Spouse vs civil partner visa

Is there any difference with regard to application requirements and processing time?

Nope, no difference at all in processing times. They are lumped together under the 'settlement visa' category and are processed as they arrive in Sheffield, regardless of which one you apply for.

In terms of requirements, the only difference is that for a fiancé visa you have to show you are making plans to marry within the 6 months and for a spousal visa you have to show you are already married. All the other requirements are the same.

They are the same price, but the spousal visa has the £600 NHS levy added while the fiancé visa does not give NHS access so you have to buy your own health insurance and pay for any NHS treatment.

In terms of visas, the fiancé visa means an extra visa to apply for - a fiancé visa first to marry in the UK, followed by a 2.5-year FLR(M) visa, then another 2.5-year FLR(M) and then ILR.

The spousal visa is just the 33-month spousal visa, then one 2.5-year FLR(M) and then ILR.


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Is it possible to enter first on a fiance visa then do the civil partnership?

Nope, no difference at all in processing times. They are lumped together under the 'settlement visa' category and are processed as they arrive in Sheffield, regardless of which one you apply for.

In terms of requirements, the only difference is that for a fiancé visa you have to show you are making plans to marry within the 6 months and for a spousal visa you have to show you are already married. All the other requirements are the same.

They are the same price, but the spousal visa has the £600 NHS levy added while the fiancé visa does not give NHS access so you have to buy your own health insurance and pay for any NHS treatment.

In terms of visas, the fiancé visa means an extra visa to apply for - a fiancé visa first to marry in the UK, followed by a 2.5-year FLR(M) visa, then another 2.5-year FLR(M) and then ILR.

The spousal visa is just the 33-month spousal visa, then one 2.5-year FLR(M) and then ILR.


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Is it possible to enter first on a fiance visa then do the civil partnership?

Yes, that is the purpose of the fiance(e) visa.  A fiance(e) visa allows you to move to the UK, marry in the UK, and remain in the UK to switch to a spouse visa.  The fiance(e) visa is valid for 6 months, so you must marry and submit an application (either by post or in person) within 6 months of moving to the UK with this visa.

Essentially, the options for moving to the UK when your partner (proposed partner) is a UK citizen are:

1.  Get married outside the UK (ex. US).  Apply for a spouse visa (from where you have legal residence, usually the US) to move to the UK.

2.  Get married in the UK.  Apply for a fiance(e) visa to move to the UK and marry in the UK.  After the marriage, apply for a spouse visa to extend your stay (and allow you to work, and so on).  You do not have to leave the UK.

3.  Get married in the UK with a marriage visitor visa.  You can apply for a marriage visitor visa to get married in the UK as a visitor.  Return to the US and apply for a spouse visa to move to the UK.  Note that a marriage visitor visa is still a visitor visa, so you must abide by all the rules a visitor must, including no switching to another visa category.  If you want to get married in the UK and stay in the UK after, the best option is the fiance(e) visa.

And if I want to will I be able to settle after 5(?) years, just as with a spouse visa?

Yes, that is the purpose of the fiance(e) visa.  A fiance(e) visa allows you to move to the UK, marry in the UK, and remain in the UK to switch to a spouse visa.  The fiance(e) visa is valid for 6 months, so you must marry and submit an application (either by post or in person) within 6 months of moving to the UK with this visa.

Essentially, the options for moving to the UK when your partner (proposed partner) is a UK citizen are:

1.  Get married outside the UK (ex. US).  Apply for a spouse visa (from where you have legal residence, usually the US) to move to the UK.

2.  Get married in the UK.  Apply for a fiance(e) visa to move to the UK and marry in the UK.  After the marriage, apply for a spouse visa to extend your stay (and allow you to work, and so on).  You do not have to leave the UK.

3.  Get married in the UK with a marriage visitor visa.  You can apply for a marriage visitor visa to get married in the UK as a visitor.  Return to the US and apply for a spouse visa to move to the UK.  Note that a marriage visitor visa is still a visitor visa, so you must abide by all the rules a visitor must, including no switching to another visa category.  If you want to get married in the UK and stay in the UK after, the best option is the fiance(e) visa.

And if I want to will I be able to settle after 5(?) years, just as with a spouse visa?

Yes.  The pathway to ILR would be as follows with a fiance(e) visa:

Fiance(e) visa > FLR(M) > FLR(M) > ILR
6 months > 2.5 years > 2.5  years > Indefinite

And once you had ILR, you could apply for citizenship.

Just a note that if you are entering a civil partnership, your visa is actually not called a fiance visa, but instead a 'Proposed Civil Partnership' visa.

And same, if you were to marry first and then apply for the visa, you will be applying for a 'Civil Partnership' visa rather than a 'spousal' visa.

The visas are exactly the same, it's just they are called 'civil partnership' rather than fiance/spouse.

So when you apply for the visa, you would just need to make sure you select 'Proposed Civil Partnership' or 'Civil Partnership' rather than 'fiance/marriage' or 'wife/husband'.