Family Reunion Visa UK: Refugee Route Explained 2026

Refugee Family Reunion is a specific UK route for the pre-flight partner and children of someone granted refugee status or humanitarian protection. It is not the standard family visa. There is no application fee, no minimum income requirement, and the eligibility test is set by the relationship as it existed before the sponsor fled their home country.

What refugee family reunion is

Refugee family reunion is the route by which the UK allows the immediate pre-flight family of a recognised refugee or person with humanitarian protection to join them in the UK. The route is set out in Part 11 and Appendix Family Reunion of the Immigration Rules. The legal basis is the UK's obligations under international refugee law and the principle that the family unit should not be broken up by the same persecution that caused the refugee to flee.

The route is narrow. It applies only to the partner and children who were part of the refugee's family unit before they were forced to leave their home country. It does not extend to parents, siblings, adult children, or partners the refugee met after fleeing. Those relatives, if eligible at all, fall under different family rules.

The official starting page is GOV.UK: family in the UK with refugees. Eligibility detail is at GOV.UK: family in the UK with refugees - eligibility.

Who can sponsor

A sponsor for refugee family reunion is a person who has been granted, in the UK:

• Refugee status under the 1951 Refugee Convention; or
• Humanitarian Protection under the UK's Immigration Rules; or
• In some cases, settlement (Indefinite Leave to Remain) that was granted following an earlier grant of refugee status or humanitarian protection.

Sponsors must hold the relevant status at the time the family reunion application is decided. People with refugee status that has been revoked, or who have ceased to be refugees, cannot sponsor under this route. People granted leave to remain on other humanitarian or human-rights grounds, but not refugee status or humanitarian protection specifically, may need to use a different route.

British citizens and settled persons whose status does not derive from refugee or humanitarian protection should use the standard family visa route under Appendix FM. The standard route has a fee, a Minimum Income Requirement, and language requirements that do not apply to refugee family reunion.

Who counts as family: the pre-flight relationship rule

The route is structured around the pre-flight family. The eligible family members are:

• Pre-flight spouse or civil partner: a person to whom the sponsor was married or in a civil partnership before they fled their home country. The relationship must have been genuine and subsisting at the time of flight and at the date of application.
• Pre-flight unmarried partner: a partner with whom the sponsor was in a relationship akin to marriage or civil partnership, on the same pre-flight basis. Evidence of the relationship as it existed before flight is central.
• Pre-flight children under 18: a biological or legally adopted child of the sponsor who was under 18 and not leading an independent life at the date the sponsor was granted protection, and who was part of the family unit before the sponsor fled.

Partners the refugee married or began a relationship with after fleeing are not eligible under this route. The Home Office expects to see evidence of the relationship as it existed before flight: marriage certificates dated before the flight, photographs, communications, official documents, and similar. The lack of such evidence does not automatically disqualify a case, particularly where flight was sudden and document recovery is impossible, but a clear account is needed.

Adult children, parents, siblings, and other relatives are not eligible under the standard refugee family reunion route. Cases involving these relatives are sometimes brought under separate "Exceptional Circumstances" or human-rights grounds, but the success rate on those is much lower and the application is usually fee-paying.

How to apply: forms, evidence, fee waiver

The application is made online from outside the UK by the family member, with the sponsor in the UK supplying evidence of their refugee or humanitarian protection status. The application form is the family reunion form on GOV.UK; the applicant attends a visa application centre in the country of application to enrol biometrics.

Supporting evidence usually includes:

• The sponsor's UK refugee status or humanitarian protection grant letter.
• Evidence of the relationship: marriage or civil partnership certificate, evidence of cohabitation before flight, photographs, communications, and witness statements where appropriate.
• Children's birth certificates showing the sponsor as parent.
• The applicant's passport or recognised travel document. Where no passport is available, the Home Office can sometimes accept alternative identity evidence.
• Evidence of where the family was living before flight and of the sponsor's flight from that country.

There is no application fee for the standard refugee family reunion route. There is no Immigration Health Surcharge. There is no Minimum Income Requirement. Other family routes do charge these; refugee family reunion does not. If the applicant or sponsor is asked to pay a fee that should not apply, that is a warning sign that the wrong application form may be in use.

For "Exceptional Circumstances" applications outside the standard rules, a fee may apply but a fee waiver can be requested where the applicant or sponsor cannot afford the fee. Detail on the fee waiver process is published on GOV.UK.

What happens if the child became an adult while waiting

A common issue is a child who was under 18 when the family lost contact, or when the sponsor was granted protection, but who has since turned 18. The Home Office position is set out in the family reunion policy guidance.

For the standard refugee family reunion route, the child's age is assessed at the date the sponsor was granted protection. A child who was under 18 at that date can sometimes still be brought in under the route even where the application is made after the child has turned 18, where the dependency on the sponsor has continued and the delay is not the applicant's fault. The position depends on the facts and the policy applied at the date of decision.

For children who were over 18 at the date the sponsor was granted protection, the route is not the family reunion route. An "Exceptional Circumstances" application or a separate adult dependent relative application is needed; both are demanding and the success rate is lower. Legal advice is strongly suggested in these cases.

Where to get free legal help

Refugee family reunion is one of the most legally specialised areas of UK immigration law and casework. Several organisations provide free or low-cost legal support to refugees and their families.

