Our Immigration Solicitors Look at the Domestic Violence Route to Indefinite Leave to Remain

If you came to the UK on a spouse visa or partner visa our immigration solicitors understand that you may feel trapped in a relationship that is not working for you as you know that the consequence of ending the relationship is that your family visa will be curtailed or end early. When a visa is curtailed you normally either need to switch to a new visa or leave the UK.

An alternative to switching visas or leaving the UK is to use the domestic violence route and apply for indefinite leave to remain if your sponsored relationship has ended due to domestic abuse.

UK Online and London-Based Immigration Lawyers and Spouse Visa Solicitors  

For immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.

The domestic violence route to UK settlement

If your sponsored relationship ends because you are subjected to domestic violence then you can apply for indefinite leave to remain using the domestic violence route. The significant difference between applying for indefinite leave to remain after entry on the spouse visa and using the domestic violence route is that there is no minimum residence requirement under the domestic violence category.

The minimum residence requirement and indefinite leave to remain applications

When you apply for indefinite leave to remain after entry to the UK on a spouse visa or partner visa you normally need to have lived in the UK for a minimum period of 5 years and meet the residence requirement of not having spent extensive periods out of the UK during that 5 year period. Other types of visas provide for accelerated settlement, such as the global talent visa.

A spouse visa does not last 5 years so most people in the UK on a family visa have to apply to extend their visa in order to meet the residence requirement. The residence requirement requires you to have lived in the UK both lawfully and continuously. If you overstay after your first spouse visa expires then you will not meet the lawful residence test.

Eligibility criteria to apply for indefinite leave to remain using the domestic violence route

You can use the domestic violence route to apply for indefinite leave to remain if you are in the UK on a family visa and your relationship ends because of the domestic violence.

Family visas include:

• Spouse visas
• Partner visas
• Civil partner visas

You can be in an unmarried relationship or a same-sex relationship and qualify to use the route.

Spouse Visa Solicitors stress that the immigration rules say that your relationship must have ended because of your partner’s domestic violence. That means you cannot use the route if:

• The relationship ended because your partner accused you of domestic violence rather than the other way around
• There was a bit of domestic abuse early on in the relationship that you resolved as your partner changed their attitude but the relationship then ended because you or your husband or wife or partner had an affair or you just drifted apart because you were no longer in love with one another

The domestic violence does not have to have occurred on the Monday and you decided to end the relationship on the Tuesday but there does need to be a link between the relationship terminating and the domestic violence.

Fiancée visas and the domestic violence route

If you are in the UK on a fiancée visa you cannot stay in the UK if your relationship ends before you get married or enter a civil partnership by using the domestic violence route to apply for indefinite leave to remain. If your wedding or civil partnership is called off you should speak to an immigration solicitor about your available switch visa options.

Dependant visas and the domestic violence route to indefinite leave to remain

If you are living in the UK on a dependant visa and your relationship ends because of domestic violence you cannot use the domestic violence route to apply for indefinite leave to remain. For example, you are the dependant of a worker who is in the UK on a skilled worker visa. To use the route, you need a sponsoring partner who has British citizenship or indefinite leave to remain and be in the UK on a family visa.

What amounts to domestic violence to qualify for the domestic violence route to settlement?

Many assume that domestic violence is limited to extreme physical assault and that your spouse or unmarried partner must either admit the domestic violence or have been convicted in a criminal court of an offence of assault or a similarly serious crime. That is not correct.

The Home Office has issued guidance on what amounts to domestic violence and the evidence needed in support of an application to secure indefinite leave to remain using the domestic violence route.

Domestic violence in indefinite leave to remain applications has the same meaning as that used in the English family court. The definition of domestic violence includes:

• Coercive control
• Emotional abuse
• Financial abuse
• Harassment
• Sexual abuse
• Stalking

Domestic abuse can have been carried out by your sponsoring spouse or partner or by a member of their family. For example, mental abuse by your parents-in-law who have belittled you or physically attacked you, or prevented you from leaving the family home because of their coercive control.

At OTS Solicitors we have a specialist team of family lawyers who work closely with our immigration team. The family law solicitors can advise you on:

• Applying for an injunction order in the family court
• The commencement of no-fault divorce proceedings
• Applying for a child arrangement order if you have children and need an order setting out the parent the children should live with and the contact arrangements
• A relocation or holiday order if the English court has jurisdiction for your children and you want to take your children overseas on holiday or return to your home country
• A divorce financial settlement or a property settlement if you are in an unmarried relationship

If you decide that you want to return home with your children in the immediate aftermath of ending your relationship with your sponsoring spouse or partner then it is important to note that you can only apply for indefinite leave to remain using the domestic violence route if you are physically present in the UK at the time of your indefinite leave to remain application. You should therefore take legal advice from our expert family law and Spouse Visa Solicitors before you leave the UK.

How can OTS Solicitors help you?

At OTS Solicitors we understand that it is doubly difficult to leave a relationship involving domestic violence when you are worried about your immigration status and unsure of your family law rights and immigration options. That’s why our family lawyers and immigration solicitors work so closely together to help you come to terms with the relationship breakdown and to protect your interests by making an indefinite leave to remain application.

UK Online and London-Based Immigration Lawyers and Spouse Visa Solicitors 

For immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.

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