There’s someone I very much want to be with who lived in Kabul.

We tried looking at how we could legally follow a process that would allow us to be together. It feels very much as if it’s been purposely constructed to make it almost impossible, on purpose.

The first idea was get him here on a visitors visa so we have six months together and can prove the legitimacy of our relationship. He would obviously have to go home and then we would apply for a partnership visa so he could come back and we would marry within the six month time limit.

At the first hurdle we can’t even get him a visitors visa because the process means visiting a Visa Application centre, of which there are none in Afghanistan. The nearest one is in Islamabad, Pakistan!! It’s a long and dangerous journey from Kabul to Islamabad and even if it’s undertaken successfully another hurdle represents itself; you have to surrender your passport while you wait for the Visa to be processed so he’d then be stuck in Pakistan for as long as it took. He has a job in Kabul and his family are there, he can’t just disappear for 3 months or so.

(extra complication is that this is a same sex relationship hence the need for him to leave Afghanistan, he couldn’t tell his family about us so any move to leave the country will mean still not telling them it’s to be with someone.)

UKLGIG have advised that he should go to the UNHCR offices in Kabul as being a gay man in Afghanistan he meets the criteria to be treated as a refugee but what they can actually do to help him we don’t know.

I’m told other European countries make it easier for people to undertake this process, I’d strongly consider such a move to escape Brexit anyway but it seems so ridiculous that it should also serve to make it easier for us to be together.

Any confirmation of this and/or advice would be greatly appreciated.