Visitor Visa Extension UK

Extending a visit inside the UK is possible in defined circumstances and costs £1,172. This guide sets out who can extend, how far, how many times, and what happens if you overstay instead.

Checked 11 March 20267 min readWritten by the Rowan Editorial Team

Section: Visitor Visa
Reading time: 7 min
Last checked: 11 March 2026
Source: The published Immigration Rules and GOV.UK guidance, linked throughout this guide.
Rowan does not: Look at your own case, tell you which route to choose, or say what the Home Office will decide. This guide shows the published rules and where to read them.

In short

Extending inside the UK costs £1,172, whatever your nationality.
Most visitors can extend only up to a total of 6 months in the UK.
Beyond 6 months: medical patients, academics, and PLAB or clinical attachment graduates only.
A medical patient can extend by 6 months at a time, with no limit on how many times.
Extending does not change your route — you cannot switch to a work, study or partner visa inside the UK.

A visit can be extended from inside the UK for a fee of £1,172, whatever your nationality. If your permission is for less than 6 months you can extend up to a total of 6 months. Only three groups can go beyond 6 months: medical patients, academics, and graduates retaking the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board test or doing a clinical attachment.

The General Rule: Up to 6 Months in Total

The Standard Visitor visa allows you to stay for up to 6 months on each visit. GOV.UK says you may be able to extend your stay if your permission is for less than 6 months, and that you can extend up to a total of 6 months. If you have been in the UK for 3 months, for example, you can apply to extend for 3 more.

It costs £1,172 to extend, whatever your nationality, and an extra £1,000 if you use the super priority service. You give fingerprints and a photo as part of it, and GOV.UK says there is no fee for that. You must apply while you are still in the UK and before your current permission expires.

Even if you hold a long-term visitor visa lasting 2, 5, or 10 years, each individual visit is limited to 6 months. The long-term visa means you can enter many times without reapplying, not that you can stay longer.

Staying Beyond 6 Months

GOV.UK names three groups who can apply to stay in the UK for longer than 6 months as a visitor: a patient receiving medical treatment, an academic who still meets the eligibility requirements, and a graduate retaking the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board test or doing a clinical attachment.

Medical Treatment

If you are already in the UK you can apply to stay a further 6 months if you have paid for the treatment you have already had, can and will pay for the rest, and still meet the medical treatment requirements. GOV.UK says plainly: there is no limit on how many times you can extend your stay. It costs £1,172 each time. You need a UK-registered medical practitioner or NHS consultant to set out the condition that needs further treatment.

Applying from outside the UK instead, the Standard Visitor visa for medical reasons costs £234 and lasts up to 11 months. That 11 months is the length of the up-front visa, not a cap on extensions. See our medical treatment visitor guide.

Academics

An academic already in the UK with permission for less than 12 months can apply to stay for up to 12 months in total, for the same £1,172. Partners and children can apply to stay for up to 12 months too, each with their own application and their own £1,172 fee. Applying in advance from outside the UK, the Standard Visitor visa for academics costs £234 and lasts up to 12 months.

PLAB and Clinical Attachments

A graduate retaking the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board test, or doing a clinical attachment, is the third group GOV.UK names as able to apply to stay beyond 6 months.

Consequences of Overstaying

Overstaying is a breach of immigration law. Part Suitability of the Immigration Rules sets mandatory re-entry bans, and the length turns on how you left the UK and who paid for it rather than on how long you overstayed:

1 year if you left voluntarily at your own expense
2 years if you left voluntarily at public expense, within 6 months of being told you were liable to removal
5 years if you left voluntarily at public expense more than 6 months after that
10 years if you were removed at public expense, or used deception in an application

There is a narrow exception: an application made within 14 days of the previous permission expiring, where the decision maker considers there was a good reason beyond the applicant's control.

If you find yourself unable to leave due to genuine circumstances (such as a medical emergency or travel disruption), contact the Home Office immediately. See our Home Office contact guide.

Alternatives to Extending

Leave and return. You can leave the UK and return for another visit. However, if you spend excessive time in the UK (more than 6 months out of every 12), you may be questioned at the border about whether you are effectively living in the UK.
Apply for a different visa from outside the UK. Extending as a visitor keeps you a visitor; it is not a way into another route. If you need to stay long-term, apply for the relevant visa from outside the UK. See our guides on the Spouse Visa, Skilled Worker Visa, or Student Visa.

For more on switching, see our visitor to spouse visa guide.

Next Steps

Related guides:

For official information, see the GOV.UK Standard Visitor visa page and the GOV.UK page on when you can extend your stay.

Questions and answers

Can I extend my UK Visitor Visa?

Yes, in defined circumstances, and it costs £1,172 whatever your nationality. If your permission is for less than 6 months you can extend up to a total of 6 months. You can only stay beyond 6 months if you are a patient receiving medical treatment, an academic who still meets the requirements, or a graduate retaking the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board test or doing a clinical attachment.

What if I need to stay longer than 6 months?

GOV.UK names three groups who can apply to stay beyond 6 months: a patient receiving medical treatment, an academic who still meets the eligibility requirements, and a graduate retaking the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board test or doing a clinical attachment. For any other reason you must leave before your permission expires. A medical patient can extend by a further 6 months each time, and GOV.UK says there is no limit on how many times you can do it — £1,172 each time. An academic can stay up to 12 months in total.

What happens if I overstay my Visitor Visa?

Overstaying is a breach of immigration law. Part Suitability of the Immigration Rules sets mandatory re-entry bans: 1 year if you left voluntarily at your own expense, 2 years if you left at public expense within 6 months of a removal notice, 5 years if you left at public expense later than that, and 10 years if you were removed at public expense or used deception. The length turns on how you left and who paid, not on how long you overstayed. There is a narrow exception where an application is made within 14 days of the previous permission expiring and there was a good reason beyond your control.

Can I switch from a Visitor Visa to another visa type?

No. You cannot switch from a visit to a Student visa, a Skilled Worker visa, or a partner visa from inside the UK. Extending as a visitor is not the same as switching route: it keeps you a visitor. To move to another route you leave the UK and apply from outside it.

This guide is general information about published immigration rules. It is not advice about an individual application under s.82 Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, and Rowan is not regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority. Immigration rules change several times a year. For advice on a particular situation, contact an adviser authorised by the Immigration Advice Authority or an immigration solicitor. Always check GOV.UK for the authoritative current rules.

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