Many British citizens are marrying partners from overseas, with some wanting to live together as a couple in the UK. The term usually used is Fiance(e) Visa or Spouse Visa. Here we will look at the requirements for a fiancee visa and talk about things to consider before applying for one.

Numerous military men and women marry foreign partners as part of a lifelong commitment. Those who are considering marriage with a non-citizen should be aware of the requirements for getting a fiance visa in the UK.

If you want to bring your fiancée to live in the UK permanently, you will need to apply for a fiancee visa. This visa is available to both British citizens and foreign nationals who want to live together in the UK and get married. You must be able to show that you, and your fiancé are genuinely in a relationship with each other, and intend the marriage to take place.

Requirements For Fiancee Visa In Uk

The Fiancee Visa is for the foreign partner of a UK resident who wishes to enter the UK to marry their UK citizen sponsor and reside together in the UK. However, if you are already legally married, then you are not eligible for this Fiance visa.

FIANCE VISA

The UK Fiance visa category is for engaged partners of British citizens, persons with indefinite leave to remain in the UK or limited leave to remain under Appendix EU or Appendix ECAA who wish to enter the UK and marry within 6 months of their arrival.  An application for a UK Fiance visa must be made from outside the UK.

Requirements for a UK Fiance visa application

In order to qualify for a UK Fiance visa, you will need to satisfy UK Visas and Immigration that:

• Your partner is British, holds indefinite leave to remain, limited leave to remain under Appendix EU or limited leave to remain under Appendix ECAA;
• You are both over the age of 18;
• You have met in person;
• You are both free to marry;
• Your relationship is genuine and you intend to live together permanently in the UK;
• You intend to marry within six months of your arrival in the UK;
• 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.

To discuss your UK Fiance visa application with one of our immigration barristers, contact our Fiance visa UK lawyers on 0203 617 9173 or complete our enquiry form below.

Fiance visa financial requirement

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

The financial requirement for a UK Fiance 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).

Satisfying the financial requirement

You can meet the Fiance visa UK financial requirement through your partner’s salaried and non-salaried income, self-employed income, salary and/or dividends from a company of which they 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 they can demonstrate that they have come from the sale of property or investments within the last 6 months.

Different considerations will apply if your partner is in receipt of certain benefits.

Fiance visa processing times

UK Visa & Immigration aims to process 95% of UK Fiance 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 Fiance 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 Fiance visa application 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.

Applications for Fiance visas can only be made from outside the UK.  It is not possible to switch into the Fiance visa category from within the UK.

UK Fiance visa application fee

The Home Office application fee for a UK Fiance visa application submitted outside the UK is currently £1,523.

Fiance visa validity period

If your application for a UK Fiance visa is successful, your visa will be valid for 6 months initially.

After your wedding has taken place, you will then be eligible to apply to switch into the Spouse category without having to leave the UK.

If your application for further leave to remain in the UK as a Spouse is successful then you will be granted further leave to remain for a period of 30 months.  You will need to extend your Spouse leave for a further 30 months before it expires.

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

What if I do not get married within 6 months?

If your marriage does not take place before your Fiance visa expires, you can apply to extend your stay for a further 6 months in order to allow the ceremony to take place, provided that there is a good reason why it has not done so to date and there is evidence that a ceremony will take place within the next 6 months.

Can a Fiance work in the UK?

Fiance visa holders are not permitted to work in the UK.

UK Fiance visa application: How our immigration barristers can help

Our immigration barristers regularly assist foreign national fiances to relocate to, and settle in, the UK with their British citizen or settled partners.  We have assisted hundreds of foreign national fiances to prepare and submit successful Fiance visa for UK applications.

Whether you require expert advice on the requirements of the Immigration Rules, an independent assessment of your prospects of qualifying for a visa or professional assistance with preparing an immigration application, our immigration barristers can help.

The financial requirement rules are particularly complex and include mandatory requirements in terms of the documentary evidence that must be provided to UK Visas and Immigration in order to demonstrate access to the relevant funds. Our immigration barristers specialise in assisting applicants with complicated financial circumstances to secure successful outcomes in their Fiance visa applications.

We pride ourselves on being approachable and proactive in understanding and meeting our clients’ needs. We are a highly driven team of immigration barristers, dedicated to providing clear and reliable immigration advice to family members as part of a professional and friendly service.