ILR and visas for UK

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Can I extend my visa or apply for settlement whilst I am in Cyprus?

*Click here to see the flow chart showing visa options in Cyprus.

UKBA have recently revised their rules surrounding the application process for a UK visa whilst serving overseas. It is now possible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Enter (ILE) whilst overseas even if you have not been posted back to the UK and you are now able to apply for Leave To Enter if you don’t qualify for ILE. However you will have to pay for these visas yourself, the Army will only refund the cost of visa required for a posting back to the UK.

What is ILE? - Indefinite Leave to Enter (ILE) is essentially the same as ILR, it does have an expiry date which coincides with the passport expiry date but the visa is indefinite. Dependants can carry their expired passport with them whenever they travel or they can choose to apply for the visa to be transferred to the new passport. Details on how to do this can be found by clicking here. This costs £200 per main applicant and £50 per dependant.

Do I have to have a visa? - No, if you don’t wish to travel to the UK regularly, then there is no requirement for you to have a UK visa whilst you are in Cyprus. Given that it is more expensive to apply from overseas if you have children you should carefully consider your need for a visa whilst. On posting back to the UK, your unit will refund the cost of the visa that will then be required. See the 'Assignments to UK' page for further information.

If however you wish to travel to the UK regularly then you have a number of options depending upon your situation and the nationality and length of service of the soldier.

I have a current visa, can I apply for ILE? No, UKBA have advised that it is not possible to make an application for a visa if you currently have a valid one, you will need to wait until your current visa has expired. However if you have a visit visa, you are able to apply for ILE or LTE.

Soldier is NOT a British Citizen

Has served five years and have been married for two years. Eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Enter (ILE)/settlement (but only if you don't already have a dependants visa). Each individual travelling with be required to make an online application (including children) and will also need to attend the British High Commission (BHC) for an appointment to present the application form, supporting documents and to have biometric details taken. Go to the Cyprus Visa Application website and then click on the link for the online form. On the first page of the application form you will be asked for your ‘purpose of application’ select ‘settlement’ and then select ‘spouse’ from the ‘type of application’ drop down menu. As the form presumes that you are travelling to the UK, it will ask for a date of travel – just select the latest possible date it gives you. The form will also ask for an address – use your current BFPO address. The visa will cost £810 per person (including children), this is cheaper than applying in the UK if you don’t have children, but considerably more expensive if you do have children. A spouse and two children will pay £486 more for this visa in Cyprus than if they applied in the UK.
Has NOT served five years or married for two. Not eligible for ILE/settlement but eligible to apply for a four year LTE (Leave to Enter) visa. Follow the information above on how to apply. This application will cost £810 per person (including children), this is considerably more than you would pay in the UK so this type of visa is really only recommended if you need to travel to the UK very regularly (for example if you have a child at boarding school in the UK). A spouse and two children would pay £1,330 more for this visa in Cyprus than if they were in the UK. You may therefore wish to consider applying for a long-term visit visa instead, see 'Applying for a visit visa'. On posting back to the UK, your unit will refund the cost of the visa that will then be required.

What supporting documents should I provide? You will need to get a letter from your Unit to confirm that you are on an accompanied overseas assignment and to confirm the date of enlistment and expected run-out date of the soldier. The letter should also confirm that you are living in Service Families Accommodation with the soldier. It is also recommended that you include the guidance that UKBA have produced for its caseworkers on these visas as they are unique to spouses of serving soldiers. If you are applying for ILE then include this letter, if you are applying for LTE then include this letter. You will also need to provide bank statements and payslips to prove that you can maintain yourself without recourse to public funds. Click here for a suggested list of supporting documents.

Solider is a British Citizen

Married for three years. Eligible to apply for Citizenship using the Crown Service route (unless the soldier is an ex-Gurkha). See 'Applying for Citizenship from Cyprus' on the 'Citizenship and Life in UK test'
page.
Not married for three years (or soldier is an ex-Gurkha). Apply for two year probationary spouse visa also called a ‘settlement visa’ (this is the same as the FLR(M) visa in the UK). The current rules state that whilst you are able to make the application for the settlement visa from Cyprus, you still need to travel to the UK to ‘activate’ the visa in order for the clock to start ticking, otherwise your time overseas will not count. If you are still in Cyprus when the two years is due to expire you have to return to the UK again to make your ILR application. Click here and then click on ‘Section 1: Spouses’ and scroll down to paragraph 7 for the UKBA instructions detailing this rule (see below for an update on this). It may also be necessary to have passed an English language test at ESOL Entry Level (A1) before the settlement visa will be issued. For full details see the 'Assignments to UK' page.

