In this section, you will find information about:
UK Family Visas compromises of UK Visas for various family member, such as Child Visa under Part 8 of the Immigration Rules, which allows the child to join their parents in the UK permanently or Adopted children who can join ther adoptive parents in the UK. The partners such as Fiance, Unmarried Partner or Spouses can submit an application under the Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules. If the visas are for a parent of Adult dependent relative then the applications can be submitted under the Appendix Adult Dependent Relative of the Immigration Rules. Generally there are various routes available under the Family Visas and a proper Family Visa UK Guidance should be obtained before applying for a visa.
People who have overstayed in the UK can also apply under this category depending on their circumstances such as having a child in the UK who may be British or lived with the parents for last 7 years continuously in the UK and there is evidence to prove that it is not reasonable for the child to leave the UK or there are other compassionate and compelling circumstnaces which exist.
UK Family Visa can be submitted a person related to a British Citizen, or a person who holds Indefinite Leave to Remain or hold pre-settled status under the EUSS or Leave to remain as a ECAA. Some applicants can also apply to be reunited with a person on Refugee status or Humantarian protection under the Appendix Family Reunion. If you are a family member of a person in the UK on a Point Based System visa category then you must apply for a Dependent Visa under the relevant category of Point Based System.
So if you are a child, fiance, parent, partner, spouse or adult relative you can apply for a UK Family Visa being related to a person in the UK.
Every different family relative has different requirements for making an application under the UK family visa. The children must be below the age of 18 years, The partner must be above the age of 18 years and in all applications the relationship must always be show to exist with evidence such as a Birth certificate, Marriage certificate, etc. For Unmarried Partners you always need to provide evidence of living together for almost 2 years in a relationship akin to marriage, this period can be divided through the years or continuous.
Most of the routes for Partner category now have a English Language Requirement to be satisfied at a relevant CEFR level, which changes according to type of application. The Partner also need to meet the financial requirement which is £29000 from 11 April 2024, however, people in the UK before this date will continue to meet the financial requirement of £18600.
In all cases you must meet the validity requirements, Eligibility requirements and suitability requirements when applying for a UK Family Visas.
Thus the requirments for a Family Visa UK depends on the type of application you may be intending to submit.
The UK family Visa documents depend according to the type of application you may be submitting, however in most of the family visas you must submit the documents to meet the Eligibity Requirments. Most applicants have different circumstances and the documents change according to their circumstances, however there are some general documents which all applicants will need to provide -
There is a complex requirements of evidence which must be submitted in a proper format and uploaded to the relevant Governement third party platform such as VFS, TLS or UKVCAS.
We recommend that you seek advice from a regulated immigration lawyer or solicitor so that you do not get the evidence wrong when submitting a UK Family Visa.You can contact our team at Visa and Migration Ltd on 02034111261 or email us on info@visaandmigration.com
Family for wife, husband, children, parents, civil partner, unmarried partners or fiancé are all under the UK Family Visas.
If you are not a British Citizen or not holding the following
And your family member is in the UK on a temporary leave to enter or remain then you must apply for a Dependent Visa, which falls under other categories, however, has some similar requirements as UK Family Visa.
Generally, if you are married then you always need to ensure that your marriage is recognised under the UK law. Similarly, is you formed a civil partnership outside the UK then you must be sure that your civil partnership is recognised under the UK Civil Partnership Act 2004, as the application may be refused if this is not the case.
There are various eligibility requirements which must be met, however you can read the relevant eligibility requirements from the routes above, as here we will only explain on the general eligibility requirements which apply to all the UK Family Visas.
You must not fall for refusal under the General Grounds for Refusal or the Suitability Requirements.
You must be able to maintain and accommodate your family in the UK without recourse to additional public funds.
You must establish your relationship to be genuine and subsisting in order to apply for a UK Family Visa.
For a child you must have both the parents in the UK or if you are a single parent then you must provide evidence to establish sole responsibility.
If you are from a country which requires a TB test certificate then you must provide this in accordance with Appendix T of the Immigration Rules.
All the applications for Family Visas are submitted online via the www.gov.uk website. There are various application san dyou must make sure that you are completing a correct application form. You have to pay for the application fee when submitting the application from outside or inside the UK. So when applying you must -
It is on the applicant that they make sure of completing a valid application and provide the relevant documents to discharge the burden of proof.
An Immidiate family is generally a child, wife, husband, civil partner, fiance, unamrried partner or parent, Generally, the applications are submitted under Appendix FM, Appendix Adult Dependent Relative or Part 8 of the Immigration Rules where there is a child. I
When submitting an application for an immidiate family you must make sure that the relatinship is clearly established by providing relevant documents such as a marriage certificate, civil partnership certificate, birth certificate, or adoption certificate or in some cases DNA report is also provided to prove the relationship where evidence may not be availble.
In most cases of immidiate family members you have to meet the financial requirement or maintenance and accommodation requirmeent and English Language requirement where the applicant is above the age of 18 years.
f you are looking to apply for an immediate Family Visa for your family members inside or outside the UK, you can contact us and an immigration lawyer in our office at Croydon will be able to assist you.
There can be various reasons to refuse a UK Family Visa, such as
It is recommended that in order to avoid any reason for refusal of the application you should seek advice and assistance from an immigration lawyer or solicitor.
If you wish to instruct us the you can contact us on 02034111261 or email us on info@visaandmigration.com
If an application for UK Family Visa is refused then you will generally granted a right of appeal. An appeal from outside the UK should be submitted within 28 days from the date you receive the decision and inside UK must be submitted within 14 days from the date of decision.
Generally, the family appeals are submitted online and you have to submit witness statements, evidence relevant to your appeal and skeleton arguments.
Can I switch to the UK Family Visa from Visitor Visa?
The Immigration Rules generally restrict a person on visitor visa to switch into a UK Family Visa, however, in certain circumstances it may be possible for example you have a British child in the UK and your partner is also a British citizen, or there are compassionate and compelling circumstances, etcetera
I am an overstayer in the UK can I apply for a UK Family Visa?
You may be able to apply for a UK Family Visa if there are exceptional circumstances or you have a child in the UK who has lived here for 7 years or is a British citizen
Do I need to provide a TB test with UK Family Visa?
If you are submitting an application from outside the UK, the immigration rules provide a list of countries where the applicant may have resided for 6 months or more will require a TB test from an IOM approved clinic.
Do I need to provide English Language Test?
Generally, it depends on your circumstances, however, if you are between 18 and 65 years old you would need to meet the English Language requirement
My child has severe disabilities and above the age of 18 years, which category I apply under?
You would submit the application under Appendix Adult Dependent relative
How Much is the fee for UK Family Visas?
The Home Office fee is 2024 is £1846 for applications outside the UK and £1048 for application inside the UK. You may also need to pay Immigration Health Surcharge which is £1035 per year
Do I need to submit TB test ?
If you have lived in a country on Appendix T for 6 months, then you must provide a TB test certificate with your application.
