Fiance Visa UK

You can apply for fiancé(e) visa UK if you are engaged to be married to a British Citizen or settled person and want to get married in the UK.

Fiancé(e) of a British Citizen or settled person can apply for UK visa entry clearance as a fiancé(e) to come to UK for 6 months and get married to the UK sponsor within the permitted 6 months period. Once married to the UK sponsor, the applicant can then switch from fiancé(e) visa to spouse visa from inside the UK. Our specialist team of fiancé(e) visa solicitors in London, can provide fast, friendly, reliable and fixed fee legal service for your fiancé(e) visa application. Ask a question to our fiancé(e) visa solicitors for free immigration advice concerning your fiancé(e) visa application.

How to apply for fiancé(e) visa UK online?

The UK fiancé(e) visa application is made online by completing an online application form. The completed online form is submitted online, the UK visa fee is paid online and all the supporting documents in support of the fiancé(e) visa application are also uploaded online. Once the supporting documents have been successfully uploaded online, you can then schedule an appointment with the UK visa Application Centre for enrolment of biometrics and handing over of your passport for the processing of your fiancé(e) visa application.

Requirements for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance UK

The applicant applying for fiancé(e) visa UK must meet the following requirements:

• Suitability criteria as set out in Appendix FM to the Immigration Rules;
• Must have met each other;
• Must have intention to live together permanently in the UK;
• Both the applicant and the sponsor must be free to marry each other;
• The applicant and the sponsor must have made appropriate arrangements and plans to get married in the UK;
• Financial requirement whereby the UK sponsor of the applicant must be earning at least £18,600 gross per year or savings of £62,500 if the UK sponsor of the applicant has no earnings from employment, self-employment or other means of income;
• Adequate accommodation for the applicant and the UK sponsor to be accommodated in the UK without recourse to public funds;
• English language requirement to show that the applicant has English proficiency at CEFR level A1 as required by the UK Immigration Rules.

Financial Requirement For Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance UK

Meeting the financial requirement is one of the key requirements for an application for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance UK.

Calculating The Financial Requirement

The applicant must provide evidence that the sponsor’s gross annual income is at least:

• Partner with no children – £18,600;
• 1 child in addition to the partner – £22,400;
• 2 children in addition to the partner – £24,800;
• 3 children in addition to the partner – £27,200; and
• an additional £2,400 for each additional Non-EEA child.

The higher financial requirement for applicants applying with child(ren) will apply until the applicant partner qualifies for settlement, even if the child turns 18 before then. However, the 18+ year old’s income and savings will be permitted to count towards the financial requirement.

When Does Financial Requirement Does Not Apply To A Child?

The financial requirement does not apply to a child who:

• Is a British Citizen (including an adopted child who acquires British citizenship);
• Is an EEA national (except where the child is a child of a former relationship and does not have a right to be admitted to or reside in the UK under the Immigration
  (EEA) Regulations 2006 or the Immigration (EEA) Regulations 2016);
• Is settled in the UK (holds ILR in the UK) or who qualifies for indefinite leave to enter (ILE); or
• Qualifies under Part 8 or Appendix Armed Forces of the Immigration Rules in a category to which the financial requirement does not apply.

Meeting The Financial Requirement For Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance?

According to Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules, the applicant must meet:

• the level of the financial requirement applicable to their application; and
• the requirements specified as to:
  (a) the permitted sources of income/savings; and
  (b) the time periods and permitted combinations of sources applicable to each permitted source relied upon; and
  (c) the evidence required for each permitted source relied upon.

Income and cash savings must be in the name of the applicant, their partner or jointly. However, income and cash savings of a dependent child of the applicant can also be included once the child has turned 18 years of age.

All employment or self-employment income must come from working legally. All income and savings must be lawfully derived.

What Are The Various Sources Of Meeting The Financial Requirement?

Where the applicant has to meet the minimum income threshold, the financial requirement can generally be met in the following five ways:

• Income from salaried or non-salaried employment of the partner (and/or the applicant if they are in the UK with permission to work). This is referred to as Category A or Category B, depending on the employment history.
• Non-employment income, e.g. income from property rental or dividends from shares. This is referred to as Category C.
• Cash savings of the applicant’s partner and/or the applicant, above £16,000, held by the partner and/or the applicant for at least 6 months and under their control. This is referred to as Category D.
• State (UK or foreign), occupational or private pension of the applicant’s partner and/or the applicant. This is referred to as Category E.
• Income from self-employment, and income as a director or employee of a specified limited company in the UK, of the partner (and/or the applicant if they are in the UK with permission to work). This is referred to as Category F or Category G, depending on which financial year(s) is or are being relied upon.

Evidence Flexibility For Financial Requirement

The evidential flexibility is set out in paragraph D of Appendix FM-SE. Under Appendix FM-SE there is discretion for decision-makers to defer an application pending submission of missing evidence or the correct version of it, within a reasonable deadline set for this. Decision-makers will not have to defer where they do not think that correcting the error or omission will lead to a grant.

