UK Spouse Visa Document Checklist 2026: Complete List and Evidence Rules

A document can be genuine, complete and still be rejected because of how it is dated, printed or presented.

That is the trap in the spouse visa document checklist. The online checklist tells you what to upload. Appendix FM-SE, the part of the Immigration Rules that sets out the specified evidence, tells you how each document must look, which period it must cover and which income category it belongs to.

“Follow only the checklist and you can send the right documents in the wrong form.”

This is the starting point for all of our document guides. It gives you a master checklist, the format rules that apply at every stage, and links to the detailed guide for each topic. It sits alongside our UK spouse visa guide.

We checked the Rules and the Home Office guidance in this guide against GOV.UK in October 2026.

Your master document checklist

Not every item applies to every applicant. Use it as a starting list, then check the detail in the guide linked beside it.

The rest of this guide explains the rules that decide whether these documents count.

How the Home Office looks at your documents

The Home Office looks at the whole file together. A date that does not match between your form and a bank statement, or a salary on a payslip that does not match the deposit in your account, can cast doubt on the documents around it. If it has reasonable cause to doubt that a document is genuine and cannot verify it, the document is discounted for the application.

The burden is on you. The decision maker is not expected to work out your income or chase missing evidence. Appendix FM-SE gives a discretion to ask you for a missing or wrongly formatted document, but it is limited. It applies where the decision maker expects that putting the error right will lead to a grant. It does not apply where the application will be refused for other reasons.

“Do not plan on being asked for anything.”

The format rules that apply at every stage

These rules are in Appendix FM-SE and Part 1 of the Immigration Rules. They are not on the online checklist.

The 28-day rule

Where Appendix FM-SE asks for evidence for a period that ends on your application date, that evidence, or its most recent part, must be dated no earlier than 28 days before you apply. In practice that covers your latest payslip and your latest bank statement.

It does not apply to every document. Evidence for self-employment and company income covers the financial years you rely on, so those periods end at the end of the financial year, not on your application date. Documents such as a marriage certificate or a tenancy agreement are not dated this way either.

What counts as your application date depends on where you apply from. For an entry clearance application, the application is not made until the fee has been paid. For an online application from inside the UK, the date of application is the date you submit it. Gather your financial documents as close to that date as you can.

Bank statements

A statement must be on official bank stationery. A statement you download electronically can be used if it comes with a letter from the bank on its headed stationery confirming the documents are authentic, or if it bears the bank's official stamp on every page. A screenshot of an online banking app is not an official statement and does not meet the rule.

Building society statements, passbooks and letters from a regulated financial institution can be used instead if they meet the same requirements. The institution must not be one that Appendix Finance excludes, so check your provider. Accounts with digital banks can be accepted, provided they are bank or building society accounts and the statements show the full transaction history and meet these authentication rules. Not every payment account qualifies. Check that the financial institution and the evidence meet Appendix FM-SE and Appendix Finance before relying on the funds.

Payslips

Payslips must be formal payslips issued by the employer showing the employer's name. If the employer's name is missing, a signed letter from a senior official at the employer, on headed paper, confirming the payslips are authentic must come with them.

The employer's letter

The letter must confirm your employment and gross annual salary, how long you have been employed, the period over which you have been paid the salary you rely on, and the type of employment (permanent, fixed-term or agency). A job title helps but is not on the Rules' list.

Here is how it goes wrong. A sponsor earns £34,000 and sends six months of payslips and matching bank statements. The employer's letter confirms the salary but not the period it has been paid at that level. The money is there, but the specified evidence is not.

Gross income and your bank statements

Under paragraph 1(n) of Appendix FM-SE, you can count the gross amount of your income if your bank statements show the full net amount that goes with the gross figure on your payslip. If they do not, only the net amount shown on the statements counts. Check that the amount reaching your account matches the payslip before you apply. Where part of your pay comes in cash, only the net amount that is banked can be counted.

Translations

A document that is not in English or Welsh needs the original and a full translation that can be independently verified. The translation must be dated and include confirmation that it is accurate, the translator's full name and signature, and their contact details. For extension and ILR applications, it must also be certified by a qualified translator, with details of their credentials.

Originals and copies

Specified documents may be originals or copies. Keep your originals safe and ready, because the Home Office can still ask to see them. Each document must contain, or you must give, full contact details so it can be checked.

Your document map by stage

The documents change as you move along the route.

• Entry clearance, applying from outside the UK. You prove the relationship, the income or savings, accommodation, English at A1, and in some cases a TB test. Guide: our spouse visa entry clearance guide.
• FLR(M) extension, applying from inside the UK. You prove the same things again, with a focus on your life together since your last grant, and English at A2. Guide: our spouse visa extension after 2.5 years.
• ILR, settlement after the 5-year route. You prove current finances, relationship and accommodation, the Life in the UK test, and English at B1 for applications made before 26 March 2027 or B2 from that date. Guide: our ILR after a spouse visa guide.

