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August 12th, 2010, 03:52
Hi folks, I've been a member (but mainly a lurker) here for a l~o~n~g time now.

I became fan of Thailand, Pattaya, and slim, smooth Thai bois a few years ago, but then on a trip to Malaysia I met my BF 'Everard'. I won't explain how he came by that nic - you'll have already guessed correctly ;-)

Well E stole my heart, and he tells me i stole his. He's such a kind, gentle soul, great fun to be with, and is perfectly gorgeous in my eyes, and we've been together ever since.

When I say "together" I don't mean we live together. I'm stuck in Blighty and he's stuck in Malaysia, but we always holiday together, he comes 2 me for a few months each year and i've been to stay in MY from time to time too.
It's not been totally satisfactory, but hey, I can't get a Malaysian residence visa and he cant get a UK one, so we've just accepted the situation and made the best of it.

We've coped pretty well with our long distance relationship so far, but we had a major setback last month which has caused to us to rethink the whole scenario and seek a way of living together properly like any couple should do.
E arrived in the UK for to stay with me for a few months (as he's done before), but this time they wouldn't let him in the country. They turned him straight round and sent him back home the next morning. As you can imagine, this has been a devastating blow.

They even put a 'Deported from UK' stamp in his passport, and we're not sure what effect this may have on his ability to travel to other countries as well. It's shattered our confidnec entirely. Why did they send him back? Because the Indian Immigration official said she "didn't belive he intended to return home at the end of his stay" even though he had a fair amount of cash on him, a return ticket to MY and htravel insurance for the duration of his stay.

Instead of being able to be together for the majority of the year both here and/or on holiday somewhere, it looks like now we can only be together for short periods on holiday and that just isn't going to work for either of us.
In desperation, I've started looking for a job in Malaysia but I think that's a pretty long shot and of course isn't permanent either, and we've started looking at a same-sex-partnership here in the Uk which if achievable would be a permanent (and the best) solution.

I've done some primary research on the Gov. website and other info sites but they tend to assume that both parties are already in Blightly. They give scant information on the situation where one party is overseas and doesn't have a Uk passport.

And then I thought... where can I get solid practical advice from someone with experience? Erm... I know!
I'm sure there will be members on the forum here who have been through something like this or know someone who has, so here I am, asking for your help.

Has anyone here, or anyone you know had experience of "importing a bf" to Uk for a same sex partnership arrangement?
All information will be gratefully received. And if we do find out how it's done, I'll become a blogger rather than a lurker, and keep you all posted on our experience step by step.

Woohoo

Beachlover
August 12th, 2010, 20:38
Good luck... I hope you find a way.

Malaysian boys can be so cute.

joe552
August 13th, 2010, 04:43
Try posting on Thaivisa.com - lots of expats, surely someone will have been through the process.

Good luck!!

August 13th, 2010, 05:16
Difficult to give specific advice as you don't give much specific information. Did your Malaysian friend apply for a visa before entering UK? Although a visa is not required for short trips, he can apply for one with you as sponsor if he wishes (and would have to do so now he has been turned away once). If you are both up front about being in a relationship, you should also be able to appeal against the refusal of a visa (as long as you can show some evidence that you are in a relationship akin to marriage).

To form a civil partnership with a view to your BF settling in the UK, he would have to apply for a settlement visa as your proposed civil partner. This is very expensive - about one thousand pounds for the initial visa (valid about three months) then almost another thousand to get this extended to two years once the civil partnership had taken place, though this extension would allow him to work in UK if he can find a job. Then there is a third thousand pounds to pay to get the permanent visa. You would need to provide a lot of evidence demonstrating your relationship and the state of your finances to get the initial settlement visa.

Your BF could, in theory, get a non-settlement visa to come to the UK to form a civil partnership. This would be much cheaper - less than 100 pounds - but it might be difficult to get unless you could show you were moving to Malaysia afterwards.