Separation and divorce can affect your right to remain in the UK
If you are living in the UK on a Spouse Visa or Civil partnership Visa, the end of your relationship can be especially hard, as it may also mean you have to leave the UK.
If you are separating from a husband or wife, the specialist Family Solicitors and Immigration Lawyers at OTS Solicitors can help you understand your family law rights and your options to remain in the UK.
Contact OTS Solicitors Today for Expert Family Law and Immigration Legal Advice.
Why separation affects a Spouse Visa
To qualify for a Spouse Visa, you need to demonstrate that you are in a genuine and subsisting relationship with your partner. You need to prove this element of the Family Visa eligibility criteria when you apply for a Spouse Visa extension or apply to settle by making an application for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR).
Many holders of Spouse Visas don’t realise that if they split up from their partner during the initial Family Visa or the visa extension, they no longer meet the relationship eligibility criteria, and this is a reportable matter. A visa holder and their sponsor cannot leave issues and address the relationship eligibility criteria when they come to apply for a Spouse Visa extension or apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain.
What are the elements of a UK Spouse Visa?
To qualify for a UK Spouse Visa, you must satisfy the following requirements:
- You and your spouse must be 18 years old or over.
- You must have met each other and be legally married.
- You must intend to live together permanently.
- You must have enough money to support yourselves (and any dependents) without claiming public funds.
- Your sponsoring partner must earn at least £29,000 gross per year or have enough savings to be able to sponsor you.
- Your sponsor must have suitable accommodation for you and any dependents.
- You must satisfy the English language requirement.
If you apply for your Spouse Visa from outside the UK, it will be valid for 33 months. Applications made from within the UK are valid for 30 months. The visa can be extended. After five years of meeting the residence requirement, and when you meet the general settlement eligibility criteria, you can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain.
Duty to tell the Home Office
If you permanently separate from your spouse whilst living in the UK on a Spouse Visa or a Spouse Visa extension, then you or your sponsoring partner must report the separation to the Home Office.
The duty to report relates to your separation, not starting divorce proceedings. In many cases, a couple may decide to separate but not start no-fault divorce proceedings until months or years after their separation.
You do not need to tell the Home Office if you are living apart but not separated. For example, if your spouse has temporarily moved to a different address because of a job secondment or to care for an ill relative. You also do not need to tell the Home Office if you are having marital difficulties and undergoing a trial separation. The requirement to notify relates to a permanent separation.
The duty to inform the Home Office about a separation can be concerning because of the implications of getting the decision to inform wrong. If you fail to notify the Home Office of your separation when you should, this could affect your immigration record and your prospects of successfully switching to a different visa type.
Most lawyers recommend that you speak to an Immigration Solicitor before informing the Home Office and to a Family Lawyer to understand your rights.
When does the duty to inform the Home Office about a separation end?
The duty to inform the Home Office about a separation ends when:
- You have obtained Indefinite Leave to Remain – although when you apply for ILR, you must be in a genuine and subsisting relationship and intend to live with your partner, or
- You switch to a different type of visa where you no longer require a sponsoring spouse.
Curtailment of Spouse Visas
The Home Office can curtail your leave to remain in the UK if you tell them that you have separated from your spouse and are therefore no longer in a subsisting relationship with them.
Curtailment means your visa ends earlier than expected, even though you were initially granted a 30- or 33-month visa. The Home Office will usually curtail your visa to 60 days or less if there are fewer than 60 days before your Family Visa expires. Within the period of curtailment, you must:
- Leave the UK, or
- Switch to a different type of visa or make an application to do so.
If you do nothing, you could be classed as an overstayer.
Although there is no right to appeal the decision to curtail your visa, you can apply for judicial review of the decision. An Immigration Lawyer can advise you on the judicial review pre-action protocol and time limits to apply for judicial review.
Options to stay in the UK following a separation whilst in the UK on a Spouse Visa
There are several routes to remaining in the UK if you are on a Family Visa and have separated or divorced. These include:
- Switching to a different type of visa, such as a Skilled Worker Visa or Health and Care Worker Visa.
- If you decided to separate because of domestic abuse, you can apply for leave to remain using the domestic violence concession.
- If there are children in the relationship, you may be able to apply for a variation of leave under the immigration rules, Family Life as a Parent.
It is best to speak to an expert Immigration Solicitor about your visa options. For example, you may meet the eligibility criteria for a Student Visa. However, time spent in the UK on a Student Visa will not count towards meeting the five-year residence requirement for an ILR application. If settlement is your priority, your Immigration Lawyer can assess eligible visa routes that may lead to settlement.
The domestic violence concession
If your relationship ends because you experienced domestic abuse, you can apply for a settlement using the domestic violence concession, even though you do not meet the five-year residence requirement to apply to settle in the UK. Our expert Family Lawyers are experienced in advising on the evidence required to help your Immigration Lawyer successfully apply for settlement using the concession.
Family Life as a Parent route
If you have a child under 18 years living in the UK, you may qualify for a settlement visa under the category “Family Life as a Parent.”
To be eligible to apply under this category, your child must be living in the UK either as a British citizen or as a settled person in the UK.
You must also be able to prove that either:
- You are the only parent of the child, and you are the only person who is responsible for them, or
- Your child lives permanently with another parent or carer who is British or settled in the UK and not your partner, and you want to help raise them. In this scenario, you will need to prove that you have direct contact with your child, which is either agreed with the other parent or carer or by a court order.
In addition to the above, you must also:
- Prove you are taking an active role in your child’s upbringing, and
- Show that you can support and accommodate yourself without claiming public funds.
If your application does not meet these criteria, your Immigration Solicitors can try to raise a human rights case under the European Convention on Human Rights.
Legal advice if your marriage breaks down and you are in the UK on a Spouse or Civil Partnership Visa
In any marriage breakdown, it is crucial that you contact an experienced solicitor who can advise you on your rights to a fair financial settlement and help you agree the parenting arrangements for your children. However, if you are in the UK on a visa, you will also need to instruct a solicitor who has an in-depth understanding of immigration law and your leave to remain options.
OTS Solicitors provide specialist family law advice and immigration services. We offer expert legal advice tailored to your circumstances and can help you with:
- Legal advice on separation and starting no-fault divorce proceedings.
- Applying for a non-molestation order or ouster injunction application.
- Applying for a child arrangement order to sort out the post-separation parenting arrangements for your children.
- Advice on the need for a relocation order if you decide that you want to leave the UK with your child.
- Help in achieving a fair financial settlement and a financial court order.
- Assistance if you or your spouse has assets overseas and there are jurisdiction or international divorce considerations.
- Immigration and settlement legal advice.
OTS Solicitors are ranked in the 2026 editions of Legal 500 and Chambers Guide to the Legal Profession for their immigration legal advice. We also received the accolade of being named the best Immigration & Family Law Firm 2025 – Southern England in the UK Legal Awards.
Contact OTS Solicitors Today for Expert Family Law and Immigration Legal Advice.
Our lawyers speak Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, French/Mauritian Creole, Spanish, Tamil, Tagalog/Ilonggo, Urdu/Punjabi.
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OTS Solicitors are Ranked in the 2026 Editions of the Chambers and Partners Guide and Legal 500