Moving to the UK from Bangladesh: Complete Guide

Main Visa Routes

Partner and Family Visa

The partner visa brings someone to live with a spouse or partner who is a British citizen or a settled person. The UK sponsor must meet the minimum income requirement of £29,000 a year for a new application. The £38,700 figure that was announced in 2023 was never brought into the rules.

The Home Office decides whether a relationship is genuine and subsisting on the evidence you provide. Useful relationship evidence includes:

• Evidence of how you met and how the relationship developed
• Communication records (call logs, messages, video call screenshots)
• Evidence of visits (flight bookings, passport stamps, photographs)
• Wedding photographs and documentation
• Statements from family members who attended the wedding
• Your plans for living together in the UK

Skilled Worker Visa

The Skilled Worker visa needs a certificate of sponsorship from a licensed UK employer, and the job must pay at least £41,700 a year or the going rate for the occupation code, whichever is higher. Since 22 July 2025 a new applicant's job must sit at degree level (RQF 6), unless the occupation code is on the Immigration Salary List or the Temporary Shortage List. A job on the Immigration Salary List has a lower salary floor of £33,400 and a lower visa fee, but the full going rate for the code still applies; roles reached through the Temporary Shortage List cannot bring dependants.

Student Visa

The Student visa costs £558 and needs a confirmation of acceptance for studies from a licensed institution. After finishing, the Graduate route gives 2 years of work permission without a sponsor, or 3 years after a PhD. For applications made on or after 1 January 2027 the 2-year period shortens to 18 months.

Bangladeshi Document Requirements

Attestation

Bangladesh is not a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, so documents go through the older legalisation route:

1. Educational certificates. Attested first by the relevant education board or university.
2. Ministry of Foreign Affairs attestation. Documents are submitted to the ministry in Dhaka, which verifies them and affixes its stamp.
3. Certified translation. Documents in Bangla must be accompanied by a certified English translation. The translation must carry the translator's confirmation that it is accurate, the date, and the translator's name and contact details.

Birth and Marriage Certificates

Bangladeshi birth certificates are issued by local government (Union Parishad or City Corporation); the computerised version is the current form. A Muslim marriage is evidenced by the kabinnama, registered with the local Kazi office. An unregistered marriage is difficult to evidence, and the partner route asks for proof that the marriage is recognised in the country where it took place.

Criminal Record Certificate

A criminal record certificate is not needed for most applications. GOV.UK asks for one from a Skilled Worker applying from outside the UK whose job is in education, healthcare, therapy or social services. Where it is needed, the Bangladeshi document is a police clearance certificate, applied for through Bangladesh Police. Neither the Home Office nor Bangladesh Police publishes a processing time on GOV.UK, so this guide gives none.

Financial Documents

• Bank statements must be on official letterhead with the bank's seal. Electronic statements should come with a letter from the bank confirming they are genuine.
• Money held in a currency other than pounds is converted to pounds for the date of the application. Exchange rates move, so this guide gives no taka figure.
• If a parent is funding a student, provide a letter of consent, proof of the relationship, and the parent's evidence of funds.
• Fixed deposit receipts are accepted where they show the money has been held for the required period. On a Student visa the money must have been held for 28 consecutive days, ending no more than 31 days before the application.
• Income from property or a business should be supported by tax returns and accounts.

Tuberculosis Test

Bangladesh is on the Home Office tuberculosis testing list. You need a certificate if you are coming for 6 months or more and have lived in Bangladesh, or another listed country, for 6 months or more within the last 6 months. The test must be done at a Home Office approved clinic in Bangladesh. The certificate is valid for 6 months from the date of the x-ray. Each clinic publishes its own fee, so this guide gives no price.

English Language Requirement

Bangladesh is not on the Home Office list of majority English-speaking countries, so an approved secure English language test is needed unless you are exempt:

• Partner visa, first application: CEFR A1
• Partner visa, extension after 2.5 years: CEFR A2
• Settlement: CEFR B1, rising to B2 from 26 March 2027 on several routes
• Skilled Worker: CEFR B2 for a new application since 8 January 2026; B1 is still accepted on an extension of the same route
• Student: CEFR B1 below degree level, CEFR B2 at degree level and above

A degree taught in English can meet the requirement instead of a test, if it is recognised by Ecctis as equivalent to a UK qualification.

