Hi Graham,

First off, sorry to hear about the ongoing saga. To get to the main issue here though, you need the spousal visa extending.

The indication from the UKBA is that you should be ok. Presumably you are familiar with the UKBA post on this, but have you sen the guidance for form FLR(M), which is the form you apply for extension of stay with? Point 2 on this says that "Possible reasons [to request extension include] that you have not yet obtained a relevant qualification demonstrating your knowledge of the English language and life in the UK." Section 4 of the form itself has a tickbox option for this as well.

Given your wife is already enrolled at a language school and obviously working towards taking the Life in the UK test it would be worth providing evidence of this in your application to extend the visa to help remove doubt from the equation.

I don't know of any restrictions involving the partner/spouses profession though. The restrictions I am aware of are all based on demonstrating that the relationship is real, so things like 'you have met your husband, wife or civil partner'. A full list of these restrictions is here.

At the risk of further raising your blood pressure I would suggest calling the UKBA and discussing section 4 of form FLR(M) if you have any concerns or reservations about this application. From the indication of their published material, however, you should be ok to extend your visa.

I hope all of this helps
George
www.lifeintheuk.net

Hi All,

Hello, I'm new to the forum. I've joined because I can't seem to find an answer [on the web or via friends from outside the EU] to what I originally thought would be a fairly straightforward question and after reading the forum for a while I thought you guys may be able to help. My question is:

Based on the details below, what is the process my wife and I should follow in order for her to extend her stay in the UK whilst she is studying on an ESOL course with a view to passing the Life in the UK test?

Let me explain, I'll be as brief as possible...

Here's the background:
• I'm a 46 year old UK Citizen (with fully paid up taxes, NI and all the other wonderful financial burdens that this country demands)
• My wife is a 39 year old Thai National
• My wife has had five UK visitor Visa's (four multi visit) since 2005, staying seven times in the UK over that period for up to three months at a time (whilst in a relationship with me, she has never visited prior to that, thought I better clarify that)
• We married in Bangkok 22/10/08 and then had a bit of a spat with UK Border Control (for which I did appeal against but that's a long story)
• She entered the UK in December 2008 on a Spouse Visa valid until the 21/03/11 and has resided with me from when she arrived in the UK until now (apart from a couple of holidays when she/we returned to visit her mother)
• She is currently studying the ESOL course at a verified local college.

Here's the problem:
• My wife is not currently ready to take the Life in the UK test, she has improved her English reading and writing tremendously (and her knowledge of Guy Fawkes, April Fools Day and the UK law on the wearing of car seat belts) but due to circumstance only started this ESOL course in September 2010 and the tutors don't think she can pass the test after this short time
• Following the point above I don't think she has improved enough on the ESOL course to warrant an application for ILR citing a 'verified' level improvement.

Now I'm not a simpleton (IMHO) but after reading all of the government guidelines on this subject (they really should get the Plain English people in) I just can't seem to find the answer to where I go from here. For instance after reading the section on applying for an extension [on the Border Control Website] it seems I can only apply if my wife is a doctor or dentist or in some similar professional capacity (which I'm afraid she is not – she's a great wife, my best friend who has supported me through incredibly difficult times and a superb cook though... does that count?).

I understand that the Immigration Rules where radically changed this year [2010] and non UK citizens are required to pass the Life in the UK test in order to apply for the ILR Visa and possible citizenship but where does that leave my wife in her (our) current situation? Can somebody out there throw some light upon this for me please, what exactly do I/We need to do in order to extend my wife's visa so that she can complete the ESOL Course and/or get to the required standard in order to take the Citizenship test?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers
Graham

PS: Sorry for any sarcasm in the above post but I've been through some complete nonsense with UK Border Control, you honestly couldn't make it up.