Proof Of Funds For UK Visit Visa

[NightSky]

Applying for a UK visitor visa for my Thai wife most things are covered although I have a question about the proof of funds.

 

Does anyone know what proof of funds I will need to show for a visitor visa for my Thai wife and I to visit the UK for a short holiday. Im a British citizen, my wife and I have a registered business in Thailand which pays both my wife and I a salary every month but business has been slower this year so far and so occasionally I needed to supplement my/our living expenses with other income from abroad so my Thai bank account statements would take some explaining if I submit those (if the Thai business didnt provide enough to pay the full salary one month I supplemented living expenses from my overseas savings and other income from another business I manage overseas which I would rather not need to explain etc as things then become complex and long winded where in fact I have the funds for the trip available in a savings account). My wife's Thai bank statements on the other hand look much simpler and are fine to prove she received her salary from the business and I intend to fund the entire trip to the UK from my UK savings account not from my Thai bank account or from my wifes account.

 

My question is will I be able to submit my UK savings account bank statement as proof of funds to pay for the holiday along with my wife's Thai bank statement to prove she gets her salary or would I also need to submit my own Thai bank statement with a salary being deposited too because I also work at the same business with my wife? It just feels that If I live in thailand it would maybe be better to show salary from our small Thai business isn't being supplemented from overseas savings...? or shouldn't this matter as long as the money is available to pay for the holiday?  

 

Also is it 3 months or 6 months statements that are required? Thanks in advance for any information,.

 

 

 

 

[rasg]

All you need to show is that you can afford the trip. It's not like a settlement visa where they want to know everything.

[NightSky]

17 hours ago, rasg said:

All you need to show is that you can afford the trip. It's not like a settlement visa where they want to know everything.

Ok thank you, thats good to know.

 

Would you know if its OK If I translate and certify required documents myself? My wife and I have already competed all the translations, signed and stamped with our company seal etc.. (house registration book/id card/company registration documents/list of shareholders/property chanote). I cannot see any reason why they wont accept these translated by these ourselves as long as I certify them as a true translation of the original document?

[NightSky]

Please excuse my typos and errors in my previous post its been a long couple of days translating all the documents.

 

 

 

[rasg]

I've never heard of anybody doing the translations themselves but I don't see why not as long as it's and accurate copy and it has a stamp on it. How would an ECO know the difference?!

[theoldgit]

1 hour ago, NightSky said:

Would you know if its OK If I translate and certify required documents myself? My wife and I have already competed all the translations, signed and stamped with our company seal etc.. (house registration book/id card/company registration documents/list of shareholders/property chanote). I cannot see any reason why they wont accept these translated by these ourselves as long as I certify them as a true translation of the original document?

No, they have to be indepentently translated:

 

UKVI said:

If you submit a document that is not in English or Welsh, it must be accompanied by a full translation that can be independently verified by the Home Office. Each translated document must contain:

confirmation from the translator that it is an accurate translation of the original document

the date of the translation

the translator’s full name and signature

the translator’s contact details

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/visitor-visa-guide-to-supporting-documents/guide-to-supporting-documents-visiting-the-uk

 

[NightSky]

I have the templates for all the official Thai documents and I translated the document content. We are a Thai/English couple with a business in Thailand and Ive been here for almost 2 decades so we are able to translate the documents accurately which we have done and company stamped and certified them myself.

 

I don't see anywhere in the guidelines that say documents cannot be translated by the applicants relative? We wont have time to get them done by anyone else now as our appointment is on Monday and the Home Office will be able to independently verify the document with me as I am independent from my wife who is applying for the visa.

 

Im a little concerned now about the translations as we've spend 4 days creating and certifying the documents which are as good and official as any translation done by anyone else.  

 

One strange request on the immigration document is that my wife now needs to prove that her financially dependent mother who lives in Isaan will be remaining in Thailand whilst we travel although I have no idea how I can prove this? All I can do is include a note in my supporting letter to say Mother-in-law has no intention of travel outside of Thailand and that she will remain in Thailand. Im concerned this is all going pear shaped after committing a week gathering and preparing all the documents.

 

 

 

 

[NightSky]

*UPDATE* I concede as a translator as I'm not independent from my wife's application. I will cancel the appointment with VFS and have the documents translated all over again from scratch and pay for someone else for the privilege.

 

Thank you for your help as its probably saved me from a failed application.

[natway09]

They may wish to see your wife's bank statements as she is the one making the application.

Easier to get a relative to sponsor if she does not have

[rasg]

Not necessary if she has a sponsor. Even if she has a sponsor bank statements may not be necessary. You only need to show sufficient funds to pay for the trip. I never showed bank statements for my, then, girlfriend's accounts for her two visit visas. Just explained that she was paid in cash each month and the money was allocated and spent on rent or money going home to her family before it went near her bank account.

[NightSky]

I dont want the visa to fail and Im trying to follow the guidelines by the letter and so far the guidelines make suggestions that I need to prove various things by submitting copies of the following documents including:

 

• Marriage certificate (to prove relationship)
• House registration book (to prove address)
• ID card / passports and previous passports (always mandatory)
• WIfe's Bank statements (to prove she is paid from her employment/business)
• My bank statements (to show we can afford the trip)
• Company registration certificate (to show proof of employment in Thailand)
• Company shareholder list showing my wifes name (to prove ownership of above mentioned company)
• Proof wifes mum wont be travelling (include in letter to prove we are not intending to take mother in law with us)
• Proof the business will be OK without us for a few weeks (another reason for return becasue we operate a business)
• Proof of land registration chanote for property (proof of asset and a reason to return to Thailand)
• Proof of accommodation in the UK (letter from Uk relative and invitation)
• Letter from me as sponsor with details of our trip and intentions (summary and to confirm)

 

...and also include the translated versions for all those Thai documents.

