How to extend your UK spouse visa

If you’ve been living in the UK on a partner visa that is going to expire soon, you’re probably all too aware that if it isn’t renewed promptly, you could be sent back to your home country. However, you may not be exactly sure how to extend a UK spouse visa. This can be extremely stressful, especially for those lucky enough to still be in their newlywed stage or otherwise still enjoying the bliss of marriage.

An application window that is arguably extremely narrow, requirements and fees based on how large your family is, and a possible two-month wait for application approval can all combine to multiply the stress factors on this as well.

To help alleviate that stress and ensure that you’re educated on the requirements and procedure, we put this guide together to show you how to extend a UK spouse visa.

When to Extend Your UK Spouse Visa

Initially granted for a period of two years and nine months, you must apply for an extension before it expires. However, you can only apply for an extension three months before it is set to expire. The good news is that an extension will enable you to live in the UK for a further 30 months and once that extension expires, you can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) status, which can eventually lead to British citizenship.

If you’re going to complete your extension application yourself, you must set reminders in order to ensure that you do not miss that three-month window before your UK spouse visa expires.

How Long Does the Process Take?

It can take up to eight weeks from the date you apply for you to receive your decision, but there is a super priority service available for £800 that can take as little as one business day. Unless you want to pay for the priority service, with only a 3-month window to apply for renewal and up to an eight week wait for approval, time is once again against you and it’s generally considered a best practice to partner with a reliable visa consultant.

Requirements

The requirements for the extension application are similar to the original Spouse Visa in that you have to prove that you’ve been in a genuine relationship and intend to carry on living with your spouse/partner in the UK. Your spouse/partner must be a British citizen or have settled status, such as ILR or they have refugee or humanitarian protection status in the UK.

You cannot have not breached any law or immigration condition, have an ability to prove a certain mastery level of English, and meet character suitability conditions. However, when it comes to knowing how to extend a UK spouse visa, one of the main things you have to remember is that you’ll be required to show that you can meet the financial requirement. This means that you’ll need to show that you have a combined annual income with your UK spouse of at least £18,600, or cash savings of £62,500 minimum.

If you have dependent children, you need to be making an additional £3,800 in gross annual income for the first child and another £2,400 for each additional child thereafter. This means that for one child you will need a total combined gross income of at least £22,400, for two children it has to be £24,800, for three it is £27,200, and so forth. The primary consideration of your application is determining what is in the best interest of the children and this means that you must meet the financial requirements.

If you don’t have any dependent children and you earn less than the required £18,600 threshold, you’ll most likely use your savings to make up the shortfall, but savings can only be used to help meet the financial requirement if they total over £16,000 as this is the amount of savings that determines that you are not eligible for income-related benefits. 

As the documents required to show that you meet the financial requirements are rather extensive, you’ll want to get started on this aspect well in advance.

You should also know that this annual gross income requirement isn’t restricted to solely coming from traditional salaries. The annual gross income for couples can include:

• Income from self-employment
• Income from a pension program
• Income that comes from non-employment sources such as rental property income or dividends from shares

Additional requirements are as follows:

• Your current passport or other valid travel ID.
• Financial documents such as bank statements and pay slips.
• Certified English language test certificate (unless exempt)
• Details and proof of relationship. You’ll need to demonstrate that you are both in a genuine relationship and that you’ve been living together for the duration of your residency.

Restrictions to Know About

Another important fact to note when learning how to extend a UK spouse visa is that you cannot have spent more than 180 days outside of the UK in any 12-month period. If you’re applying for indefinite leave to remain (ILR), you cannot have spent more than 180 days outside of the UK in the 2.5 years before your application. Furthermore, for the ILR you cannot have been outside of the UK for more than 90 days in any 12-month period in the five years preceding your application.

Fees for a UK Spouse Visa

To extend your partner visa, there is a fee of £1,033, with each dependent costing an additional £1,033. You’ll also have to pay the immigration health surcharge (IHS) of £400 per year that your visa is valid. For example, if your UK spouse visa is extended for five-years, the IHS cost will be £2000.

How to Extend a UK Spouse Visa

When applying for an extension of your Spouse visa extension, you’ll need to complete the FLR(M) form which is an extensive application and requires you to provide a variety of documents and personal information. As any omissions or mistakes, however minor, will result in a refusal of your extension application, it is essential that you complete the FLR(M) form fully and correctly. If it is determined that you have not provided sufficient evidence, you may be obligated to attend a face-to-face interview.