Spousal
Visa

In July 2012 the UK immigration rules were changed to introduce a financial requirement a non-British spouse, same sex partner, unmarried partner, fiancé and child will need to meet in order to be able to settle in the UK with their British spouse, same sex partner, unmarried partner, fiancé or parent.

Requirement of Spousal Visa

A non-British partner who is not married to their British partner will need to prove that they have lived with their British partner at the same address/es for at least 2 years prior to the date of submitting their visa application.

A non-British spouse, same sex partner, unmarried partner, fiancé or child of a British national (their sponsor) will be able to meet the financial requirement for their visa application in one or more of the following ways:

• Income from the employment or self-employment of their sponsor
• Cash savings held by them and/or their sponsor for at least 6 months (the amount of cash savings required is set by a formula prescribed by the UK’s Home Office)
• Their and/or their sponsor’s specified non-employment income
• Their and/or their sponsor’s state or private pension
• Any maternity allowance and bereavement benefits received in the UK by them and/or their sponsor
• Exemption from the financial requirement, where their sponsor is in receipt of a specified disability-related benefit or Carer’s Allowance in the UK

In addition to meeting the financial requirement, if you are a South African national, you will need to have passed an English language test approved by the UK’s Home Office. If you hold a degree you may be exempt from needing to pass an English language test.

If you succeed with your spousal / same sex partner / unmarried partner visa application you will be issued with a visa valid for 2.5 years. Before your initial 2.5 years visa expires you will need to apply in the UK to extend your visa for a further 2.5 years. To succeed with your visa extension application you will need to meet similar financial requirements to those outlined above.

After you have lived in the UK for 5 years on your spousal / same sex partner / unmarried partner visa you will qualify to apply for indefinite leave to remain in the UK (permanent residence) and once again you will need to meet similar financial requirements to those outlined above. Immediately after you obtain your indefinite leave to remain you will become eligible to apply for British citizenship.