UK Spouse Visa Document Checklist

Overview

Documents to demonstrate that your relationship is a genuine one is perhaps the most important section of your entire application portfolio. It should comprehensively illustrate the genuineness of your relationship with consistent, credible evidence.

These documents will prove to the Home Office that you and your UK-based sponsor are a genuine couple and that you are not trying to falsely gain entry into the UK through deceptive means, or that you are being coerced into marriage.

The type of evidence you must provide here will differ based on the specifics of your relationship, such as if you met each other while both of you were living in different countries, or if you are not a married couple.

Types of Relationship Evidence Documents

There is no one official required list of documents that you must provide for this part of your Spouse visa application. However, below are some of the most common ones that you should consider; take care to choose appropriately and remember that the more relevant documents you include, the stronger the case for your application will be.

It is recommended to supply both formal and informal documents to support your case. Formal documents are normally official records, like bank statements, certificates and medical records; while informal documents spotlight parts of your life together. These can include photographs and chat logs.

Formal Documents

Examples of formal documents you should provide with your application include the following:

• Marriage or civil partnership certificate: The certificate should be an official government document, confirming that your relationship with your spouse is a legally binding marriage or civil partnership, or equivalent
• Proof that any previous relationships have ended: This may include divorce certificates, certificates of annulment or death certificates
• Bills and official documents: These can be used to prove that the two of you do genuinely live together and have done so over a certain period of time. You can present things such as utility bills, council tax bills or bank documents for this. If the documents do not jointly feature your names, they can still be submitted to show proof that you live at the same address
• Proof of shared childcare or financial responsibilities: If you have children together, you can submit documents pertaining to them to demonstrate shared parental responsibility, such as birth certificates, school records or medical records. You could also do the same to demonstrate shared financial responsibility, such as tenancy agreements, joint bank account statements or similar

Informal Documents

Examples of informal documents you should provide with your application include the following:

• Supporting letters: You may wish to include a supporting letter or statement with your documents, either written by yourselves or close friends or family. The letters can attest to the credibility of your relationship and describe details such as how you met, how the relationship progressed, and any future plans
• Photographic evidence: You may wish to include photographs of you and your spouse together. Rather than including hundreds of photographs, choose a small number of ones showing you and your spouse at different points in time and in different locations to demonstrate that you have a shared history together
• Communication history: Similar to the above, you should pick out a sample of evidence that shows consistent communication over a period of time, across different mediums if possible. Things such as text messages, emails or call logs can all count
• Evidence of travel or visits: If either of you have travelled to see the other, or if you’ve embarked on travel together, this can be used to help prove that your relationship is genuine. Evidence such as plane tickets, hotel bookings, travel itineraries or travel receipts can all be used

Tips for Arranging Relationship Evidence

The amount of evidence you may have to send to the Home Office to prove the genuineness of your relationship may be considerable. For this reason, it’s recommended to carefully arrange and organise your evidence in order to make it as easy as possible for the caseworker to sift through and navigate.

For example, you should:

• Divide your evidence into categories and ensure that similar types of evidence are grouped together (for example, photographs should largely be placed into one single category, while supporting letters and statements into another)
• Organise evidence within sections in chronological order so the caseworker will easily be able to see a natural progression and development of your relationship
• Label and annotate evidence wherever necessary, particularly for documents that will require additional context for the caseworker to understand why they have been included
• Avoid submitting excessive amounts of evidence or large quantities of irrelevant, repetitive information. For example, you likely won’t need to submit dozens of photographs from a single holiday abroad together; just one or two will likely suffice. Evidence should all be relevant and taken from a broad period of time over the course of your relationship
• Avoid including documents in your portfolio that may contradict other documents. For example, if you went on holiday abroad during the summer of 2018, do not include any documents that suggest you were actually at home during that period
• Always remember to include certified English translations of any documents that are not in English or Welsh

Fundamentally, the documentation you include should be varied, judiciously chosen proof that your relationship is a genuine one, demonstrating close contact and activity across a broad period of time.

Overview

To be approved for a Spouse visa, your sponsor must prove that they meet the minimum financial requirements.

They can do this through a number of ways, such as by proving they meet the minimum threshold for annual income, or by using income through means other than employment, like cash savings or pensions.

Note that if you’re applying for a Spouse visa from within the UK, you may typically be able to combine both your and your spouse’s income sources.

The specific types of document you will have to provide will depend on which of these criteria your sponsor will meet.

As some income sources can also be combined, you may have to present a combination of the documents in the next section in order to prove you meet the requirements.

If your sponsor is exempt from meeting the financial requirements, you will also have to provide documents demonstrating this.