 

This is what the UK visa guidelines say I must provide for a 3 week holiday with my wife whom I've been together with for 15 years to go see my aging mother in the UK, It seems ridiculous doesn't it? Have I completed the right visa application form or am I missing something? This seems as if its the same extensive interrogation form used for those wishing to live in the UK.

 

 

[theoldgit]

@NightSky I'm not one for sticking up for the UKVI but to be fair, they don't say you must supply all those documents for a visit visa, what the applicant must supply is a valid travel document, you will note that they say you may wish to supply some of the other documentation to help the ECO make a decision.

Your wife is only asking for a entry clearance to allow her to take a short holiday in the UK, so she needs to satisfy the decsion maker that her ties to her home country are strong enough to mean she is likely to return.
You are living here as a couple, so with your marriage details, your passport with details of your Immigration Status here (which you haven't mentioned) and details of your business and accomodation, show that you both have strong ties here.
What you have supplied is probably at the top end of what would be needed for the visit visa to be approved, and much of it wouldn't be needed for a settlement visa, where reasons to return aren't of course needed.

It's a good idea to mention cover arrangements for your business whilst you're away, though probably a sentence about mum in one of the covering letters would suffice. 

I do note maybe a hint of anger in your posts, I would urge that you don't repeat that in any covering letters, I would also suggest that your covering letter is short, snappy and to the point, ECO's don't have time to wade through a lot of waffle, not that I'm suggesting that's what you letter would contain.
I wish you both well.

[puchooay]

21 hours ago, NightSky said:

I have the templates for all the official Thai documents and I translated the document content. We are a Thai/English couple with a business in Thailand and Ive been here for almost 2 decades so we are able to translate the documents accurately which we have done and company stamped and certified them myself.

 

I don't see anywhere in the guidelines that say documents cannot be translated by the applicants relative? We wont have time to get them done by anyone else now as our appointment is on Monday and the Home Office will be able to independently verify the document with me as I am independent from my wife who is applying for the visa.

 

Im a little concerned now about the translations as we've spend 4 days creating and certifying the documents which are as good and official as any translation done by anyone else.  

 

One strange request on the immigration document is that my wife now needs to prove that her financially dependent mother who lives in Isaan will be remaining in Thailand whilst we travel although I have no idea how I can prove this? All I can do is include a note in my supporting letter to say Mother-in-law has no intention of travel outside of Thailand and that she will remain in Thailand. Im concerned this is all going pear shaped after committing a week gathering and preparing all the documents.

 

 

 

 

My wife has a translation business and has translated many documents for VFS. She has headed notepaper and stamps to certify true translation. The translations are not usually dated and she does not write her full name.

She has never had any documents refused, including her own application.

[oporhatch]

Was not going to comment....but I have known them delayed /rejected unless the spouse can prove her own funds

My conclusion is that if things went pear-shaped in the UK, they would like her to have enough available funds of her own to get home. 

Whether that is the reason or not I do not know .

 

Thought I would mention it   - as it has happened ,

 

Please do not hit me with comments stating this is rubbish etc !!!!!....just stating what I have seen happen

 

 

 

[rasg]

 

10 hours ago, oporhatch said:

Was not going to comment....but I have known them delayed /rejected unless the spouse can prove her own funds

My conclusion is that if things went pear-shaped in the UK, they would like her to have enough available funds of her own to get home. 

Whether that is the reason or not I do not know .

 

Thought I would mention it   - as it has happened ,

 

Please do not hit me with comments stating this is rubbish etc !!!!!....just stating what I have seen happen

Not in my experience. My then girlfriend had two visit visas and didn't supply bank statements or show that she had any money at all. I was her sponsor and I showed that I could afford her trip to the UK.

[NightSky]

Well I omitted few of the documents to save on translation costs and processing time and today the wife submitted the documents. It was our first time in the Trendy Building.

 

Wife was in the appointment area for about 40 minutes. UKVI staff informed her she would receive her passport back within 2 days and confirmation of Visa application results within 15 days. Do we have this right or wouldn't they just return the passport either with or without a visa document attached to it?

 

Im asking because now that we have submitted the application we need to visit her mother who is in hospital which means driving away from home and we might miss the postal delivery of the passport if it is returned back within the next 10 days.

 

What is the next step of the process, would the visa simply arrive applied in the passport?

[theoldgit]

Wife was in the appointment area for about 40 minutes. UKVI staff informed her she would receive her passport back within 2 days and confirmation of Visa application results within 15 days. Do we have this right or wouldn't they just return the passport either with or without a visa document attached to it?
 
What is the next step of the process, would the visa simply arrive applied in the passport?

No, that doesn’t seem right, unless you requested, and paid for, the “retain your passport” option.
To the best of my knowledge the passport is retained by the local UKVI team in Bangkok, and when the decision has been made by the UKVI team in Delhi, they either print the visa vignette and insert it into the passport, or print the refusal letter, and in either case the passport is returned to Trendy in a sealed envelope.
Good luck.

[NightSky]

8 hours ago, theoldgit said:

No, that doesn’t seem right, unless you requested, and paid for, the “retain your passport” option.
To the best of my knowledge the passport is retained by the local UKVI team in Bangkok, and when the decision has been made by the UKVI team in Delhi, they either print the visa vignette and insert it into the passport, or print the refusal letter, and in either case the passport is returned to Trendy in a sealed envelope.
Good luck.
 

Ok thank you, that makes sense.