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Spouse Visa - Creates Problems / Able to work?

 
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dghjarrett



Joined: 11 Oct 2010
Posts: 47
PostPosted: Wed Jul 20, 2011 11:47 am    Post subject: Spouse Visa - Creates Problems / Able to work? Reply with quote
Hi all,

I am UK citizen and a qualified CELTA teacher. My wife, who is an Italian Citizen, and I are thinking of moving somewhere new, maybe to Hong Kong, Vietnam or Malaysia. I am the only teacher in the couple and therefore, probably the one who would get the work to secure a VISA for the country.

Does my wife being an Italian Citizen create any problems with getting a dependent VISA and if not, would she be able to work on this type of VISA in said countries..

Thanks for any advice,

daniel
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tttompatz



Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 1951
Location: Talibon, Bohol, Philippines
PostPosted: Wed Jul 20, 2011 1:25 pm    Post subject: Re: Spouse Visa - Creates Problems / Able to work? Reply with quote
dghjarrett wrote:
Hi all,

I am UK citizen and a qualified CELTA teacher. My wife, who is an Italian Citizen, and I are thinking of moving somewhere new, maybe to Hong Kong, Vietnam or Malaysia. I am the only teacher in the couple and therefore, probably the one who would get the work to secure a VISA for the country.

Does my wife being an Italian Citizen create any problems with getting a dependent VISA and if not, would she be able to work on this type of VISA in said countries..

Thanks for any advice,

daniel


If you have a degree to go with that CELTA there won't be any problem getting a dependent family visa for her in Asia with the caveat that she probably won't be able to work (depends on the country you go to and whether or not she holds a degree in anything). In order to get legal work she would need to be able to obtain the proper work visa rather than a dependent family visa.

I have never had a problem bringing my wife and daughter anywhere in Asia (as dependents).

.
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Glenski



Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
PostPosted: Wed Jul 20, 2011 1:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Sorry to nitpick, but your title for this thread says "spouse visa", and that's clearly not what you intend to hold.

Also, it's spelled visa, not VISA. Uppercase is the credit card spelling.

To answer your question, I'd say visit the appropriate forums for those countries.
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sistercream



Joined: 18 Dec 2010
Posts: 497
Location: Pearl River Delta
PostPosted: Wed Jul 20, 2011 1:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
In Hong Kong only one person in a married couple needs to hold an employment visa. The spouse gets a dependent visa, which entitles him/ her to work without any extra government paperwork Very Happy
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dghjarrett



Joined: 11 Oct 2010
Posts: 47
PostPosted: Thu Jul 21, 2011 6:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Thanks for all the advice on this matter. If my wife enters on a spousal visa and cannot work, can she change the visa in-country if she then finds work and the employer is willing to support her visa application?? I heard stories of people having to leave the country first to sort the visa stuff out??

daniel
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tttompatz



Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 1951
Location: Talibon, Bohol, Philippines
PostPosted: Thu Jul 21, 2011 6:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
dghjarrett wrote:
Thanks for all the advice on this matter. If my wife enters on a spousal visa and cannot work, can she change the visa in-country if she then finds work and the employer is willing to support her visa application?? I heard stories of people having to leave the country first to sort the visa stuff out??

daniel


Country specific but in many cases she can change from a residence visa to a work visa without the need for a border run.

This is DIFFERENT than changing status from tourist (no visa entry) to a work visa (usually requires a border run to a neighboring country).

.
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Glenski



Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
PostPosted: Thu Jul 21, 2011 9:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
dghjarrett wrote:
Thanks for all the advice on this matter. If my wife enters on a spousal visa and cannot work, can she change the visa in-country if she then finds work and the employer is willing to support her visa application?? I heard stories of people having to leave the country first to sort the visa stuff out??
I asked you earlier to get your terminology straight.

Spouse visa usually means the spouse of a person who is a local citizen of the country you are in.

example:
Move to Japan, marry a Japanese, and you get a spouse visa.
Move to Japan with a spouse from any other country, and you have a dependent visa, not spouse visa.

One item of note for Japan is that if she is on a dependent visa (your dependent, that is, and she makes more than a certain amount (roughly 1 million yen per year), you can no longer claim her as a dependent on your taxes. So, in that instance you might want to consider whether she can change to a work visa. Depends on tax system in the country whether this is more of an advantage.

Not sure how it works in other countries, but if she has either a spouse visa or a dependent visa in Japan, she are allowed to work from the start. I suspect it is similar to other countries, so if your wife has the proper visa to enter the country as your spouse, there may be no need to change visas to some kind of work visa.
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Glenski



Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
PostPosted: Thu Jul 21, 2011 9:54 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
dghjarrett wrote:
Thanks for all the advice on this matter. If my wife enters on a spousal visa and cannot work, can she change the visa in-country if she then finds work and the employer is willing to support her visa application?? I heard stories of people having to leave the country first to sort the visa stuff out??
I asked you earlier to get your terminology straight.

Spouse visa usually means the spouse of a person who is a local citizen of the country you are in.

example:
Move to Japan, marry a Japanese, and you get a spouse visa.
Move to Japan with a spouse from any other country, and you have a dependent visa, not spouse visa.

One item of note for Japan is that if she is on a dependent visa (your dependent, that is, and she makes more than a certain amount (