visas for unmarried partners

pinkpixie

i have a job all lined up in India and didn't think i would have too many problems with my visa....however, the embassy didn't like the paper my contract was printed on and i had to get a new contract sent from India to the UK! I'm hoping i won't have any more problems but this experience has made me much more aware of the bureaucracy involved with visas. i'm hoping that my partner will join me in India at christmas on a 6 month tourist visa. what are the chances of him being able to stay longer without us being married? i'm getting a 2 year employment visa and if my other half likes India i hope he will stay and find work...would he have difficulty arranging a longer visa and finding work?
my head aches every time i try and answer this question myself....

Nick-H

They didn't like the paper! ? ?????

Unless it had to be on stamp paper and wasn't...


Now... were you thinking of getting married?

Because I think that is the only way you will get your partner there for longer than six months --- and even if you are married and he gets an entry visa, that does not entitle him to work.

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Just one member of the IndiaMike Mod Team

pinkpixie

yeah - i was a bit peeved when they said i needed my contract on headed note paper not plain white paper! i kinda felt like they thought i had made up a company and printed and signed my own contract! it's all a bit strange but hopefully my new contract will appease them!

i had no plans on marriage.....not yet anyway! i guess he'll have to make do with only seeing me for 6 months! i think we'll just have to wait and see how things pan out...

nycank

Does the Indian Embassy not give a 10 year visa with the stipulation of each visit not to exceed 180 days ? So your partner needs to do a re-entry to extend stay.

dzibead

Ten year multiple entry tourist visas are available only to U.S. citizens, because of some kind of reciprocal treaty with India. It appears that the OP is from the UK, so unless the OP's partner is a U.S. citizen, the 10-year version of the visa isn't available. Can UK citizens get a 5-year multiple entry tourist visa? Have people mentioned that here??? I'm getting so senile I can't remember

praks

I'm not sure about this but since Indians can get a ten year multiple entry UK tourist Visa, UK citizens should be able to get a ten year multiple entry Indian tourist Visa.

Nick-H

...Ahh, alas, the world is full of 'should be's

UK Citizens can get only a Six Month tourist visa.

dzibead

It's actually not at all uncommon for people seeking various kinds of permits and legal authorizations (like a visa) to be required to provide documentation on some kind of letterhead. After all, if the contract is just on plain paper, you could have simply made it up. Although you may feel affronted by their possible suspicion, remember: they don't know you from Adam, so they have no way of knowing whether you are an upstanding individual with a legitimate job or someone who's just trying to get around the system, so you shouldn't take it personally.

You also asked whether your partner would be able to get a longer visa and then find work. Apart from the issue discussed above, regarding the lack of a longer-term tourist visa for UK citizens, trying to get a longer visa and then looking for work is putting the cart before the horse. The Indian Govt. is going to look for evidence that your partner already has an offer of employment before something other than a tourist visa will be issued, and he can't work on just a tourist visa.

pinkpixie

Thanks for all your replies. my partner is actually polish! from what we've unearthed he doesn't have to pay any visa fees but i'm not sure what kind of visa he can get....he's got a few months to work on it!

incidentally i now have my visa! they liked the paper this time! much joy!

Nick-H

Great

You can pass idle moments before your departure getting your passport out and admiring it

pinkpixie

Slightly embarrassed to admit i have been doing so! it's quite pretty isn't it?!

Teresa

Pinkpixie, wondered if you could tell me how to get employment visa. I am after getting the same shortly. What documents, letter wording etc did you have to provide? Also I understand that the employment visa has no stipulation saying that you have to leave the country before 180 days?
Appreciate your help on this one...

Nick-H

My first one was a rubber stamp filled in by hand in green ink.

That was even prettier.

But yes... a nice fresh India visa is always worth admiring. And if it is more than a six-month Tourist visa don't stop at just admiring it: Gloat!

pinkpixie

[quote=Teresa]Pinkpixie, wondered if you could tell me how to get employment visa. I am after getting the same shortly. What documents, letter wording etc did you have to provide? Also I understand that the employment visa has no stipulation saying that you have to leave the country before 180 days?

the only stipulation as far as i can see is that i register with the FRO within 14 days. when getting your visa you'll need proof of employment - i took my contract as that's all the proof i have! i also asked my boss to write a covering letter explaining that they want to employ me and why, and i took a CV. i was refused first time i went to get my visa and told to come back with a CV and more background on my new employers. the letter and CV worked wonders and it took half as long to get my visa as it did to get refused!

i am certainly no expert on visas - the only advice i could give is to take as much superfluous information as possible. if they don't need it they'll give it back but it's better to have too much information than not enough

Teresa

Thank you for your reply, your information nuch appreciated