Partnership Essential Work Visa with an ongoing SMC Application

[max3010]

Isn't a partner of a worker working visa (or any partner visa for that matter) automatically the same length as the principal applicant's work visa. How can they have different duration?

When we applied last year, my visa came a few days earlier than my partner's. I think partnership based visas are supposed to be same length as principal applicant's but we will have to inform INZ of that by applying (and paying a new fee) for a partner visa again. A visa that will only last until September.

[max3010]

Interim visa is only applicable when you have submitted a new temp visa application and it's not processed before your current temp visa expires. An Interim visa won't be issued if your current temp visa expires and you haven't submitted a new temp visa application just because you have a Residence application in process.

The SMC queue is stuck at applications lodged on 17 December 2018 and has been since March. I don't know of any EVE requests that have been approved since March - even requests I have submitted on the basis of client's mental health suffering have been declined. INZ have no compassion in this regard.

Thank you for that!
So if I apply for another work visa in September for the same role I have been working for the past two years, will I have an interim visa granted? I guess yes, right?

[Kelerei]

Thank you for that!
So if I apply for another work visa in September for the same role I have been working for the past two years, will I have an interim visa granted? I guess yes, right?

Read the information in Interim Visas here and here.

[EGoodhue]

Thank you for that!
So if I apply for another work visa in September for the same role I have been working for the past two years, will I have an interim visa granted? I guess yes, right?

As long as you apply before your current work visa expires, then yes, an Interim visa will be granted if INZ haven't processed your new application by the time your current visa expires. The conditions of the Interim visa will depend upon the type of visa you currently hold and the type you are applying for - it pays to check, as people are often caught out thinking they can just keep working on the Interim visa, but sometimes Interim visas are granted with Visitor visa conditions, which means the holder can not work until the new work visa is granted.

[chrispaucci]

In terms of using the old documents for a new visa application, INZ are likely to ask you to provide updated ones if you try this. Given that it's been a few months since you applied for SMC, they'll want to see evidence that your relationship is genuine and stable now for a new work visa application, rather than rely on old evidence (keeping in mind that INZ sort of take the position that everyone is dodgy until proven otherwise!). You can refer to the evidence submitted with your SMC application and ask the case officer assessing your new work visa application to also review this, but also provide new and current evidence of your relationship.

For the evidence of a labour market test, it's not required when applying for an Essential Skills work visa when you have an SMC application in the queue. Save your employer and yourself some time and hassle and don't go to the bother of gathering labour market test evidence - you won't need it, and it won't benefit you to provide it.

Thank you for clarifying this! We will provide some updated documents as well along the old documents, although we are in doubt if we should get updated letters from our friends or relatives.

I have a question with labour market test though.. I think I didn't clarify who's principal with our SMC.

Anyway, my partner lodged her SMC and included me to the application as non-principal then our application has been entered in INZ system around September 2019.

With our current visa, INZ granted her an open work visa based on partnership which I was the principal and this is the one that going to expire soon. So, I'm planning to renew my essential work visa again and include her to the application...

Back to the original question, do I need to get labour market test in this case since I'm not the principal in our SMC application?

Thank you~!

[JandM]

In that case, yes.

[chrispaucci]

In that case, yes.

Thank you so much, this is really helpful!