Types of Eligible Financial Requirement Documents

The eligible types of documents you can provide to prove your sponsor meets the financial requirements are as follows:

• Payslips from employer covering a 6-month period before the date of application
• Letter from employer outlining salary details, details of employment, the period of which they have been paid, etc
• Bank statements showing that income has been paid into an account held by the sponsor, or a joint account held between the sponsor and applicant
• Rental or tenancy agreement outlining details of property income and accompanying bank statements
• Bank statements demonstrating interest from savings, insurance payouts, royalties or other passive income sources
• Dividends from investments, bonds, stock and shares, etc
• Maintenance grants from undergraduate or postgraduate study or research
• Bank statements showing proof of cash savings held for at least 6 months before the date of application
• Signed declaration from account holder attesting to source of cash savings
• Official documents from the Department of Work and Pensions or pension company or authority confirming pension entitlement and amount
• Bank statements confirming payment of pensions into account
• Proof of self-employment, such as company notices, dividend income from business, tax records, etc
• Proof that sponsor is in receipt of certain benefits (disability living allowance, carer’s allowance, etc) that demonstrates exemption from minimum income threshold requirement

Types of Eligible Accommodation Documents

The documents you must provide in this section will help prove that you meet the accommodation requirement for the Spouse visa application, which confirms that you and your UK-based sponsor will have adequate accommodation to live in while in the UK.

The accommodation must not be overcrowded, meet minimum public health and safety guidelines and also be owned or occupied exclusively by you and your family.

The types of documents you may have to provide to meet this requirement include the following:

• Tenancy agreement
• Mortgage statement
• Land Registry title register
• Council tax, utility or other types of bills or official letters
• Written permission from the property or land owner granting permission for occupancy and their proof of ownership of the property or land
• Property inspection report
• Details of current and future occupants
• Evidence the property will not become overcrowded in the future
• Floor plans and/or information regarding the number of bedrooms and occupants

In most cases, you will likely not need to include documents such as a property inspection report. However, you may wish to include one in your application if it is uncertain whether the accommodation meets the requirements, such as if there are multiple occupants in the property, the building is particularly old or has a history of health and safety concerns (such as mould or subsidence).

English Language Documents

You must prove that you can speak English to the minimum accepted standard when applying for a Spouse visa.

You can do this through several methods, such as passing an approved English language test, showing proof of an eligible English-language educational qualification or showing proof that you come from an exempt country.

You must show at least one of the following documents in order to meet the English language requirement for the Spouse visa:

• Your unique SELT (Secure English Language Test) reference number from an eligible English language test from a provider such as Pearson, IELTS, Languagecert, etc. You must have passed the test at A1 level or higher
• A degree certificate from a UK educational institution
• A degree certificate from a non-UK institution that was taught in English. You must also provide a certified verification from Ecctis proving that the degree is equivalent to a UK bachelor’s degree or higher and that it was taught in English
• Proof of citizenship of an exempt, majority-English speaking country such as the USA, Canada, Australia or New Zealand

Furthermore, you will be considered exempt from having to meet the English language requirement if you are over 65 years old or you have a physical or mental condition that prevents you from meeting the requirement. If this last exemption applies to you, you will have to provide necessary documentary proof, such as from a qualified medical professional, that demonstrates this.

The number of documents you must provide for the Spouse visa are considerable, and it can be difficult to keep track of everything you must submit.

However, we have provided a handy, at-a-glance document checklist below that summarises everything you should require when applying for a Spouse visa. Note that this is an extensive list and you may not need to provide everything on here for your application, depending on your circumstances.

Note also that this is merely a summary of required documents and you may also have to provide documents that are not listed here:

• Current valid passport, previous passports and/or other travel documents
• Proof of your sponsor’s status in the UK
• Travel history and/or history of residence in other countries
• Tuberculosis test results
• Details of any previous criminal convictions
• Proof of genuineness of your relationship, such as:
  • Marriage or civil partnership certificate
  • Proof that previous relationships have ended
  • Photographs
  • Communication history
  • Evidence of travel or visits to each other
  • Bills and official documents demonstrating cohabitation
  • Proof of shared childcare or financial responsibilities
  • Supporting letters from applicant, sponsor or friends and family
• Proof that your sponsor meets the financial requirements, such as:
  • Payslips or a supporting letter from their employer
  • Bank statements showing proof of income, interest from savings, passive income, proof of cash savings, pensions or other financial proof

• • Rental or tenancy agreements showing proof of property income
  • Dividends from investments, bonds, stock and shares, etc
  • Maintenance grants from undergraduate or postgraduate study or research
  • Proof of self-employment, such as company notices, dividend income from business, tax records, etc
  • Proof that sponsor is in receipt of certain benefits that demonstrates exemption from minimum income threshold requirement
• Proof that you meet the accommodation requirements, such as:
  • Tenancy agreement
  • Mortgage statement
  • Land Registry title register
  • Council tax, utility or other types of bills or official letters
  • Written permission from the property or land owner granting permission for occupancy and their proof of ownership of the property or land
  • Property inspection report
• Proof that you meet the English language requirements, such as:
  • Proof of having passed a secure English language test
  • A degree certificate from a UK educational institution
  • A degree certificate from a non-UK institution that was taught in English and Ecctis verification
  • Proof of citizenship of an exempt, majority-English speaking country