You can apply for a fiancé visa in the UK online to get married to your UK partner. An application for entry clearance for a fiancé visa UK can be made if you are engaged to be married to a person who is either a British Citizen, a person with ILR / settled status, an EU national with pre-settled status, a refugee / humanitarian protection status holder, Turkish Businessperson visa holder or Turkish Worker visa holder. An application for a fiancé visa can only be made from outside the UK. An entry clearance application for a fiancé visa is made in accordance with the requirement of Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules. You can apply for fiancé visa entry clearance through Priority Service to get a decision on your application within 30 working days. As a result of a successful fiancé visa entry clearance, you will be granted 6 months UK visa to come to the UK to get married to your UK partner. Once you have registered your marriage with your UK partner, you can apply for switching from a fiancé visa to a spouse visa from inside the UK.
Free Immigration Advice For Fiancé Visa UK
Our specialist team of family visa solicitors can provide free immigration advice online concerning your application for a fiancé Visa in the UK. Ask a question to our specialist team of fiancé visa solicitors for free immigration advice online, or book an appointment online for detailed immigration advice with our specialist fiancé visa solicitors concerning your entry clearance application for a fiancé visa UK.
Specialist Fiancé Visa Lawyers UK
Our expert team of fiancé visa lawyers in London specialise in fiancé visa entry clearance applications. We provide fast-track visa services for UK fiancé visa applications to get faster decisions on your fiancé visa entry clearance application. Our specialist family visa solicitors have a huge track record of successfully helping thousands of clients with fiancé visa applications under Priority Service. Our best team of fiancé visa lawyers can provide fast, friendly, reliable and fixed-fee immigration services concerning your fiancé visa entry clearance application.
Premium Solicitors are specialist UK immigration solicitors and the high quality of UK visa and immigration legal services provided by our best team of fully qualified and experienced immigration solicitors is self-evident from the 5-star Google Reviews rating by 99% of our clients.
How Much Does Fiancé(e) Visa UK Cost?
The costs associated with your entry clearance application when applying from outside the UK are outlined below:
Our Fixed Fees for Your Entry Clearance Application
Our fixed fee for processing your entry clearance application ranges from £1,000 to £1,500 (VAT not applicable). Our agreed fixed fee will depend on the complexity of your case and the volume of work involved in your application. You will make an initial payment of half our fee when we start our work on your matter, and the remaining half is due once we have fully prepared the application and it is ready for submission.
UKVI Fees for Your Entry Clearance Application
In addition to our fixed fee for assisting you with your entry clearance application, you are also required to pay the Home Office UKVI fees for your UK visa entry clearance application. The UKVI fee for your UK visa entry clearance application is £1,846.
Additionally, for a quicker decision on your application within 30 working days, you have the option to pay an additional £500 as a Priority Service fee.
How To Apply For Fiancé Visa Entry Clearance?
The step-by-step process to apply for a fiancé visa UK is as below:
- Complete the application form online for a fiancé visa UK on the UKVI website;
- Submit your completed application form for a fiancé visa UK online by paying the application fee for a fiancé visa UK. You do not have to pay an Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) for the fiancé visa entry clearance application.
- Book an appointment with the UK visa application centre to enrol your biometrics and hand over your passport for the processing of your fiancé visa in the UK.
- Upload all supporting documents online in PDF format to be considered in support of the fiancé visa application before you attend your biometrics enrolment appointment.
- Attend your appointment for biometrics enrolment and wait for a decision on your fiancé visa entry clearance application which will be made within 30 working days if you apply through Priority Service or within 60 working days if you apply through standard service.
What Are The Requirements For Fiancé Visa UK?
