Adult Dependent Relatives
If you want a foreign adult dependant relative to join you in the UK, there are two ways to do this. We can help you with both.
We often receive enquiries from people who have settled in the UK with their immediate family, and want an elderly parent who is not a British citizen to join them. Unless the parent qualifies for British citizenship through ancestry, there are only two ways to do this: an Adult Dependent Relative visa or an EU Settlement Scheme dependant parent visa.
Adult Dependent Relative visa
This visa is for parents of adult British citizens or holders of indefinite leave to remain.
It is not merely a parent visa. If you come across that term, it probably refers to a different visa for parents of children under 18. With an Adult Dependent Relative visa, applicants must have evidence of a high level of dependency on the sponsor. The application fee for the Adult Dependent Relative visa is higher than any other category.
Between 2017 and 2020, 96% of Adult Dependent Relative applications were refused. (This data is the most recent that is available, and although it is now several years old it is still an accurate reflection of the way in which these applications tend to be treated.)
To succeed, an applicant must first prove that they need long-term personal care to perform everyday tasks due to age, illness, or disability. “Everyday tasks” can include washing, dressing, cooking, feeding, cleaning, shopping, exercising, leaving the house, or even companionship.
And this alone is not enough. An applicant must also prove that they are unable to obtain the necessary care in their home country because the care is not available, there is nobody in that country to reasonably provide it, or the care is unaffordable.
This may seem insurmountable but, in many cases, elderly parents need a level of emotional support that only a close family member can provide. There is often scope to build a case around such circumstances, and our team has had success in doing this.
EU settlement scheme dependent parents
EU citizens with Settled or Pre-Settled status under the post-Brexit EU Settlement Scheme have a much easier route to sponsoring their elderly parents.
They must demonstrate that, having regard to their health or financial and social conditions, the applicant cannot meet their essential living needs (in whole or in part) without the financial or other material support of the sponsor or their spouse.
How we can help
We’re sensitive to the pressures that adult children face when confronted with their ageing parents’ care, and we have extensive knowledge of this tricky visa route. We know the pitfalls and the problems that sponsors and applicants can face, and we can help you avoid them.
There’s no escaping the harsh criteria for this route. The 96% refusal rate speaks for itself. But success is possible.
The first step is to understand the extent of the evidential requirements. It’s never enough to just submit some recent prescriptions, medical records or test results. Everything you provide must have a purpose and must clearly prove an element of the case.
Many people make the mistake of assuming that if UK Visas and Immigration think that the application is inadequate, they will ask for more evidence or interview the applicant and sponsor. This rarely happens. The onus is on the applicant to provide a full and complete case that proves – to a stranger who doesn’t know them – what their care needs are and why they cannot be met.
However, if a case is refused by UKVI, that’s not the end of the road. Decisions can be appealed to the immigration tribunal on human rights grounds. This can add further time and cost to an already costly process, but it offers an opportunity to present the case to an independent judge.
Due to the restrictive immigration rules, we are not able to take on all cases, and we want you to be clear about your prospects before you incur the cost and stress of an application. We will carry out an initial consultation, and if this leads us to think that there isn’t a reasonable chance of success, we will make this clear so that you can make an informed decision.
The majority of cases we do take on succeed – either at first instance or after appeal. We work collaboratively with you from start to finish to advise on how best to present the case. In most cases, we will need to work with you to instruct expert medical and psychological reports. If translations are required, we can arrange them.
Contact us today to arrange a fixed-fee initial consultation.
Meet our key contacts
John Vassiliou
Director and Head of Immigration
Frequently asked questions
Who can sponsor an applicant for an Adult Dependent Relative visa?
Sponsors must be British citizens, settled persons with indefinite leave to remain or the right of abode, or have refugee or humanitarian protection status in the UK. They must also be able to prove their ability to provide financial support and accommodation.
What documents are typically required for the application process?
All of the following:
- Proof of the relationship between the applicant and the sponsor, usually through birth and marriage records
- Expert medical evidence detailing the need for long-term care
- Evidence relating to the availability of care in the home country
- Evidence of the sponsor’s ability to provide financial support and accommodation
What is the application process like?
The application must usually be submitted from outside the UK, in the applicant’s home country. There are some exceptional cases in which an application from inside the UK may be possible, but only where there are strong human rights grounds on which an application can be based.
We complete and submit an online application form, complete a supplementary paper form, and assemble all supporting evidence digitally. The applicant must then attend a biometric appointment at a visa application centre in their home country.
Processing times vary, but applicants can generally expect a decision within three to six months. It is possible to pay an additional fee to expedite the decision and receive it within 30 working days.
If the application is refused, an appeal can take several more months. The applicant will usually be unable to visit the UK during this time.
What happens after the visa is granted?
If the visa is granted, the applicant can travel to the UK to live with their sponsor and receive the care they need. The applicant will be granted “indefinite leave to enter the UK”, which is permanent residence in the UK.
After living in the UK for five years, the applicant would be eligible to apply for British citizenship.
Contact us
John Vassiliou
Director and Head of Immigration
