Family Visa
You need a family visa to live with a family member in the UK for more than 6 months.
Applying from outside the UK
You can apply for a family visa to live with your:
- spouse or partner
- fiancé, fiancée or proposed civil partner
- child
- parent
- relative who’ll provide long-term care for you
Extending your Family Visa
You can apply to extend your stay with your family member if you’re already in the UK on a family visa.
You can extend at any time before your current permission to stay in the UK expires.
If you’re extending to stay with the same family member, you’ll only get up to 28 days left on your current stay added to your new visa.
You must live in the UK for a certain amount of time before you’re eligible for settlement (‘indefinite leave to remain’). Before you extend your visa, check how much time you need to settle in the UK.
You might be able to apply to stay on the basis of your private life if you’ve lived in the UK for many years already.
Switching to a Family Visa
If you came to the UK on a different visa, you might be able to switch to a family visa to stay with your:
- spouse or partner
- child
- parent
You can switch at any time before your current permission to stay in the UK expires.
Apply as a Partner or Spouse
To apply as a partner, you and your partner both need to be 18 or over.
Your partner must also either:
- be a British or Irish citizen
- have settled in the UK – for example, they have 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 – they must have started living in the UK before 1 January 2021
- have a Turkish Businessperson visa or Turkish Worker visa
- have protection status (leave to remain as a refugee, permission to stay as a refugee or a person with humanitarian protection)
- have permission to stay as a stateless person
You and your partner must intend to live together permanently in the UK after you apply.
If your partner has settled or pre-settled status you may be able to apply to the free EU Settlement Scheme.
Apply as a Child
You can apply for a family visa to join your parent in the UK.
You were born in the UK
You’ll get the same permission to stay as your parent if you were born in the UK.
You can either:
- be added to your parent’s next application as a dependent
- apply separately
You must:
- live with your parent in the UK, unless you’re living away from home in full-time education – for example, at boarding school or university
- not be married or in a civil partnership
If you’re under 18, you’ll need to know what kind of permission to stay in the UK (‘limited leave to remain’) your parent has.
If you’re 18 or over, you can only apply if you have permission to stay in the UK (‘leave to enter or remain’) which started when you were under 18. They must also apply from inside the UK.
You were born outside the UK
Whether you can apply depends on your age and how your parent applied.
You must:
- live with your parent, unless you’re living away from home in full-time education – for example, at boarding school or university
- not be married or in a civil partnership
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 a:
- partner – and the partner they’re joining is your other parent
- parent – and they have sole parental responsibility for you
Otherwise, you might still be eligible to apply if there are serious 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 dependent, or you can apply separately yourself.
You can only apply if you have permission to stay in the UK (‘leave to remain’) on a family visa which started when you were under 18.
Apply as a Parent
You can apply to live in the UK to care for your child.
If you’re eligible to apply as a partner, you must do that instead of applying as a parent.
Your child must either:
- be under 18 on the date you apply
- have been under 18 when you were first granted leave
Your child must:
- live with you, unless they’re living away from home in full-time education – for example, at boarding school or university
- not be married or in a civil partnership
Your child must be living in the UK. One of the following must also be true:
- they’re a British or Irish citizen
- they’ve settled in the UK – for example, they have indefinite leave to remain, settled status or proof of permanent residence
- they’re from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and have pre-settled status – they must have started living in the UK before 1 January 2021
- if you’re applying in the UK, they must have lived in the UK for 7 years continuously and it would not be reasonable for them to leave
If your child has settled or pre-settled status you may be able to apply to the free EU Settlement Scheme or for an EU Settlement Scheme family permit.
Parental responsibility
You need to have sole or shared parental responsibility for your child.
If you share parental responsibility, the child’s other parent must not be your partner. They must also either:
- be a British or Irish citizen
- have settled in the UK – for example, they have 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 – they must have started living in the UK before 1 January 2021
If the child lives with their other parent or carer, you must have access to the child in person, as agreed with the other parent or carer or by a court order.
Adult Dependent Relatives Visa
Apply as an adult coming to be cared for by a relative.
You must need long-term care from a parent, grandchild, brother, sister, son or daughter who is living permanently in the UK.
You can only apply from outside the UK, unless you’re applying to extend your stay on this visa.
One of the following must also apply to the relative:
- they’re a British or Irish citizen
- they’ve settled in the UK – for example, they have indefinite leave to remain, settled status or proof of permanent residence
- they’re from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and have pre-settled status – they must have started living in the UK before 1 January 2021
- they have protection status (leave to remain as a refugee, permission to stay as a refugee or a person with humanitarian protection) in the UK
If your family member has settled or pre-settled status you may be able to apply to the free EU Settlement Scheme.
What you’ll need to prove
You must prove:
- you need long-term care to do everyday personal and household tasks because of illness, disability or your age
- you’re 18 or over
- the care you need is not available or affordable in the country you live in
You must also prove the relative you’re joining in the UK can accommodate and care for you for either:
- the whole time your relative has permission to stay in the UK
- 5 years, if your relative is a British citizen or settled in the UK
They must have enough money to support you without relying on public funds. The caseworker considers their income, housing costs and any care costs.
Private Life Visas
You can only apply on the basis of your private life if you’re already living in the UK.
You must be able to prove that you:
- are under 18 and you’ve lived in the UK continuously for at least 7 years, and it would be unreasonable to expect you to leave the UK
- are between 18 and 24 and you’ve lived continuously in the UK for more than half your life
- are 18 or over, have spent less than 20 years in the UK and would have very significant problems living in the country you’d have to go to
- have been in the UK continuously for 20 years
- were born in the UK to a person who has permission to stay in the UK on the basis of their private life, or is applying for it
Your family members can apply on the same application – you’ll be considered separately.
How long you can stay
You can stay in the UK for 2 years and 6 months on this visa.
You can apply to stay for 5 years instead if you’re:
- under 18 and have lived in the UK continuously for at least 7 years
- aged between 18 and 24 and have spent half your life in the UK
How long it takes
It currently takes about 12 months to get a decision.
You may be able to pay for a faster decision.
7 years child Route
The 7 year child residence route is for children under the age of 18:
- who were born in the UK and have lived in the UK continuously for at least 7 years and a child
- who entered the UK as a minor and completed 7 years of residence while still under 18.
They can apply for Limited Leave to Remain for 30 months or 60 months under the 5-year route settlement.
Settlement under 7 years child Residence Route
The 7 year child residence route is a settlement route whereby a child who is born in the UK and has lived in the UK for 7 years may qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) immediately upon completing 7 years of continuous residence.
When you can settle
You can settle after 5 years if you’re either:
- under 18 and have lived in the UK continuously for at least 7 years
- aged between 18 and 24 and have spent half your life in the UK
You can settle after 10 years if you’re either:
- 18 or over, have spent less than 20 years in the UK and would have very significant problems living in the country you’d have to go to
- born in the UK to a person who has permission to stay in the UK on the basis of their private life, or is applying for it
How long you can stay
You can stay in the UK for 2 years and 6 months on this visa.
You can apply to stay for 5 years instead if you’re:
- under 18 and have lived in the UK continuously for at least 7 years
- aged between 18 and 24 and have spent half your life in the UK
You may be eligible for or have rights in any of the above categories depending on your visa status or circumstances.
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