The requirements to be met for fiancé visa entry clearance include the following:
Valid application: You must submit a valid fiancé visa entry clearance application in accordance with the requirement of Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules;
Relationship requirement: The applicant must be the fiancé of a person who is either a British Citizen, a person with ILR / settled status, an EU national with pre-settled status, a refugee / humanitarian protection status holder, a Turkish Businessperson visa holder or a Turkish Worker visa holder. The relationship of the applicant with the UK sponsor must be genuine and subsisting and the appropriate evidence of genuineness and subsistence of marriage should be provided in support of the fiancé visa entry clearance application;
Age requirement: Both the applicant and the UK fiancé must be aged 18 or over;
Intention to get married in the UK: The applicant should be seeking entry as a fiancé to enable registration of his/her marriage with the UK partner and should demonstrate intention to get married to the UK partner in the UK;
Suitability Requirement: Suitability requirements as set out in Appendix FM to the Immigration Rules;
Financial requirement: The applicant should meet the financial requirement for the grant of fiancé visa entry clearance. The financial requirement for a fiancé visa can be met through
- income of not less than £29,000 gross per annum of the UK sponsor from employment or self-employment; and/or
- savings the applicant and/or the sponsor; or
- through the rental income of the applicant and/or the sponsor.
Accommodation requirement: The applicant must provide evidence that there will be adequate accommodation, without recourse to public funds, for the family, including other family members who are not included in the application but who live in the same household, which the family owns or occupy exclusively;
English Language Requirement: The applicant must meet the English language requirement to show that the applicant has English proficiency at CEFR level A1 as required by the UK Immigration Rules;
Tuberculosis Test Certificate: The applicant should provide a Tuberculosis test certificate, where this is required under Appendix T of the Immigration Rules.
What Is The Relationship Requirement For Fiancé Visa Entry Clearance?
The applicant’s UK partner must:
- be a British Citizen; or
- have Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) or Settled Status in the UK; or
- be an EAA national with pre-settled status in the UK; or
- have a Turkish Businessperson or Turkish Worker visa in the UK; or
- have leave to remain as a refugee or a person with Humanitarian Protection (HP).
The applicant and their partner must not be within the prohibited degree of relationship. The applicant and their partner must have met in person. The relationship between the applicant and their partner must be genuine and subsisting. Any previous relationship of the applicant or their partner must have broken down permanently unless it is a relationship which falls within paragraph 278(i) of the Immigration Rules. The applicant and partner must intend to get married to each other and live together permanently in the UK.
New Financial Requirement Of £29,000 Gross Per Year From 11 April 2024
As a result of changes to Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules effective from 11 April 2024, the new financial requirement of £29,000 gross per annum applies to an applicant who is making their first application on the partner route on or after 11 April 2024. You will not have to meet higher than £29,000 gross per annum income requirement if you have any dependent children applying simultaneously along with the lead applicant, and the threshold will remain at £29,000 gross per annum.
To satisfy the financial requirement for a fiancé visa, the applicant's UK partner must be working and earning at least £29,000 gross per year. If the sponsor's employment income is less than £29,000 gross per annum, the applicant can combine the sponsor's employment income under Category A with savings. The savings must be £16,000 plus additional savings equivalent to 2.5 times the difference between the sponsor's gross annual income and £29,000.
The applicant's own salaried income from overseas does not count towards meeting the financial requirement. However, the applicant's savings, rental income, or pension income (if applicable) does count towards meeting the financial requirement and the UK partner's income.
What Are Various Sources Of Meeting Financial Requirements?
Where the applicant has to meet the minimum income threshold, the financial requirement can generally be met in the following 5 ways:
- Income from salaried or non-salaried employment of the partner (and/or the applicant if they are in the UK with permission to work). This is referred to as Category A or Category B, depending on the employment history.
- Non-employment income, e.g. income from property rental or dividends from shares. This is referred to as Category C.
- Cash savings of the applicant’s partner and/or the applicant, above £16,000, held by the partner and/or the applicant for at least 6 months and under their control. This is referred to as Category D.
- State (UK or foreign), occupational or private pension of the applicant’s partner and/or the applicant. This is referred to as Category E.
