How to Build a Future Together in the UK: A Guide for Couples

The first thing to verify is whether your partner has the ideal nationality and immigration status for a UK spouse visa settlement application. In most applications, the partner will be a citizen of the UK or someone who has Indefinite Leave to Remain (also known as Settled Status). Conversely, they may be a sponsor by having been granted pre-settled status in the UK under the EU Settlement Scheme, status under Appendix ECAA, or by their being an individual with stateless person status or protection. If you are outside the United Kingdom and applying for a partner visa to live with your partner in the UK for the first time, you will make an entry clearance application. Your application should be made in a country where you are a national or have been 'living' on a permanent or non-temporary basis. It is also important to note that you must not be in the United Kingdom when making an application for entry clearance. If you are currently in the UK, you will switch to the partner route, requiring that you hold some type of other immigration permission for more than 6 months. The UK government's official website on visas and immigration will be the primary entry point for your spouse visa application. Applicants will log on to the portal to create an account, complete the online application form, and track application progress, as well as upload all necessary documents electronically.

Qualifying Relationships for Settlement in the UK as Couples 

The partner category includes several different relationship types, all of which can be applied under the same form. The partner category includes:

• Marriage

• Fiancée(e)

• Civil partnership

• Unmarried partner

• Proposed civil partnership

You must verify that your relationship falls under one of the following categories: 

a. You are in a marriage or civil partnership that is legally recognized in the United Kingdom.

b. You and your proposed civil partner or fiancé(e) will marry or enter into a civil partnership in the UK within 6 months of entering. 

c. You have been living together in a Genuine relationship for at least 24 months before the date of submitting your spouse visa application. 

So, even if you are applying as a proposed civil partner or a fiancée (in which case you will only be getting an initial permission period of 6 months to enter), you will apply using the same form as an unmarried partner or spouse who will get 2 years and 6 months permission to stay.

Unmarried Partners Settlement Route 

Aside from having to provide evidence of a subsisting and genuine relationship, you must also provide evidence as an unmarried partner that the two of you existed in a relationship akin to a civil partnership or marriage for at least 2 years before the date of application. 

Accommodation Requirement

You must provide proof that there will be adequate accommodation for you in the United Kingdom; three common scenarios are:

• Will be accommodating themselves with a relative in the UK

• Will be staying in a rented property 

• Will be getting settled into the owned property

The kind of evidence you will have to provide will depend on how you intend to satisfy this requirement. 

Financial Requirements

Under the financial requirements of a spouse visa, you will be required to demonstrate that you and your partner can support yourself and any dependent children without relying on public funds. The minimum income threshold for a spouse visa is currently fixed at £29,000 per annum.

Numerous other sources of income could be complemented to achieve the relevant threshold:

To meet the income requirement threshold, sources of relevant income can include earnings from self-employment, employment, or non-work sources such as rent from property, cash savings amounting to more than £16,000, and possibly a variety of maternity benefits and/or pensions. If earnings alone do not meet the income requirement, savings may help to cover it. Savings will need to be in the form of £16,000 plus 2.5 times the income shortfall. However, if your partner qualifies for any allowance or benefit in the UK, you will automatically be excused from fulfilling the financial requirement as stated by the minimum income threshold.

Genuine Relationship Requirement

In practice, the toughest criterion to prove is that you and your partner are in a subsisting and genuine relationship. Home Office guidelines stipulate you need to provide evidence that you have met your partner at least once, face-to-face, during your relationship or marriage. In case you are not married, you can apply under the status of a partner by showing that you have been in a relationship for a minimum of two years. You should gather and submit a great deal of evidence with your application to prove you are committed to one another and that you spend time together. In instances where you are not yet cohabiting or have been apart for long periods, you will need to provide particularly substantial and extensive proof of your relationship as ongoing and genuine.

Typical supporting evidence may include the following: 

Proof of joint financial accounts, memberships, financial commitments, photographs and videos taken during the relationship, proof of cohabitation such as copies of mortgage statements utility bills from both parties, or tenancy agreements, holidays taken together, and evidence of communication occurring during periods of separation, together with letters of support from friends and family.

Conclusion 

The UK spouse visa UK fees are set at 1846 pounds and you can expect a 12-week time as your spouse visa UK processing time. Once successful, you will be able to join your partner in the UK and get settled there permanently by meeting the Home Office requirements. You can apply for a spouse visa extension first and then approach ILR to gain permanent residency in the UK.