To apply for this visa go to the Cyprus Visa Application website and then click on the link for the online form. On the first page of the application form you will be asked for your ‘purpose of application’ select ‘settlement’ and then select ‘spouse’ from the ‘type of application’ drop down menu. As the form presumes that you are travelling to the UK, it will ask for a date of travel – just select the latest possible date it gives you. The form will also ask for an address – use your current BFPO address. The visa will cost £810 per person (including children), this is cheaper than applying in the UK if you don’t have children, but considerably more expensive if you do have children. A spouse and two children would pay £1,330 more for this visa in Cyprus than if they were in the UK.

Remember your Unit will pay for this visa on a posting to the UK, it is not necessary to apply for this visa if you have not been posted unless you wish to start the clock ticking towards getting settlement/ILR.

April 2011 Update: After raising the issue of why spouses of British soldiers have to return to the UK to apply for ILR when spouses of commonwealth soldiers don’t, HQ Land Forces have responded to say that they intend talking to UKBA about this. They agree that Armed Forces personnel and their dependents should be treated as if in the UK even when serving overseas. In the meantime though, spouses who already have the two year ‘probationary visa’ will have to return to the UK to apply for ILR.

Applying for a visit visa

What is a visit visa? There is lots of useful information about visit visas on the UKBA website.

How do I apply? Click here for all information on how to apply for a visa in Cyprus. Each individual travelling with be required to make an online application (including children) and will also need to attend the British High Commission (BHC) for an appointment to present the application form, supporting documents and to have biometric details taken.

What visa do I apply for?
If you are going to the UK to visit and stay with family members, then you need to select the option ‘(General) family up to six months’ from the ‘type of application box’ on the online form. If you are going to be staying with friends or in a hotel, you will need to select the ‘(General) single, double and multiple, valid up to six months option.

What supporting documents do I need?
Click here for a comprehensive list of the documents you may need to provide. The supporting documents are very important, you need to be able to prove to the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) assessing your application that you are able to support yourself financially whilst in the UK; that you are able to fund your flights to and from the UK and that you have somewhere to stay. If staying with friends/family, they will need to provide a letter of support. You also need to prove that you have a life in Cyprus to return to, so a letter from your unit confirming that you are on an accompanied overseas assignment and live in Service Families Accommodation would be recommended. If you don’t supply the suggested documents, your application may be refused.

Long-Term visit visas: If you are going to need to return to the UK on a regular basis you may wish to consider applying for a long-term visit visa as this is the cheapest option, a 2 year long-term visit visa costs £265. It is important you read the information carefully before you make your application, the following information is taken from the UKBA website:

Long-term visit visas
You should give careful consideration before applying for a long-term visit visa valid for 1, 2, 5 or 10 years as there is the possibility that the visa may be refused, or issued for a shorter period than you have applied for. This could happen if the evidence you provide does not support a long-term visit visa application and / or does not meet the entry clearance criteria. If the application is refused or the visa is issued for a shorter period, you will not be refunded your application fee. Although there is no requirement for you to have held a short-term visit visa (that is, a standard visit visa of 6 months validity) before being able to apply for a long-term one, if you have not previously applied for a UK visa, you may wish to apply for a short-term visit visa first.

Applications for long-term visit visas will be considered in the light of:

- Whether the applicant can demonstrate a frequent and sustained need to come to the UK, such as family links or an established business connection.
- Whether personal circumstances are unlikely to change significantly during the validity of the visa. The better able the applicant can demonstrate stability over the long term the more it will support an application for a longer period.
- Whether the applicant can support themselves in the UK without public funds, and demonstrate that they intend to leave the UK at the end of each visit.
- Previous travel history as evidenced in a current valid passport.

