Who is eligible for fee waiver on immigration applications to Britain

Fee waiver (Home Office fee exemption) is not available to everyone: the British government has established a closed list of categories that can apply for the benefit. It includes family members of British citizens, victims of human trafficking, children registering as citizens, and people with human rights violations who cannot afford the fee.

Family members of British citizens and residents

Spouses, fiancés and partners applying for the five-year family visa route are eligible for fee waiver. Even if their visa contains a ‘no recourse to public funds’ condition, the fee exemption is not considered state financial assistance.

Parents raising a British child can also apply for the benefit when submitting a visa application under the five-year route. This applies to both applications submitted abroad and applications within the country with a change of status.

Recipients of visas on the ten-year route (for parents and dependants) can use fee waiver when extending their visa or changing their status.

Victims of human trafficking and modern slavery

Individuals previously granted victim of human trafficking or modern slavery status are eligible for fee waiver when extending their visa or registering in this status.

This category was expanded from 8 October 2026, when new rules on tackling modern slavery came into force. Many people who previously could not afford the registration fee can now use the benefit.

Applications based on human rights violations

If you are applying for leave to remain on the grounds of human rights violations, you can use fee waiver even if your previous asylum claim was rejected.

This applies if you were granted a temporary visa on the grounds of exceptional circumstances (exceptional leave) or discretionary visa (discretionary leave) less than four years ago, and you are submitting a new application on human rights grounds.

Any alleged violation of your rights can serve as grounds for applying for fee waiver if you are unable to pay the fee.

Children registering as British citizens

Children under 18 years of age applying for registration as British citizens are eligible for fee waiver if parents or guardians cannot afford the registration fee.

This category covers not only applications for citizenship through birth, but also other qualifying grounds by which the child is entitled to British citizenship.

Categories not eligible for fee waiver

Students on student visas and workers on work visas are generally not eligible for fee waiver, even if their financial situation has changed. However, they can apply for leave to remain (visa extension) on other grounds and in that case apply for fee waiver.

The complete list of qualifying categories is published on the official Home Office website and included in immigration guides. This is the final list, and Home Office periodically updates it.