Help Keep My Wife In The Country!

My name is Rhian. I'm British, I live in Wales. My wife is called Kate Ellen. She's American. She's lived in Wales for over six years. We've been married for nearly three years now.

We could be seperated in September.

She's here on a spousal visa - it last two and a half years and the next one is due soon.

But, even though we work, we struggle to pay our bills because, well, I work part time and her hours are varied and it took us months to find the jobs we have. There isn't a lot of opportunity in rural Wales, and we live right on the edge of no where.

The fact that the fee for the next visa was going to be £649 was going to be problem enough. I wasn't sure where we were going to get the money - we can't save money - there's nothing to save.

Imagine our horror when I do some research and find we now have to pay a £200 a year Immigration Health Surcharge to use the NHS. In total, up front, for the next two and a half years.

£500

So in the next four and a half months we need to find £1100. it's just not going to happen.

My wife works and pays her National Insurance contributions but is getting punished because she's an immigrant who desperatly wants to live here. With her wife. She works hard, serves the community, is a role model to her neice and nephew. Buys local, shops local, supports local business.

How is this fair? Given the abuse of NHS resource every day by people born in Britain I think the government it targeting the wrong person. My wife is good and honest and the kindest person you'll ever meet. I was on disability benefits when we met and the Government's back to work programme didn't help me in the slightest. Kate Ellen got me back into work, into society, into a good and decent life.

The idea of losing my wife, of her having to go to America, is the worst thing that I can think of.  All for the sake of the change in David Cameron's sofa probably.

If you can help us out, that would be great. If just 110 people donated 10 quid each, we could pay this damn fee and get on with our lives because after this Kate Ellen can apply to be a British Citizen and we'll be together forever.