Overview
If you and your partner are in a committed, genuine relationship but are not married and not in a civil partnership, the UK Unmarried Partner Visa — formally an Unmarried Partner route under Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules — allows you to apply to join, or remain with, your partner in the UK.
The route carries one requirement that many applicants do not initially anticipate: you must demonstrate that you have been living together in a relationship akin to marriage for at least two years prior to your application. That is a high evidential bar, and applications that fall short — or that fail to present the evidence in the right way — are refused.
Marsl Sharifi has guided many couples through this process. He understands what the Home Office needs to see, and he works personally with each client to build a thorough, well-organised application that tells the story of their relationship clearly and credibly.
Who this service is for
- You and your partner are in a genuine, subsisting relationship that is not a marriage or civil partnership.
- You have been living together in a relationship akin to marriage or civil partnership for at least two years immediately before the application.
- Your UK partner (the "sponsor") is a British citizen, settled in the UK (Indefinite Leave to Remain or Settled Status), a refugee with limited leave, or a person with certain other qualifying immigration statuses.
- You meet the financial requirement — the sponsor must ordinarily meet a minimum income threshold of £29,000 gross per year (or demonstrate adequate savings), though transitional arrangements may apply in some cases.
- You both intend to live together permanently in the UK.
- You do not have any immigration bans or other bars to entry.
- You meet the English language requirement.
What you'll need
- Joint tenancy or mortgage documents.
- Bills or correspondence addressed to both of you at the same address, across the full two-year period.
- Bank account statements — ideally a joint account, or correspondence for both parties to the same address.
- Correspondence from official bodies (GP, HMRC, local authority) addressed to both at the same address.
- Joint photographs across the period of the relationship, including at key milestones.
- Evidence of travel together — bookings, boarding passes, hotel records.
- Statements from family and friends who know the couple.
- Evidence of financial interdependence — joint savings, contributions to each other's expenses.
- The sponsor's payslips and employer letter, P60, bank statements (financial requirement evidence).
- Bank statements showing the required level of savings held for at least six months (if using savings to meet the financial requirement).
- Valid passport for the applicant (and, where applicable, previous passports showing travel history).
- English language test certificate (from an approved SELT provider) unless exempt.
- Tuberculosis test certificate if required for your nationality.
- Life in the UK test certificate if applying from inside the UK for further leave.
Fees
Marsl's professional fees for an unmarried partner visa are £2,100 + VAT. Fees depend on whether you are applying from inside or outside the UK and the extent of preparation required. The government visa application fee for an unmarried partner visa entry clearance application is currently £1,846; leave to remain applications attract a different fee. The Immigration Health Surcharge is payable in addition. In accordance with the SRA Transparency Rules, full fee information is set out in your client care letter before work begins.
The process, step by step
- Step 1
Initial advice and eligibility check
Marsl reviews your circumstances — relationship history, finances, living situation, immigration history — and confirms whether you meet the requirements. If there are gaps, he advises on how to address them before applying.
- Step 2
Application preparation
Marsl works with you to complete the application form (online, through the Home Office portal) and assemble the supporting evidence file. He advises on how to present the two years of cohabitation evidence coherently.
- Step 3
Submission and biometrics
The application is submitted online. If applying from outside the UK, you will attend a Visa Application Centre in your country to provide biometric data (fingerprints and photograph). If applying from inside the UK (a "further leave" application), you will use the UK Visas and Immigration service.
- Step 4
Decision
Entry clearance (from outside the UK): standard processing is typically 12 weeks. Leave to remain (from inside the UK): currently around eight months for standard applications, faster with a priority service. Initial leave is typically granted for 30 months (2.5 years). You will need to apply to extend before expiry and, after five years of continuous qualifying leave, you can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR).
- Step 5
Extension and settlement
Marsl can advise on extension applications and the eventual ILR application.