- Income from self-employment, and income as a director or employee of a specified limited company in the UK, of the partner (and/or the applicant if they are in the UK with permission to work). This is referred to as Category F or Category G, depending on which financial year(s) is or are being relied upon.
Who Is Exempt From Meeting The Financial Requirement Of £29,000 Gross Per Year?
Where the applicant’s partner is in receipt of any of the following benefits or allowances in the UK, the applicant will be able to meet the financial requirement at that application stage by providing evidence of “adequate maintenance” rather than meeting an income threshold of £29,000:
- Carer’s Allowance.
- Disability Living Allowance.
- Severe Disablement Allowance.
- Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit.
- Attendance Allowance.
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP).
- Armed Forces Independence Payment or Guaranteed Income Payment under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.
- Constant Attendance Allowance, Mobility Supplement or War Disablement Pension under the War Pensions Scheme.
- Police Injury Pension.
If the applicant’s partner is receiving one of the above benefits or allowances on behalf of their child, the applicant will be able to qualify by meeting the financial requirement through “adequate maintenance.” The evidence required to demonstrate that the applicant’s partner is in receipt of a specified benefit or allowance is specified in Appendix FM-SE.
What Is The Formula For Calculating Adequate Maintenance?
The Home Office UKVI will use the following formula to determine whether you meet the adequate maintenance requirement for your fiancé visa entry clearance application:
A – B ≥ C (A minus B is greater than or equal to C)
Where:
A is the net income (after deduction of income tax and National Insurance contributions);
B is housing costs (Rent and Council Tax); and
C is the amount of Income Support an equivalent British family of that size can receive.
What Is The Adequate Accommodation Requirement For Fiancé(e) Visa UK?
The applicant must provide specified evidence that there will be adequate accommodation, without recourse to public funds, for the family, including other family members who are not included in the application but who live in the same household, which the family owns or occupies exclusively: accommodation will not be regarded as adequate if-
- it is, or will be, overcrowded; or
- it contravenes public health regulations.
What Is The English Language Requirement For Fiancé(e) Visa UK?
The applicant must provide specified evidence that he/she:
- is a national of a majority English-speaking country; or
- has passed an English language test in speaking and listening at a minimum of level A1 of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for Languages with a provider approved by the Home Office, UKVI; or
- has an academic qualification recognised by UK NARIC to be equivalent to the standard of a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree or PhD in the UK, which was taught in English; or
- is exempt from the English language requirement because at the date of application:
- the applicant is aged 65 or over;
- the applicant has a disability (physical or mental condition) which prevents the applicant from meeting the requirement; or
- there are exceptional circumstances which prevent the applicant from being able to meet the requirements prior to entry to the UK.
Can I Switch From a Fiancé(e) Visa To a Spouse Visa From Inside The UK?
A person who is in the UK on a fiancé(e) visa can switch from a fiancé(e) visa to a spouse visa from inside the UK as soon he/she has registered his marriage with his/her partner. Such application for switching from a fiancé(e) visa to a spouse visa is made online using application form FLR (M) before the expiry of the fiancé(e) visa. As specialist fiancé(e) visa solicitors, we can provide Super Priority Service for applications for switching from fiancé(e) visa to spouse visa and get a decision on your application within 24 hours of the biometrics enrolment date.
Can I Re-Apply For Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance After The Refusal?
If your application for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance is refused by the Home Office UKVI, you can re-apply for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance soon after the refusal decision if you do not want to challenge the refusal by way of an appeal or if you believe that the decision made by the Home Office UKVI is correct and the fresh application can address the concerns of the decision maker.
Can I Appeal Against Refusal Of Fiancé(e) Visa Entry Clearance?
If your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance has been refused and you believe that the reasons for refusal are unjustified and not in accordance with relevant laws and facts, you can file an appeal to the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) within 28 days of the refusal decision. Our specialist team of immigration appeal lawyers can represent you in your entry clearance appeal against the refusal of your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance.
