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Family and Private Life
Family & Private Life Visas
Family and Private Life Routes
Bringing Your Family to the UK, or Staying Here With Them
Family and private life immigration covers two distinct situations. The first is bringing a family member to the UK — a spouse, a partner, a child, or a parent — where the application is made from outside the UK and entry clearance must be obtained before travel. The second is extending or regularising leave for someone already in the UK who has built a family life or private life here that the law recognises as a basis for remaining.
The rules governing both are detailed, the income and financial thresholds have changed significantly in recent years, and the evidence required at each stage is specific. The route that applies to your situation depends on your relationship, your current immigration status, and whether the application is being made from inside or outside the UK.
Select the route that applies to you from the options below.
Entry Clearance Routes — Applying From Outside the UK
Entry clearance
Spouse and Partner Visa
The initial visa for spouses, civil partners, and unmarried partners joining a British citizen or settled person in the UK. The Minimum Income Requirement is £29,000. The application is made from outside the UK and grants 30 months of leave on entry.
Spouse and Partner Visa ›
Entry clearance
Child Dependant Visa
For children under 18 joining or accompanying a parent who holds leave to remain or settlement in the UK. The application requires evidence of sole responsibility or that both parents are in the UK, alongside financial requirements and accommodation evidence.
Child Dependant Visa ›
Entry clearance
Parent Route
For parents of a British child or a child settled in the UK who wish to join or remain with that child. The parent route applies where the parent does not qualify through the partner route and has sole parental responsibility or direct access rights.
Parent Route ›
Entry clearance
Family Visit Visa
For family members visiting the UK for a temporary period. A visit visa does not lead to settlement and does not grant the right to work. Refusals on the family visit visa are common where the purpose of visit or ties to the home country are not clearly established.
In-Country Routes — Extending or Regularising Leave Inside the UK
In-country extension
FLR(M) — Partner Visa Extension
The 30-month extension application for spouses, civil partners, and unmarried partners already in the UK on the partner route. This is the second stage of the five-year route to settlement. Relationship and financial evidence must be re-demonstrated in full.
FLR(M) Extension ›
In-country leave
FLR(FP) — Family and Private Life
For people who cannot use the standard family routes but have a qualifying family or private life in the UK under Article 8 ECHR. This includes parents of children in the UK, people with long-established private lives, and those in exceptional circumstances.
FLR(FP) Leave ›
Long residence
10-Year Long Residence
For those who have spent 10 continuous years in the UK with lawful leave and wish to apply for ILR or further leave on long residence grounds. The route to ILR via long residence has been affected by 2025 reforms. Verify eligibility before applying.
The Income Requirement — What Has Changed
The Minimum Income Requirement for the spouse and partner route increased to £29,000 in April 2024, up from £18,600. A further increase to £34,500 was announced but subsequently paused. The £29,000 threshold is the current applicable figure for applications made in 2026. The requirement applies to the sponsor’s income from employment, self-employment, or a combination of qualifying sources. It must be evidenced at the initial application, at the FLR(M) extension, and again at the ILR stage.
Income thresholds are assessed at each stage independently. Meeting the threshold at the initial spouse visa application does not carry forward. If the sponsor’s income has changed between the entry clearance and the FLR(M) extension, the current income position must meet the £29,000 requirement as at the date of the extension application.
Relationship Evidence — What UKVI Is Looking For
At every stage of the partner route, UKVI must be satisfied that the relationship is genuine and subsisting. This is not a box-ticking exercise. Caseworkers look for evidence of ongoing cohabitation, joint financial commitments, shared daily life, communication, and mutual knowledge of each other’s circumstances. Applications that rely on a standard checklist without a coherent narrative of the actual relationship are a primary target for genuineness interviews and refusals.
The evidence bundle must tell a story the caseworker can follow. We build relationship evidence bundles specifically around the couple’s actual circumstances rather than a generic template.
Article 8 and the Private Life Routes
Not every family situation fits neatly into the standard immigration rules. Where a person has built a genuine family or private life in the UK but does not qualify through the standard partner, parent, or child routes, the FLR(FP) application under Appendix Private Life and the Article 8 ECHR framework provides an alternative. These applications are more discretionary, require a stronger evidence base, and are more frequently refused at the first stage. They are also more frequently successful on appeal where the initial application was poorly prepared.
If you have been told you do not qualify for leave to remain through the standard family rules, that is not necessarily the end of your options. Get a proper assessment before accepting that conclusion.
How ClearVisa Advises on Family and Private Life Cases
We begin with a route assessment. Which visa applies to your situation, which stage of the route are you at, and what are the specific evidence requirements for that stage. We then build the application around your actual circumstances rather than a generic template, identifying and addressing any risk factors before submission.
We work on a fixed-fee basis, quoted in advance before any work begins. We are IAA-regulated (F202536292) with 14 years of experience in family immigration, including complex cases involving relationship genuineness challenges, income threshold complications, and Article 8 private life arguments.
