Immigration Blog Post

Similarities and Differences in Spouse and Fiancé(e) Visa Applications

1. Online Application

2. Appendix FM and FM-SE of the Immigration Rules apply.

3. The applicant can appeal if the visa officer refuses spouse visa application.

4. The application Fee £1523.00 is non-refundable.

5. The immigration health surcharge (IHS) applies at the rate of £624.00 per year and for spouse visa (of 30 months) it costs £1560.00.

6. Normally, the application takes 3 – 4 months processing time. Due to Covid-19 impact, it may take 4-6 months. It can be expedited with additional payment for Premium Service Fee.

7. After successful application, the applicant must stay (i.e., 30 months) in the UK with the sponsor following immigration terms and conditions of the visa category.

8. The applicant must fulfil the suitability requirement for eligibility to apply visa.

9. The applicant is allowed to work and study but no recourse to public funds.

10. The applicant’s relationship with the sponsor must not be in prohibited degree of relationship.

11. The applicant must fulfil English Language requirement.

12. The applicant must provide TB test report.

13. The applicant must travel after entry clearance.

14. The applicant’s job, self-employment and savings have no role to play in the application.

15. The applicant and the sponsor must be 18 or over.

16. The applicant and the sponsor must declare and evidence that they have appropriately and permanently finished their previous relationships if they had any before this relationship at the time of application.

17. The spouses (applicant and sponsor) must be validly married or in civil partnership already.

18. The applicant and the sponsor must intend to live together permanently in the UK.

19. The applicant and the sponsor must have met in person to prove genuine relationship.

20. The applicant and the sponsor must demonstrate with evidence that their relationship is genuine and subsisting.

21. Applicant, Sponsor (and additionally there may be a Third Party to help applicant and sponsor in fulfilling financial or residential requirements.

22. The sponsor or the third party must fulfil the financial requirement of minimum gross annual income threshold to support the applicant’s Visa application.

23. The applicant must provide evidence of adequate (means, not overcrowded statutorily) accommodation in the UK for the period of stay in the UK for spouse visa application. Actually, it is the sponsor or a third party that provides the evidence to support applicant’s visa application without the sponsor’s reliance on the public funds.

24. The sponsor must be British national or settled person.

25. The sponsor must be employed with sufficient salary, self-employed with sufficient monthly or annual income or savings of sizeable amount to satisfy the financial requirements of a sponsor or justify one’s position why the sponsor is taking third party support to meet financial requirement.

Rao Naeem-ul-Haque Khan

21 May 2023