I’m British, and want to return home with my foreign partner. Help!

[brownbreadd]

Hi,

I am a British citizen with a foreign partner. We are currently residing in Dubai and working here, however long term I am very quickly realising that this isn’t going to be my forever place.

I am desperately missing friends and family, and the way of live back home in the UK (yes, really!) and would like to start looking into ways to return home, but with my partner.

My partner is Turkish, we both moved here to Dubai earlier this year to be together after a lengthy long distance relationship.

we are both working here, earning a good salary, and are unmarried.

does anybody know of the process in which I should take in order to look at the possibility of coming back to the UK and bringing him, too?

Thanks everyone for your help so far.

we both work in Marketing, at different levels. He is currently entry level and I am managerial level.

My salary here in Dubai does go over the UK salary threshold, but I don’t think that would count for anything when wanting to come home.

the thought of going back into to long distance relationship is awful, and really not something I want to do if I can help it.

I did read that there is the possibility of showing funds in your bank account instead, I want to try to find out more about this and what the amount is as this might be an alternative.

What is his profession? As others have said, if he's in a skilled profession it might be easier for him to apply independently.

You need to be married and I assume you definitely earn above 29k in dubai. You need to get a job offer earning that in uk due to start in less than 3 months
immigrationbarrister.co.uk/uk-partner-and-family-visa-financial-requirements-explained/#less-than-6-months-current-employer-variable-income-returning-overseas-sponsor

1. Less Than 6 Months with Current Employer or Variable Income – Returning Overseas Sponsor

As above, the Applicant’s partner will need a confirmed offer of salaried or non-salaried employment in the UK starting within 3 months of the expected date of arrival. The couple returning to the UK must also have received in the 12 months prior to the date of application the gross level of income from overseas required (£29,000).

The main distinction between Category A and B for a returning overseas sponsor is that they can satisfy the financial requirement through prospective employment, even if they are not in employment at the date of the application.

I have been married to British dh for nearly 10 years (expecting our first and only child now) and I married him at 22 after knowing him for little over a year. We were living outside the uk then but thankfully we were living in europe so we were able to move under eu law. It cost us £60 and no income requirement. We moved back to London around 10 months after we married.

Watch some 90 day fiance.

I am foreign, my H is British, and being married to us was not relevant. I did the whole thing on my own, based on my merits/work/etc etc, was different as from a European country, but basically if your boyfriend wants to move to the U.K. he has to be a big boy and make it happen himself (do research, find requirements for visa etc etc, find the right job). To me being married made no difference to my applications

Am now British, but it took years 😊

It does. You need to read the appendix financial requirements. Requirement for savings is 88k..you need to get a job offer here due to start soon

I understand the stereotype but he’s shown absolutely no interest in coming to the UK, it’s me pushing to return home. I want to be with family.

@Thebloodynine has it in a nutshell.

👍🏼👏🏼

This thread isn’t and was never intended to be about me living in Dubai. I’m merely asking a question.

I’d marry him in UK as saves on a lot of addition admin (translation of documents, what not)

Congrats!!!

Can your partner apply independently - so completely independent of you on a separate skills visa?

Sorry to bring this up - do you trust this man? The reason I am asking is because a dear friend of mine was recently completely fleeced by a woman who he brought back and married in the UK. Within weeks it was apparent she was only in it for a visa. It has been a total mess. Please please be careful and I mean no offence by this.

Unfortunately I don’t think he has any ‘skills’ required for the skilled worker visa route 😔

I am not able to offer any advice about returning to the UK, but get why you would not want to move to Turkey given the political situation there.

This^^

Firstly you both work your socks off where you are and save some money. He will need it if he can't work here.

You come back to UK in a job above the threshold (or estimated future threshold). If you cannot bear to be apart, he then joins you on whatever visa is possible and most appropriate. Maybe he comes on a 6 month visitor visa, maybe he secures a 1 year university place to study for a masters, maybe he get a job in a care home with some kind of sponsorship.

All they way you document your relationship, your commitment, your finances.

I completely understand, thank you for caring 😊

I know of people that have had the same happen. I am extremely cautious, having had a not so great marriage once already. I have gone into this relationship with my whitts about me and my eyes wide open, and so far I really don’t have any reason to believe he is being anything but genuine

I am married to an American for over 20 years and if I wanted to come back to the UK with him we’d have to be apart for at least six months probably more under the current rules because we don’t meet the financial conditions.

Unless he can get himself a work visa on his own merits the only way would be as a spouse so you would have to get married.

If you are not ready for that yet then you’ve got some time to get your ducks in a row.

One option is to use financial assets - they have to be in your bank account and must be there for at least six months when you apply - it’s a huge amount - used to be around £62,000 but I think it’s more now.

The other option is if you have been earning over the financial threshold for at least six months with one employer or for at least 12 months across more than one employer PLUS you have a guaranteed job offer with an employer starting within three months of your application PLUS you can show that you will have a place that can house both of you adequately then you can come back at the same time as a married couple.

If you can’t meet those conditions then you will need to marry, go back to the UK, work at a job over the threshold for six months then apply for him.

Also bear in mind that from the initial fees and the need to reapply to renew the visa every couple of years until he is eligible for permanent leave to remain or citizenship you will be spending about £10,000 on fees over the first five years so you will need to plan for that.

I will be honest I don’t know much about the situation in Turkey, I really don’t look into politics and that side of things very often.. but the procedure to move to Turkey is far from straightforward as a Brit. Even marriage to a Turkish citizen doesn’t grant you access.. you have to invest in property or go the work / visa route..

You either need to be married or have been living together for two years.

If you are currently earning above the threshold in Dubai, and can show you have a job offer earning above the threshold in the UK, you can both move to the UK immediately without him having to wait six months.

If you are not currently earning above the threshold, the only option other than moving to the UK by yourself for six months would be to satisfy the savings threshold instead.

Hmm, if he's shown no interest in living in the UK, why are you considering bringing him? I appreciate that you miss your family and friends, but you can't expect him to emigrate if he doesn't particularly want to live in the UK.

Moving to your partner's/spouse's home country is a huge commitment, I know because I did it. It takes a long time to settle in and in some cases, that never happens, and the relationship ends.

I think you're making assumptions. If you desperately want to move back to the UK and it's more important to you than anything else, do it. If he wants to join you, he'll tell you and you can figure it out when you're settled back in the UK.

No, it does count for something. If you’ve been earning above the threshold in Dubai for 6 months and can show you have a job offer above the threshold back in the UK, you can both move to the UK together.

You need professional immigration advice from a qualified person, OP, and not the ideas of random people off the Internet.

I would give Dubai a bit longer. You’ve barely been together long enough to take this big step of moving to another country together. Stay in Dubai and focus on your relationship. Then maybe in 12 months time you’ll either feel you know enough about each other to look long term and start putting plans in place to move back to Britain, or you’ll be settled and grown to like Dubai, and will remain there. Of course it could also be that the relationship has ended in that time too.

Thank you, that’s helpful to know. Would the same apply for my partner too? His earning here doesn’t go over the UK threshold.