To extend stay in the UK, Further Leave to Remain (FLR)
You might want to stay longer if you are currently in the UK on one of the different family visas that are available to foreign nationals. Your current status—such as whether you are the husband, partner, or dependent child of a British citizen or settled person—will determine how you apply for an extension. Further Leave to Remain (FLR)
The Home Office’s regulations and conditions for extending your visa and staying in the UK with your loved ones are explained in this guide to extra leave to remain.
Further Leave to Remain (FLR): What is it?
The Home Office uses a number of words, including leave to enter, leave to remain, and further permission to remain, while processing applications and deciding immigration status. “Leave to remain” (LTR) is the authorisation given to remain in the UK for a specified amount of time, subject to various immigration restrictions, whereas “leave to enter” (LTE), which is the result of a successful application for entry clearance, permits an international national to cross the UK border and enter the country.
Any original limited leave grant can be extended with “further leave to remain” (FLR). As long as they fulfil the necessary continuing conditions of their route, FLR is effectively authorisation for an overseas national with limited leave to remain in the UK for an extended period of time. This includes the immediate family of individuals who have established in the UK.
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Every visa has an expiration date, so if you intend to stay in the UK for longer than you were initially allowed to, you will need to apply for further leave to stay under your current immigration route or move to a different visa under another immigration route.
How do FLR and ILR differ from one another?
Further leave to remain, or FLR, is a prolonged leave award that allows a visa holder to remain in the UK for a longer, but still constrained, amount of time. Should your request for an extension be approved, the duration of your stay will be determined by the type of leave you currently possess; for instance, you will be allowed a 2.5-year extension under a spouse visa.
After a qualifying period of residency, you may be eligible to petition for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in a number of situations after receiving additional leave. After five years of continuous residence in the UK, you can often apply for ILR. This implies that you would only need to apply for FLR once before becoming eligible for ILR if you entered the UK on a spouse or partner visa and were granted leave for a period of two years and nine months (if you applied from abroad) or two and a half years (if you were already in the UK when you applied).
ILR is when you are an established person with permanent lawful status in the UK. This will grant you the freedom to live, work, and study without any limitations and for as long as you like. You must apply for indefinite leave if you intend to settle in the UK since it will enable you to remain there forever without needing to apply for a new visa. Your situation in the UK will be secure if your settlement application is approved and you are given ILR.
Beyond temporal constraints, there are additional distinctions. Generally, limited permission to remain is given with the requirement that you and any dependents live and work in the UK without using public funding. This implies that you will not be eligible for the majority of local government housing and homelessness support programs during your stay, and it is unlikely that you will be able to apply for any welfare benefits. Your permit to stay in the UK may also be subject to further restrictions as the holder of limited leave, such as limitations on your ability to work or pursue education.
As an ILR holder, on the other hand, you will not be subject to any immigration limitations in the UK and will, in general, be entitled to the same services and welfare benefits as a UK citizen. You may also be able to seek for British citizenship through naturalisation after having held indefinite leave for a further qualifying 12-month term.
Who ought to request additional leave to stay?
You will need to apply for further permission to stay in the UK when your spouse or partner visa expires if you are already here. In order to keep your family together, you must also make sure that any dependant children apply at the same time. You and any children do not automatically have the same rights just because you live with someone who is permanently allowed to settle in the UK without facing any immigration limitations. You still need to submit a legitimate application and be able to prove to the Home Office caseworker that you fulfil all the conditions.
When it comes to immigration, family circumstances might be more complicated than typical visa pathways. The UK Immigration Rules offer certain immigration pathways, such as FLR(M) and FLR(FP), that allow family members to stay in the UK with their loved ones. FLR (FP) refers to the “family” and “private life” provisions under UK immigration law, while FLR (M) stands for “further leave to remain in the marriage category.”
You can apply for an extension of stay in the UK using the FLR(M) route if you are the dependant child or partner of a person who has been settled in the UK, is a refugee, or is protected by humanitarian law. You must utilise the FLR(FP) method if you are applying based on your private life or your family life in the UK as a parent, dependent child, or partner.
What makes FLR(M) different from FLR(FP)?
Any anyone who is present and settled in the UK, has humanitarian protection or refugee status in the UK, or is the spouse, partner, or dependent child of a British citizen may apply for an extension using additional leave to remain under the FLR “M” category.
An applicant must currently have valid leave to be in the UK and be able to demonstrate a relationship requirement in order to be eligible for FLR(M). For instance, they must be able to demonstrate that they are still a dependent child living with their British or settled parent or that they intend to live together permanently. Additionally, there are financial and English language requirements that must be fulfilled.
