How long does it take to process a UK settlement visa?

UK visa application help?

• I recently applied for a fiance' visa to the UK ( I'm from America) and was denied on the grounds of not giving enough information (wedding dates, correspondace between us, ect..) I found this strange as those forms/things were NEVER asked for on the form and I did heavy investigation to make sure I did EVERYTHING right. They asked how we knew each other and when we first met ect.. and I wrote all of it out, did my biometrics and sent it all in. I was denied (as I told you) and got a stamp in my passport. I then had to go to the UK anyway for several months to try and sort out more problems with my fiance and the wedding ( I'm catholic and he's not and he was married before so I couldn't marry him until he got an anullment so I had to come to the UK and give forms from myself and he had to give dovrce papers to start the anullment process. This process, we've been told will take 18 months to 2 1/2 years. SO! Untilt his time I want to work on getting a visa that will allow me to start work here and live. How will I go about doing this and what visa do I use? Settlement seems to be wrong because that's for people that have already stayed in the Uk on a different visa. I can't use fiance' because it will take a long time to get married and the deadline is 6 months. I looked it up and apparently there is a way to apply for a visa WITHIN the UK. I am here until May 5th so if there is a way I can do this it would be AMAZING. Does anybody know which visa, or if not a company or something similar (council) I could call and talk to about my situation. Because of the stamp in my passport book, (even though I had a return ticket and the papers that explained why I was denied) they strip searched me, looked through my bags and held me back for 4 hours in a examination room. I'm getting extremely frustrated! PLEASE help. Also, please no smart *** answers like (stop being Catholic then... or live in America until 2 yrs from now) I need solutions and answers!!

• Answer:

  If they held you for 4 hours and strip searched you..yet still let you in, you are extremely lucky. You cannot enter the UK and switch to any other visa category. People who enter with different visa's which allow them to stay more than 180 days (6 months) can sometimes switch. You however will not be able to do this, even if you did qualify for a different visa. If it is going to take that long for him to get divorced, then you don't have any options. You will have to return to the US and wait this out. You do NOT want to over stay your visa.