Visa Applications

I haven't written on this subject for a while. It's just good to know that the forms i sent are being processed. Not the forms that i originally thought that i would be sending, but a different set altogether.

To get you up to speed. I took advice from an Immigration Attorney in the autumn on setting up a business here in the US as the wording on the application document was unclear. The form stated that the applicant had to invest a significant amount of money in the business venture they were considering. For me, i need a truck and some tools to start by business, i explained this and it was suggested that if i were to purchase these items outright, it should, indeed, signify a significant amount, in fact the total amount required and would therefore qualify for that section of the visa application. I just needed to complete the whole planned business documentation to prove that it would be a ligitimate concern and have everything ready to go before presenting my case.

It all seemed so easy, time consuming, but easy.

I came back to the Farm so that i had easy access to all the information that i needed for the forms and to be in the right place to research and gather information and to get a better feel for the region now that i had a plan. It all went well for a good couple of weeks, i volunteered and then worked solidly on my application until i decided to have my progress checked out by the attorney. Just to see that i was on the right track and everything was going to be in order. We had a great meeting and it all sounded good. She was a little concerned in how little money i was going to invest and we devised a way to make it seem more with a little support from Cynthia and the farm, it all sounded great. The attorney also also that she would check with a friend in London to see how applicants were faring at the moment.

A couple of days later i received an email. Bad news. The embassy were rejecting all applications that were investing less that £125,000 without question. So it was a no go.

Cynthia immediately had a solution. For me to be employed by the farm and to expand its horizons to include vegetable garden instillation. I will run the instillation side of things and continue to provide support on the farm in return for board and lodgings. It all sounds great. There was a deadline for applications for this different visa, April 1. We had two weeks to get together all the paperwork and have it sent off for processing. Something that usually takes businesses several months to compile. We worked into the night most evenings to research all the requirements and put together the relevant forms, copying and compiling the document in the copy shop on the morning that it had to go into the post.

It is now in the hands of the authorities, we just have to wait until they get through the 45000 applications to hear if it has been successful. A patient wait.

My plans now are to return to the UK when my current visa expires then wait until October and, visa permitting, return to work on the farm then. I have yet to decide what to do for the summer, either get some work somewhere or travel europe helpXing and discovering more about the world. Will have to see what opportunities arise.