"Uk" Waiver club 601/212, List for uk waivers sign up!

[jpkeswim 0]

Let's just pray it will be this week and I will be happy!!!! Tomorrow will be the start of the 13th week! Only 6.5 weeks till the wedding! AHHHHH!

[jpkeswim 0]

no news!

[mary&tom 0]

no news!

[jpkeswim 0]

I just saw on the immigrate2us website that there was someone from IceLand out of the London office that got approved today...... She said it took 14 weeks.....I don't know if that is from the initial on from what they go by. Because if it is from the day I handed it to them ours is also 14 weeks. URG! So frustrating....

[cmltdg 0]

I can't believe that! You're going to hear something any day now, I just know it. So is your fiance all packed and ready to leave as soon as he hears? We've set our date for the 15th of July, hoping that will be enough time! But really hard to plan a wedding without a for sure approval. Cas is going to be ready to go as soon as he hears, though... at least he better be or there may be some English butt being kicked!

I'm hoping good things for you!

Tiff

[mary&tom 0]

Can't sleep because of all the thoughts going round and round in my head. I am worried that I screwed this up. I wrote to them on February 16th asking about our case. Got the standard reply back the next day... but then that denial we got on March 3rd was dated February 28th. What if the email I wrote caused them to take a look at it and the wrong person did the processing. What if it was meant to be done by whoever had ok'd us for submitting it but then it got moved because of my email.

The reason that I am thinking this is because our case when into the system only 4 days before jpkeswim's did. The fact that they have now waited longer.... we heard at 12 weeks and they are already at 13 weeks, makes me wonder. I think I messed up the whole thing with that email.

I am so stressed right now. Thoughts of all the things waiting for me in Michigan are crowding in. I feel like my head will explode. How do I manage to get rid of soooooo much stuff? I thought maybe I could keep my cds at least (I have 4000 cds and music is one of our biggest interests) but I had lunch yesterday with a woman who moved here to London from Indiana and she said it cost $5000 to send her stuff and she really didnt send much. Not as much as I was hoping to send. I have a feeling it will take me months to sort through everything and try to get what money I can. Been checking prices here and what I can get for my house in the states will be almost no help at all for buying something here

This is killing me... we had that house to live in. We had all the household goods we could ever need. We had family. Friends.

I cannot bear the separation ahead. I am so exhausted and discouraged that I don't know how I will accomplish what needs to be done. How do I leave behind a whole life... a life I wanted to share with Tom.

mary

Edited March 15, 2006 by mary&tom

[Jaylen Brit 0]

Mary - you didn't mess up. Don't think that and don't take blame for things outside of your control. The lawyer you consulted told you before he didn't think you would be allowed to waiver, so NOTHING you did - sending a simple enquiry mail - could have prevented them from making the decision they made.

Btw - I don't know if this suggestion is helpful or not (and I don't know if you've already been down this route) but was Tom's case reported in any local newspaper? If so maybe you could check and see if they gave any details (they keep all newspaper records on micro-fiche usually at the local library (local to the area of the court or the location of the offence).

Have you been in touch with local immigration (at the place this occurred) to see if THEY have any records you could get copies of that might be helpful?

If nothing works, at least you KNOW the 2 of you will have a life in the UK - it may take longer to get on your feet but you WILL do it. Look at the tenacity with which the 2 of you have dealt with this waiver business - you WILL have a good life together wherever that is, and I have no doubt that you WILL make it work.

Many hugs and blessings to you both

[mary&tom 0]

Mary - you didn't mess up. Don't think that and don't take blame for things outside of your control. The lawyer you consulted told you before he didn't think you would be allowed to waiver, so NOTHING you did - sending a simple enquiry mail - could have prevented them from making the decision they made.

Btw - I don't know if this suggestion is helpful or not (and I don't know if you've already been down this route) but was Tom's case reported in any local newspaper? If so maybe you could check and see if they gave any details (they keep all newspaper records on micro-fiche usually at the local library (local to the area of the court or the location of the offence).

Have you been in touch with local immigration (at the place this occurred) to see if THEY have any records you could get copies of that might be helpful?

If nothing works, at least you KNOW the 2 of you will have a life in the UK - it may take longer to get on your feet but you WILL do it. Look at the tenacity with which the 2 of you have dealt with this waiver business - you WILL have a good life together wherever that is, and I have no doubt that you WILL make it work.

Many hugs and blessings to you both

Thanks. I am really struggling right now. I feel like I have no fight left in me and have let tom down. I should have called or written the embassy. Called a congressman. Called the press. Something. Instead I just stayed exhausted and depressed and now its too late to do anything.

As for the local newspaper where the incident happened in wales... I highly doubt anything was reported. The incident seemed like nothing at the time. A small amount of marijuana found in a car. When they went for the court date, the judge acted annoyed with the customs guys for taking up court time with such a "trivial" matter. The court lawyer said it was nothing. Even the police at the station where customs took them said not to worry..it was nothing. Sometimes my mind just reels when I think of how "nothing" will now affect the rest of our lives and that of my kids and grandkids. My grandchildren would have been lucky to have us in their lives. Now they cannot.

We tried to get more detailed records from the court and none exist. Dead end. And that is what hurt us in the end... the fact that the court or police never bothered to weigh anything and never bothered to record the fact that the case was treated as personal possession. Obviously he never should have agreed to plead guilty.. never should have let himself be intimidated into it. Hindsight....

