Please Help Me and My Partner Unite
Donation protected
Me and My Filipino partner are a gay couple. We have been together 9 months now, though known each other since July last year. My partner is very close to me and treats me like a king when we are together (and apart), from breakfast in bed and tending to my every need health-wise, and also we love spending time together, meditating together, and just being a couple. We have spent time together holding hands under the stars, which was an amazing feeling. I have had two trips to the Philippines during our relationship.
I have never felt this from a partner before, and he has been the best thing that has happened to me since my mother died in 2013. This has been something that means so much to me I have raised some of the money we need to be together myself by selling all my worldly possessions, and he has done the same, though he had very little to begin with.
One thing we love about each other is spirituality. He has never hesitated to help someone else in need. For instance, both of us took a homeless man for a meal in the Philippines together, which felt so good! We are both highly spiritual, and I know having the option to be together in the UK and work hard would do us so much good, allowing us to be happy together, have a good quality of life, and enable us to help others. He has never hesitated to help another in need, even giving his last meal in some cases . I fell in love with him because of these qualities and for how kind he is to me and the fact we share common goals. He is loyal, loving and faithful and makes me feel so happy inside.
This moment below sealed the good we love to do together (the homeless guy is sitting next to Ian almost in tears, having been bought a meal by us both and given an ear):
It goes against the grain for me to need to ask for help for myself but at this point I can see no other option but to ask for the help of strangers. The problems we have faced regarding immigration restrictions have lead to many nights of tears for us both trying to work out what we can possibly do.
I have Asperger's syndrome and ME/CFS and I often struggle with extreme fatigue and difficulties in daily life, though I have managed to live independently with a good support network. This has caused serious problems with me moving over to the Philippines to be with him, as we were originally intending to do. A trial run of me in the Philippines using the maximum amount of time I am able to be abroad posed some serious problems due to my disabilities:
1. The population density in areas where internet access is good and where jobs are is so high that I was not leaving the house, the crowds of people and traffic noise drove me insane. The difficulty in crowds of people and around unfamiliar people all the time took a serious toll. No good quality internet access or jobs for a good income is available in the provinces.
2. Being away from most of my family and friends was difficult; it would take a mental toll to move away from them at this point in my life.
3. Two incomes, even if you both worked full time (6 - 7 days a week) would not sustain a quality of life for two people, and my health does not allow that many w
4. The high temperature made my ME/CFS really play up, I have felt tiredness for large parts of the trips I have spent there.
5. Long-term spousal visas for gay couples in the Philippines is not possible, leaving you with the only option of extending tourist visas, but you are not allowed to practice your profession or work on that kind of visa. One income in the Philippines is not enough.
The above problems have to lead to us having to reconsider and try and go for a spousal visa and marry in the UK late next year. Surely this is simple, you and the love of your life can be together as you are British, can prove a genuine relationship? This used to be so until the rules were tightened in 2012. Based on our circumstances, I require at least £5000. I have raised £3000 of this myself by selling everything I own, from games consoles to cameras, but am still £2000 short with no way to raise this, and being apart from my partner has been so painful.
We face being apart until we have saved around a further £2k for six months, which will give enough savings to meet the requirements based on my current circumstances, and pay the visa application fees - £2000 including NHS surchage for a fiancee visa so we can marry, and then £1000 for a FLR (further leave to remain) application and from there he can start working in the UK. Ian is a hard worker, he has had to be, and would be happy in any job he can find.
The clock is ticking, as the savings have to be held for at least six months in an account under your control for them to be used for the adequate maintenance requirement and i must have the money by Feburary as by september I may not meet the criteria for the reduced requirements anymore. The donations will go towards the visa fees, airfares and cost of an immigration solicitor, on top of what I already have to get us set-up in the UK together, once the visa has been approved.
Those and all financial rules relating to family visas can be read
here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/636618/Appendix_FM_1_7_Financial_Requirement_Final.pdf,
So there you have it, the full story of where we are at. I never thought I would ever be in this situation but life is full of surprises!
We would both be extremely grateful for any donation, large or small to enable us to spend the rest of our lives together. It would mean so much to us both. Thank you so much for reading our story and for any donations. It really does mean the world to us.
I have never felt this from a partner before, and he has been the best thing that has happened to me since my mother died in 2013. This has been something that means so much to me I have raised some of the money we need to be together myself by selling all my worldly possessions, and he has done the same, though he had very little to begin with.
One thing we love about each other is spirituality. He has never hesitated to help someone else in need. For instance, both of us took a homeless man for a meal in the Philippines together, which felt so good! We are both highly spiritual, and I know having the option to be together in the UK and work hard would do us so much good, allowing us to be happy together, have a good quality of life, and enable us to help others. He has never hesitated to help another in need, even giving his last meal in some cases . I fell in love with him because of these qualities and for how kind he is to me and the fact we share common goals. He is loyal, loving and faithful and makes me feel so happy inside.
This moment below sealed the good we love to do together (the homeless guy is sitting next to Ian almost in tears, having been bought a meal by us both and given an ear):
It goes against the grain for me to need to ask for help for myself but at this point I can see no other option but to ask for the help of strangers. The problems we have faced regarding immigration restrictions have lead to many nights of tears for us both trying to work out what we can possibly do.
2. Being away from most of my family and friends was difficult; it would take a mental toll to move away from them at this point in my life.
3. Two incomes, even if you both worked full time (6 - 7 days a week) would not sustain a quality of life for two people, and my health does not allow that many w
ork hours in any case. A doctor here can be paid as little as £150 a month, for example. A pair of carrots will cost £1, for instance, so living costs are a real problem.
4. The high temperature made my ME/CFS really play up, I have felt tiredness for large parts of the trips I have spent there.
5. Long-term spousal visas for gay couples in the Philippines is not possible, leaving you with the only option of extending tourist visas, but you are not allowed to practice your profession or work on that kind of visa. One income in the Philippines is not enough.
We face being apart until we have saved around a further £2k for six months, which will give enough savings to meet the requirements based on my current circumstances, and pay the visa application fees - £2000 including NHS surchage for a fiancee visa so we can marry, and then £1000 for a FLR (further leave to remain) application and from there he can start working in the UK. Ian is a hard worker, he has had to be, and would be happy in any job he can find.
The clock is ticking, as the savings have to be held for at least six months in an account under your control for them to be used for the adequate maintenance requirement and i must have the money by Feburary as by september I may not meet the criteria for the reduced requirements anymore. The donations will go towards the visa fees, airfares and cost of an immigration solicitor, on top of what I already have to get us set-up in the UK together, once the visa has been approved.
Those and all financial rules relating to family visas can be read
here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/636618/Appendix_FM_1_7_Financial_Requirement_Final.pdf,
So there you have it, the full story of where we are at. I never thought I would ever be in this situation but life is full of surprises!
We would both be extremely grateful for any donation, large or small to enable us to spend the rest of our lives together. It would mean so much to us both. Thank you so much for reading our story and for any donations. It really does mean the world to us.
Organizer
Jacob Sparky Mayes
Organizer
England