Completing application form FLR(M)

This page gives general guidance on completing application form FLR(M) to extend your permission to stay (leave to remain) in the United Kingdom as the husband, wife, civil partner, or unmarried or same-sex partner of a permanent resident. You can download the form from the right side of this page.

Applications made on or after the 25 November 2008 must be made on version 11/2008.

You should also read the detailed guidance (guide FLR(M), which you can download from the right side of this page) before completing the form. You will need to pay a fee when you make your application. We will not refund your fee if we refuse your application or you withdraw it. You should also read the photo guidance on the right side of this page for details of the type of photographs that we will accept.

Section 10 of the application form gives details of the documents you need to send to support your application. You should send the original documents, not a copy. In exceptional circumstances, we may accept a photocopy that is certified as an accurate copy by the body or authority that issued the original or by a notary. You must include a letter explaining the reasons for providing a certified copy rather than the original document.

You should use application form FLR(M) if you already have temporary permission to stay in the United Kingdom (limited leave to remain) as the husband, wife, civil partner, or unmarried or same-sex partner of a permanent resident.

You must be in the United Kingdom to apply. For information on obtaining initial permission to come to the United Kingdom in this category, see Can I live in the United Kingdom? In order to extend your stay in this category, you will need to show that you still meet the requirements for it.

If you have lived here for two years in this category and are still married or in a civil partnership and plan to live together, you may apply to live here permanently towards the end of the two-year period. See Applying for settlement in the United Kingdom for details of how to apply for permanent residence.

You can use one form for a joint application by you and any children aged under 18, if they are applying as your dependants. Children over 18 must apply separately, using application form FLR(O) - see Completing application form FLR(O).

You must apply at least four weeks before the end of your authorised stay in the United Kingdom.

You can post your application to us, or apply in person. See Contact for addresses and details of how to do this. You need to make an appointment in advance to apply in person. It is a same-day service available at a premium fee and is only suitable for straightforward applications that will not require further enquiries.

If you apply in person both parties should attend the public enquiry office, however, if this is not possible the settled spouse (permanent resident) is required to provide a letter stating that they support the marriage application. The letter must be signed and dated, with a daytime telephone number where they can be contacted if necessary.

We cannot tell in advance how long it will take to decide your postal application so you should not make non-urgent travel plans until we have returned your passport to you. However, our current target times for deciding applications show how quickly we aim to make a decision.

You must fill in the form in block capitals using a black pen. Please enter all dates as dd-mm-yyyy, for example 29-04-2000.

Identity cards for foreign nationals

From 25 November 2008, under the provisions of The Immigration (Biometric Registration) Regulations 2008, compulsory identity cards are being introduced for foreign nationals applying for permission to remain in the United Kingdom.

Everyone applying in the categories for which form FLR(M) has to be used must apply for an identity card. Over the next few years, identity cards will be extended to other immigration applications.
For more information about compulsory identity cards for foreign nationals extending as a spouse, civil partner, unmarried or same sex partner, and dependants on these applications, see the
page on compulsory identity card.

For more general information on identity cards for foreign nationals, why we are introducing them and how we are doing this, see the page on identity cards for foreign nationals.

Applications made at the public enquiry office

If you are applying in person at any of our public enquiry offices you will be required to provide your biometrics (fingerprints and facial image) as part of your application. This will be done on the day of your arranged appointment.

All dependants included in your application will also need to provide their biometrics. This will involve a photograph being taken of all applicants and fingerprints of applicants aged six or over. If an applicant or dependant is aged under 16, the biometric registration process must only take place in the presence of an adult who is the child's parent, guardian or a person who takes responsibility for the child during that time. You must give us the name of this adult when you make your appointment and this must be the same person who is named in section 5 of the application form.

You will not have to pay an additional fee when you attend the appointment. If your application for further leave to remain is successful, your identity card will be sent out to you by post within three to five days. Identity cards cannot be issued on the same day.

Postal applications

If you are applying by post you will also be required to provide your biometrics (fingerprints and facial image) as part of your application. Upon receipt of your application you will be requested to book an appointment at one of our seven enrolment centres (Croydon, Sheffield, Liverpool, Solihull, Glasgow, Cardiff and Armagh).

If you do not book an appointment, you will be sent a warning letter and your application will be rejected if you subsequently fail to comply with the requirement to provide your biometrics. If you book an appointment but fail to attend or refuse to provide your biometrics, you will be sent a warning letter and your application will subsequently fall to be refused if you do not comply with the biometric requirement.

For further information on what happens if you fail to provide your biometrics, please see the code of practice page.

All dependants included in your application will need to provide their biometrics. This will involve a photograph being taken of all applicants and fingerprints of applicants aged six or over. If an applicant or dependant is aged under 16, the biometric registration process must only take place in the presence of an adult who is the child?s parent, guardian or a person who takes responsibility for the child during that time. You must give us the name of this adult when you make your appointment and this must be the same person who is named in section 5 of the application form.

If your application for further leave to remain is successful, your identity card will be sent out to you by secure delivery post within three to five days.

Further information

For further details about the biometric immigration document and questions you may have when attending your appointment, you should read the FLR(M) guidance notes and identity cards for foreign nationals. These can be downloaded from the right side of this page.
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Permission to stay in the United Kingdom temporarily, for the length of time stated on your visa.A legal relationship that can be registered by two people of the same sex and that gives the couple legal recognition for their relationship. In a range of legal matters, civil partners are treated the same as opposite-sex partners who are married.Someone who depends on you financially, such as a husband, wife, partner, or child.A notary is also known as a notary public. A notary is a public official who is legally authorised to witness the signing of documents and perform other formal duties.