How Can Our Fiancé(e) Visa Solicitors Help?
Our specialist team of fiancé(e) visa solicitors can provide expert immigration advice and legal representations on a fixed fee basis in relation to your entry clearance application for a fiancé visa. Our fixed fee for your entry clearance application for a fiancé visa will cover all the work of our fiancé(e) visa solicitors on your entry clearance application until a decision is made by the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) on your application. The casework to be carried out by our fiancé(e) visa solicitors in relation to your entry clearance application for fiancé(e) visa will entail the following:
Advice on requirements: Our fiancé visa solicitors will advise you on the relevant requirements you have to meet for your entry clearance application for a fiancé visa to succeed.
Advice on documents: Our fiancé(e) visa solicitors will prepare and email you a comprehensive list of supporting documents to be submitted in support of your entry clearance application for fiancé(e) visa;
Assessment of documents: Our fiancé visa solicitors will assess your documents to make sure that all the documents you provide in support of your entry clearance application for your fiancé visa are in accordance with the requirements of the Immigration Rules.
Completing application form: Our fiancé visa solicitors will complete the relevant application form for your entry clearance application for your fiancé visa.
Submitting an application through Priority Service: Our fiancé(e) visa solicitors will submit your online entry clearance application through priority service to get a faster decision on your fiancé(e) visa application.
Booking an appointment with the application centre: After you submit your entry clearance application online, our fiancé(e) visa solicitors will book your appointment with the application centre for you to enrol your biometrics.
Preparing a detailed cover letter: Our specialist fiancé visa solicitors will prepare a detailed cover letter in support of the entry clearance application to explain all the relevant legal requirements have been satisfied for the approval of the entry clearance application for the fiancé visa;
Uploading documents online: Before the biometrics enrolment date, our fiancé(e) visa solicitors will upload online all the supporting documents to be considered in support of the entry clearance application for the fiancé visa.
Follow-up work: Our fiancé(e) visa solicitors will carry out all the follow-up work until the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) reaches a decision on the entry clearance application for the fiancé visa.
Why Choose Us For Fiancé(e) Visa UK?
There are a number of reasons why you can choose our fiancé(e) visa solicitors and lawyers in London to handle your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application. The main reasons include the following:
High-Quality Legal Services: Our team of the best spouse visa solicitors in London provides high-quality legal services for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance applications. The high quality of UK visa and immigration legal services provided by our best team of immigration lawyers is self-evident from the 5-star Google Reviews rating by 99% of our clients.
Remote Legal Services: Our specialist fiancé visa solicitors and lawyers can provide you with expert spouse visa advice and legal representations remotely from our offices in London. Using modern technology, our specialist fiancé visa solicitors and lawyers can handle your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application remotely without the need for you to visit our offices. Whilst we are more than happy to welcome clients into our offices, if this is their preference, we are proud to be able to offer our legal services for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application remotely to save your time and travel costs.
Open 7 Days A Week: We pride ourselves on providing dedicated fiancé(e) visa advice and legal representation seven days a week.
All Work Carried Out By Qualified Specialist Immigration Solicitors: All the casework on your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application will be carried out by our specialist team of fully qualified and experienced fiancé(e) visa solicitors who have extensive experience in dealing with fiancé(e) visa entry clearance applications.
Fast Track Visa Service: Our experienced and qualified fiancé(e) visa solicitors can prepare and submit your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application using the fast track process in the shortest possible time. Where possible, our fiancé(e) visa solicitors will submit your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application through Priority Visa Service to get a faster decision on your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application.
Free Immigration Advice Online: Our specialist team of fiancé(e) visa solicitors and lawyers can provide one-off free immigration advice online through our website enquiry form.
Fixed Fees With Payment Plan: Our fiancé(e) visa solicitors and lawyers charge reasonable and affordable fixed fees for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application with an option to pay our fixed fee in two instalments whereby you pay half of the agreed fix fee when we start our work on your fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application and the remaining half when we have fully prepared the fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application and it is ready for submission to the Home Office UKVI.
