How can my Thai girlfriend live permanently in the UK? If you live in the UK, your Thai girlfriend can come to visit you in the UK on a visitors Visa. This will enable her to stay in the UK for up to 6 months in any given 12 month period. If they are your partner they will be allowed to stay for a longer duration. In this case, a partner is defined as:
- Your Thai wife
- Civil partners such as Thai husband, Thai boyfriend
- A partner whom you have lived with for a minimum of 2 years (unmarried partner)
If you are engaged to be married to your Thai fiancée and you plan to marry in the UK, she can enter the UK for up to 6 months on a Fiancée Visa. The Fiancée Visa can be converted to a settlement visa once you are married. Once your Thai Wife has the Spouse Visa she will be allowed to live in the UK for an initial 30 months that can be extended by a further 30 months if your situation remains the same.
Can my Thai Wife Work in the UK?
Once your Thai partner has obtained a UK Spouse Visa she will be able to work in the UK without restriction.
Financial Requirements for UK Spouse Visa
As with all long-term UK visas, there are certain financial requirements that must be met in order for your Thai wife to be granted a UK Spouse Visa. You and your Thai wife will need to be earning a minimum of £18,600p.a. before tax. If you have one dependent child that amount will rise by a further £3,800p.a. making a total of £22,400 and for each additional child after the first, it will increase by a further £2,400p.a.
What can the £18,600 be made up from?
The £18,600 can comprise of earnings from employment or self-employment, a pension, other income which would include rent or dividends from shares, sick pay, maternity or paternity pay or cash from savings which must amount to in excess of £16,000 and have been your name for a minimum of six months.
Proving you are in a genuine relationship
You will need to prove that you are in a genuine relationship. This is quite straightforward if you have lived together previously or have children. However, we always recommend that you keep the phone and messaging records along with photographic evidence over a period of time to prove that you are in a genuine relationship.
Indefinite Leave to Remain
It is possible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) after the 5 years has elapsed. This is the first stage of the process of becoming naturalized as a British citizen. This is something that we can discuss with you in further detail.
How can we help!
We can help your Thai girlfriend to apply for a UK Tourist Visa or any other UK Visa. If this is something that you would find useful, you can call us on +66 (0)80 102 2328, +66 (0) 38 420 313 or +44 (0) 20 8133 8059, email us on: info@thaivisaexpress.com or alternatively contact us via our website.