Home›
Services›
Family and Private Life
Family & Private Life Visas
Family and Private Life Routes
Bringing Your Family to the UK, or Staying Here With Them
Family and private life immigration covers two distinct situations. The first is bringing a family member to the UK — a spouse, a partner, a child, or a parent — where the application is made from outside the UK and entry clearance must be obtained before travel. The second is extending or regularising leave for someone already in the UK who has built a family life or private life here that the law recognises as a basis for remaining.
The rules governing both are detailed, the income and financial thresholds have changed significantly in recent years, and the evidence required at each stage is specific. The route that applies to your situation depends on your relationship, your current immigration status, and whether the application is being made from inside or outside the UK.
Select the route that applies to you from the options below.
Entry Clearance Routes — Applying From Outside the UK
Entry clearance
Spouse and Partner Visa
The initial visa for spouses, civil partners, and unmarried partners joining a British citizen or settled person in the UK. The Minimum Income Requirement is £29,000. The application is made from outside the UK and grants 30 months of leave on entry.
Spouse and Partner Visa ›
Entry clearance
Child Dependant Visa
For children under 18 joining or accompanying a parent who holds leave to remain or settlement in the UK. The application requires evidence of sole responsibility or that both parents are in the UK, alongside financial requirements and accommodation evidence.
Child Dependant Visa ›
Entry clearance
Parent Route
For parents of a British child or a child settled in the UK who wish to join or remain with that child. The parent route applies where the parent does not qualify through the partner route and has sole parental responsibility or direct access rights.
Parent Route ›
Entry clearance
Family Visit Visa
For family members visiting the UK for a temporary period. A visit visa does not lead to settlement and does not grant the right to work. Refusals on the family visit visa are common where the purpose of visit or ties to the home country are not clearly established.
In-Country Routes — Extending or Regularising Leave Inside the UK
In-country extension
FLR(M) — Partner Visa Extension
The 30-month extension application for spouses, civil partners, and unmarried partners already in the UK on the partner route. This is the second stage of the five-year route to settlement. Relationship and financial evidence must be re-demonstrated in full.
FLR(M) Extension ›
In-country leave
FLR(FP) — Family and Private Life
For people who cannot use the standard family routes but have a qualifying family or private life in the UK under Article 8 ECHR. This includes parents of children in the UK, people with long-established private lives, and those in exceptional circumstances.
FLR(FP) Leave ›
Long residence
10-Year Long Residence
For those who have spent 10 continuous years in the UK with lawful leave and wish to apply for ILR or further leave on long residence grounds. The route to ILR via long residence has been affected by 2025 reforms. Verify eligibility before applying.
The Income Requirement — What Has Changed
The Minimum Income Requirement for the spouse and partner route increased to £29,000 in April 2024, up from £18,600. A further increase to £34,500 was announced but subsequently paused. The £29,000 threshold is the current applicable figure for applications made in 2026. The requirement applies to the sponsor’s income from employment, self-employment, or a combination of qualifying sources. It must be evidenced at the initial application, at the FLR(M) extension, and again at the ILR stage.
Income thresholds are assessed at each stage independently. Meeting the threshold at the initial spouse visa application does not carry forward. If the sponsor’s income has changed between the entry clearance and the FLR(M) extension, the current income position must meet the £29,000 requirement as at the date of the extension application.
Relationship Evidence — What UKVI Is Looking For
At every stage of the partner route, UKVI must be satisfied that the relationship is genuine and subsisting. This is not a box-ticking exercise. Caseworkers look for evidence of ongoing cohabitation, joint financial commitments, shared daily life, communication, and mutual knowledge of each other’s circumstances. Applications that rely on a standard checklist without a coherent narrative of the actual relationship are a primary target for genuineness interviews and refusals.
The evidence bundle must tell a story the caseworker can follow. We build relationship evidence bundles specifically around the couple’s actual circumstances rather than a generic template.
Article 8 and the Private Life Routes
Not every family situation fits neatly into the standard immigration rules. Where a person has built a genuine family or private life in the UK but does not qualify through the standard partner, parent, or child routes, the FLR(FP) application under Appendix Private Life and the Article 8 ECHR framework provides an alternative. These applications are more discretionary, require a stronger evidence base, and are more frequently refused at the first stage. They are also more frequently successful on appeal where the initial application was poorly prepared.
If you have been told you do not qualify for leave to remain through the standard family rules, that is not necessarily the end of your options. Get a proper assessment before accepting that conclusion.
How ClearVisa Advises on Family and Private Life Cases
We begin with a route assessment. Which visa applies to your situation, which stage of the route are you at, and what are the specific evidence requirements for that stage. We then build the application around your actual circumstances rather than a generic template, identifying and addressing any risk factors before submission.
We work on a fixed-fee basis, quoted in advance before any work begins. We are IAA-regulated (F202536292) with 14 years of experience in family immigration, including complex cases involving relationship genuineness challenges, income threshold complications, and Article 8 private life arguments.