Which visa do I need?
Dear Mr Bassie, I PLAN to attend a short course in England and also to look at possible business opportunities while I am there. Should I apply for a business or a general visa?
Any advice would be appreciated.
– SK Dear SK, It is not necessary to apply for a business or general visa. A person should apply for a Standard Visitor visa if he or she would like to visit the United Kingdom if that person plans to go there for leisure, for example, on holiday or to see family and friends; for business, or to take part in sports or creative events; or for another reason, such as, to receive private medical treatment.
However, generally speaking, it is prudent for a person to check if he or she needs a Standard Visitor visa if that person is visiting from outside the European Economic Area or Switzerland.
The Standard Visitor visa has replaced the Family Visitor visa; General Visitor visa; Child Visitor visa; Business Visitor visa, including visas for academics, doctors and dentists; Sports Visitor visa; Entertainer Visitor visa; Prospective Entrepreneur visa; Private Medical Treatment Visitor visa; and Approved Destination Status visa.
STANDARD VISITOR VISA
If a person plans to visit the United Kingdom on business, he or she should apply for a Standard Visitor Visa if visiting for business-related activities, for example: a person going there for a conference, meeting or training; or a person who would like to take part in a specific sports-related event; an artist, entertainer or musician going to the United Kingdom to perform.
Also, the Standard Visa may be used if a person is an academic and is doing research or accompanying students on a study abroad programme; if the person is a doctor or dentist who is going to the United Kingdom to take a clinical attachment or observer post; or the person would like to take the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board test or sit the Objective Structured Clinical Examination; or a person may be travelling there to get funding to start, take over, join or run a business already in the United Kingdom.
A person who would like to go there for specific businessrelated activities should check the published visitor rules that will provide the full list of business-related activities that someone can do with a Standard Visitor visa.
It should be noted that a person can take part in any of the business-related activities that are permitted in the visitor’s rules; study for up to 30 days, as long as it is not the main reason for the visit; take part in an exchange programme or educational visit, if the person is under 18 years of age.
A person with a Standard Visa cannot do paid or unpaid work; live in the United Kingdom for long periods of time through frequent visits; marry or register a civil partnership, or give notice of marriage or civil partnership; or have recourse to public funds.
It is possible to apply for a visa up to 3 months before the proposed date of travel to the United Kingdom and a decision on the visa application should be received within 3 weeks. This will vary depending on which country the person is applying from.
The successful applicant can usually stay in the United Kingdom for up to 6 months and might be able to stay for up to 11 months if he or she is going to the United Kingdom for private medical treatment. Also, an applicant and his or her spouse or civil partner and children might be able to stay for up to 12 months if that person is an academic on sabbatical and going to the United Kingdom for research.
If the applicant is staying in the United Kingdom as an academic or to receive private medical treatment for longer than 6 months, he or she must apply for a biometric residence permit
It should be noted that a person can also apply for a long-term visitor visa if he or she can prove that he or she needs to visit the United Kingdom regularly over a longer period. The applicant can stay for a maximum of 6 months on each visit and his or her visa can last for 1, 2, 5 or 10 years.
With respect to fees, the applicant must pay PS85 to apply, plus an extra fee depending on the length of the long term-visit visa: for 1 year – PS324; 2 years – PS324; 5 years – PS588; and 10 years – PS737.
Dear Mrs Walker-Huntington, F YOU are married and did not disclose it to the United States (US) embassy and you got a green card, what are the implications if found out?
– AW
IDear AW, This issue of not disclosing the correct information to the US embassy is one that continues to haunt many persons in Jamaica. Providing incorrect information or failing to provide the correct information is tantamount to immigration fraud. This fraud never goes away and it can rob you of your chance to live in or visit America.
From your question, I assume that you were filed for as a single person but were, in fact, married and accepted your green card as a single person. If you are the beneficiary of an immigrant visa petition and are single, you are processed much faster than if you are married. Sometimes people start the process as single, but because the process takes years, they marry while they are waiting.
If the petitioner is a US citizen parent and you marry during the process, your petition will change from the F1 to the F3 preference category (unmarried to married son). The F3 category takes longer than the F1, but at the end of the day yourself and your wife will be able to migrate. If the petitioner is a green card holder who files for their unmarried son or daughter, and the son or daughter marries during the process, the petition dies because a green card holder cannot file for a married son or daughter.
The immigration fraud is committed when you are married and keep that information from the embassy. You have, in effect, told a lie to procure an immigration benefit. You received a green card when you were not supposed to. You were either to wait longer to receive the card or were not entitled to receive the card because the petition was voided by marriage.
If you are able to fraudulently obtain the green card and travel to America, you can never file for your spouse back in Jamaica and sometimes you cannot even file for your children. You will also have to continue the lie in America because if immigration ever discovers that you received your green card when you were not supposed to, you will be placed in deportation.