Family Visa Application

Eligibility Requirements

To apply for a Partner Visa in the UK, both you and your partner must meet specific eligibility criteria:

• Age: Both you and your partner must be 18 years of age or older.
• Partner's Status: Your partner must fall into one of the following categories:
  • Be a British or Irish citizen.
  • Have settled status in the UK, which could include indefinite leave to remain, settled status, or proof of permanent residence.
  • Be from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, or Liechtenstein and have pre-settled status, provided you started living in the UK before January 1, 2021.
  • Hold a Turkish Businessperson visa or Turkish Worker visa.
  • Have protection status, such as leave to remain as a refugee or permission to stay as a person with humanitarian protection.

Intention to Live Together

You and your partner must intend to live together permanently in the UK after your application is approved.

What You Need to Prove

When applying for a Partner Visa, you must provide evidence to support your application, including:

• Relationship Status
  • You are in a civil partnership or marriage recognised in the UK.
  • You have been living together in a relationship for at least 2 years when you apply.
  • You are a fiancé, fiancée, or proposed civil partner, and you will marry or enter into a civil partnership in the UK within 6 months of arriving.
• English Language Proficiency
• Financial Support

If you do not meet these requirements, there are exceptional circumstances in which you may still be able to apply for a visa or extend your permission to stay. 

These include situations where you have a child in the UK who is a British or Irish citizen or has lived in the UK for 7 years, or if there are significant difficulties that cannot be overcome if you live together as a couple outside the UK, or if it would breach your human rights to stop you from coming to the UK or make you leave.

If you are applying as a fiancé, fiancée, or proposed civil partner, you must also prove the following:

• Any previous marriages or civil partnerships have ended.
• You plan to marry or become civil partners within 6 months of arriving in the UK.

Please note that you will not be allowed to work or study during your engagement, but you can apply for permission to extend your stay in the UK once you marry or enter into a civil partnership. Once your application is approved, you'll have the right to work or study in the UK.

Proving Your Relationship

When applying for a Partner Visa, you need to provide evidence that confirms your genuine relationship, meeting the following criteria:

• It comes from official sources like the government, banks, landlords, utility providers, or medical professionals.
• It confirms your relationship with your partner, such as living together, sharing expenses, marriage, or civil partnership.
• It is less than 4 years old.

You can use documents such as a marriage certificate, civil partnership certificate, tenancy agreement, utility bills, council tax bills, bank statements from a joint account, or letters from a doctor or dentist confirming that you live at the same address.

While other evidence like greeting cards, travel tickets, receipts, photographs, or text/social media messages can be provided, they are considered weaker forms of evidence and may not significantly contribute to your application.

Visa Duration

If your Partner Visa application is approved, you can stay in the UK for 2 years and 9 months. However, if you are applying as a fiancé, fiancée, or proposed civil partner, you can stay for 6 months.

After this initial period, you'll need to apply to extend your stay in the UK if you wish to continue living with your partner.

Extending or Switching Your Visa

If you choose to extend your family visa or switch to this visa category, you can stay in the UK for 2 years and 6 months.

Wondering how you can apply for a UK visa as a child? If you are a child and wish to join your parent in the UK, you can apply for a family visa. However, you may not need a family visa if at least one of your parents has indefinite leave to remain or proof of permanent residence in the UK. 

In such cases, check if you can apply to settle in the UK. If your parent cannot include you in their application form and you are already in the UK, you may be eligible to apply for Private Life in the UK.

Born in the UK

If you were born in the UK, you can get the same permission to stay as your parents. You have two options:

• Be added to your parent's next application as a UK dependant visa holder.
• Apply separately.

You must live with your parent in the UK unless you are living away from home in full-time education, such as at boarding school or university. Also, you must not be married or in a civil partnership.

If you are under 18, you'll need to know what kind of permission to stay in the UK (known as 'limited leave to remain') your parent has. If you are 18 or over, you can only apply if you have permission to stay in the UK ('leave to enter or remain') that started when you were under 18, and your parent must also apply from inside the UK.

Born Outside the UK

Whether you can apply depends on your age and how your parent applied. Here are the key requirements:

If You're Under 18

• One of your parents must be applying or have applied for a visa or to extend their permission to stay as either a partner (joining your other parent) or a parent (with sole parental responsibility for you).
• If not, you might still be eligible to apply if there are compelling reasons to let you come to or stay in the UK, and there are plans for your care.
•  

If You're 18 or Over

• Your parent can include you in their application as a dependant, or you can apply separately.
• You can only apply if you have permission to stay in the UK ('leave to remain') on a family visa that started when you were under 18.

Apply from Outside the UK

If you are applying from outside the UK, you'll need to prepare information and documents to include with your application.

Apply at the Same Time as Your Parent

If your parent is applying to enter the UK as the partner of one of the following:

• A British or Irish citizen.
• A person with indefinite leave to remain.
• A person settled in the UK (e.g., with indefinite leave to remain, settled status, or proof of permanent residence).
• A person from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, or Liechtenstein who has pre-settled status (they must have started living in the UK before January 1, 2021).

Fees

How much it costs depends on who you’re joining and how you apply.

Healthcare Surcharge

You might also need to pay the healthcare surcharge as part of your application. For more details, visit Gov.uk.

Get a Faster Decision on Your Application

If you’re applying from the UK, you may be able to pay an extra £1,000 for the super priority service to get a faster decision.

Victim of Domestic Abuse or Partner Died

You might be able to apply to settle in the UK if you had permission to stay in the UK as a partner when either:

• You were the victim of domestic abuse.
• Your partner died.

Family Member with Protection Status

You might be able to apply for ‘family reunion’ to join a partner or parent who has either:

• Permission to stay as a refugee.
• Humanitarian protection in the UK.

You’ll need to attend an appointment to provide your biometric information (fingerprints and a photo). You’ll be told how to make an appointment when you apply.

Getting Your Documents Back

You can ask for your passport and other documents to be returned if you’ve provided them with your application but need them urgently. You might have to cancel your application to get your documents back.

If Your Application is Approved

You’ll get a biometric residence permit.

You can:

• Work
• Study

You cannot:

• Usually get benefits or other public funds for you or your dependants.
• Apply to settle in the UK until you’re eligible.

If You Applied as a Fiancé, Fiancée or Proposed Civil Partner

You cannot work or study in the UK. You’ll need to apply for permission to extend your stay in the UK when you marry or enter into a civil partnership. If your application is approved, you will have the right to work or study in the UK.

Ready to simplify your family visa application process? Reach out to our Tann Law family visa solicitors near you and get expert guidance tailored to your needs.