How to Bring Your Parents to the UK

Meeting the Requirements for Dependent Relatives

Have permanent status or citizenship. For your parents to come over, you must be a permanent resident in the U.K. That means that you need to have citizenship, permanent leave to remain, permanent residency, refugee status, or humanitarian protection. Basically, if you are legally staying in the UK on a semi-permanent basis, you can likely bring your parents over.

Ensure your parents need long-term care. The main way you can bring over your parents is if they need assistance with daily care tasks, including household tasks, personal hygiene tasks, and/or medical tasks. Your parents must need this care because of illness, disability, or age. Also, they must not be able to get this care where they are living right now, which includes not having any relatives there who can provide that support. Exceptions may be made if care is not affordable. Both parents must apply at the same time if they are both still alive and still married. In other words, if one parent could depend on the other for care, the UK government won't allow just the one parent who needs care to apply. Both parents must need care.

Save enough money to support your parents for 5 years. In other words, you'll need to show you have sufficient income to provide continuing support for your relatives. You must not use public funds to provide this support. Generally, you must prove you can at least meet the threshold of making 18,600 pounds per year, which is the amount where you are not dependent on the state for things like a housing credit or tax credits. It can help to have money saved. If you need to, try creating a budget to help you put some money back.

Applying for a Dependent Relative Visa

Help your parents gather the basic documents. They'll need their current passports, as well as any previous passports. Have your parents get 2 passport photos each, which will be used for the visa itself. If they have biometric residence permits, they should provide those, as well. You can easily get passport photos at most drug stores or big box stores.

Provide proof of your relationship with a birth certificate. For proof of relationship, you will need your birth certificate to show they are your parents. Adoption certificates are also a good option. If you don't have a copy of your birth certificate, you can Get Your Original Birth Certificate request one from the country you were born in. You will need to contact their government.

Request a health certification from your parents' doctor or health professional. Your parents must not be able to live on their own, and a doctor or other health professional must certify this. You will need to submit this certification with your parents' application. If they live in a country where there is tuberculosis, they will also need to send in test results showing they don't have the disease. You can find the list of countries that have this requirement here: https://www.gov.uk/tb-test-visa/countries-where-you-need-a-tb-test-to-enter-the-uk.

Fill in the application online with biographical information. Typically, your parents will need to do the application themselves. They will need to fill in basic biographical information like their address and date of birth, as well as things like their passport numbers. They will also need to add information about you, such as what kind of residency you have, your date of birth, your nationality, and your address.

Add more details to your application in the Appendix form. The Appendix goes more into depth about the type of care your parents need, what kind of care they're getting now, and why they need care from you. They'll also need to add information about your financial status and how you will be able to provide for them. This form also asks questions about where they will plan to live once they move to the U.K.

Finishing the Application

Send in the required documents by mail. Once you fill out the application, you can send in the documents through snail mail. The address you need will be listed on the application. If you don't have the original documents, you must get the copies certified.

Pay the visa application fee. The fee for overseas applications for dependent relatives varies by country. However, it typically is over 3,000 pounds as of 2018, so it is fairly costly. You may need to save for a little while to be able to afford the visa fee.

File an appeal if your parents are denied entrance. Your parents have a right to appeal the decision if their visa application is refused. You parents must appeal within 28 days of receiving a refusal letter using the IAFT-6 appeal form, which you can find at https://immigrationappealsonline.justice.gov.uk/IACFees/. You can find a paper form at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/688323/iaft-6-eng.pdf. As of 2017, the fees for an appeal are 80 pounds for a paper hearing or 140 pounds for an oral hearing. For a paper hearing, the appeal is decided on the documents you and your parents provide. For an oral hearing, you or your parents can go and argue the case. The fees can be waived if you're receiving Legal Aid from a United Kingdom-based legal representative.

Contact an immigration lawyer if you need one. If you feel like navigating the process is a bit too much, an immigration lawyer can help. You'll need to find one in the UK to help you through the process, including the appeal. Start by working with an immigration adviser. There are 3 levels in the UK, where one is for simple cases and 3 is for the most complicated ones. Some advisers work for free, or you may qualify for legal aid, which you can find at https://www.gov.uk/check-legal-aid. You can find a list of immigration advisers and solicitors at https://portal.oisc.gov.uk/s/adviser-register. An immigration lawyer can cost anywhere from 250 pounds to 3,000+ pounds, depending on how much help you need. Ask your friends if they know of any good immigration lawyers.