0:03 Hello and welcome. I'm Melanie Wong, a
0:05 UK immigration lawyer with over 20 years
0:08 experience in UK immigration law. I
0:10 created this channel to provide
0:13 educational information involving UK
0:16 immigration law. The information
0:18 contained in my videos is for
0:21 educational purposes only and is not a
0:24 substitute for legal advice. If you have
0:28 a specific UK immigration matter or have
0:29 questions that you would like to
0:32 discuss, please seek legal advice from a
0:37 UK immigration lawyer such as myself.
0:39 For information on how to book a
0:41 consultation with me, you can find the
0:44 link to do so in the description below.
0:47 Please also note that we do not provide
0:49 free legal advice. I will be posting
0:52 videos regularly, so please subscribe to
0:54 my channel and make sure you enable your
0:57 notifications also, so you know when I
1:00 post a new video. Over the next few
1:03 weeks, I will be doing a video series
1:06 focusing on the topic regarding the UK
1:08 fiance visa or proposed civil partner
1:12 visa. So, if you or anyone you know
1:14 would be interested in this topic,
1:16 please don't forget to like and
1:18 subscribe to my channel and also share
1:22 my videos to your friends and family. I
1:24 have also put together a free guide on
1:27 the fiance visa which you can download
1:30 completely free by clicking the link in
1:33 the description below. In today's video,
1:35 I will be answering the question, what
1:38 are the requirements for a fiance visa?
1:41 Before I answer that question, I'd like
1:43 to firstly point out that most people
1:45 know it or refer to it as the fiance
1:48 visa, but this can also include those
1:50 who are applying to become civil
1:54 partners in the UK, i.e. proposed civil
1:57 partners. So to keep things simple, I
2:00 will refer to it as the fiance visa, but
2:03 everything also applies to the proposed
2:05 civil partner visa.
2:08 So the requirements for the fiance visa
2:11 are found in appendix FM of the
2:14 immigration rules. Appendix FM set out
2:17 the rules and requirements relevant to
2:20 those who are applying as a partner in
2:22 order to join their partners in the UK
2:26 permanently or on a long-term basis.
2:28 One of the requirements for the fiance
2:31 visa is that the foreigner is a
2:34 non-British citizen who is applying from
2:36 outside the UK.
2:38 The applicant must not already have
2:41 settled status or indefinite leave to
2:43 remain or indefinite leave to enter
2:46 status or they must not already have the
2:50 right of abode in the UK. Their partner
2:53 must be a British citizen or an EU
2:55 citizen with a presettled or settled
2:58 status in the UK or a foreign national
3:02 with settled status or a refugee status
3:05 or humanitarian protection status in the
3:08 UK. If their partner is not any of
3:10 these, then they cannot apply for a UK
3:14 fiance visa. Another requirement is the
3:16 suitability test requirement which
3:19 pertains to the applicant's character
3:21 and immigration history in the UK and
3:24 elsewhere. It's important to note that
3:27 if the suitability test requirement is
3:30 not met, but the other requirements for
3:33 the fiance visa are met, then
3:36 unfortunately the application has a high
3:39 chance of being refused.
3:40 If you are worried about this
3:43 requirement, for instance, because the
3:45 applicant had a previously bad
3:48 immigration history in the UK, then you
3:51 must seek legal advice before starting
3:52 your application.
3:56 Doing so may just save you time, stress,
3:58 and money in the long run.
4:00 Aside from the suitability test requirement,
4:02 requirement,
4:03 the other requirements are the
4:06 eligibility requirements and these
4:08 include the English language test
4:11 requirement, the relationship test
4:15 requirement, the financial requirement,
4:18 the accommodation requirement, and the
4:21 tuberculosis test or TB test
4:23 requirement. All of these requirements
4:25 must be met in order for the application
4:27 to be successful.
4:29 The main way to prove that the
4:31 requirements have been met are through
4:33 the supporting documents that the
4:36 applicant and their partner must submit
4:38 with their application.
