UK Family Reunion - Application Process, Eligibility & Other Details

Refugee family reunion is now closed to new applications pending a review from 1500hrs on 4 September 2025 and no timescale has been provided for how long the route will be suspended. However, the Immigration White Paper published on 12 May 2025 referred to a new family policy being set out by the end of 2025. 

Before closure, it allowed a person with protection status (refugee status or humanitarian protection) or settlement on a protection route in the UK to bring their immediate family members (spouse and dependent children under 18, or over 18 in exceptional circumstances) to join them here. 

The individuals who came to the UK under on one of the various resettlement schemes which confer them protection status could also sponsors their immediate family members. 

The partner and/or child must have formed part of the family unit before the sponsor in the UK fled their country of origin or former habitual residence to seek protection here. The applicants did not need to satisfy any other requirements, such as financial, accommodation, or English language requirements.

For a pre-flight partner or dependent child who applied before 1500 hrs on 4 September 2025 to stay with or join a sponsor with protection status or settlement on a protection route in the UK, the Appendix FRP Immigration Rules in effect before 1500 hrs on 4 September 2025 will apply.

On the other hand, from 1500 hrs on 4 September 2025, a partner or child seeking family reunification can apply through the standard Family Migration route under the Appendix FM irrespective of when the family unit was formed.

There is a separate route under Appendix Child Relative (Sponsors with Protection) for a child to join or stay with a close relative, for example, a sibling, who has protection status in the UK.

Family members (partner or child) wishing to join a sponsor who has protection status, is settled but not on a protection route, or a British Citizen in the UK on the basis of their family life need to apply on a separate route under Appendix FM.

We are providing details of the previous route which existed before 04 September 2025.

“Partner” is defined as a sponsor

(a) Spouse (Husband/wife) or civil partner; or

(b) Unmarried partner, where the couple have been in a relationship akin to marriage or civil partnership that is recognised in the UK for at least 2 years.

“Protection status” defined within the Immigration Rules- Paragraph 6 means leave as refugee, permission to stay as refugee, temporary permission to stay as refugee, humanitarian protection, and temporary humanitarian protection.

Application process

Applications for entry clearance under the refugee family reunion route can be made from overseas, while applications for permission to remain under this route can be made from within the UK. Applicants do not need to pay any fees for applying under this route. 

Where an applicant applying under this route is granted settlement, in line with their sponsor's permission, they are exempt from the Knowledge of Language and Life (KOLL) in the UK requirement at the settlement stage.

Validity

Appendix FRP - Paragraphs FRP 1.1. to FRP 1.3. sets out the validity requirements in order to be considered an application as a valid application. This includes:

• The applicant applying for entry clearance must apply online on the government's official website GOV.UK using the specified form:

• “Partner of someone in the UK with protection status (family reunion)”

• “Child of someone in the UK with protection status (family reunion)”

• The applicant applying for permission to stay must apply online using the specified form “FLR (HRO)” on the GOV.UK website;

• The applicant must have enrolled their biometrics (fingerprints and facial photograph) when required;

• The person the applicant is applying to join or stay with in the UK must currently have a protection status in the UK or settlement on a protection route in the UK; and

• The person the applicant is applying to join or stay with in the UK must not be a British Citizen

Suitability

As part of the suitability consideration of the applicant, and in line with safeguarding duties of children under Section 55 Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009, decision makers should conduct checks both on the applicant and the sponsor.

Part 9: grounds for refusal applies to the Appendix Family Reunion (Sponsors with Protection). In considering whether the application should not be refused under, the decision makers must refer to the:

• Exclusion, deportation order, or travel ban grounds

• Non-conducive grounds

• Criminality grounds

• Restricted leave grounds

Where an applicant fails to meet the suitability requirements, their application for entry clearance or permission to stay, considering the sub-paragraphs of Part 9: grounds for refusal, may be or must be refused by the decision makers. 

