Man to spend Christmas alone after losing wife's UK visa fight
December 18 2009 by Liam Clifford
UK immigration authorities refuse UK visa for Filipino wife of English man.
A
British man is preparing to spend Christmas alone once more after his wife was
again refused a UK visa by the UK immigration authorities.
Andrew Colwell
lives on the canal on a narrowboat and married his Filipino wife Thelma in July
2001 in the Philippines. He then bought a cottage for them to live in but sold
it after Thelma was refused a UK marriage visa.
Colwell says there is no
good reason why the UK immigration authorities continue to refuse Thelma a visa.
Since they were married she has only been allowed to live in the UK for six
months in 2008. Otherwise the couple depend on Colwell’s regular visits to the
Philippines.
He estimates he has now spent £20,000 on trips to the
Philippines and on visa applications.
The problems have occurred because
the couple did not apply right away for a settlement visa for Thelma after they
were married. Colwell explains, “I said to Thelma to apply for a six-month visa
and work her way up to apply for a settlement visa, because the rules on
settlement visas are very strict, but because we didn’t apply straightaway the authorities thought our marriage wasn’t genuine.”
UK immigration officials said they could not comment on individual cases.
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