• British Red Cross: runs a family reunion service that helps with travel arrangements once a visa is granted and, in some areas, with the application itself. The service includes International Family Tracing where the family has lost contact.
• UNHCR UK: signposts to legal partners and publishes guidance on refugee rights. See UNHCR UK: asylum in the UK.
• OISC-registered immigration advisers working under legal aid in family reunion cases. The Immigration Adviser Authority register (formerly OISC) lists qualified advisers.
• Refugee Council, Refugee Action, and Refugee Legal Support: specialist legal and casework organisations that handle family reunion under legal aid where available.
• Law centres and solicitors regulated by the SRA: many take family reunion cases under legal aid, particularly where Exceptional Circumstances are argued.

Cases involving children who have aged out, where the relationship evidence is patchy, or where the sponsor's leave is unsettled benefit particularly from early legal input. The cost of a refused application is high in time and emotional weight; the cost of legal help is often nil in the strict refugee family reunion route because legal aid is available.

How family reunion differs from a standard family visa

The differences from the Appendix FM family visa route are substantial:

• Fee: refugee family reunion has no application fee; Appendix FM has the standard family visa application fee.
• Immigration Health Surcharge: not payable for refugee family reunion; payable in full for Appendix FM.
• Minimum Income Requirement: does not apply to refugee family reunion; does apply to Appendix FM partner routes (with the threshold set out in the Immigration Rules and updated by the Home Office).
• English language: the language test does not apply on entry to refugee family reunion; it does apply for Appendix FM partner applications.
• Length of leave granted: refugee family reunion grants leave in line with the sponsor's leave, so the family member's status mirrors the sponsor's status; Appendix FM grants thirty-month or longer periods on a separate clock.
• Route to settlement: family reunion family members usually qualify for settlement at the same time as the sponsor; Appendix FM has its own five-year continuous residence test.

The two routes also differ in their evidentiary focus. Appendix FM is about the applicant's ability to live in the UK without recourse to public funds, with the Minimum Income Requirement and accommodation evidence at the centre. Refugee family reunion is about the relationship as it existed before flight, with the partner and child evidence at the centre.

Travel arrangements after the visa is granted

Once the family reunion visa is granted, the family member receives a vignette in their passport (or recognised travel document) allowing them to travel to the UK. They join the sponsor in the UK and, in most cases, receive leave on the eVisa system that mirrors the sponsor's leave.

The British Red Cross runs a specific travel-assistance service for refugee family reunion families, particularly where the family member is travelling from a difficult location, where they have no funds for the flight, or where the family includes young children needing accompaniment. UNHCR partners support travel in some destinations through the IOM. The IOM's role and travel-assistance services are documented at IOM.

Once in the UK, the family member can work, study, and access NHS services on the same terms as the sponsor. The sponsor's eligibility for benefits or housing is unchanged by the family arriving, but the family unit becomes the relevant assessment unit for some benefits.

Frequently asked questions

Who can apply for refugee family reunion in the UK?

The pre-flight spouse, civil partner, or unmarried partner of a person granted refugee status or humanitarian protection in the UK can apply, as can their unmarried children who were under 18 at the date the sponsor was granted protection. The relationship and the family unit must have existed before the sponsor fled their home country.

Is there a fee for refugee family reunion?

No. The standard refugee family reunion application has no application fee, no Immigration Health Surcharge, and no Minimum Income Requirement. If the family member is being asked to pay a fee, check that the right form is being used. Some adjacent applications outside the standard route do have fees, but fee waivers are available where affordability is an issue.

Can my parents or siblings come under refugee family reunion?

No. The standard route is for the pre-flight partner and under-18 children only. Parents, siblings, adult children, and post-flight partners are not eligible under the family reunion rule. Applications under "Exceptional Circumstances" or human-rights grounds are sometimes possible but are harder and usually fee-paying.

What if my child has turned 18 since I fled?

If the child was under 18 at the date the sponsor was granted protection, they may still qualify under the route even if they have since turned 18, where the dependency on the sponsor has continued and the delay was not their fault. The Home Office assesses the facts. For children who were already over 18 when the sponsor was granted protection, the family reunion route does not apply and a separate application is needed.

How long does a refugee family reunion application take to decide?

Processing times vary by case complexity, country of application, and current Home Office workload. Family reunion applications are not within the standard processing-time service standards published for fee-paying visas. The current position is published on GOV.UK; applicants and sponsors should expect months rather than weeks, particularly where evidence is being gathered from a country in conflict.

Where can I get free legal help with a refugee family reunion case?

The British Red Cross runs a family reunion service in many regions of the UK. UNHCR UK signposts to legal partners. OISC-registered immigration advisers working under legal aid take family reunion cases. Refugee Council, Refugee Action, and Refugee Legal Support handle specialist casework where capacity allows. Contact details for each are on their websites; this guide does not list phone numbers, which change.

What status does the family member get on arrival in the UK?

The family member is usually granted leave to remain in line with the sponsor, recorded on the eVisa system once they arrive. They can work and study without separate permission. They access NHS services as part of the family unit. Their route to settlement runs alongside the sponsor's; in most cases they qualify for ILR at the same time as the sponsor.