Decision-makers are also able to grant an application despite minor evidential problems (but not where specified evidence is missing entirely). There is also discretion for decision-makers where evidence cannot be supplied because it is not issued in a particular country or has been permanently lost. Decision-makers have general discretion to request additional information or evidence before making a decision.

Exemption From Financial Requirement For Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance UK (Adequate Maintenance)

Where the applicant’s partner is in receipt of any of the following benefits or allowances in the UK, the applicant will be able to meet the financial requirement at that application stage by providing evidence of “adequate maintenance” rather than meeting an income threshold of £18,600 or above:

• Carer’s Allowance.
• Disability Living Allowance.
• Severe Disablement Allowance.
• Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit.
• Attendance Allowance.
• Personal Independence Payment (PIP).
• Armed Forces Independence Payment or Guaranteed Income Payment under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.
• Constant Attendance Allowance, Mobility Supplement or War Disablement Pension under the War Pensions Scheme.
• Police Injury Pension.

If the applicant’s partner is in receipt of one of the above benefits or allowances on behalf of their child, the applicant will be able to qualify by meeting the financial requirement through “adequate maintenance”. The evidence required to demonstrate that the applicant’s partner is in receipt of a specified benefit or allowance is specified in Appendix FM-SE.

Adequate Accommodation Requirement For Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance UK

The applicant must provide specified evidence that there will be adequate accommodation, without recourse to public funds, for the family, including other family members who are not included in the application but who live in the same household, which the family own or occupy exclusively: accommodation will not be regarded as adequate if-

1. it is, or will be, overcrowded; or
2. it contravenes public health regulations.

English Language Requirement For Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance UK

The applicant must provide specified evidence that he/she:

1. is a national of a majority English speaking country; or
2. has passed an English language test in speaking and listening at a minimum of level A1 of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for Languages with a provider approved by the Home Office, UKVI; or
3. has an academic qualification recognised by UK NARIC to be equivalent to the standard of a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree or PhD in the UK, which was taught in English; or
4. is exempt from the English language requirement because at the date of application:
   • the applicant is aged 65 or over;
   • the applicant has a disability (physical or mental condition) which prevents the applicant from meeting the requirement; or
   • there are exceptional circumstances which prevent the applicant from being able to meet the requirement prior to entry to the UK.

What Is The Processing Time Of Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance?

The fiancé(e) visa entry clearance UK is normally processed within 12 weeks if application is made under standard service and within 6 to 8 weeks if the application is made using priority service.

Re-Applying For Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance After The Refusal

If your application for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance has been refused by the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) and you believe that the decision to refuse your application is valid and lawful and therefore cannot be challenged by way of Entry Clearance Appeal Against fiancé(e) Visa Refusal, you have the option to re-apply for fiancé(e) visa. We can provide the required legal help and assistance with re-applying for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance after the refusal.

Switching From Fiancé(e) Visa To Spouse Visa

A peson who is in the UK on fiancé(e) visa can switch from fiancé(e) visa into spouse visa from inside the UK as soon he/she has registered his marriage with his/her partner. Such application for switching from fiancé(e) visa to spouse visa is made online using appliation form FLR (M) before the expiry of fiancé(e) visa. As specialist spouse visa solicitors, we can provide Super Priority Service for application for switching from fiancé(e) visa to spouse visa and get decision on your application within 24 hours of the biometrics enrolment date.

How Can We Help?

Our expert team of fiancé(e) visa solicitors specialise in fiancé(e) visa entry clearance applications. If instructed to represent you regarding your application for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance, we will carry out all the work on your application until a decision is made by the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) on your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application. The immigration casework to be carried out by our expert team of fiancé(e) visa solicitors will include the following:

• Assessing your eligibility for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance by considering all your personal circumstances;
• Advising you on the weaknesses and strengths of your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application;
• Advising you on the relevant documents to be submitted in support of your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application;
• Assessing your documents to ensure that the documentary evidence is as per requirements of the Home Office UKVI immigration Rules;
• Completing and submitting the online application form to apply for fiancé(e) visa UK entry clearance by gathering all the relevant information from you and your partner;
• Helping you with paying the fiancé(e) visa application fee for the application;
• Where necessary, preparing detailed witness statement of the applicant and/or the sponsor explaining the background of their relationship and other relevant factors pertaining to the fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application;
• Preparing a detailed cover letter to introduce and support your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application;
• Uploading online all the relevant supporting documents and scheduling an appointment for submission of passport and enrolment of your biometrics at the relevant visa application centre;
• Liaising with the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) for a timely decision on your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application.

Our Fees For Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance UK

Our fixed fees for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application from outside the UK are given in the table below:

The agreed fixed fee will depend on the complexity of the fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application and the volume of casework involved in the application. In addition to our fixed fee for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance, the applicant also have to pay the Home office UKVI fees for the UK visa entry clearance application.