]

Just checking if a friend is still undertaking immigration, if so I'll pass his details on.

[Likes Fast Cars]

7Llewelyn said:

Hello PH

I'm British and married to a non-EU citizen. We're looking to settle in the UK soon and I hoping someone can recommend an immigration lawyer to help us with the spousal visa application.

I've done a search on PH and a few years ago a gentlemen called Paul L Simon was recommended - http://www.plsimon.co.uk/

Does anyone have any other more recent recommendations to share?

Thanks in advance,

Richard.

Quite a good firm, I had dealings with them years ago, they know their stuff.

[BobSaunders]

Atomic12C said:

No need for a lawyer I would have thought.

Just go to the government website for the latest forms/info and follow the application process in the correct order; that is the most important thing.


I would have thought a lawyer only came in to play when things aren't going the way you want. ie. whereby you follow the correct process and there is a negative decision made that doesn't have a good base of argument.

Apparently, and according to a friend who's wife has had to go through this - "if you make one mistake they throw it out, and keep the "administration fees"". Quite an expensive admin process for obvious reasons (as to stop everyone just from applying).

[McVities]

Atomic12C said:

No need for a lawyer I would have thought.

Just go to the government website for the latest forms/info and follow the application process in the correct order; that is the most important thing.

This ^^^


MrsMcVities is from Australia and we've now just renewed her spousal visa. The application can be a bit of a faff in terms of reading through reams of paper and getting all the necessary supporting evidence. However, it is not impossible.
You will find that there are guidance documents for the application form, and these list in minute detail what is needed, what is, and what is not allowed. The annoyance is that each particular section has it's own supporting document (eg proof of income is one, proof of address is another and there'll be more for acceptable ID etc etc). It would be more straightforwards to have it all as one big walk-through of what is needed at each stage. I guess they can't make it too easy.
An added plus is that the English is not too bad to read, we did have one or two disagreements over the finer points of some requirements, but on the whole, if you're educated to GCSE standard, you'll be able to comprehend the forms.

That being said, starting the process nice and early, reading, re-reading and reading again before starting to fill out the forms, and going through the whole process in a methodical manner is necessary. The big part is collecting together all the evidence required - we put everything into a large A4 folder with poly pockets for each section of paperwork. A likely slow point will be letters from your employer (if they are relatively large) confirming your employment with them and salary. That will depend on the HR dept.......first time round and the NHS trust my wife works for did not cover itself in glory. Even when the letter did reach us, the wording was significantly incorrect and requisite information had been omitted, so it had to be re-done.

With the first application, we were a little nervous about doing this ourselves, so before my wife went to apply in person, we went to see an immigration lawyer (based in Dover, I forget who they were now it was nearly 3 years ago) - taking the completed application and all supporting info with us. We got them to check through what we had done and look for any mistakes or omissions. Obviously this did not guarantee the application, but we considered it money well spent. It was also much, much cheaper than having a lawyer do the entire application for us - something we were quite capable of.

If you go in person with the application, it is a significantly higher cost than by post (several hundred pounds) - but if you do go for post, be prepared for most of your life in documentation and ID (including passports) to be away for up to 3 months. Signed for, recorded and fully insured delivery both ways is absolutely essential.

[AJS-]

V6Pushfit said:

7Llewelyn said:

I've done a search on PH and a few years ago

Is this a regular thing then?

OP, I am currently looking at the same and as far as I can see so far from my own experience and from speaking to a couple of others then unless it's a complicated case the best route is doing it yourself.

Of course plenty of expensive lawyers will say otherwise but if it's a straightforward spouse visa then it's more leg work than legal knowledge.

The main thing seems to be showing a stable and adequate income and a legitimate long term relationship.

[PAULJ5555]

Funny how we have a racist system of letting EU's in to the UK freely and not Non EU's, but when the majority of Brits voted Brexit for a consistent fairer system they got called a bunch of racists.

[snobetter]

PAULJ5555 said:

Funny how we have a racist system of letting EU's in to the UK freely and not Non EU's, but when the majority of Brits voted Brexit for a consistent fairer system they got called a bunch of racists.

Brilliant advice for the OP...

[PAULJ5555]

snobetter said:

PAULJ5555 said:

Funny how we have a racist system of letting EU's in to the UK freely and not Non EU's, but when the majority of Brits voted Brexit for a consistent fairer system they got called a bunch of racists.

Brilliant advice for the OP...

No problem, I'm here all week.

You forgot to comment on the other posts that didn't provide advice. Now go pick on someone else.

Edited by PAULJ5555 on Wednesday 17th August 14:53

[fredf]

BobSaunders said:

Apparently, and according to a friend who's wife has had to go through this - "if you make one mistake they throw it out, and keep the "administration fees"". Quite an expensive admin process for obvious reasons (as to stop everyone just from applying).

That's not my experience, my wife is Turkish and when initially applying in Istanbul a few years ago we applied for the wrong type (marriage vs. spouse?!?) and they just amended the form during her interview.

On renewal a few months ago we sent the incorrect amount of money (went up by £150 from downloading the form to posting it), they sent a letter requesting more money. A few weeks later got another letter saying they were unhappy about the amount of proof provided, and to send them more. Extension was approved.

Although the forms are long, I didn't find them complex - just do a page a day, use the guidance notes and recheck like mad!

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions, though my experience is probably only valid for Turkish citizens.

[Likes Fast Cars]

fredf said:

That's not my experience, my wife is Turkish .....

Congrats! (I think) ... mine is too

A bit off topic: she's probably glad to be in the UK and not over here in Turkey at the moment.