Families and visas · 家庭与签证
Living in the UK with your child: the visa routes families meet
带着孩子在英国生活:家庭常见的签证路径
Families end up in the UK with a child in many ways: a child comes to school, a parent takes a job, a relative is already here, or plans change while you are here. This page covers only what matters when a child is involved, with the official GOV.UK page for each route. It gives facts, not advice.
家庭带着孩子来到英国的原因很多:孩子来读书、家长来工作、亲人已经在英国,或者来了之后计划有变。本页只讲有孩子时最重要的事项,并附上各路径的 GOV.UK 官方页面。本页只提供事实,不提供建议。
Last checked 4 November 2026 on GOV.UK. Fees and rules change: open the official page before you rely on any figure.
Your situation · 您的情况
Which of these sounds like you?
哪一种最接近您的情况?
1 · Child studies at a UK independent school
Child Student visa, and a parent visa
- Child Student visa: for ages 4 to 17. The child needs an unconditional offer from a licensed Child Student sponsor, a suitable home, access to enough money and a parent's or guardian's consent. Fee £558, plus the healthcare surcharge.
- It cannot bring family members. A parent who wants to come needs the Parent of a Child Student visa.
- Parent of a Child Student visa: fee £637. The child must be 4 to 11 and have or be applying for a Child Student visa. Only one parent can come, the other lives abroad. The parent cannot do paid work, must keep their main home outside the UK and plan to leave when the visa ends. It lasts until the child's visa ends or the child turns 12, whichever is first. It can be extended but not switched to another visa.
2 · A parent is moving to the UK for work
Work visas where a partner and children can join
- Skilled Worker (up to 5 years before extending, can lead to settlement after 5 years) and Health and Care Worker: a partner and children may be able to apply as dependants.
- Scale-up Worker (fee £937 plus surcharge, 2 years then 3-year extensions), Global Talent (fee £766 plus surcharge, partner and children can be included), Innovator Founder (fee £1,357 from outside the UK) also allow family.
- Senior or Specialist Worker (intra-company transfer) allows family but does not lead to settlement.
- A child still needs a school place. State schools and independent schools are both options: see our schools page for how independent entry works.
3 · You are already in the UK on another visa
Extending or switching
- Many routes let you extend or switch before your current permission expires. Some do not: the Graduate visa cannot be extended, and the Parent of a Child Student visa can be extended but not switched.
- A partner and children can often stay if they are eligible as your dependants.
- A Family visa is not available if your relative is only here temporarily on a work or student visa: you apply as their dependant instead.
- Report changes in your circumstances to the Home Office.
4 · Joining a relative who lives here
Family visa
- For living with a partner, child, parent or relative who needs long-term care.
- Fees on GOV.UK: £2,064 from outside the UK or £1,407 from inside, per person, for a partner, parent or child.
- There is also a route for a child to join or stay with a close relative.
- The healthcare surcharge may be extra: for example £2,587.50 for an adult and £1,940 for a child for 2 years and 6 months.
5 · You plan to stay long term
Settling and citizenship
- Indefinite leave to remain is the usual way to settle. GOV.UK lists the routes and qualifying periods: work visas are usually 5 years, Global Talent and Innovator Founder 3 years.
- British citizenship, the English language requirement and the Life in the UK test are separate steps.
- Some routes, such as the Graduate visa, the Parent of a Child Student visa and the Senior or Specialist Worker visa, do not lead to settlement directly.
PHOTO 1 · to be supplied
A parent and a child (about 8 to 11) walking through a London railway station with a suitcase, the parent holding the child's hand, seen from behind or from the side so faces are not the focus. Early-morning light. No visible brands or station names.
How an application works · 申请流程
The same five steps on most routes
1. Check whether you need a visa. 2. Prepare your evidence: a valid passport and supporting documents, certified translations if they are not in English or Welsh, and a tuberculosis test result or proof of English if your route needs them. 3. Apply online and pay the fee. 4. Give your fingerprints and a photo (biometrics). 5. Wait for the decision: GOV.UK says usually 3 to 12 weeks, and each route gives its own time. Your status is then held online as an eVisa.
大多数签证路径都是同样五步:先查是否需要签证;准备材料(护照、证明文件、若非英文需认证翻译,必要时还需结核检测或英语证明);网上申请并缴费;录入指纹和照片;等待结果(官方一般为 3 到 12 周,各路径有自己的时间)。
School dates and visa dates · 入学与签证时间
Why the school timetable comes first
For a child coming to an independent school on a Child Student visa, the school's unconditional offer must exist before the visa application. You can apply up to 6 months before the course starts from outside the UK, or up to 3 months before from inside the UK, and arrive up to 1 month before the course starts. That means entrance exams, interviews and offers, which run months earlier, set the visa clock. Our schools page links to each school's own admissions page, and our exams guide explains the tests.
孩子持学生签证入读独立学校时,必须先拿到学校的无条件录取,才能申请签证。所以比签证更早的入学考试、面试和录取时间,决定了签证的时间线。
PHOTO 2 · to be supplied
A parent at a table filling in a form on a laptop with papers beside them, a child reading a book in the background, softly out of focus. Calm and organised, daylight. No readable documents.
Getting advice · 获取专业建议
Choosing the right route is a job for a regulated adviser
GOV.UK says immigration advisers must be registered with the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) or be members of an approved professional body, and gives a finder to check one. Hongwen is an independent tutoring service: we explain the exam and school side and link to official pages, but we do not give immigration advice or recommend a route.
GOV.UK 表示,移民顾问必须在移民咨询管理局(IAA)注册,或属于认可的专业团体。Hongwen 不提供移民建议,也不推荐签证路径。
Your child's school is the part we can help with
Tell us your child's age and the schools you are considering and we will explain the exams and how to prepare.
Hongwen is an independent tutoring service. It gives facts, not immigration, legal or financial advice, and cannot promise any exam outcome.