Application To Allow Access To Public Funds

You can apply for access to public funds if you already have leave granted on the basis of your family or private life and your financial circumstances have changed. An application to allow success to public funds is made to the Home Office UKVI online.

Eligibility Requirements

You are eligible to apply for a change of conditions to allow access to public funds if:

• you have leave to remain under the 10 year partner, parent or private life route, where the applicant claims that refusal of that application for leave to remain would breach their rights (or the rights of other specified persons) under ECHR Article 8 (the right to respect for private and family life)
• you have leave to remain on the basis of other ECHR right

You can also be eligible to apply if you have leave to remain under the 5 year partner/parent route. If your application to allow access to public funds is accepted by the Home office UKVI, you would be considered to have moved on to the 10 year route to settlement.

You will qualify for an amendment to your conditions of leave to allow access to public funds only if:

• you are destitute
• there are particularly compelling reasons relating to the welfare of your child on account of your very low income
• there are exceptional circumstances in your case relating to your financial circumstances
• you are at risk of becoming destitute

Definition Of Destitute

A person is destitute if:

• they do not have adequate accommodation or any means of obtaining it (whether or not their other essential living needs are met)
• they have adequate accommodation or the means of obtaining it, but cannot meet their other essential living needs
• they are at risk of destitution if either or both of the above are imminent

Evidence Required

In order to make the request for an amendment to the conditions of your leave to allow access to public funds you must:

• complete your application online
• provide your existing Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) where relevant, or passport (including your Leave to Remain vignette where relevant)
• include documentary evidence that you meet the policy on granting recourse to public funds

It is up to you to provide sufficient evidence to satisfy the Home Office UKVI caseworker that you meet the eligibility requirements. If sufficient evidence is not provided with the application, the conditions of your leave will not normally be changed to you access to public funds.

You should provide evidence of your financial circumstances and living arrangements. This should include documents that are applicable to your individual circumstances which could include the following:

• 6 months bank statements for all accounts held by all members of your household, even those belonging to children or ones that are rarely used. These should be fully annotated to explain significant/regular transactions
• recent pay slips accounting for the last 6 months
• breakdown of monthly income and expenditure
• recent tenancy agreement or mortgage statement
• recent utility and other relevant bills
• recent P45 / P60
• letter confirming duration of employment, the hours worked and salary (the person writing should state their position in the company and provide contact details)
• recent letter from Local Authority confirming that support is being provided
• recent letter from registered charity or other organisation providing support
• recent letters from family or friends who are providing support, giving full details regarding the extent of this and how often it is provided
• recent letter confirming that you or your spouse or partner is in receipt of public funds

To succeed in your application, you will need to explain in detail what your current financial circumstances are, how these may have changed, and how you are currently maintaining yourself.

Biometric Residence Permits (BRP)

If you meet the requirements for an amendment to the conditions of your leave to allow recourse to public funds, Home Office UKVI may send you a letter giving information about enrolling your biometric information. You would need to do this at a Service & Support Centre (SSC) for which you may qualify for travel assistance. Home Office UKVI will then issue you with a biometric residence permit (BRP) allowing you access to public funds.

Application Processing Time

No service standards apply to the assessment of whether the applicant qualifies for a change of condition code to allow access to public funds, but Home Office UKVI caseworkers will normally make reasonable efforts to decide such requests promptly, especially those involving a child or an applicant who is street homeless, disabled or otherwise in vulnerable circumstances.

How Can We Help?

Our expert team of immigration solicitors specialise in applications to allow access to public funds. If instructed to represent you regarding your application allow access to public funds, our specialist team of immigration solicitors will carry out all the work on your application until a decision is made by the Home Office UKVI on your application allow access to public funds. The immigration casework to be carried out by our immigration solicitors will include the following:

• Assessing your eligibility for application to allow access to public funds by considering all your personal circumstances;
• Advising you on the weaknesses and strengths of your application to allow access to public funds;
• Advising you on the relevant documents to be submitted in support of your application to allow access to public funds;
• Assessing your documents to ensure that the documentary evidence is as per requirements of the Home Office UKVI immigration Rules;
• Completing and submitting the online application form to allow access to public funds by gathering all the relevant information from you;
• Where necessary, preparing detailed witness statement of the applicant and/or the sponsor explaining their financial circumstances;
• Preparing a detailed cover letter to introduce and support your application to allow access to public funds;
• Uploading online all the relevant supporting documents to be considered in support of your application to allow access to public funds;
• Liaising with the Home Office UKVI for a timely decision on your application.

How Much We Charge?

Our fixed fees for an application to allow access to public funds are given in the table below:

The agreed fixed fee will depend on the complexity of the application and the volume of casework involved in the application.