Applying and Giving Biometrics

You complete the application on GOV.UK, then book an appointment at a visa application centre to have your fingerprints and photograph taken. The centres in Bangladesh are run by a commercial partner on the Home Office's behalf; the booking system tells you which are open when you apply.

Decision Times

These are the service standards GOV.UK publishes for applications made outside the UK. They are not guarantees, and the Home Office does not publish separate times per country.

• Partner, spouse, parent or child visa: 12 weeks
• Skilled Worker and other work visas: 3 weeks
• Student visa: 3 weeks
• Standard Visitor visa: 3 weeks

The priority service costs £500 and the super priority service £1,000. For family visas and citizenship the priority service means a decision within 30 working days rather than 5. See our spouse visa processing time guide.

What It Costs

The Home Office publishes its fees in pounds. It does not publish a taka price, and the exchange rate it applies is the rate on the day you pay, so this guide gives no conversion.

• Partner visa, applying from outside the UK: £2,064 per person
• Skilled Worker visa, applying from outside the UK: £819 for 3 years or less, £1,618 for more than 3 years
• Student visa: £558
• Standard Visitor visa: £135 for 6 months
• Healthcare surcharge: £1,035 a year, or £776 a year for students, their dependants and anyone under 18
• Settlement: £3,226 for each person
• Naturalisation: £1,709 plus a £130 ceremony fee

GOV.UK publishes no price for an English language test or a tuberculosis test; the providers and clinics set their own. See our UK visa fees guide and healthcare surcharge guide.

Healthcare

Paying the healthcare surcharge does not make the National Health Service free. It buys care on the same basis as a UK resident, so you then pay what a resident pays. In England that is £9.90 for a prescription and dental charges of £27.90, £76.60 or £332.10 depending on the band of treatment. Prescriptions are free in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Things That Commonly Delay an Application

• Document verification. The Home Office can ask the issuing authority to confirm a document is genuine. That takes the application outside the published service standard.
• Name and date discrepancies. Bangla names can be transliterated into English in more than one way, and older documents may carry dates from a different calendar. Explain any difference and, where possible, get a corrected document from the issuing authority.
• Accommodation. On the partner route the UK sponsor must show adequate accommodation that will not be overcrowded within the meaning of the Housing Act 1985.
• English test booking. Only tests taken with a provider on the Home Office approved list count. Book early enough that a retake is still possible before you apply.

The Bangladeshi Community in the UK

The largest concentrations of people of Bangladeshi heritage are in east London, particularly Tower Hamlets, and in Birmingham, Manchester, Luton and Oldham, with a long-standing connection to the Sylhet division. The Home Office does not publish a count of Bangladeshi nationals resident in the UK, so this guide gives none.

First Steps After Arrival

• Set up or sign in to your UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account and check your online immigration status. There is no card to collect: biometric residence permits stopped being issued at the end of 2024.
• Apply for a National Insurance number.
• Register with a doctor (GP surgery).
• Open a bank account.
• Enrol children in school if applicable.

Path to Settlement and Citizenship

The partner route leads to settlement (indefinite leave to remain) after 5 years, at a fee of £3,226. You must pass the Life in the UK test and meet English at B1. Twelve months after receiving settlement you can apply for British citizenship, which costs £1,709 plus a £130 ceremony fee. A person married to a British citizen can apply as soon as they hold settlement, provided they have been in the UK for 3 years.

The UK does not require you to give up another nationality when you naturalise.

Next Steps

Confirm your route first, then start on the documents: attestation and a police certificate can take weeks. For official information, visit GOV.UK.

Related guides:

• Spouse visa: complete guide
• Spouse visa documents checklist
• Genuine relationship evidence
• Skilled Worker visa: complete guide
• UK visa fees: complete breakdown

Questions and answers