See above for suggested supporting documents.

*If you have a child in the UK in boarding school then you will have to apply for a full visa not a visit visa. Depending upon the circumstances you would need to apply for one of the visas in the section below.

Medical Appointments

The unit will refund the cost of a visit visa required for a medical appointment in the UK. You will need to follow the guidance above for applying for a visit visa and will need to include proof of your hospital appointment. Do not select the ‘private medical visitor’ option (unless you are having private treatment), if you will not be staying with family then select the ‘general visitor’ option.

Spouses and children with a medical referral can travel to the UK using the Cyprus military trooping aircraft, transport from Brize Norton to the hospital or medical facility will also be provided. If you need to remain in the UK for a period of time, your Unit Admin Office will advise you on whether you are entitled to stay in transit accommodation or hotel if you have no friends or family to stay with.

Non-EU Passengers Procedures at Akrotiri Air Terminal

All Non-EU nationals who board an aircraft at Akrotiri, bound for RAF Brize Norton or RAF Lyneham, are to complete a Non-EU national proforma, which will be forwarded to the receiving airfield by the movements staff. The receiving airfield will then notify the UKBA Officer of the arrival of Non-EU passengers, who will be present at the receiving air terminal to check immigration paperwork. Non-EU passengers are to make themselves known when checking in at Akrotiri Air terminal to ensure this procedure is followed.

Visas for children going to boarding school

Children going to boarding school should either apply for a Leave to Enter visa or Indefinite Leave to Enter, depending upon what they qualify for. They should not enter the UK on a visit visa. It should not be necessary for you to apply for a Tier 4 (child) student visa, as these visa are for foreign students entering the UK and the visa requirements are very specific (although they are cheaper). If you have problems obtaining a visa for your child, you should approach your UWO in the first instance, but please contact me if you are not getting the information that you need.

If you have a child in the UK in boarding school then you will have to apply for a full visa not a visit visa. Depending on the circumstances you would need to apply for either Leave to Enter or Indefinite Leave to Enter.

Emergency travel visas

The following information was taken from the J1 F&C guide to Cyprus. Click here to download the full guide.

Visa Required for Medical/Compassionate Reasons. In cases of travel to the UK for an F&C dependant on routine medical/welfare/compassionate grounds, who does not hold a valid UK visa, the BHC typically processes visa applications within 24 to 48 hours providing there is no requirement for further immigration checks. All F&C dependants to have should have supporting documents prepared in case travel on routine medical/welfare/compassionate grounds is necessary and a visa application is required to be processed in quick order.

In cases of an urgent or immediate requirement to travel back to the UK for medical or compassionate reasons, an interim policy for short notice applications for a visa waiver has been produced. Due to UKBA restrictions, this visa waiver is only applicable to travel on RAF flights from Akrotiri to RAF Brize Norton and is not applicable to civilian flights from Cyprus to UK. Your unit has full details of the process to follow in such circumstances.

Should emergency travel for casualty/compassionate reasons require travel to a civilian airhead, the VAF1a visitor visa application form will need to be completed as far as possible, a photocopy of the photo page from the passport provided and a supporting letter from the unit explaining the circumstances. This will be checked by Entry Clearance staff and authorisation to enter the UK will usually be approved. This process guarantees the production of a visa being issued within a maximum of 12 hours.

Transiting via UK on a trip to your Country of Origin

There is detailed guidance on the UKBA website about whether you will need a visa to transit through the UK, click here.

Generally speaking if you usually need a visa to enter the UK for any length of time and are not intending to stay in the UK for more than 48 hours before you continue your onward journey, then you will be able to apply for a ‘visitor in transit’ visa. If you wish to stay for longer than 48 hours you will need to apply for a visit visa (see above).

If you are arriving and departing within 24 hours then the Immigration Officer may exercise discretion to allow you to pass through the UK without holding a visa, this is called ‘transit without visa (TWOV). However there are a number of countries whose nationals do not qualify for this and would still need a visa, these are referred to as Direct Airside Transit Visa (DATV) nationals. See above link for all information and a list of countries whose nationals need these visas.