Moving to the UK with HK wife

[dossier]

in 2014 there were 6,520 cases of TB in UK and 4,705 cases in Hong Kong. Therefore the incidence rate in HK is almost 10 times that of the UK.

I see what you mean.

https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...eport_2015.pdf

Key messages
 a total of 6,520 cases of TB were notified in England in 2014, a rate of 12.0 per 100,000 population, which is a further reduction since the peak of 8,276 cases in 2011 (15.6 per 100,000)
 the rate of TB in the non-UK born population was fifteen times higher than in the UK born population, and 72% of cases were non-UK born
 the number of cases and rate of TB in the non-UK born population in England have declined year on year since 2011, with a decrease of more than 10% each year in the past two years
 the decline in non-UK born cases has mainly occurred among new migrants who have been in the country for less than six years; the majority (60%) of non-UK born cases now occur among those who have lived in the UK for more than six years
 the number of TB cases born in India, Pakistan and Somalia has shown a particularly large decrease in the past two years
 the rate of TB in the UK born population has not declined, remaining stable at 4 per 100,000 population over the past decade
 the majority (62%) of UK born cases were from the White ethnic group, although rates in non-White ethnic groups were between two and thirteen times higher

Centre for Health Protection - Tuberculosis notifications (all forms) and rate by age group and sex, 2014

[HK_Katherine]

So my UK vaccine (whicb I got age around 13, not at birth) is more effective than the ones that give in HK? Or perhaps HK imports it's cases from China much like the UK seems to import most of theirs....

[kimwy66]

So my UK vaccine (whicb I got age around 13, not at birth) is more effective than the ones that give in HK? Or perhaps HK imports it's cases from China much like the UK seems to import most of theirs....

Or maybe HK has it's own homegrown TB transmission...sometimes facts help in these situations.

Centre for Health Protection - Notification & death rate of tuberculosis (all forms), 1947-2015

So no, them manlanders aren't to blame. Aging population, poor health care for the elderly who have been exposed to the TB bacteria in their lives without a vaccine most likely, as shown in these statistics. Centre for Health Protection - Tuberculosis notifications (all forms) and rate by age group and sex, 2015 (Provisional)

[avocado22]

I am also in the situation of potentially moving back to UK with HK wife and kids..

Given what I have read, it seems it would be easier for my wife to get an internal transfer within her company and then I imagine she would be able to live in UK on a work visa and apply for citizenship at a later date ? Or is there any other particular advantage to the spouse visa?

[Skyhook]

One of my English mates who returned back to the UK middle of last year, his wife was deported and not allowed to remain while the paperwork was being processed. It took 5months in their case, and she's been back in the UK since December 2016, I believe.

Organise the application 6 months before you relocate/land in the UK or you will aggravate your life unnecessarily.

[kimwy66]

I am also in the situation of potentially moving back to UK with HK wife and kids..

Given what I have read, it seems it would be easier for my wife to get an internal transfer within her company and then I imagine she would be able to live in UK on a work visa and apply for citizenship at a later date ? Or is there any other particular advantage to the spouse visa?

I would check that she isn't required to apply for a family spouse visa, regardless of whether she could apply for a work visa. UK immigration are a law unto themselves and I seem to remember reading somewhere about someone being deported on the grounds that being married to a UK citizen prior to entry and joining the family in the UK voided the work visa. Always best to get the full facts as the UK border control see it.

Also worth noting that the spousal visa is only for 2 years & 6 months So you have to apply again before your wife would be eligible to apply for citizenship. The exact same requirements stand at the re-application - you have to have earnings over the threshold or savings in a bank account. There was a case at the end of last year of a couple who set up a business running a post office franchise using their 62k savings, and didn't take a salary, and then failed to meet the financial requirements at reapplication. She was facing deportation at Christmas time, I haven't heard what the outcome was.

[jimbo]

One of my English mates who returned back to the UK middle of last year, his wife was deported and not allowed to remain while the paperwork was being processed. It took 5months in their case, and she's been back in the UK since December 2016, I believe.

Organise the application 6 months before you relocate/land in the UK or you will aggravate your life unnecessarily.

Agreed, organise as early as possible as the paperwork needed is crazy.

You can always pay extra to fast track and get a decision within a few weeks, Assuming you're 100% certain you fulfill all the criteria needed.

[kimwy66]

The Supreme Court has ruled the Income Threshold rule is lawful, but that "the way it has been implemented unlawfully fails to take "proper account" of the Home Secretary's duty to safeguard children".

The Supreme Court has said the Government's £18,600 income threshold that bars UK workers' foreign spouses is lawful.

The policy, brought in when Theresa May was Home Secretary, has been blamed for keeping families apart because British citizens living in the UK do not earn enough money to bring their partners to the country. It holds even if their partner's earnings would tip them over the limit.

The court's decision means thousands of couples may remain apart. But it also determined the rules and instructions behind the income threshold are not lawful when it comes to the welfare of children.

Britons have previously told The Independent they have had to move abroad to be with their families because of the policy, and the Supreme Court judges admitted it has caused—and will continue to cause—"significant hardship to many thousands of couples".

The judges said that while a minimum income requirement is "acceptable in principle" the way it has been implemented unlawfully fails to take "proper account" of the Home Secretary's duty to safeguard children. The rules must be amended to take this into account, and also to allow "alternative sources of funding" to be considered.

They added: "The fact that the minimum income requirement may cause hardship to many does not render it unlawful. It has the legitimate aim of ensuring that the couple do not have recourse to welfare benefits and have sufficient resources to play a full part in British life.

"The income threshold chosen was rationally connected to this aim and the acceptability in principle of an minimum income requirement has been confirmed by the ECtHR."

In their full judgement, the justices recognised the income limit "has caused, and will continue to cause, significant hardship to many thousands of couples who have good reasons for wanting to make their lives together in this country, and to their children".

Foreign spouse income limit: Supreme Court rules financial barrier lawful, barring entry to thousands of couples | The Independent

[East_coast]

in 2014 there were 6,520 cases of TB in UK and 4,705 cases in Hong Kong. Therefore the incidence rate in HK is almost 10 times that of the UK.

Had to get TB check & X rays recently and specialist blamed the dense living environment for the higher level of cases. Also TB can lay dormant for years. Suggest over 7K cases will be reported for 2016 but let's see.

[WMDS]

The whole process is costing me $25k which includes all relevant fees to government etc.

Not cheap by a long shot

But I'm happier in UK so no choice lol

I am planning to move back to UK next year too but $25k to process the visa is way higher than I expected. Does this include flights? Breakdown would be great, thank you in advance!