Join Family in the UK

Spouses, civil partners, unmarried partners (where you have lived together for at least two years), fiancées/fiancés, adult dependent relatives and dependent children under 18.

Yes, partners and children under 18 can apply to join a relevant points-based migrant in the UK.

Yes, providing that they are one of the following:

• A British citizen
• Settled in the UK
• Have been recognised as a refugee/ have humanitarian protection
• Have been granted Pre-Settled Status under the EU Settlement Scheme

Yes, but how soon you can do so will depend on which route you are placed on. Applicants will have to complete either 5 or 10 years continuous residence before becoming eligible to settle.

Yes, spouses, civil partners and unmarried partners, who have lived together for at least two years, can apply to join their partner in the UK. There is also an option for fiancées/fiancés to join their partners in the UK, providing that they are intending to marry within 6 months of entry.

Yes, providing that they are settled in the UK or are a British citizen.

Yes, in most cases those looking to join their partner will need to take an approved English language test to level A1 of the Common European Framework of reference. Higher levels are needed for extension and settlement applications. Family members of refugees, adult dependent relatives and dependent children under 18 are exempt from this requirement.

No, the life in the UK requirement is only applicable to certain types of settlement application. There is no need to sit this test for an entry clearance application.

A Refugee Family Reunion visa is a special category which allows partners and children of recognised refugees/ those with humanitarian protection to join them in the UK. It is only applicable to family members who formed part of the family unit, prior to the sponsor fleeing their country of origin.

Only adult relatives who can demonstrate that they require care from their family member in the UK and that such care is not available or affordable in their country of residence, can apply under this category.

If you are a Commonwealth citizen, who is over the age of 17 and plans to work in the UK, you might be eligible under the ancestry visa route. You would need to be able to prove that one of your grandparents was born in the UK

Yes, in most cases you would be allowed to work in the UK, the exception being those here as fiancées/fiancés.

There are various visa application fees involved in each process, depending on the route you are applying under. Most visas also require you to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS), which allows you to access NHS services during the period of the visa. Those applying for a Refugee Family Reunion visa are exempt from paying the IHS or entry clearance application fee.

If there are British or settled children involved there may be arguments that can be made on human rights grounds. For all other applications, you would generally be expected to show that you can support your family member in the UK by satisfying the relevant requirements.

UKVI requires various supporting documents and information in order to process an entry clearance application. In lots of categories, there are certain ‘specified’ documents that must be provided in a particular format and which contain precise information.

In most cases, your initial visa will be valid for a month, during which time you must travel to the UK, and collect your biometric residence permit (which contains the remainder of your leave) from a designated Post Office within 10 days of entry. For fiancées/fiancés, your passport would be endorsed with a visa valid for 6 months.

Normally, the earliest you can apply is 28 days before your current permission to stay in the UK expires. In any case, you must apply to extend your visa in the UK before it expires.

This depends on which route your visa was granted under. Most applications for entry clearance require completion of 5 years continuous residence before becoming eligible to settle.

In most circumstances, you would have a right of an appeal to an independent Immigration Tribunal. If you are applying to join a relevant points-based migrant then your only remedy is UKVI’s internal review procedure know as an administrative review.