Spouse Visa Extension Guide

Timing: the rule that actually exists

There is no published earliest date for an extension. The "28 days before expiry" rule people repeat belongs to settlement, where GOV.UK says the earliest you can apply is 28 days before you meet the residence requirement. It does not govern this application.

The 28 days that do matter here work the other way. Paragraph GEN.1.13 of Appendix FM provides that where an applicant still holds permission as a partner at the date of application, "the remaining period of that extant leave up to a maximum of 28 days will be added to the period of limited leave to remain granted... (which may therefore exceed 30 months)".

So permission left over is not wasted, up to 28 days of it. Beyond that it is.

The rule that is not flexible is applying in time. GOV.UK: "You can stay in the UK until you've been given a decision, as long as you applied before your last visa expired." That protection is section 3C leave, and an application made after permission has expired does not attract it.

What the extension has to show

The relationship

Paragraph E-LTRP.1.7 requires a genuine and subsisting relationship. The Home Office caseworker guidance narrows the question on a second application: where genuineness was already accepted, "you normally only need to be satisfied the relationship is subsisting", and "you do not need to reconsider evidence already accepted in a previous application". Where both partners are in the UK, the guidance allows direct checks with third parties in place of documents. Our relationship evidence entry covers what carries weight.

The financial requirement

£29,000 under paragraph E-LTRP.3.1 — with one exception that matters at exactly this stage. Paragraph E-LTRP.3.7 keeps the older figure for someone whose first application as a partner, fiancé, fiancée or proposed civil partner was made before 11 April 2024 and who is extending with the same partner: £18,600, plus £3,800 for the first child and £2,400 for each additional child, and capped at £29,000 however many children there are. Applying with a new partner takes you out of the transitional tier and back to £29,000.

The permitted sources, under E-LTRP.3.2, are wider than they were on the first application from abroad:

• the partner's employment or self-employment income;
• the applicant's own employment or self-employment income, unless they are working illegally — this is the change from paragraph E-ECP.3.2, which counts only the partner's earnings;
• pension income of either;
• certain maternity allowance, bereavement benefit and armed forces payments;
• other specified income;
• income of a dependent child aged 18 or over in the same household; and
• specified savings.

The savings route is £16,000 plus 2.5 times the shortfall, held for 6 months — £88,500 with no income at all. Our financial requirement entry covers the categories, and what happens if the sponsor loses their job covers a shortfall at this stage.

The exemption still applies. Where the sponsoring partner receives one of the listed disability or carer benefits, paragraph E-LTRP.3.3 replaces the income figure with an adequate maintenance test.

English at A2

Paragraph E-LTRP.4.1A applies to an applicant who met the requirement at A1 and "now seeks further leave to remain as a partner after 30 months in the UK with leave as a partner". They must show a test in speaking and listening at a minimum of level A2 with an approved provider, or be a national of a majority English-speaking country listed at GEN.1.6, or hold a degree taught or researched in English to A2 or above.

The exemptions at E-LTRP.4.2 are unchanged: aged 65 or over at the date of application, a physical or mental condition preventing it, or exceptional circumstances. Our English language entry has the country list, which is fixed and shorter than people expect.

Accommodation

Paragraph E-LTRP.3.4 again: adequate accommodation for the whole household, without recourse to public funds, which the family own or occupy exclusively, and which is neither overcrowded nor in contravention of public health regulations. Our accommodation entry sets out the two statutory overcrowding tests.

Suitability

Part Suitability of the Rules applies. Its grounds are not limited to unspent convictions and are not all discretionary — the statement of changes HC 1691 made a suspended sentence of 12 months or more a mandatory refusal ground from 26 March 2026. Overstaying, deception and debts to the Home Office or the NHS also appear there.

What it costs

• Application: £1,407 per person, applying inside the UK.
• Healthcare surcharge: £1,035 a year for an adult over 2 years 6 months — £2,587.50. For a child it is £776 a year, so £1,940.
• Fingerprints and photograph: no fee.
• Total for one adult: £1,407 + £2,587.50 = £3,994.50. For an adult and one child: £3,994.50 + £3,347 = £7,341.50.

A fee waiver exists on the family route where you cannot afford the fee. Our cost breakdown sets out the whole route including settlement, which is £3,226 for each person applying.

How long it takes

The published service standard is 8 weeks for a partner or spouse application made inside the UK where the minimum income and English language requirements are met. The clock starts when you attend your appointment to give fingerprints and a photograph, or the working day after you finish uploading documents through the "UK Immigration: ID Check" app — not when you pay.

Paying for speed works differently here. GOV.UK's table of applications eligible for a faster decision from inside the UK marks the Family visa as not eligible for a decision within 5 working days, by either method of proving identity. The only paid option is the super priority service at £1,000, and only where you attend an appointment in person. Our priority service entry works through the table.

While the application is pending you remain on section 3C leave with the same conditions as before, so you can continue working. Section 3C(3) of the Immigration Act 1971 adds the limit: "Leave extended by virtue of this section shall lapse if the applicant leaves the United Kingdom." Travelling abroad before the decision therefore ends the permission that is keeping you here.

Documents

• Passport, and access to your eVisa in your UKVI account.
• English test certificate at A2, or evidence of an exemption or of a qualifying degree.
• Financial evidence for the relevant period: under Category A, 6 months of payslips, the employer's letter confirming the four things paragraph 2(b) requires, and matching bank statements. Under Category B or for self-employment, the periods differ — see our Category A entry.
• Accommodation evidence: tenancy agreement, mortgage statement or deeds, plus the household composition.
• Evidence the relationship is subsisting, if circumstances have changed since the last grant.

Paragraph 1(l) of Appendix FM-SE applies throughout: evidence relating to a period ending with the date of application, or its most recently dated part, must be dated no earlier than 28 days before that date.

After the extension

A grant under paragraph D-LTRP.1.1 makes you "eligible to apply for settlement after a continuous period of at least 60 months" on the route. A grant under D-LTRP.1.2, where exceptional circumstances applied, makes that 120 months instead — so it is worth checking which paragraph your decision letter names.

At settlement, on the 5-year route, you will need:

• 5 continuous years in the UK on this route;
• English at B1 — rising to B2 for settlement applications made on or after 26 March 2027 under Appendix KoLL;
• the Life in the UK Test, for applicants aged 18 to 64;
• the same financial and accommodation requirements; and
• the fee of £3,226 for each person applying.

The savings figure changes at that point: paragraph E-ILRP.1.3 disregards the words "2.5 times", bringing £88,500 down to £45,000 where there is no income. On absences, GOV.UK requires 5 continuous years living in the UK on the family visa as a partner and publishes no maximum number of days spent outside the UK for this route — the 180-days-in-12-months rule belongs elsewhere. Our settlement entry covers the rest.

Related entries

• The partner and spouse route
• Extension processing times
• Section 3C leave
• The financial requirement
• Settlement

Questions and answers