What Are Our Other Related Services?
- Spouse Visa UK
- Entry Clearance For Spouse Visa UK
- Switching Into Spouse Visa UK (5 Years Route)
- Switching Into Spouse Visa UK (10 Years Route)
- Extension Of Spouse Visa (5 Years Route)
- Extension Of Spouse Visa (10 Years Route)
- ILR As A Spouse (5 Years Route)
- ILR As A Spouse (10 Years Route)
- Family Visa UK
- Entry Clearance Appeal Against Refusal Of Fiancé(e) Visa
- Naturalisation As A British Citizen After ILR Grant
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) For Fiancé(e) Visa UK
Following are the various frequently asked questions (FAQs) about an application for fiancé(e) visa entry clearance application:
A fiancé visa UK is granted to a person who wishes to enter the UK with a view to marriage to a sponsor who is either a British Citizen, a person with ILR / settled status, an EU national with pre-settled status, a refugee / humanitarian protection status holder, Turkish Businessperson visa holder or Turkish Worker visa holder.
Yes, you can apply for fiancé visa UK through Priority Service to get a faster decision on your application within 30 working days.
If your fiance visa entry clearance application is refused by the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) of the Home Office UKVI. In that case, you will get a right to appeal to challenge the refusal of your fiance visa entry clearance application. You should file an appeal against the fiance visa entry clearance refusal within 28 days of receiving the refusal decision.
No, you will not have the right to work in the UK on a fiance visa UK. You will only get the right to work when you have successfully switched from a fiance visa to a spouse visa after registering your marriage with your UK partner.
In a fiancé(e) visa application, the term ‘sponsor’ refers to the person whom the applicant intends to marry in the UK upon entry into the UK as a fiancé(e).
Both the applicant and the UK fiancé(e) of the applicant must be aged 18 or over for the fiancé(e) visa application to succeed. In cases where the applicant is within a couple of months of their 18th birthday, and the other party is 18 or over, the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) has the discretion to issue UK visa entry clearance, but it is valid only from when the person under 18 has reached their 18th birthday.
Intention to live permanently with the other means an intention to live together, evidenced by a clear commitment from both parties that they will live together permanently in the UK immediately following the outcome of the application in question or as soon as circumstances permit.
In a case considered in the High Court in November 1996, Keen J held that:
‘The concept of intention is no doubt a complex one, but it appears to me that one can indeed have a genuine intention, notwithstanding that the carrying out of that intention is dependent on, or could be frustrated by, some extraneous event.’
He went on to conclude that the requirement of the Rules relating to the intention of the parties to the marriage could be met where the British citizen (or legally resident foreign national) spouse insisted on remaining in the UK. In other words, a conditional intention to live together could be sufficient to meet the ‘intention to live together permanently’ requirement.
Yes, the Immigration Rules for fiancé(e) visa application require that both the applicant and the UK sponsor must have met each other in person; otherwise, the application for a fiancé(e) visa can be refused by the Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) for this reason.
In the case of Abdulmajid Esmail Jaffer, the Tribunal held that ‘to have met’ meant something more than a mutual sighting. They also felt that a mere face-to-face followed by telephone or written contact would be insufficient to satisfy the rule, as would a family background with such a face-to-face meeting. In their view, the essential test of whether the rule had been satisfied was whether the couple had had a face-to-face meeting, which in itself had resulted in the making of mutual acquaintance.
A relationship that has developed over the Internet would not satisfy the ‘to have met’ requirement unless it included a personal face-to-face meeting between the couple concerned. Evidence of a face-to-face meeting might include a travel history, relevant email exchanges, etc.
For single adults, the Registrar normally accepts the parties’ declaration that they are free to marry. The ECO may, therefore, accept a similar verbal statement by an applicant, together with any supporting correspondence from the person he/she will marry. This is unless there are strong grounds to believe that one of the parties is still married/in a civil partnership or has been married / in a civil partnership previously and is concealing this fact. In such cases, the ECO may make whatever enquiries seem appropriate.