You will follow what is known as the “5-year path” to ILR if you choose this course. This implies that you can apply for permanent residency without facing any further immigration limitations after staying in the UK continuously for at least five years under the same visa category.
Applications based on private or family life are handled by FLR in the “F and P” categories. In cases when the applicant does not match the requirements for FLR(M) but is eligible for an exception under the FLR(FP) guidelines, a family life application will cover the partners of a British national or person who has established in the UK.
Financial, housing, and English language requirements must still be fulfilled, nevertheless. Parents of British or settled children in the UK, such as parents of non-British children who have resided in the UK for seven years, will also fall under the “F” category.
Depending on the applicant’s age, the “P” category pertains to extremely specialised situations. In order to be eligible based on their private life, a candidate needs to be, for instance:
- Having been in the UK for at least seven years, be under the age of eighteen on the application date, and be able to demonstrate that it would be unreasonable to expect them to leave.
- 18 to 24 years old and having spent half of their lives in the UK
- Aged 18 or older, but not meeting the half-life rule if under 25, and having been in the UK for more than 20 years, or if they were forced to leave, there would be major barriers to their reintegration back into the country.
Similar to FLR(M), an extension of stay under FLR (FP) will extend for two and a half years. The primary distinction is that candidates must submit numerous applications for further leave to remain in order to qualify for ILR, and they will often be on a 10-year path to settlement. If you meet all the qualifications, you can be eligible for the 5-year path as a parent. In terms of the qualifying residence requirement, time previously spent in the UK will not be counted if the 10-year path is changed to a 5-year one.
When is the right time to request additional leave to stay?
You must apply for additional leave to remain before the expiration of your current leave, particularly under FLR(M). A person will be considered an overstayer if their visa expires before they have applied to extend their stay. You could be deported as you are in violation of UK immigration laws as an overstayer. You might also be prohibited from entering again, depending on when you depart and whether you do so voluntarily.
The 14-day rule is an exception to the regulations, though. According to this law, you could still be entitled to apply for an extension if you do so within 14 days of the previous leave grant expiring “and” you have a valid cause why the application was not submitted in time. You must not have had any control over this. A close family member’s death or being admitted to the hospital for emergency care are two examples of valid explanations. It is unlikely to be accepted as a valid excuse that was out of your control if you were too preoccupied with work or school or forgot your deadline.
It is your responsibility to keep track of how much time you have left on your visa and when to apply to extend your stay, as the Home Office does not regularly contact or remind visa holders of their expiration date.
How do you request further leave to stay?
Applications for additional permission to remain must be submitted online using the appropriate FLR(M) or FLR(FP) form. In order to demonstrate that you fulfil all of the continuing requirements of the applicable route, you must additionally provide copious documentation.
Your eligibility to stay in the UK with family members will depend on the Home Office approving your application, so it is imperative that you fill out the form accurately and send in the required paperwork. In order to maximise your chances of a successful outcome, you should always seek legal guidance. Your advisor can assist you in gathering the relevant evidence.
You will typically additionally need to supply your biometric information at a UK Visa and Citizenship Application Services (UKVCAS) centre when applying from within the UK. Depending on the type of further leave to stay application you submitted, processing times for FLR can differ after attending a UKVCAS centre. However, as long as you applied before the expiration of your current visa, your permission to remain in the UK will typically be extended pending a final decision if your leave expires while one is being made.
How much does it cost to apply for additional permission to remain?
Currently, there is a £1,048 application charge to apply for additional leave remain. Additionally, you will have to pay £624 for an Immigration Health Surcharge each year of your extension.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. What is meant by further leave to remain?
Further leave to remain is an extension of a current leave grant, whereas leave to remain is permission given by the Home Office to foreign nationals to remain in the UK for a specified amount of time.
2.What is the duration of subsequent leave to remain?
The duration of any stay extension will be determined by the length of your current leave. For instance, if you are applying as the spouse of a British citizen or someone who has already lived in the UK, you will be given further leave for a period of 2.5 years.
3. Can I stay on leave longer?
If you apply before your current visa expires and you meet the requirements for additional leave to remain under the applicable route, you should be able to extend your leave to remain in the UK in the majority of circumstances.
4. How can my leave-to-remain visa be extended?
You must apply online, pay the appropriate charge, and provide supporting evidence to demonstrate that you still meet any conditions in order to extend your leave to remain. Additionally, you need to apply before your current visa expires.
5. What distinguishes further leave from indefinite leave to remain?
Further leave to remain gives a limited amount of time to remain in the UK, whereas ILR is permanent and confers settled status.
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