Our first week in the UK

Our first week in the UK couldn't have been better.  We had planned for this week to be fun and relaxed as Paula had come over with us, but was only staying for a week before heading back to South Africa.  We wouldn't be seeing her over Christmas, so we tried to pack as much Christmas spirit into the week as we could - and Christmas spirit is something England does very, very well!

On Saturday morning we set off to the post office to collect our BRPs (Biometric residence permit)  These permits are credit card-style cards that we will carry with us, proving that we are legally entitled to reside in the UK.  We also applied for our UK driver's licences.  This entailed posting our passports and BRPs off - something the South African in me found rather disconcerting, but as it turned out was nothing to worry about.  A couple of days later I got a slip through the door, requesting me to collect a parcel at the post office and there was my passport and BRP, safe and sound, and a day later my shiny new UK driver's licence was posted through the front door.  I LOVE the UK postal system!

This week we also went and opened a bank account and registered to vote.  It is a good idea to register to vote, as (weirdly!) it plays a part in helping to build your credit history.  

So the admin part of our week was quite successful - we have mobile SIM cards, we have our BRPs, we have a bank account, we have UK Driver's licences and we are registered to vote.  

Still to do:

• I need to register for NI (Grant is already registered from his previous stint in the UK)
• we need to register with our local doctor

Aside from the admin sort of things, we did a lot of fun stuff in our first week too.

We went to our local farm shop's Christmas market, we went to the Christmas festival in a nearby village - that was great fun, think a crisp Winter night, Christmas lights, mulled wine, an antique fairground organ, lots of stalls.... , we spent a morning in Bath at the Christmas fair, we met friends in Windsor one morning and finally we spent a day in London.  London really shows off at Christmas time, my photos don't do it justice at all!

D-Day finally arrived

Our last week in South Africa was really strange - in some ways it sped by and in other ways it seemed to drag on endlessly.  I had such mixed emotions, there was stress, nervousness, fear, dread, excitement, joy, sadness.... you name it, I felt it!  

Our last night was spent at a B&B and that evening we went out for dinner with our daughter Paula, her fiance, Calvin and Impi.  Impi is in his late 20s, he has grown up as a part of our family - his mother was my parents' housekeeper.  I drove his mom to hospital the day he was born and since then he has been like a son to me.  Although I know we will see him regularly and I hope that one-day he will also come to live in England, I was dreading saying goodbye to him.  This was the biggie for me, the one thing that I knew was probably going to break my heart.  And it did.  I randomly burst into tears halfway through dinner and it took me a good few minutes to get a handle on my emotions.  I still tear-up when I think about it.  Fortunately, that little emotional outburst aside, our dinner was pleasant and we had a good time together.

The day of our departure dawned and we took care of a couple of last-minute errands, went and had coffee and then lunch and before we knew it it was time to pack up and head to the airport!

photo credit: wilco737 via photopin (license)

We flew Emirates because of their generous baggage allowance (2 x 23kg bags checked-in luggage per person.)  Once at the airport we did our luggage drop-off and then went through security.  We had decided not to have anyone see us off at the airport and I was really pleased with that decision on the day.  Our wait at the airport and our flights were uneventful and after what felt like VERY many hours, we landed at Heathrow.  We were dealt with by a pleasant customs official who stamped our passports and wished us well in the UK after having a look at our BRP letters.  We had taken all of our documents and TB certificates in our hand luggage, just in case, but she didn't ask for any of that.

Once we had collected our luggage (it all arrived, safe and sound!)  we hired a car at Heathrow and set off for our temporary accommodation that we'd booked through booking.com.

It felt a bit anti-climatic really...all the build up to the big move and then the departure from Durban, the flight and our arrival in the UK felt so ... ordinary.  

My To-do list for our ancestral visa application

This is the To-do list I used for our UK Ancestry visa application with spouse dependent:

At least 6 months before you intend applying for your visa:

• Apply for SA unabridged birth certificates
• Apply for SA marriage certificates
• Apply for UK birth certificate
• Get quotes from pet transport agents if you are considering taking your pet/s

At least 4 months before you intend applying for your visa:

• Begin the process of having your pet micro-chipped, vaccinated, titre tested etc and confirm the agent you are using for their transport

At least 3 months before you intend applying for your visa:

• Get or renew SA passports if necessary (check the expiry date in current passport and make sure there are enough pages)
• Ensure that there are sufficient funds per applicant in a bank account (the consensus at the date of this post is R30 000 per applicant)
• Update CV of the main applicant to the UK format (free template here)
• Register with employment agencies (Reed and Indeed are good options)
• Start collecting proof of relationship for spouse dependent (20 photos over the duration of the relationship, including wedding photo, mail addressed to both applicants at the same address, joint bond statement if applicable etc)

Roughly a month before you want to go to your biometrics appointment:

• Get TB test done - see the list of approved clinics here.
• Apply for a couple of jobs and keep the email responses
• Arrange for proof of UK accommodation eg invitation letter from friend or family member (incl copy of their passport, utility bill) or booking through Booking.com or Airbnb
• Apply for the ancestral visa online, book the biometrics appointment and pay the NHS surcharge, register with TLS contact.  Before doing the online visa application it may help to complete the form manually - a manual copy can be found here.

A week before the appointment for biometrics:

• Get 3 months bank statements showing sufficient funds per applicant printed and stamped by the bank
• Take colour photocopies of important documents such as birth and marriage certificates

On the day of the appointment:

• Ensure that you have the originals and photocopies of all relevant documents
• Make sure that none of your documents have staples or paper clips attached
• None of your documents should be laminated
• Make sure your documents are in an easily accessible file - I found a concertina file like this one works great.
• Get to your appointment half an hour early, take a deep breath and relax, it's going to be fine!

Its a process

In exactly a week's time we will be leaving our home in South Africa for the last time - it feels so surreal!  We will then spend a night in a B&B before leaving for the UK next Thursday.  

Being an anal, Type-A, personality I have planned our last week down to the final detail, but the weird thing is that even at times when my To-do list has come unstuck and our plans have gone awry it seems like we just keep plodding on towards our final goal... which is of course getting on that plane to England!  It almost seems like our journey towards that goal has taken on a life of its own and we are being carried along for the ride.  Appointments happen, admin gets done, details get seen to and, slowly but surely, everything falls into place.  There is something strangely comforting in knowing that - even on the days when I fall to pieces a little bit - the process is happening and we are progressing towards D-Day.

Photo by Chimene Gaspar on Unsplash