Elderly dependent relatives
This page explains how you can come and live permanently in the UK as an elderly dependent relative of someone who is already a permanent resident here.
If you are a parent, grandparent or other dependant relative of a British citizen or a person settled in the UK (known as your 'settled relative'), you can apply for permission to settle permanently here (known as 'indefinite leave to enter or remain').
As well as partners and children under 18, the following relatives can apply to join a settled person in the UK:
- 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.
You must provide evidence that:
- you depend wholly or mainly on your settled relative for money;
- you (and any dependants you have) can and will be maintained and housed adequately, without needing public funds, in accommodation which your settled relative owns or occupies exclusively; and
- you have no other close relatives in your own country who can support you financially.
If there are exceptional compassionate circumstances, the following relatives who meet the above requirements may be allowed to join as settled person here:
- sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, uncles and aunts over the age of 18; and
- parents and grandparents under the age of 65.
Before you travel here, you must obtain permission to enter the UK as an elderly dependent relative. This permission is known as 'entry clearance', and will take the form of a visa or an entry clearance certificate. You should apply to the British diplomatic post in the country where you live. For more information, see the visa services website.
If you are already in the UK and you want to apply to settle here as a settled person's elderly dependent relative, you should complete application form SET(F).