For example, if the decision maker is satisfied that the applicant should be refused under Part 9: grounds for refusal because the applicant meets paragraph 9.2.1., 9.2.3., 9.3.1., 9.4.1., or paragraph 9.5.1., the decision maker must refuse the application.

On the other hand, where the applicant meets a ground for refusal under Part 9: grounds for refusal of the Immigration Rules, (excluding paragraph 9.2.1., 9.2.3., 9.3.1., 9.4.1., or paragraph 9.5.1.) the decision makers should consider whether a refusal of their application would breach ECHR Article 8 of the Human Rights Convention, because it would result in unjustifiably harsh consequences for the applicant or their family.

Eligibility

Proof of identity and nationality

Under paragraph FRP 3.1., the applicant must provide their biometric information to establish their identity and nationality. However, when establishing identity in the absence of biometrics, the standard of proof is to the balance of probabilities.

Relationship requirements for a partner

As per the Paragraph FRP 4.1. (a) the applicant must be the sponsor’s partner. Under paragraph 6.2 of the Immigration Rules, a partner is sponsor’s

• Spouse (husband/wife) or civil partner; or

• Unmarried partner, where the applicant and the sponsor have been in a relationship akin to a marriage or civil partnership for at least 2 years.

As per Paragraph FRP 4.1. (b), the applicant partner, as defined above, must have formed part of the family unit with the sponsor (also called as a ‘pre-flight’ relationship) before the sponsor left their country of origin or habitual residence to seek protection in the UK. If the sponsor left the UK to form a family unit after obtaining protection status or settlement on a protection route in the UK then this is called a post-flight relationship. This sponsor can bring their (post-flight) family to the UK based on their ECHR Article 8 rights on other immigration routes, such as Appendix FM – Family Members. 

The couple must be in a genuine and subsisting relationship and intend to live together permanently in the UK. 

Relationship requirements for a child

1. Applicant is a biological child of the sponsor, or the child of the sponsor’s partner

2. Applicant is a dependent child (aged under 18) of the sponsor and their relationship with their sponsor must be pre-flight (this means that they were born or conceived before the sponsor left their habitual residence).

3. If the applicant is aged 18 or over exceptional circumstances must apply which means the child must not be leading an independent life and must still be a dependent on their parents within the family unit like a child under 8 typically is. 

4. If the applicant is an adopted child seeking to join their pre-flight adopted parent(s), their sponsor must hold an adoption order that was granted either by a court or an administrative authority in the third country. The adoption order should have been issued in the child’s country of origin or where they are living. The adoption order issued overseas should be recognised as valid by UK law. 

5. A child applicant who does not meet the requirements for a child under FRP 5.1. to FRP 6.2., but there are exceptional circumstances which would cause a refusal of the application, a breach of ECHR Article 8, because such a visa is refused, it would result in unjustifiably harsh consequences for the child applicant or their family member.

Which family members are not eligible for the Family Reunion route? 

• Family members of child refugees 

• Dependent children over 18 (unless exceptional circumstances apply) 

• Other dependent relatives (parents, grandparents, siblings, etc.) 

• De Facto Adopted Children (Adopted children who have not gone through a legal adoption process) 

• ‘Post-flight’ family members, for example: spouse or civil partners where the marriage or civil partnership was created post-flight, or children conceived and born post-flight 

Applying for Refugee Family Reunion

Please note that from 4 September 2025, the new applicants cannot apply on this route. All who applied before this date did not need to pay any fee for the application. 

If the applicant is outside the UK

Each applicant (partner or dependent child) applying for entry clearance must apply separately online on the GOV.UK website using the specified forms

• partner of someone in the UK with protection status (family reunion)
• child of someone in the UK with protection status (family reunion)

In most circumstances, each applicant aged over 5 must prove their identity by enrolling their biometric information at the nearest VAC (Visa Application Centre).

Applicants seeking entry clearance from outside of the UK must provide a valid TB (Tuberculosis) certificate (if Appendix Tuberculosis (Appendix TB) of the immigration rules applies). 