When that lawyer told tom that we would not be given the opportunity to file a waiver petition, he also said that if he was to tell this story to any american that american would find it impossible to believe that there was no way around this. I know that was my initial reaction and that of anyone back home that I told. Everyone just said to not worry... there was no way that we would be denied. For a while we looked forward to telling that lawyer he was mistaken.

As far as having a life in the UK... yes we will be together. Our love and committment has never been in question. There will be a huge cost though. I lose everything back home... family, home, friends. And tom will have to commute for an hour on a motorscooter just to get to work from the area where we will be able to afford to live. We cannot stay in this two room flat with no kitchen forever! Its that commute that upsets me the most right now. Adding that onto the days when he has to do 16 hour shifts... that is inhumane. Never even thought of putting that into the hardship letter... not that they even considered the hardship letters.

mary

[pax 0]

Mary, have you considered at all getting the press involved? I'm not joking. You say that no American could believe there's no way around it, and you're probably right. Someone has the power to pull strings on this, if the right kind of pressure is applied.

[jpkeswim 0]

No news again today!

Only 6+ weeks until the wedding. The minute they give him the APPROVAL he is quitting his job and taking care of all the small things he needs too! I hope it is this week! I just keep praying. My best friend is getting married on April 1 and I really want him there for her wedding. Let's just keep praying it all works out!

Mary&Tom - I don't think my case has anything to do with yours. Maybe mine is taking longer because we had so many hardship letters from our friends, family and co-workers. Plus John had a long overstay and I am sure they had to get his records from the states. I don't know! I really wish I knew how the government worked sometime. This is all very draining!

[mary&tom 0]

No news again today!

Only 6+ weeks until the wedding. The minute they give him the APPROVAL he is quitting his job and taking care of all the small things he needs too! I hope it is this week! I just keep praying. My best friend is getting married on April 1 and I really want him there for her wedding. Let's just keep praying it all works out!

Mary&Tom - I don't think my case has anything to do with yours. Maybe mine is taking longer because we had so many hardship letters from our friends, family and co-workers. Plus John had a long overstay and I am sure they had to get his records from the states. I don't know! I really wish I knew how the government worked sometime. This is all very draining!

This is crazy. When we had our interview the end of November they said waivers were taking 2 months to process. Yes it is draining.

I know the cases don't have anything to do with each other... I just thought they were all meant to take the same amount of time. I was worried that my email asking for anwers might have pushed them into just hurrying up and saying no instead of figuring out how to say yes. I did more than inquire about the status of our case. I told them Tom had scheduled a holiday thinking we would have our answer by early February and that we had hoped to be free to visit Scotland rather than have to sit by the phone everyday. We never went to Scotland. Instead we stuck close to home ... waiting for the news. We received the letter the day he went back to work. Didn't really take full advantage of his 11 day holiday. Oh... he did take delivery during that time on flight cases for his music keyboards and sound mixer and packed them up Guess those were a waste of money.

I really can't think clearly anymore. I have never in my life had problems with depression until now.

mary

[nigel 7]

Hay mary....have you thought of getting married in London then after go for DCF? the reason i say this because a new case and different story to your case....being married can/will carry more weight to your case..

Just thinking out load here...

[mary&tom 0]

Hay mary....have you thought of getting married in London then after go for DCF? the reason i say this because a new case and different story to your case....being married can/will carry more weight to your case..

Just thinking out load here...

not allowed to marry him here... i have to go back to the states and apply for a fiancee visa

even if i could marry him here i imagine i would have to leave when the six months ends (when I came in on the VWP in November they stamped my passport that I can stay six months)

also we can't afford to maintain residence here and in the states for much longer... I know the person who is looking after my big empty house there is getting tired of doing it. I had to pay winter heating bills there even though the house was empty because you cannot leave a house in michigan unheated in the winter.

I will have to go back and try to get rid of everything, get the fiancee visa and come back. Tonight I will try to change my return flight to early May. There is no way I can leave next Tuesday. Its much too soon to be separated after suffereing this blow.

being married won't help this case though... it said we were denied strictly because of the wording of the charge... thats all... I was a qualified "relative" but my hardships were not considered due to us being ineligible for a waiver.

mary

[rebeccajo 14]

not allowed to marry him here... i have to go back to the states and apply for a fiancee visa

even if i could marry him here i imagine i would have to leave when the six months ends (when I came in on the VWP in November they stamped my passport that I can stay six months)

Hm. I don't know if that would be the case. I don't know why you couldn't marry as long as you go back (probably still by the date stamped in the passport).

Why do that? Well, you'd be married - it might feel better - I don't know - might feel worse. I have no idea if the spousal visa might be quicker than the fiance' - supposedly if you go to a british consulate in the US in person, a spousal visa can be granted in one day. If you can't physically go to one of those locations, I believe the spousal visa can be filed online.

Is there a british equivalent of adjustment of status without having filed a family visa, as there is in the US? Lord knows that if there is, everybody on here could testify you had no intention of marrying and living in the UK when you arrived.

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

Rebecca - since Feb 05 you are legally required to have a fiance visa to get married in the UK, you can't do it on a tourist visa. A few years ago you could get the fiance visa by hopping over to Amersterdam or Paris and getting it from the consulate there and returning, but that might have changed with the new law.