Fiance Visa Solicitors

Both partners must be at least 18. The UK partner must hold a qualifying status under the family rules, such as British or Irish citizenship, settlement or another specified status. Not every person with temporary permission can sponsor an Appendix FM partner.

The couple must intend to marry or form a civil partnership within six months of arrival and live together permanently in the UK. If the intention is only to marry during a visit and then leave, the Marriage Visitor route may be the relevant route instead.

• Family visa options
• Family visa: partner and fiancé(e) applications

The rules require a genuine and subsisting relationship, that the couple have met in person and that previous relationships have permanently broken down. Evidence should explain the relationship in its actual circumstances, including periods living apart.

Provide proportionate evidence of contact, time together and practical marriage or civil partnership arrangements. A fiancé(e) application should not be assessed as though two years of cohabitation were universally required.

• Identity and evidence of the UK partner’s qualifying status.
• A relationship chronology and relevant travel or communication evidence.
• Evidence that previous marriages or civil partnerships have ended.
• Plans for the ceremony and living together afterwards.

The standard minimum income requirement for a new partner application is currently £29,000 a year. This is not a universal rule for every family application. A qualifying benefit received by the sponsor can instead lead to an adequate-maintenance assessment, and protected earlier applications may fall under transitional provisions.

The pre-11 April 2024 arrangements can be relevant when continuing with the same partner after an earlier qualifying fiancé(e) or partner application. Eligibility for those arrangements and any child-related calculation must be checked rather than assumed.

Only permitted sources of income or savings supported by the specified evidence count. Do not assume that prospective UK earnings, any overseas salary or a relative’s offer of money can simply be added to the total. The source, ownership and required evidence period matter.

• Family visa financial requirements

The family needs adequate accommodation without recourse to public funds. The assessment includes the people who will occupy it, the right to use it and whether it would be overcrowded or breach public-health requirements. A brief invitation may not answer those questions.

The English language requirement must also be met through an accepted method unless an exemption applies. The evidence must fit the application: an unapproved test or an unsupported claim of fluency is not enough.

• Appendix FM: family members

The initial fiancé(e) entry application is made from outside the UK. Prepare the online application and supporting evidence and follow the instructions for proving identity. Do not rely on the legacy page’s suggestion of an ordinary inside-UK fiancé(e) application.

Permission is for up to six months. Government guidance states that work and study are not permitted during the engagement period. A wedding booking does not guarantee a visa or determine when a decision will be made.

Check the current application charges and any healthcare-surcharge position for each stage separately. Historic fee figures and optional faster-decision services should not be treated as a quotation or guaranteed timetable.

• Family visa applications and costs

Marriage or civil partnership does not automatically convert the initial permission into partner leave. A further application is needed, with the relevant requirements and evidence, before the existing permission expires.

Work or study rights follow the appropriate grant, not the ceremony alone. Time spent as a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner does not count towards the standard five-year partner settlement period. If the ceremony cannot take place as planned, the options need individual assessment.

A representative may help assess eligibility, evidence and the sequence of applications. Any assistance from Highfin would be subject to an agreed instruction and confirmed scope.

• Spouse visa information
• Partner extensions