UK spouse visa in 2026: requirements, fees and the path to settlement

The partner route for husbands, wives, civil partners and fiancés of British citizens and settled people: the £29,000 income rule, English at A1, documents, fees and indefinite leave to remain after 5 years

The UK spouse visa is the partner route of the family visa. It lets the husband, wife, civil partner or long-term partner of a British citizen or settled person live, work and study in the UK for 2 years and 9 months, extend for another 2 years and 6 months and apply for indefinite leave to remain after 5 years. The rules are the same for every nationality: the couple's combined income, English at A1 and proof of a genuine relationship decide the outcome.

Who can apply as a partner

Your partner in the UK is one of the following:

• a British or Irish citizen
• a person settled in the UK with indefinite leave to remain or settled status
• a refugee or a person with humanitarian protection
• a holder of a Turkish Businessperson or Turkish Worker visa

You also prove one of four relationships: a marriage or civil partnership recognised in the UK, 2 years of living together, an engagement with a wedding in the UK within 6 months of arrival, or a relationship of at least 2 years in which work, study or culture keeps you in separate homes. Both partners are 18 or over and plan to live together permanently in the UK. The partner of someone with settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme applies through that scheme free of charge.

The partner of someone on a work visa takes a different route: they join as a dependant on the same visa and for the same length, with no £29,000 threshold. Details are in UK work visa in 2026.

The £29,000 income requirement

You and your partner show a combined income of at least £29,000 a year. Salary, self-employment and other income each have their own evidence, and savings can stand in for income. The caseworker also looks at housing costs: the family lives and pays for its home without public funds.

• No threshold with disability or carer's benefits: when your partner receives Personal Independence Payment, Carer Support Payment, Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit or another listed benefit, the £29,000 figure does not apply, and you show that the family supports itself.
• Couples on the earlier rules: if you first applied as a partner before 11 April 2024 and extend with the same partner, the threshold stays at £18,600, plus £3,800 for the first child and £2,400 for each further child, capped at £29,000.

When you have a child in the UK who is a British or Irish citizen or has lived there for 7 years, and leaving would be unreasonable for the child, the application goes ahead with a lower income.

English for a UK spouse visa

The first visa needs English at level A1 on the European scale, shown by a test from an approved provider or a degree taught in English. The extension after 2 years and 6 months needs A2 in speaking and listening, and settlement after 5 years needs B1. A B1 result at the first application is reused at settlement while the test stays on the approved list.

Citizens of the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Malta, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and the other majority English-speaking countries on the official list skip the test, and so do people over 65 and those whose health prevents it.

Proving your relationship: documents

Evidence of the relationship comes from the government, a bank, a landlord, a utility company or a doctor, confirms that you live together, share expenses or are married, and is less than 4 years old.

• passports, current and previous
• a marriage or civil partnership certificate
• a tenancy agreement, utility or Council Tax bills at the same address
• statements from a joint bank account
• a letter from your doctor or dentist confirming the shared address
• proof of income for the £29,000 requirement
• an English test certificate or a degree taught in English
• a tuberculosis test certificate if you have lived for 6 months or more in a country on the official list
• proof that any previous marriage or civil partnership has ended

Couples who live apart for work, study or cultural reasons show an ongoing commitment instead: regular contact, financial support, care for children and time spent together, such as holidays and family events. Documents not in English or Welsh go with a certified translation.

The fiancé visa: marry in the UK within 6 months

An engaged couple applies from outside the UK for the fiancé, fiancée or proposed civil partner visa. It gives 6 months to marry or register a civil partnership in the UK, and then you extend from inside the country as a spouse for 2 years and 6 months. Work and study start with that extension. Previous marriages or civil partnerships have ended before you apply, and the months on the fiancé visa do not count towards the 5 years for settlement.

Bringing your children

Children join on your application as dependants if they are under 18 when you apply, or were under 18 when first granted permission, and do not live an independent life. Each child pays the same visa fee as you, £2,064 from outside the UK or £1,407 from inside, and the healthcare surcharge of £2,328 for 2 years and 9 months. Their permission runs alongside yours.

Fees and timelines: what a UK spouse visa costs

Over 5 years a partner pays two visa fees and two healthcare surcharges before settlement. The surcharge gives access to the National Health Service on the same terms as residents.

How to get your UK spouse visa approved the first time

• combined income of £29,000, each source proved with the evidence the rules set for it
• an English certificate at A1 or above from an approved provider, unless your passport exempts you
• relationship evidence less than 4 years old from a bank, landlord, utility company, doctor or the government
• proof that every previous marriage or civil partnership has ended
• a tuberculosis certificate from an approved clinic when your country is on the list
• a home for the family that you pay for without public funds

We check every document against the rules for your type of income and relationship before any fee is paid, so the application goes in complete.

After 5 years: settlement and citizenship

Indefinite leave to remain comes after 5 years of continuous residence on the family visa as a partner. Time on other visas and on the fiancé visa counts separately and is not added to these 5 years. Settlement needs English at B1 and the Life in the UK test.

The husband, wife or civil partner of a British citizen applies for citizenship as soon as they hold indefinite leave to remain, after at least 3 years in the UK, without the 12-month wait that applies to everyone else. Details are in permanent residence in the UK and UK citizenship.

This topic in other countries

Marriage-based residence and family reunification in other countries:

• Family reunification and marriage-based residence in Germany in 2026
• Family reunification and marriage-based residence in Serbia in 2026
• Family reunification and marriage-based residence in Georgia in 2026
• Family reunification and marriage-based residence in Kazakhstan in 2026

Residence, taxes and life in the UK:

• how to get residency in the UK: every route
• moving to the UK
• UK work visa in 2026
• cost of living in the UK
• taxes in the UK
• a second passport for British citizens

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