EUSS family permit (Surinder Singh route) VS spousal visa – which is best for you?
This is part of my series going through your options for bringing your spouse or partner to the UK.
In this episode we will look at the EUSS family permit (Surinder Singh route) vs the spousal visa, and an important deadline coming up.
We’ll be going through the edocuments you need.
The main difference is that for a spousal visa you need to show:
You and your partner have a combined income of at least ÂŁ18,600 a year
This is not the case for the EUSS family permit (Surinder Singh route).
The main requirements are that you must have:
lived with them in the EU before 31 December 2020 (the same applies to Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein). The country that you lived in together must have been your main residence; and
Your relationship with them (your British partner or spouse) must have started before 1 February 2020
OR
If your relationship with them started on or after 1 February 2020, then you will need to have âreasonable groundsâ for not returning to the UK by 31 December 2020. For example, in connection with COVID.
You have until 29 March 2022 to apply for a family permit to come to the UK to live with them.
This is a much easier route, if you do satisfy the criteria. And you can also bring in a broader range of relatives. This includes:
You children or grand children under 21 – whereas with a spousal visa the it would need to be under 18.
Your dependent children or grandchildren over 21.
Your dependent parents or grandparents – that is not possible under many other Immigration Rules pathways.
