Bringing my Chinese girlfriend to UK. Visa Questions

[yingguoguy]

I've been in China now for nearly three years and been in a relationship with a Chinese girl here now for nearly two. I'm going to go back to the UK in a few weeks and we've decided that it would be nice for her to come to England as well when she finishes teaching for the term next month. Our relationship is getting more and more serious, we'll probably be in a position to decide whether or not to get married in a year or two, but we're not at that stage yet. I originally planned to be in China for maybe two years, however, as I'm coming back after the summer, I'm likely to be here for a total of four or five years. So it would be nice for my parents to meet this girl so they could appreciete why I'm staying, and also coming to England would help her decide if she wants to live there after we get married.

I'm just starting to look into the details of this and was wondering if anyone had any similar experiences. How easy is it for a British citizen to sponsor a Chinese person?

There seem to be various choices which we have to work our way through. For example which visa should we be applying for. It seems our relationship is not quite ready to apply for a marriage or family visa, especially as we have, for various reasons been living in different provinces for the last six months. (The family visa says you should have been living in a state "akin to marriage" for two years) So perhaps the visit visa is the most suitable, but this also seems to me to be the one most likely to be rejected.

Similarly who should sponsor her to come to England, me or my parents? It seems that you have to be resident in the UK to do this, so that would rule me out, on the other hand my parents have never met her.

Has anyone had any experience applying on-line, or is it better to go to the British Embassy in Beijing (this is a good 4 hours away for us, so it's possible, but would certainly be a pain to have to go back more than once). Will the Embassy staff be helpful to us and give us advice, or are they only really there to collect the documents from us?

Finally and most importantly, is our application likely to succeed. From what I've read on the Embassy website, it neither seems as if its a certain thing, nor is it completely hopeless.

Any experiences would be appreciated.

(P.S. I know we're pushed for time, we should have started to think about this months before the summer holiday. This was kind of a snap decision, which we'd like to make work)

[liuzhou]

A visit visa is probably your only option, but it does carry the risk of rejection. However, if you are honest in your application, then it shouldn't be a problem.

The important things to show are that she will not be a burden on the State. So, the sponsorship is important. This is not just a case of saying "I sponsor her". You have to give evidence that you can. Probably, your parents can do this better. It is not necessary to have met her.

Secondly, she should show the likelihood that she will return to China and not disappear into the black economy.

She cannot apply online. Assuming she is a Sichuan resident, she cannot apply in Beijing. She must do so through the consulate in Chongqing in person.

[johnd]

You don't need to go to the embassy or consulate. Visa application processing is outsourced to UKVAC, you can see they have many locations around China:

http://www.vfs-uk-cn.com/information.aspx

I found the staff in the Shenzhen office are friendly and helpful. As Liuzhou said, just make an honest application for a visit visa. But before you go, prepare as many documents as you can:

Proof of your girlfriend's stability in China - letter from company, payslips, income tax doc, bank statements showing regular salary

Proof of her financial assets - does she own a house, car, stocks and shares, etc. - take all these certificates

Your parent should sponsor her visit because you are not currently resident in the UK, so need original invitation letter, passport photocopies, proof that they can provide accommodation such as council tax statement, electricity bill, etc.

Proof of your relationship with her, and therefore her link to your parents - maybe photos, or anything else you can think of.

Proof of sufficient funds for the trip from whoever will be paying - could be her, you, or your parents, her parents (bank statements, etc.)

And maybe it would be useful to provide proof of your stability in China, to show that you two are not planning to settle in the UK. So a letter from your company, bank statements, income tax statement, etc.

Start preparing early!

[Rincewind]

I did this for my gf last year. I also helped some friends here get student visas. It's not easy but nor is it impossible to get a trip visa and in fact the trip visa needs less paperwork and interviews than the other visa types. They are looking for proof of three things: that you have enough money to live in the UK for the length of your stay; that you have somewhere to stay (someone's house or hotel); and that you can be trusted to go back to China at the end of your stay.

To provide proof, you (or your parents) will need to provide lost of documents (bank statements, pay-in slips and such like) to show you have sufficient money to sponsor her, or she must show her bank statements to show that she has enough money to sponsor herself. She only needs you as a sponsor for the money. If your gf is well off then she can do the whole thing without involving you. She'll need the name and address of your house if she is staying with you. A letter form you parents inviting her to come, including the address, would be good. Lastly proof that she will come back to China, e.g. she owns property or a car here or similar tie.

Be aware of the time. It's not a fast process. If you are doing for this summer, get your skates on and don't procrastinate. Gathering the paperwork take time. The form you print form the web is big - not the single page of A4 that you did when you came to China. Be honest on the form, don't lie. Fill it in fully and make sure the required documents are all included. There is a small chance that she will be asked to go for an interview. This is more likely on Business or other restricted visas and less likely on trip/tourist visas. My gf had to do an interview for which she had to go to Beijing. More than likely this wont be required. If the visa is successfully, it can be sent to you by post so you don't have to go back to the visa office many times.

[yingguoguy]

Thanks for all the replies, lots of useful stuff there.

Will be going to Tangshan tomorrow to apply for the passport as the first step.

Will report on my progress later...

[johnd]

Just found this on the embassy website, 90% is pretty good odds:

The 4 Visa Sections in China had a 9% increase in the number of applications received in 2007 when compared to the previous year. We have received over 170,000 visa applications with around 90% of all visas applied for being issued.

[gargantua65]

Hi,

I am filling a visa application form (Tier 4) for a friend in China. Once, I have filled it in, i should send it online and then print out a copy and send it her, I believe. Does this paper copy have to be signed by her and then taken to her nearest office in China? Is there a way I don't have to send the application by post all the way to China? Also, once the application is processed, what is the procedure? Does he get an appointment in his nearest office to submit further information? Thanks for your help. I am pretty lost..