Settlement Visa:

Settlement visa can be availed by the following members of a family to join their relatives or partners who are settled in the UK or are returning to the UK to live permanently:

• husbands and wives
• fiancé(e)s
• civil partners
• children
• unmarried partners, including same sex partners
• parents, grandparents and other relatives dependant on persons settled in the UK

Settled means living in the UK lawfully, with no time limit on a person's stay there. This means that the person concerned is settled in the UK i.e. Permanent Residency holders or British nationals and, at the same time the visa applicant is physically present in the UK or is coming there with or to join the sponsor or the person settled in the UK and intends to make the UK their main home. The settlement visa application has to normally be submitted to British High Commission of the applicant’s home country.

The Settlement visa is usually granted for two years; however, depending on certain relationships it may also be granted for 12 months. After the stipulated period in the UK, one can apply for the next visa called an Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) visa as long as you haven’t spent a period of 90 days or more away from the UK and the marriage is still subsisting. After holding the Indefinite Leave to Remain visa for a year, you are eligible to apply for a British passport.

Who qualifies for Setlement visa?

1. In order to qualify as a husband/wife you must show that –

• you are legally married to each other
• your husband or wife is living and settled in the UK, or is being admitted for settlement at the same time as you
• you both intend to live together permanently as husband and wife
• you have met each other
• together you can support yourselves and any dependants without help from public funds
• you have adequate accommodation, owned or occupied exclusively by you, where you and your dependants can live without help from public funds
• your husband or wife is not under 18

You will be allowed to stay in the UK and to work for two years at first. Near the end of this time, if you are still married and still intend to live together, you may apply to stay in the UK permanently.
If you and your spouse have been living outside the UK for four years or more, you will be allowed to enter the UK a for an indefinite period.

2. To qualify as the fiancé or fiancée you must show that:

• you plan to marry within a reasonable time (usually six months)
• you plan to live together permanently after you are married
• you have met each other
• there is somewhere for you and any dependants to live until you get married without help from public funds
• you and any dependants can be supported without working or having recourse to public funds

You will be allowed stay in the UK for six months with no permission to work. When you are married you may apply for a two-year extension as a spouse, and if the application is granted, you will be allowed to work. Near the end of this time you may apply to stay in the UK permanently.

3. To qualify as a civil partner you must show that:

• you plan to register a civil partnership within a reasonable time (usually six months)
• you plan to live together permanently after you registered your civil partnership
• you have met each other
• there is somewhere for you and any dependants to live without help from public funds
• you and any dependants can be supported without working or having recourse to public funds

You will be allowed stay in the UK for six months with no permission to work. When you are married you may apply for a two-year extension as a spouse, and if the application is granted, you will be allowed to work. Near the end of this time you may apply to stay in the UK permanently

4. To qualify as a child you must show that:

• your parents live and are settled in the UK legally, with no time limit on their stay or are being admitted for settlement at the same time
• one parent is living and settled in the UK or is being admitted for settlement on the same occasion and has had sole responsibility for your upbringing
• you parents can support you without help from public funds
• your parents have adequate accommodation, owned or occupied exclusively by them, where you can live without help from public funds
• you are under 18 years of age
• you are not leading an independent life, are not married and have not formed an independent family unit.

5.To qualify as an unmarried partner you must show that:

• any previous marriage, or similar relationship, has permanently broken down
• you have been living together in a relationship akin to marriage for two years or more
• you have adequate accommodation, owned or occupied exclusively by you both, where you and your
• dependants can live without help from public funds
• you can support yourselves and any dependants without help from public funds
• you intend to live together permanently
• your partner is not under 18

Evidence of a two-year relationship in the preceeding 2 year period is essential. This may include documentation showing joint commitments such as bank accounts, investments, rent agreements, mortgages, correspondence linking you to the same address and official records of your address, such as insurance or taxation returns.

You will be allowed to stay in the UK and work for two years at first. Near the end of this time, if you are still partners and still intend to live together, you may apply to stay in the UK permanently.

If you have been living in a relationship akin to marriage for four years or more, you will be allowed to enter the UK for an indefinite period.

6. To qualify as a parent, grandparent and other dependant relative:

If you are widowed parent or grandparent of 65 or over, or parents or grandparents travelling together, of whom one is 65 or over, you may qualify if:

• you are wholly and mainly financially dependent on children or grandchildren living and settled in the UK
• you are without other close relatives in your own country to turn to
• your children or grandchildren can support you without help from public funds
• your children or grandchildren have adequate accommodation, owned or occupied exclusively by them, where you can live without help from public funds

If you are a parent of grandparent under the age of 65 you may qualify if:

• you are living in the most exceptional compassionate circumstances
• you are wholly and mainly financially dependent on children or grandchildren living and settled in the UK
• you are without other close relatives in your own country to turn to
• your children or grandchildren can support you without help from public funds
• your children or grandchildren have adequate accommodation, owned or occupied exclusively by them, where you can live without help from public funds

If you are over 18 with a parent settled in the UK, or you are a sister, brother, aunt, uncle or any other parent or grandparent of a relative settled in the UK you may qualify if you meet the above criteria, and in addition:

• you are living alone in the most exceptional compassionate circumstances.

Note for spouses only: The rules for going to the UK are different if you or your husband or wife (the sponsor) is a national of another member state of the European Economic Area (the member states of the European Union, and Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein), or Switzerland.