BEFORE YOU APPLY FOR A VISA TO THE UK, CONTACT US TO AVOID REFUSALS

Guiding and providing help on travel to the United Kingdom via various visa categories available. Special focus on Visa refusals and real life case studies on Visa refusals and solution by experts based in India and the UK.


Monthly Cost of living: 

Accommodation : £700 - £900 p.m. (for an independant living, with family. Shared accommodation for families are also available. This usually includes boarding, electric, water, kitechen utilities (oven, cooking range, gas supply) and bathroom (washing machine), where cleaning is offered once a week only.)

Council Tax : £70 - £120 p.m. ( If you stay alone you can claim a discount from them.) Age of the building, insulation etc. decide how much you pay to the Council. This is utilised for schooling, security and waste management in your locality.

Electricity : £60-£100 p.m. (usualy higher during the winter months, from October to March) . some of the famous electric suppliers in UK are : e-On, Scotttish Power, British Gas, npower, Southern Electric. Cost of repairs if you rent a house: http://www.whatprice.co.uk/electrician/

Communication : Telephone / cell / broadband / landlines: £30-£70 p.m. (BT, O2, Orange, Virgin, T mobile, Vodafone & 3 are some famous communication providers in UK.)

News papers cost 60p to £1 daily. (The Times, Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail & Gaurdian are some of the prominent printed dailies.). Books and periodicals can be accessed via the local libraries. Buying theme can be quite expensive.

Water : £50 - £70 p.m. ( Anglian water etc.)

Food : £250 - 400 p.m. (for a family of 2 adults and a child), can be less by upto 50%, if staying alone in an accommodation.) Tesco, Sainsbury's, Morrison's & ASDA, which are major retail outlets of UK.

Travel : £50 - £120 p.m. (Taxis in UK can be quite expensive, they can cost £1 a mile to £3 a mile, in London, due to high congestion, they charge based on time.)

Check out National Express &
The Train Line for your bus & train travels in UK.
London Underground / Tube.

The cost of cars in the United Kingdom can also be significantly higher compared to getting them from their places of origin like Germany and Italy. A decent used (7-9 yrs. old) family car can cost upwards of £600. Having an International Driving License (with longer validity), working spouse with a driving license can help reduce the cost of car Insurance by half.

Driving in UK: Visitors with a foreign licence may drive in the UK provided their licence is valid for more than 12 months from the date of entry into the UK.

If you wish to continue driving after this period, you will need either to exchange your foreign licence for a British licence or to obtain a provisional UK licence and pass a UK driver’s test before the 12 months is up.

A provisional licence is the equivalent to the learner’s licence that you need to obtain before you can go for your driver’s test. To apply for your provisional driver’s licence, contact the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) directly at:

Email: drivers.dvla@gtnet.gov.uk
Website: www.dvla.gov.uk


Leisure : £20 - £your limit. p.m. (Sky, connections for cable etc.) A movie ticket can range abywhere between £4.6 to £10 per show. While theatres/ live stage shows are a rage in the UK ( esp. London.), costing anyweher between £10 to £100 each.

Taxi between Heathrow and Central London: £40-£70.

Currency: National currency is the British pound (sterling) (GBP), with one hundred pence to each pound. Notes are issued in the value of £50, £20, £10 & £5. Coins to the value of £2, £1, 50p, 20p, 10p, 5p, 2p, & 1p.

Value Added Tax (VAT) is @15.0% which is payable on most retail purchases. (reduced from 17.5% in November 2008, due to the recession in the UK and around the world, which is valid till 2010).


Visit Office of National Statistics for economic releases on UK

Some Lastminute help, You can check lastminute.com, for a host of deals and bargains on Hotel, flight & accommodation in the UK.

Cost saving tips in UK:

There are host of websites which compare prices across various segments of the market from food, to cars to insurance to clothes. e.g. MySupermarket.co.uk can come handy, which compares prices across different websites. Gocompare for Insuarance etc.

Security:

It was in London where Big Brother ( also a famous reality show on TV ) was coined, owing to high number CCTVs ( Close circuit cameras, close to 600,000, highest in the world ) in public places, for security of the people. It is said an average person is captured 200 times by the cameras in London, making it one of the highest in security in the world.


Accommodation in UK

Have you found accommodation in the UK yet? If you are looking for a place to stay for the first couple of weeks after your arrival, we have a few sites for you to visit and on which to find accommodation.

• If you are sociable and who would like to meet people from all over the world, then why not stay in a hostel/backpackers lodge? They are inexpensive and will know all the great places to visit and clubs to go to, and there will be lots of lots of people to enjoy these activities with you. Click here to find a hostel.