Where the ECO has doubts about an applicant’s intention to marry, the ECO may ask to see evidence of freedom to marry before issuing an entry clearance which may include:
- Widowed person: death certificate of the late spouse.
- Surviving civil partner: death certificate of the deceased civil partner.
- Divorced person: evidence of divorce, e.g. a divorce certificate.
- Dissolved civil partnership: evidence of the dissolution, for example, dissolution certificate.
The Fiancé visa UK fee is paid to the Home Office UKVI at the time of online submission of the fiancé visa application.
Applicants for a fiancé(e) visa UK do not have to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) for their fiancé(e) visa application.
In the event of refusal of the fiancé(e) visa application, the applicant will lose his/her UK visa fee because the fiancé(e) visa fee will not be refunded to the applicant. It is therefore important to have proper legal help and assistance with preparing and submitting the fiancé(e) visa application.
An entry clearance application for a fiancé(e) visa UK will be refused mandatorily if any of the following paragraphs are applicable:
- The Secretary of State has personally directed that the applicant's exclusion from the UK is conducive to the public good.
- The applicant is currently the subject of a deportation order.
- The exclusion of the applicant from the UK is conducive to the public good because they have:
- been convicted of an offence for which they have been sentenced to a period of imprisonment of at least 4 years; or
- been convicted of an offence for which they have been sentenced to a period of imprisonment of at least 12 months but less than 4 years, unless a period of 10 years has passed since the end of the sentence; or
- been convicted of an offence for which they have been sentenced to a period of imprisonment of less than 12 months, unless a period of 5 years has passed since the end of the sentence.
- The exclusion of the applicant from the UK is conducive to the public good because, for example, the applicant’s conduct (including convictions which do not fall within paragraph S-EC.1.4.), character, associations, or other reasons, make it undesirable to grant them entry clearance.
- The applicant has failed without reasonable excuse to comply with a requirement to-
- attend an interview;
- provide information;
- provide physical data; or
- undergo a medical examination or provide a medical report.
- It is undesirable to grant entry clearance to the applicant for medical reasons.
- The applicant left or was removed from the UK as a condition of a caution issued in accordance with section 22 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 less than 5 years prior to the date on which the application is decided.
- The Secretary of State considers that the applicant’s parent or parent’s partner poses a risk to the applicant. That person may be considered to pose a risk to the applicant if, for example, they -
- have a conviction as an adult, whether in the UK or overseas, for an offence against a child;
- are a registered sex offender and have failed to comply with any notification requirements; or
- are required to comply with a sexual risk order made under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 and have failed to do so.
The applicant will normally be refused fiancé(e) visa entry clearance on grounds of suitability if any of the following paragraphs apply:
- Whether or not to the applicant’s knowledge-
- false information, representations or documents have been submitted in relation to the application (including false information submitted to any person to obtain a document used in support of the application); or
- there has been a failure to disclose material facts in relation to the application.
- A maintenance and accommodation undertaking has been requested or required under paragraph 35 of these Rules or otherwise and has not been provided.
- The exclusion of the applicant from the UK is conducive to the public good because:
- within the 12 months prior to the date on which the application is decided, the person has been convicted of or admitted an offence for which they received a non-custodial sentence or other out of court disposal that is recorded on their criminal record; or
- In the view of the Secretary of State:
- the person’s offending has caused serious harm; or
- the person is a persistent offender who shows a particular disregard for the law.
- The applicant may be refused on grounds of suitability if the applicant has failed to pay litigation costs awarded to the Home Office.
- The applicant may be refused on grounds of suitability if one or more relevant NHS bodies has notified the Secretary of State that the applicant has failed to pay charges in accordance with the relevant NHS regulations on charges to overseas visitors and the outstanding charges have a total value of at least £500.
