Family Visa UK from Germany

The UK family visa is a vital immigration pathway designed to reunite UK citizens and residents with settled and refugee or humanitarian protection status with their overseas family members.

As a German citizen, you can typically enter the UK and visit your family member visa-free for up to 6 months. However, if you intend to stay longer than six months, you must apply for a family visa.

There are different types of family visas in the UK, categorised based on an applicant’s circumstances and relationship with their UK-based family member. Thus, you can apply for a family visa to join your partner, fiancé(e), parent, child, or a relative capable of providing you with long-term care.

The family visa will allow holders to live, work, and study in the UK. It is also a pathway to indefinite leave to remain (ILR) and British citizenship.

Before you begin your visa application process, be aware that you must meet specific criteria set out by the Home Office before your case can be considered. Additionally, it’s essential to prepare your documents ahead of time.

Our immigration lawyers can help you prepare for your UK family visa application. Call us at +44 (0)333 305 9375, and we’ll be glad to help.

Page Contents

• UK Family Visa Overview
• Eligibility for UK Family Visa
• The English Language Test for UK Family Visa
• Types of Family-Based Visas in the UK
• Spouse and Partner Visas
• Parent Visas
• Adult Dependant Visas
• Child Dependant Visas
• EEA Family Permits & EEA Settlement Scheme Family Permits
• UK Family Visa Requirements From Germany
• UK Family Visa Processing Time
• UK Family Visa Fees
• UK Family Visa Application Process
• Settle in the UK
• How Can Total Law Help?
• Frequently Asked Questions

To qualify for a UK family visa, you must be an immediate relative of:

• A British or Irish citizen
• A resident with indefinite leave to remain
• Someone with pre-settled status
• An individual with refugee or humanitarian protection status
• Someone with permission to stay as a stateless person

If your relative resides in the UK on a work visa, you can not apply for a family visa. Instead, you may be eligible to apply as a dependent on their work visa.

You must be related to your UK-based family member as a partner, child, parent, or dependent grandparent or sibling. As part of the criteria, you must provide proof of your relationship or familial ties with them.

Note that your family member must agree to sponsor and support you financially for at least your first 5 years in the UK. They will be required to provide you with a sponsorship form in that regard. Otherwise, your application may not be granted.

Additionally, to be eligible for a family visa, you must have a clean criminal record and not be a threat to UK security. If you’ve had any past criminal convictions, you must submit details of such to the Home Office.

Furthermore, you must also meet additional requirements specific to the type of visa you’re applying for.

One important criterion you must meet as a German national applying for the family visa is to prove to the Home Office that you can speak and understand the English language. You can do so in two ways.

The first is with an academic qualification. If you have a degree that was taught or researched in English, you can include it in your application. Note that if your degree is from a non-UK higher institution, you must provide a certificate from the UK Visas and Nationality Service showing that it is equivalent to a UK degree.

The other option is to take an approved English language test. You must pass at least level A1 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) scale.

You may not need to prove your knowledge of English if any of the following applies to you:

• You are applying as a child
• You are over 65
• You are applying as an adult dependent
• You have a health condition that prevents you from meeting the requirement

The UK family visa types include:

• Spouse Visa
• Parent Visa
• Adult Dependent Visa
• Child Dependent Visa

The Parent Visa allows foreign parents to migrate to the UK to take care of their minor children residing in the country. This visa allows applicants to bring other dependent children with them to the UK.

If you intend to apply for the Parent Visa, your child must be under 18 and must not be married, in a civil partnership, or living away from home except for studies.

You’ll also need to meet these requirements:

• You must not be eligible for a Spouse or Partner Visa
• You must prove that you have sole parental responsibility for the child. If you share parental responsibility, the co-parent must be a UK citizen or settled person and not be your partner
• You must show that you are actively raising your child and will continue to do so in the UK
• Have sufficient finances to support yourself, your child, and any dependent accompanying you

To prove that you are taking an active role in your child’s life, you should provide evidence from a reputable source such as the government, a medical professional, a court, or a school that is less than 4 years old.

With your Parent Visa, you can live in the UK for 2 years and 9 months and extend your visa for an additional 2 years and 6 months.

You can apply for an Adult Dependent Visa from Germany if you are an adult needing long-term care from a relative living permanently in the UK. Your family member can be a parent, child, grandchild, or sibling.

You should meet the following requirements to qualify for the visa:

• Be over 18
• Be ineligible for other visas under the family visa route
• Be able to show that you need long-term care to do everyday personal or household tasks due to age, illness, or disability
• Prove that the care you require is not available or affordable in your home country
• Prove that your UK family member can accommodate and care for you for either:
  • 5 years if they are a British citizen or settled in the UK, or
  • The entire time they have permission to stay in the UK

The validity of the Adult Dependent Visa differs depending on the UK sponsor’s status. If your relative is a British citizen or has settled status, you can live permanently in the UK.

However, if your relative has pre-settled, refugee, or humanitarian protection status, you can stay for as long as they are in the UK. You’ll need to extend your status when they extend theirs.

If you have family members settled in the UK under the EU Settlement Scheme, you may be eligible to apply for the EU/EEA Settlement Scheme family permit. The family permit will allow you to work and study in the UK for up to six months.

To continue living in the UK, you’ll need to switch to the EU/EEA ​​Settlement Scheme permit.

When applying for the UK Family Visa, you must provide the following supporting documents:

• A valid passport or travel document
• Two passport-sized photographs
• Sponsorship form
• Proof of your relative’s accommodation in the UK
• Proof of sufficient funds to sponsor yourself
• Proof of your relationship with your UK family member with documents such as birth certificate and marriage or civil partnership certificate
• Proof of a clean criminal record

The UK family visas typically take 24 weeks to process. As soon as a decision has been reached on your application, the Home Office will reach out to you.

However, if you want a faster decision, you may be able to use the priority or super-priority service for an extra fee. You’ll be told during your online application if these services are available to you.

The Adult Dependent Visa costs £3,413 if your UK-based family member is a citizen or permanent resident. But it costs £424 if your relative has refugee or humanitarian protection status.

Other visas such as spouse visa under the family visa route cost £1,938.

In addition to the visa application fee, you will also pay an immigration health surcharge of £1035 per year.

Once you’ve determined that you meet the eligibility requirements and you have gathered your supporting documents, you can begin the visa application process.

Visit the UK government website and complete the visa application form. You will need to upload your supporting documents and pay the visa application fee and immigration health surcharge.

Afterwards, you’ll be prompted to book an appointment with the UK visa application centres (VAC) in Germany. You can choose any of the three UK VACs operated by TLSContact, located in Berlin, Dusseldorf, and Munich.

At your appointment, an official will take your biometric information and supporting documents. You may be asked some questions regarding your application. The Home Office will review your application and make a decision.

If you have spent 5 years on a family visa, you might be eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain and settle in the UK permanently without being subject to immigration rules. With your ILR status, you will be able to access public benefits and eventually be eligible for British citizenship.

To apply for UK settlement, you must also meet these criteria:

• Have sufficient command of the English language to at least a level B1
• Pass the Life in the UK test
• Meet the minimum financial requirement

You should submit your application before your family visa expires, but no sooner than 28 days before you meet the UK residency requirements. If your current visa expires before you can apply for indefinite leave to remain, you’ll need to renew it first.

The fee for the ILR application is £3,029 per person, and you can expect a decision within six months.