Citizeo
Pathway

UK Family Visa as a Child

United Kingdom Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

The UK child family visa is for a child joining or staying with a qualifying parent in the UK. It generally requires the child to be under 18 or already on a child family route, unmarried, living with the parent, and tied to a parent's qualifying UK application or status.

Type
Family residence
Sponsor
People joining a qualifying family member in the United Kingdom
Core requirements
Relationship records and the sponsor's status
What to know
The sponsor's status and documents matter a lot
What it gives
Permission generally ends with the relevant parent's.
Main limit
It is not an automatic dependent visa merely because one parent is in the UK.

Summary

A child can join or remain with a parent under the family rules, either as part of a parent's partner/parent application or, in narrower circumstances, to join a parent or close relative directly. The child's permission and settlement position usually follow the parent's route, but every child needs a separate application and eVisa.

Pathway fit check

Eligibility

The child is normally under 18 at first application and must not be married, in a civil partnership or leading an independent life. A person 18 or older can continue only where they were last granted as a dependent child and remain non-independent.

For a child applying from abroad, common qualifying patterns are both parents applying or present in the UK; one parent applying to join the other; one parent having sole responsibility; or serious and compelling reasons with suitable care arrangements. A UK-born child can normally receive permission in line with the parent. Parentage, custody, consent, accommodation and the other parent's circumstances must be documented. Refugee Family Reunion closed to new applications at 3pm on 4 September 2025 pending review, so a new child application to a protection-status parent must normally use Appendix FM; the separate close-relative protection route can still apply to a child joining a qualifying non-parent relative.

Policy watch 1 development we’re tracking
Some children of British citizens are intended to retain five-year settlement
Consultation — not currently law

Some children of British citizens are intended to retain five-year settlement

Current official stage: Consultation closed; government analyzing feedback

The proposal says qualifying children of British citizens would receive a five-year reduction from the baseline. Other child and dependent cases may be treated differently, and the consultation leaves important age, dependency and transitional questions for the final rules.

Timing: The consultation ran from 20 November 2025 to 12 February 2026. GOV.UK currently says the government is analyzing feedback. No general implementation date has been announced, and current settlement rules remain in force unless and until Immigration Rules changes take effect.

Current pathway rules still apply.

Last checked UK Home Office — Earned settlement consultation and current statusUK Home Office — A Fairer Pathway to Settlement consultation paper
Read the full briefing

What This Route Allows

Permission generally ends with the relevant parent's. The child can study and, if old enough, work subject to the grant; most grants have no recourse to public funds. An Appendix FM application costs £2,064 from outside the UK or £1,407 in the UK from 8 April 2026, per child, normally plus IHS; a human-rights fee waiver can be available where the rules are met. Settlement may be available with or after the parent once the route's status, relationship and independent-life requirements are met. A child who becomes British does not need an immigration extension.

What This Route Is Not

It is not an automatic dependent visa merely because one parent is in the UK. Where parents live apart, “sole responsibility” means real control of major upbringing decisions, not only financial support. A child born in the UK is not automatically British unless a parent was British or settled at birth, though later registration may be available.

Next Steps

  1. First check whether the child is already British or qualifies under the EUSS.
  2. Obtain full birth/adoption records, passports and each parent's immigration status.
  3. Document custody, consent, living arrangements, financial support and major parenting decisions.
  4. Apply for the child's eVisa before travel or before current permission expires, then reassess settlement with the parent.
Compare your options

Other routes in United Kingdom.

Sources