Relatives
This page explains which relatives can apply to join you in the United Kingdom if you are a permanent resident here. This does not include husbands, wives, civil partners and children under 18 (see Partners and children for information about those categories).
If you are a permanent resident of the United Kingdom, the following relatives can apply to join you here:
- widowed mothers and widowed fathers aged 65 or over; and
- parents or grandparents who are travelling together, if one of them is aged 65 or over.
In certain circumstances, the following relatives may be allowed to join you here:
- sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, uncles and aunts over the age of 18; and
- parents and grandparents under the age of 65.
To qualify to have your relatives join you in the United Kingdom, you must currently live in the United Kingdom and be settled here with no time limit on your stay. Your relative must show that:
- he/she is completely, or mainly, financially dependent on you;
- he/she does not have any other close relatives in his/her own country who can support him/her financially; and
- you have enough money to support and accommodate him/her without help from public funds (see Rights and responsibilities for more information on what this means).
If there are exceptional compassionate circumstances, children over 18, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles and parents and grandparents under the age of 65 who live alone may come if they meet the requirements given above.
Your relative must obtain permission to enter the United Kingdom before travelling here. We call this permission 'entry clearance'. It will be in the form of a visa or entry clearance certificate. To obtain it, he/she should apply to the British diplomatic post in the country where he/she lives. For information about visas, see our visa services website.
News & updates
Terms explained
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Settled
You are normally resident in the United Kingdom with no immigration restriction on the length of your stay. To be free of immigration restriction you must have the right of abode or indefinite leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom.
Internet links
Contact
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Immigration enquiry bureau
0870 606 7766
UK Border Agency Lunar House, 40 Wellesley Road, Croydon, Surrey, CR9 2BY