Partnership Based Work Visa

[BirdPlane]

Hi there,

I am a NZ Citizen and my UK partner of 10 months is currently on a sponsored work visa which is due to expire in March. As her employer is not on the accredited employers list and her job is not part of the skills shortage or qualifying under the rating system for a highly skilled they are currently re-advertising her role and should there not be any suitable NZ candidates they will continue to sponsor her.

Should this not go in her favour, we have decided to move in together (we had planned to later this year anyhow) and she moving in to my current shared house at the beginning of the year. Should we need to apply for the partnership based visa we would only have been living together for 1-2 months. I understand that normally 3 months is the minimum however does anyone have any experience whereby they have been living together for a short time?

To start getting everything together to ensure we have a reasonable case to put forward we are doing the following:

1. Set up a joint bank account with our new address and begin paying in both of our rent to then pay out of this;
2. Have started a joint savings account which we have begun both contributing for when we move into our own place later in the year;
3. She is already listed on the insurance for my car, as my next of kin at work and I am listed as her partner to receive her work covered health insurance;
4. We have photos and evidence of trips around NZ and overseas, she has spent Christmas with me at my parents and we have plans to attend family events back in the UK at the end of the year;
5. My housemates who have known us both for our time together will provide letters of support to further verify we are living together at the address; and
6. We can easily show activity and photos from all of our time together from facebook etc and messages between us.

For anyone who has gone through this process could you please provide any advice on anything else that we could provide as further evidence of us living as partners? It is my understanding from viewing some experiences on this forum and from discussing on the phone with immigration that externally verifiable information (such as letters etc) showing proof of address and that we are in a serious, committed relationship is better than references etc.

Depending on how arduous this task might be I have also considered seeking help from an immigration lawyer. Does anyone have any experience dealing with them and estimate of costs to put together this submission for us?

Thanks for your help

[JandM]

It has been known for partner-sponsored work visas to be granted on the basis of eight weeks' good evidence. When you put in your case, keep collecting evidence very carefully. So all the time the case is waiting, then being processed, more evidence of partnership is accumulating. It's normal for a CO to ask for more proof just before a visa is granted anyway, even in cases with a longer time for evidence. But in your situation, if an official was to say, 'You've only got 8 weeks,' then it would be good to be able to say, 'But now it's 11 weeks (or whatever) and counting.'

This isn't really a complicated situation. It will feel tense, but it sounds as though you have a thorough understanding of what is needed. A lawyer can't make the requirements any different - they don't have any special pull with INZ.