• The YMCA also provides accommodation for people travelling to the UK. You can use them as a support base for the beginning of your stay. Have a look at what they can offer you by clicking here.

• Want to share a flat? Have a look on the Gumtree advertising website if you would like to organise a room for yourself in a flat share before you leave. There are many rooms available all over the UK.

Finances:

Bank Account: There are various prominent banks in UK vis-a-vis HSBC, Lloyds TSB, ICICI Bank, Barclays, NatWest etc, who offer easy ways of opening a bank account. Usully needing your passport and address proof in the UK top open the account.

Credit Card: Credit cards may not be easy to avail of, as it depends on your credit worthiness and your roots in the UK. Ideally anyone who has been living in the UK for more than 3 years. Experian is one of the reputed & trustworthy names doing the credit Checks and providing vital information about your background. (having details on your address, loans, credit cards, employment, voting status, direct debit mandates etc.) Typical rates vary from 16% APR to 39% APR.

Loans: (Home Loans, Personal Loans, Mortgages) As is the case with Credit Card, securing loans too require excellent background and credit rating. However, unsecured Loans are also available but at exhorbitant interest rates, which can go upto 140% p.a., where you re-pay them weekly.

Cost of living for students: You can get more tips here : http://www.educationuk.org/UK/Article/Budget-planning-in-the-UK

Earning Additional Income in UK

If you have recently moved to the UK or planning to move soon, the foremost thought would be, 'How do I ensure additional income' apart from the regular income from employment or business or services.

One of the prime reasons why people move to the UK is the fact it has enormous opportunities who want to work and earn and do something with their lives. This can be established from UK employment rate, which stands at a very healthy 90-95%. Better than the US. Recession did have an impact and the employment rate go down by 2-5%.

Surveys: Participate in research surveys or online surveys. Physical surveys can offer as much as £50 for 2-3 hours where you may be needed to answer questions or review a product. Check out www.gumtree.com, which happens to be one of the most reliable and free advertisement medium for UK.

Odd-jobs: There are quite a lot of small part-time jobs available which offers handsome pay, vis-a-vis event promoters, Charity collectors etc.

Cashback Websites: Most of the websites offer cashback for shopping online each time you shop, which otherwise you won't if you had visited a high street shop.

Tesco Vouchers: When you spend in Tesco you earn double points.  A £ spent earns you 2 points, in addition to that you can save on by re-using the Tesco, 'green' carrier bags ( which earns you a point). The points are redeemed and Tesco sends you money off vouchers in lieu, every 3 months, once you cross 1000 points. These vouches can then be used in Tesco to buy your usual groceries.

A move ticket can cost anywhere between £5 to £10, you can get redeem your Tesco vouchers for movie tickets, valid on all days and for all shows across cinemas in the UK. This you can get for as little as for a £3 voucher. ( That's a cool saving of £7 , if you plan to see a movie after 5PM or on a weekend in Cineworld cinemas)

Adopted Children - UK Visa and Immigration

This guidance explains what the Immigration Rules say about adopted children coming to join one or both of their parents in the United Kingdom (UK), and about children coming to the UK to be adopted.

You must be able to show that:

• You currently live and are settled in the UK legally, with no time limit on your stay, and
• You can support your child and provide somewhere to live without needing help from public funds.

For your child to qualify to join you in the UK, you, or your child, must show that he or she:

• cannot support themselves financially, is not married and is not living independently away from their parents
• is under 18 years of age
• was adopted when both parents lived together abroad or when one or the other parent was settled in the UK
• has the same rights as any other child of the adoptive parents
• was adopted because their birth parents could not care for them and there has been a full and genuine transfer of parental responsibility
• has broken all ties with their birth family, and
• was not adopted just to make it easier to enter the UK.

Your adopted child must get a visa before they travel to the UK, unless they qualify for a passport issued by an EEA member state.

Under the Adoptions with a Foreign Element Regulations 2005, it is now an offence for prospective adoptive parents to bring a child into the UK to adopt them, unless the adoptive parents have met all the legal requirements. The penalty for not following legal requirements is an unlimited fine or up to 12 months’ imprisonment (or both).

The Adoptions with a Foreign Element Regulations 2005 aim to prevent people from bringing children into the UK to adopt them unless:

• the adoptive parents have already been assessed and approved by a local council or a voluntary adoption agency (VAA), and
• their suitability has been approved by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills.