If the applicant is inside the UK

A person applying from within the UK on or after 9 April 2025 must apply for leave to remain online on the GOV.UK website on the specified form: “FLR (HRO)”.

Before this date, individuals would have applied for leave to remain via email or in writing to the in-country refugee family reunion operational team.

Applicants are required to enrol their biometric information at an SSC (Service and Support Centre) in relation to their application for leave to remain. Details of an applicant’s nearest SSC can be found at GOV.UK. Applicants under 5 are not required to provide their fingerprints, but must still provide a digital facial photo at an SSC.

Evidence

Whilst per the UK Immigration Rules, applicants do not need to provide specified evidence to support a refugee family reunion application. However, the onus is on the applicant applying under Appendix Family Reunion (Sponsors with Protection) (Appendix FRP) to provide sufficient evidence to demonstrate they satisfy the requirements of the rules or if relevant, the LOTR (leave outside the rules) policy.

Some applicants, due to the nature of refugee journeys, may not be able to provide the same documents or evidence that applicants applying on other immigration routes would be required to provide under the Immigration Rules.

A Refugee Family Reunion applicant is not required to submit original documents and can provide a digital copy instead.

Types of Evidence

To prove relationships, ‘preferred’ and ‘corroborative’ evidence can be submitted. Some types of evidence are preferred because they are more easily verifiable. However, if the applicant is not able to provide a form of preferred evidence, then they may submit a form of corroborative evidence or another form of evidence in substitution. 

Further Evidence

In cases where applicants do not have original documents or evidence to provide with their application, or the Home Office cannot decide their application based on the evidence or information provided by them, they may be asked for further evidence. 

If the Home Office is not satisfied with the evidence, it may arrange an interview with the sponsor in the UK and / or with the applicant overseas either by telephone or in person, depending on the circumstances of the case.

Proof of Identity

Applicants are required to satisfy the Home Office about their identity. Apart from a passport, they can provide other corroborative evidence, such as:

• Driving Licence

• Birth certificate

• Adoption certificate

• UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) registration and/or IOM (International Organization Migration) registration

Proof of relationship

The evidence provided by the applicant must establish that a relationship between the applicant and sponsor exists and that it existed before the sponsor left their country of habitual residence to seek asylum in the UK.

Applicants could provide any number of documents with their application to support their claim of a relationship with the sponsor. Some of this include:

• Marriage/civil partnership certificate 

• Divorce certificate (if in previous relationship)

• Documents such as a joint postal address to show that the applicant and sponsor have lived together

• Wedding photographs

• Witness statements from people at the wedding

• DNA evidence (if the applicant chooses to volunteer DNA evidence) at the applicant’s expense from an accredited testing laboratory as set out in the Home Office DNA policy guidance

• Court documents or adoption orders (where the applicant is not a biological child)

• School records

• Hospital report at birth

Grant of Permission

Applicants satisfying all eligibility criteria set out in Appendix Family Reunion (Sponsors with Protection) FRP 3.1. to 6.2. will be granted permission, which expires at the same time as the permission granted to their sponsor in the UK under paragraph FRP 9.1. 

Where an applicant meets paragraph FRP 7.1. (ECHR Article 8) and is granted permission under FRP 9.2., the permission granted will expire at the same time as the permission granted to the sponsor, or no more than 33 months for entry clearance, or no more than 30 months for permission to stay.

Applicants granted permission under Appendix FRP are not granted ‘status in line’ with the sponsor. This is because the assessment to determine whether a person needs protection is an individual assessment made from inside the UK and is not an assessment made on an Appendix FRP application.

Decisions relating to applications within the same family group are normally issued at the same time to prevent families from being temporarily separated whilst they await their visas. 

Where an applicant does not meet the requirements of Appendix FRP but there are compelling compassionate factors which justify granting permission, the Home Office should consider granting the applicant permission outside of the requirements of the Immigration Rules (LOTR).