Family Visitor Visa

Planning for a holiday abroad? What’s better than having a family member settled the UK,whom  you can pay a visit to. Whether it’s to meet your children studying in the UK or a cousin working there or just to be with a family member you haven’t seen for years, every reason is good enough to visit THE UNITED KINDGOM OF THE GREAT BRITAIN. If you are already planning to visit your friends or family in THE UNITED KINGDOM, you must apply for a Family visitor visa first. Let us help you on ’how to apply’ and other intricate details of family visitor visa in this article.

For a family visitor visa, a family member staying in the United Kingdom can sponsor the applicant by confirming the relationship while providing an invitation letter to visit with the purpose of visit and the financial support they will be providing the visitor.

The family member you are willing to visit must be one of the following:

A British citizen

• Settled in the UK
• Granted asylum in the UK
• Under humanitarian protection in the UK

To apply for a family visitor visa you must be able to prove that you are visiting one of the family members mentioned below, who resides in the UK:

• Parents or siblings
• Grandparents or grandchildren
• Children
• Spouse or civil partner
• Your spouse’s or civil partner’s  siblings or parents
• Step parents, step children or step siblings
• Your child’s spouse or civil partner
• A person you have been living with in a long term relationship, like you were married or in a civil partnership, for at least two years before you apply.

You are eligible for this visa only if you are 18 years of age and above, and you are visiting the UK for less than 6 months. You must prove that you have enough money to support yourself without working or help from public funds, or that your relatives and friends can support you and provide you with an accommodation. You must ensure that you can pay for your return or onward journey. Most importantly you must prove that you are not a transit to a country outside the UK, Ireland, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands.

HOW TO APPLY

There are several ways of applying for a visa, for example, by courier, by post, in person and online. Staff at the visa application centres will assist you with all the necessary information and guidelines.
Contact your nearest consulate to find out how you should apply, as some visa sections will only accept applications made online. You will have to fill a visa application form if you cannot apply online, this form is easily available in the visa section of your nearest visa application centre and is free of cost.

Things you need before applying

Passport and supporting documents relevant to your application

Your recent passport-sized (45mm x 35mm), colour photograph, which is taken against a light coloured background without sunglasses, hat or other head covering unless you wear it for cultural or religious reasons, but your face must be clearly visible.
The visa fee, which is non-refundable and it must be paid in local currency of the country where you are applying.

After your application procedure is done the Entry Clearance Officer will try to make a decision on your application form and the supporting documents you have provided. If this isn’t possible they will call you for an interview.

On receiving your visa make sure that your personal details are correct, it correctly states the purpose of your visit, it’s valid for the date on which you want to travel. If at all you find anything wrong in the visa kindly contact the visa section immediately.

WHAT IS A LONG TERM FAMILY  VISITORVISA

You can apply for this visa only if you can prove that you need to make repeat visits over a longer period. You can stay for a period of 6 months only on each visit while your visa can last from 1 to 10 years.