How expensive is UK spouse visa – application fees & costs 2023
Application fees & costs to obtain UK spouse visa and other family visas are significant. If you are a British citizen, are settled in the UK or have been granted asylum in the UK, you may be able to bring your spouse or Unmarried Partner to the UK. If you intend to live permanently in the UK with your partner and you decide to apply for the spouse visa, you will need to pay the associated application fees and costs .
Important: On 13th July 2023 UK Prime Minister announced significant increase to UK visa application fees and NHS Surcharge fees. It is not yet known when the new fees will come into effect but we expect it to be soon. More about this and the impact on the applicants is discussed here.
Please note that our article below reflects the current fees, not the increased fees. This is because the new fees do not yet apply. However, if you plan to make a UK visa application you should do it as soon as you can to avoid paying the higher fees.
Spouse visa fees are quite significant
Unfortunately, Spouse visa is quite an expensive immigration category. There are high application fees and NHS Surcharge fees to be paid. All those fees must be paid upfront at the time your application is submitted online and must cover the entire duration of the visa. Payments cannot be made by instalments or at a later time.
Furthermore, the UK spouse visa has complex requirements and you will need to provide strictly prescribed supporting evidence for your application. You may read the All Families Matter enquiry into family migration to the UK for more details on this point.
Financial requirement for spouse visa
Additionally, applicants have to meet financial requirement for the spouse visa in the specified way and provide strictly prescribed supporting evidence. The general financial requirement is to have a yearly income of at least £18,600 gross per annum or savings of £62,500 when you apply on your own. If you apply with children, you need additional income of £3,800 for the first child and additional £2,400 for each subsequent child. The savings also need to be higher when you apply with children.
The financial requirement for the spouse visa is in addition to meeting the relationship requirement, suitable accommodation arranged, English language, TB testing, etc. We provide more information about spouse/civil partner visa requirements and the procedure on our webpage.
To sum up the above, you must have all the required funds available before you submit the spouse visa application, both for the financial requirement and to pay the application fees & costs.
Outside of the UK entry clearance spouse visa application costs & fees
UK entry clearance spouse visa application costs & fees are listed below. Those are the fees for spouse visa applications submitted from outside the UK. You must pay the application fees and the NHS Surcharge fees at the time your application is submitted online. Payments must be made with a bank card.
| Application fee | £1,538 |
| NHS Surcharge (3yrs) | £624 per year (1872 per application) |
| Expedited priority processing (optional if you wish to use it) | £600 |
| Additional fees: English language test, ECCTIS for overseas university degree, TB testing, property report for UK accommodation, professional translation. | £500 – £700 |
| Additional fees, such as visa application centre fees, courier, keep your passport | usually less than £200 |
In country leave to remain application spouse/partner visa costs and fees
In country leave to remain application spouse/partner visa costs and fees are listed below. Those are fees and costs for applications submitted from inside the UK. Those applications are called leave to remain. You must pay the application fees and the NHS Surcharge fees at the time your application is submitted online. Payments must be made with a bank card.
| Application fee | £1,048 |
| NHS Surcharge | £624 per year (1560 per application) |
| Expedited processing (optional if you wish to use it) | £800 |
| Additional fees: English language test, ECCTIS for overseas university, property report for UK accommodation, professional translation. | £500 – £700 |
| Biometric appointment | approximately 70 to £200, although you should first aim to see if there are any free appointments available |
Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) spouse applications costs
Spouse visa holders can submit Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) application the earliest once they have 5 years residence in the UK on spouse visa and meet all the other requirements. The good news is that there is no NHS Surcharge for the ILR application. However, the application fees are higher than for the initial and extension applications, currently £2,404 per applicant.
| Application fee | £2,404 |
| Expedited processing (optional if you wish to use it) | £800 |
| Life in the UK Test and learning materials | £100 (if passed on first attempt) – each attempt £50 |
| Additional fees: English language test, property report for UK accommodation, professional translation. | £300 |
| Biometric appointment | approximately £70 to £200, although you should first aim to see if there are any free appointments available |
Conclusions on costs of spouse/partner visa application
The costs of spouse visa application depend on whether the application is submitted in country (from inside the UK) or out of country (entry clearance from outside the UK).
Most spouse/partner visas are initially submitted as out of the country as entry clearance applications. In certain circumstances, for example when switching from skilled worker visa, the spouse visa application can be made from the UK. However, it is important to note that if you are on a visitor visa in the UK, the general strict rule is that you must NOT apply for spouse visa from within the country. We discuss it in more detail on this page.
Find the amount of fees for spouse visa by using the calculator below.
NHS Surcharge for spouse visa applications
As you may see from our article above, the visa application fees are only part of the costs associated with spouse visa application. Applicant has to also make a mandatory upfront payment for the NHS Surcharge, 624 GBP per year of visa. The NHS Surcharge is currently 1872 GBP per entry clearance out of the UK spouse visa application AND £1,560 for in country leave to remain spouse visa application.
Other fees for spouse visa application
As you may see from our article above, there are other smaller additional fees associated with spouse visa application. For example costs of the English language evidence, TB testing, translations, VFS Global or TLS services, etc.
Applicants would need to have all the funds ready before their planned submission of the spouse visa application.
