There are many British men living in Thailand with long-term Thai girlfriends or Thai partners but are not legally married. In this instance, the UK Unmarried Partner Visa allows Thai girlfriends to visit or live in the UK with their partner who is a British citizen. The application can be made right here in Thailand and Thai Visa Express can help you with the whole process.
How do you qualify for a UK Unmarried Partner Visa?
Like all UK visas, there are certain criteria that both you and your Thai partner must meet. A brief, but not a comprehensive list of these requirements are given below:
- You must be a British national or have Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR)
- Both you and your Thai girlfriend must be over 18 years of age
- You must have lived together like husband and wife for a minimum of 2 years
- You must intend to live together permanently in the UK
- Your relationship must be genuine and not a relationship of convenience
- You must not be any other relationship
- You have the financial means to support yourselves without recourse to public funds
- Your Thai girlfriend should be able to speak and understand adequate English
- You must have suitable accommodation
Meeting the financial requirements criteria that are outlined for the visa application is, of course, one of the most important elements of the visa application. You will need to demonstrate that you have a gross income of at least the following:
- £18,600 p.a.
- £3,800 for the first dependent child who is not British
- £2,400 for each additional dependent child who is again not British
Although this may initially sound a little daunting, the £18,600 can be comprised of both salaried and non-salaried income, self-employed income, salary and/or dividends from a company of which you are a Director, property rental income, dividends and income from investments, stocks, shares, bonds or trust funds, pension income, insurance payments, maintenance payments and cash savings above £16,000 that have been held for at least six months, unless you can demonstrate that they have come from the sale of property or investments within the last 6 months ed-hrvatski.com.
Other information relating to the UK Unmarried Partner Visa
Assuming that your Thai girlfriend is granted to UK Married Partner Visa in Thailand, she will be allowed to stay in the UK for an initial period of 33 months – the same as with a UK Spouse Visa. If she applies for ILR, she will be granted another 30 months. If your Thai partner wishes to remain in the UK after these 30 months have elapsed, she will need to apply to UK Visas and Immigration to extend her stay before her visa expires. Your Thai girlfriend will be eligible to work during this period.
After your Thai partner has lived in the UK for 5 years, she will be able to apply for ILR.