Unmarried Partner Visa

In order to qualify for a UK Unmarried Partner visa you will need to satisfy UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) that you meet the following requirements:

• Your partner is British or holds Indefinite Leave to Remain;

• You are both over the age of 18 and are not in a prohibited degree of relationship;

• You have met in person and have lived together in a relationship akin to marriage or civil partnership for at least 2 years;

• Your relationship is genuine and you intend to live together permanently;

• Any previous relationships have broken down permanently;

• You will be adequately maintained in the UK without recourse to public funds;

• There is adequate accommodation for you and any dependents;

• You speak and understand English to the required level.

The exact requirements you will need to satisfy will vary depending on your circumstances.  You may want to speak to an immigration lawyer for expert advice.

In order to demonstrate that you can be adequately maintained in the UK without recourse to public funds, you will need to satisfy the Fiancé(e) visa UK financial requirement.

The financial requirement for a UK Fiancé(e) visa application states that you will need to demonstrate that your partner has a gross annual income of at least:

• £18,600; plus

• £3,800 for a first child (who is not British, settled or an EEA national); plus

• £2,400 for each additional child (who is not British, settled or an EEA national).

The Financial Requirement can be met in a number of ways, which include the use of cash savings, income from investments, salaried employment, self-employment and other relevant sources of income. You may be able to combine sources of income to meet the Financial Requirement, however some sources of income cannot be combined. You may want to speak to our immigration lawyers for expert advice.

You can meet the UK Unmarried Partner visa financial requirement through salaried and non-salaried income, self-employed income, salary and/or dividends from a company of which you are a Director, property rental income, dividends and income from investments, stocks, shares, bonds or trust funds, pension income, insurance payments, maintenance payments and cash savings above £16,000 that have been held for at least six months, unless you can demonstrate that they have come from the sale of property or investments within the last 6 months.

In some circumstances it is possible to rely on a combination of the above sources of income to satisfy the financial requirement.

Different considerations will apply if your partner is in receipt of certain benefits. If you fall into this category, please contact us for more information.

The Home Office application fee for a UK Unmarried Partner visa application submitted outside the UK is currently £1,523.  The Home Office application fee to switch into the Unmarried Partner category from within the UK or extend stay as a Unmarried Partner is currently £1,033.

UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) aims to process 95% of UK Fiancé(e) visa applications within 12 weeks.

If you require a faster visa processing timeline, most visa application centres outside the UK offer a Settlement Priority Visa Service. This will ensure that your UK Unmarried Partner visa application is placed at the front of the queue at every stage of the decision-making process. The visa processing time for a UK Unmarried Partner visa submitted via the Settlement Priority Visa Service is normally not more than 30 working days.  A well-prepared visa application may result in a quicker processing time.

If you apply to switch into or extend your stay as an Unmarried Partner from within the UK, you will be able to choose from two processing timelines. If you apply via the Standard Service, your in-country application will normally be decided within 8 weeks. If you apply via the Super Priority Service, you should normally receive a decision on the next working day after providing your biometric information.

The Home Office application fee for a UK Unmarried Partner visa application submitted outside the UK is currently £1,523.  The Home Office application fee to switch into the Unmarried Partner category from within the UK or extend stay as a Unmarried Partner is currently £1,033.

If your application for a UK Unmarried Partner visa is successful, your visa will be valid for 33 months initially. If you apply for leave to remain in the UK as an Unmarried Partner then you will be granted leave valid for 30 months.

Before your initial grant of leave expires, you will need to apply to UK Visas and Immigration to extend your stay.  If your application for further leave to remain as an Unmarried Partner in the UK is successful then you will be granted further leave to remain for a period of 30 months.

After spending 5 years in the UK as the Unmarried Partner of a British citizen or settled person, you will be eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain.

Unmarried Partner Visa holders have a full right to work and study in the UK.

If you are not able to satisfy certain of the requirements for a UK Unmarried Partner Visa, you may still be able to apply to join or remain with your partner under Article 8 ECHR on Human Rights grounds if you can demonstrate that there would be very significant difficulties in your relationship continuing outside the UK. These applications are decided on a discretionary basis and must be very well-prepared in order to persuade the Home Office to exercise its discretion in your favour.