4:40 The supporting documentation must
4:43 therefore be relevant to the application
4:45 and the applicant and their partner's
4:48 circumstances and they must also be
4:51 specific documents i.e. They must comply
4:55 with appendix FME in bracket specific
4:57 evidence of the immigration rules. In
5:00 the next few weeks, I will be delving
5:02 into each of the requirements in more
5:04 detail. So, please subscribe to my
5:07 channel and push the notification button
5:10 to be notified of my upcoming videos.
5:13 For now, I will talk about each of these
5:15 requirements in general.
5:17 For the English language requirement,
5:20 there are exceptions which include those
5:23 who are aged below 18 years old or aged
5:27 65 and over and who are not required to
5:29 meet this requirement and also those who
5:32 are citizens of countries where most of
5:35 the citizens speak English.
5:37 The home office has a list of these countries.
5:38 countries.
5:40 For the TB test requirement, the home
5:43 office has also issued a list of
5:46 countries whose citizens or residents
5:48 are required to obtain a TB test
5:50 certificate from a home office approved
5:53 clinic or hospital before they apply for
5:55 their fiance visa.
5:58 For the relationship test requirement,
6:00 the main factor here is that the couple
6:03 must have met in person before the
6:05 application is submitted.
6:07 Photographic evidence of this must be
6:10 submitted as well as flight itineraries
6:12 to prove when the couple saw each other
6:15 in person. For the accommodation
6:17 requirement, it is the sponsor who is
6:20 required to meet this. The sponsor must
6:22 show that they will have adequate
6:25 accommodation in the UK for themselves
6:28 and the applicant.
6:29 Adequate means that there will be
6:32 sufficient or enough rooms for all
6:35 occupants in the property without the
6:37 risk of overcrowding.
6:39 What this means for the sponsors and
6:41 applicants who currently live outside
6:44 the UK and who are relocating to the UK
6:47 is that they must have an accommodation
6:49 in the UK that would be readily
6:51 available for them before the
6:54 application is submitted.
6:56 Next is a big one which is the financial
6:59 requirement. So for the financial
7:02 requirement, usually it is the sponsor
7:04 who is required to meet this
7:06 particularly if they wish to rely on the
7:09 sponsor's employment income in order to
7:11 meet this requirement. There is a
7:13 minimum income threshold for the
7:15 financial requirement and this is
7:18 currently 18,600
7:20 gross peranom.
7:22 What this means is that if the couple
7:25 are relying on the sponsor's employment
7:28 income, then the sponsor must show that
7:32 they are earning at least 18,600 gross
7:34 peranom from their job. In December
7:37 2023, it was announced that the minimum
7:40 income threshold will be increased from
7:45 18,600 gross peranom to 38,700
7:47 gross peranom.
7:49 It was then further announced that this
7:52 will be done in stages.
7:54 The first stage will come into force in
7:57 the spring of 2024.
7:59 The minimum income will be increased
8:03 initially from £18,600 gross peranom to £29,000
8:05 £29,000
8:08 gross peranom in spring 2024.
8:11 In early 2025, the minimum income will
8:14 increase to 38,700
8:16 gross peranom.
8:19 What this means is that if the couple
8:21 are relying on the sponsor's employment
8:24 income to meet the financial threshold,
8:26 the sponsor must show that they are
8:29 earning at least 18,600
8:32 gross peranom from their current job. If
8:36 they are applying before spring 2024,
8:38 if they are applying when the first
8:40 stage takes place, then they are
8:43 required to meet the minimum income of £29,000
8:44 £29,000
8:47 gross peranom. Or if they are applying
8:50 in early 2025, then they are required to
8:54 meet the minimum income of 38,700
8:57 gross perom. If you like this video,
8:59 please hit the like button and subscribe
9:02 to my channel. If you'd also like to
9:04 receive regular information on UK
9:06 immigration law and my law firm
9:08 services, please subscribe to our
9:10 newsletter. The information for this is
9:13 in the description below. Also, I have
9:16 put together a free guide on the fiance
9:18 visa which you can download completely
9:20 free by clicking the link in the
9:22 description below. Thank you for watching.