To avoid committing an offence, these regulations say that prospective adoptive parents in England and Wales must already have:

• applied to a local council or VAA for approval of their suitability to adopt a child
• successfully completed the assessment process
• received confirmation, in writing, of the adoption agency’s decision to approve them as suitable adoptive parents, and
• received notification, in writing, from the Secretary of State for Education and Skills that they are prepared to issue a ‘certificate of eligibility’.

Within 14 days of the prospective adoptive parents' arrival in the UK with a child, they must tell their local council of their intention to adopt the child. Once the council has received this notification, the child will become a protected child under section 22 of the Adoption Act 1976 and will be monitored by the council under sections 32 and 33.

It is strongly recommend to read the Home Office's guidance on Inter-Country Adoption and the Immigration Rules, which can be found on the UK Border Agency website:
Inter-Country Adoption and the Immigration Rules

How long can my adopted child stay?

If your child was adopted in a designated country and both you and your husband, wife or civil partner are settled in the UK, or if you alone are responsible for the child, they will normally be allowed to stay permanently in the UK from the date they arrive.

If your child has not been adopted in a designated country, they will normally be allowed to stay in the UK for 12 months so the adoption process can continue through the UK courts.

Will my adopted child automatically become a British citizen?

Your child will only become a British citizen if you adopted them through the UK courts and at least one of you (as their adoptive parents) was a British citizen when the adoption order was made.

Does my adopted child need a visa?

All adopted children coming to the UK need a visa before they travel unless they qualify for a passport issued by an EEA member state.

How do I apply for a visa for my adopted child?

You can apply in a number of ways, for example by post, by courier, in person and online. The visa section will tell you about the ways in which you can apply.

Some visa sections will only accept visa applications made online. To find out if you can apply for your visa online please visit www.visa4uk.fco.gov.uk

If you cannot apply online, you will need to fill in a visa application form (VAF 4 – Settlement). You can download the form from this website, or get one free of charge from your nearest visa application centre.

You should apply for entry clearance for an adopted child in the country of which the child is a national or where they legally live.

In some countries, if you are applying for a visa to stay in the UK for more than six months, you may need to be tested for active tuberculosis before we will accept your application. You can find out if you need to be tested by using our Do I need a visa? questionnaire on the homepage of this website, or by contacting your nearest visa application centre.

What will I need to make an application for my adopted child?

You will need to make your child's application online or fill in a visa application form:

Application form VAF4 - Settlement

Settlement form guidance notes

You will also need the following:

• The adopted child’s passport or travel document.
• A recent passport-sized (45mm x 35mm), colour photograph of the child. This should be:
  • taken against a light coloured background
  • clear and of good quality, and not framed or backed
  • printed on normal photographic paper, and
  • full face and without sunglasses, hat or other head covering unless they wear this for cultural or religious reasons (but the face must not be covered).
• The visa fee. This cannot be refunded and you must normally pay it in the local currency of the country where you are applying.
• Supporting documents relevant to the application.

What is 'biometric' information?

All UK visa applicants, save for those benefiting from a limited number of exemptions and exceptions, are required to provide biometric data (10-digit finger scans and a digital photograph) as part of the application process.

You will have to go to your nearest visa application centre in person to provide your biometrics. In those countries where there is no visa application centre, you will need to go to the British mission.

Your visa application will not be processed until you have provided the necessary biometric information. The finger scans are electronic so staff do not need to use any ink, liquid or chemicals. You will have your digital photograph taken at the same time and the whole procedure should take no more than five minutes to complete. You should make sure that you do not have any decoration (such as henna), or any cuts or other markings on your fingertips before having your finger scans. You should also make sure that if you have any cuts and bruises on your face, they have healed or disappeared before you have your photograph taken. Digital photographs must be of your full face and you should not wear sunglasses, a hat or any other head covering (unless you wear it for cultural or religious reasons but the face must not be covered).

What supporting documents should I include with the application?

You should include all the documents you can to show that the child qualifies for entry to the UK as your adopted child. If you do not, we may refuse the application.

As a guide, you should include the following.

• The child’s original birth certificate, showing its name at birth.
• A report from the overseas equivalent of the UK’s Social Services Department giving the child’s full history and how the adoption came about, or, if the child is related to you, a full statement in writing from you as the adoptive parent.
• A certificate of abandonment from the authorities previously responsible for the child, if the child has been abandoned.
• The adoption order.

The Entry Clearance Officer will try to make a decision using the application form and supporting documents you have provided. If this is not possible, they will need to interview you.

Please check your child’s visa when you get it. You should make sure that:

• the child’s personal details are correct
• it correctly states the purpose for which the child wants to come to the UK, and
• it is valid for the date on which you want to travel. (You can ask for it to be post-dated for up to three months if the child will not be travelling immediately).