DEPENDENT ADULT RELATIVE VISA
If you, or your relative who lives outside the UK, require long-term care, you may be able to apply for a Dependent Adult Relative visa to come to the UK to be cared for by your relatives who either hold British citizenship or are settled in the UK.
How long you can stay in the UK on your Dependent Adult Relative visa depends on the status of your family member. If they have a pre-settled status, refugee status or humanitarian protection, you can stay as long as your family member stays.
Your stay is unlimited if your family member is British, Irish or settled in the UK.
To apply for a Dependent Adult Relative visa, you must be over the age of 18 and require long-term care due to disability, age, or illness. The treatment or care for your long-term illness or disability must not be available, or accessible to you, in your home country. In practice, it is extremely difficult to satisfy the requirements for a Dependent Adult Relative visa.
Your relative whom you wish to join in the UK must hold one of the following:
- British or Irish citizenship
- Indefinite leave to remain or settled status
- Pre-settled status and are from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein
- Refugee status or humanitarian protection in the UK
Your relative must be able to support, accommodate and care for you without claiming public funds for at least 5 years.
If your relative has a settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme, there may be another way for you to join them in the UK.
Once your child receives a Dependent Adult Relative visa, you should note that the following conditions will apply to your stay in the UK in this category.
You will be permitted the following activities on a Dependent Adult Relative visa:
- Work and study in the UK
- Extend your Dependent Adult Relative visa
- Settle in the UK
You will not be able to do the following in the UK on a Dependent Adult Relative visa:
- Claim public funds (most benefits)
Fairmont Lawyers can help you navigate the requirements and provide you with professional legal assistance every step of the way to obtain a Dependent Adult Relative visa.
FAQ
To apply for an Adult Dependent Relative visa, you will need to be able to show that you require long-term personal care as a result of age, illness or disability. This should take the form of independent medical evidence from a doctor or other health professional supporting the proposition that your physical or mental condition means that you cannot perform everyday tasks.
Additionally, you must be able to show that even with the practical and financial help of your sponsor in the UK, you are unable to obtain the required level of care in the country where you are living. This should be from either a central or local health authority, a local authority, or a doctor or other health professional. If a private arrangement has been in place, you will be expected to explain why that can no longer continue and, if no longer affordable, both an explanation and evidence as to why not. If financial support has previously been provided by the sponsor or any other close family member in the UK, an explanation will need to be provided as to why this cannot continue or is no longer sufficient for the required level of care to be provided.
If you are applying from outside the UK, you should make an application for a Child Visa no more than 3 months before you plan to be in the country.
For applications made within the UK, you should make an application for a Child Visa no more than 3 months before your current visa expires.
It takes around:
- 12 weeks if you apply from outside the UK
- 8 weeks if you apply from inside the UK
However, some delays may occur depending on your individual circumstances or the Home Office/UKVI.
You may be able to choose Priority Service, subject to availability. You will need to pay an additional fee to use this service, and the cost depends on the visa center.
The current visa application fee for an Adult Dependent Relative visa (from October 2021) is £3,250 if you apply from outside the UK and£1,033 if you apply from inside the UK (plus £19.20 for biometric enrolment if you are in the UK). The Immigration Healthcare Surcharge (IHS) is £624 per each year of the visa unless you are exempt. The Home Office regularly reviews its fees and these may be subject to increase in the future.