If you are applying from inside the UK, your status is shown through your UKVI account (your eVisa) and share codes. A BRP card's printed expiry date can differ from the end of your permission, so check your grant letter or account.

Evidence by topic

Financial evidence

The Home Office guidance groups income into seven categories, A to G, and the documents you need depend on which one applies. Our spouse visa financial requirement guide explains each category, the thresholds, savings and adequate maintenance in full. Whatever your category, the format rules above apply to every document.

Relationship evidence

There is no list of specified documents, and no single type of evidence is mandatory in every case, although a marriage or civil partnership needs appropriate evidence of the legal relationship. The Home Office weighs your evidence in the round, and gives more weight to official, verified documents than to photographs and messages. Our spouse visa relationship requirement guide covers this in depth.

Accommodation evidence

Your family must own the accommodation or occupy it exclusively. It must not be overcrowded and must not breach public health rules. Exclusive occupation does not mean the whole house: you can share a home with relatives, provided your family unit has exclusive use of at least the bedroom or bedrooms it needs. Provide a tenancy agreement, mortgage statement or deeds, a letter from the homeowner if you live with relatives, and a council tax or utility bill. See our spouse visa accommodation requirement guide for the overcrowding test.

English language evidence

The requirement is speaking and listening. You can meet it with an approved Secure English Language Test, a nationality on the Rules' list, a UK degree, or an exemption. Use a test on the GOV.UK approved list, such as IELTS Life Skills, not IELTS Academic or IELTS General Training. A certificate must be from a test taken no more than two years before your application date, unless you already met the requirement at the level required in a previous successful application. See our spouse visa English language requirement guide.

TB test certificate

You need a TB test if you are coming to the UK for six months or more, you have lived in a country on the GOV.UK TB list for six months or more, and you were living there within the last six months. Fiancé(e) and proposed civil partner applicants need one even for a shorter stay. The certificate is valid for six months from the date of your x-ray. Check the current list of countries and approved clinics on GOV.UK before you book.

Supporting letters

Use a cover letter to set out your relationship and timeline, state which income category and threshold you rely on, list your documents and what each shows, and explain anything unusual. A letter from your UK partner can confirm their intention to live with you permanently in the UK. It must be signed, dated and consistent with your own account, because differences between the two can cause doubts about the whole application.

If your name differs between documents

Common causes are a married and maiden name, different spellings of a name in another script, or a name change that has not reached every document. Explain the difference and provide evidence linking the names. A marriage certificate, deed poll or earlier passport may resolve it. If those documents do not adequately explain the difference, a statutory declaration may help.

The template below is an optional example, which we would review with you for your own circumstances:

KQ Solicitors can administer this declaration as commissioners for oaths.

Real applicant problems

No joint bills. The Home Office guidance asks decision makers not to impose UK-style expectations. Provide individual bills at the same address covering the same periods, a letter from the landlord or homeowner, and records of money sent between you. Explain the situation in your cover letter.

A long-distance relationship. Living apart is not a problem if you explain it. Provide travel records, hotel bookings, money transfers and a cover letter.

Uploading your documents

Follow the file type, size and naming instructions on the upload page or in your appointment instructions. Scan clearly in colour, include every page, and name each file so it is easy to identify, for example "Sponsor_Payslips_Jan-Jun2026.pdf". Unlock any password-protected files.

If you are applying from inside the UK and attending a biometrics appointment, upload your documents before you attend if you are told to. If something fails to upload, sort it out before the appointment, and do not rely on being given a second chance.

If the Home Office asks for more

The Home Office can write to ask for missing or corrected documents or further information. The request will say what it wants and by when. Read it carefully, send exactly what is asked for, keep proof that you sent it, and take advice if you are unsure what it means. If the request mentions an interview, take advice before you attend.

Do not leave the Common Travel Area while an in-country application is pending. Under the Rules, an application for permission to stay is treated as withdrawn on the date you leave. You would need to apply again and pay again.

Mistakes that lead to refusal

• Using the wrong financial category. Six months of payslips for a sponsor who changed jobs three months ago is a Category B case, not Category A.
• Bank statements that do not match payslips, or are not official or authenticated.
• An employer's letter that leaves out the period over which the salary was paid.
• Relationship evidence that is only photographs and messages.
• Evidence for a period ending on your application date that is more than 28 days old.
• The wrong English test. IELTS Academic or General Training instead of an approved SELT.
• False documents or misleading information. See below.

False documents and deception

False documents or misleading information can lead to refusal. Where the Home Office is satisfied that you used deception, refusal is mandatory, and future applications can be refused for ten years. A genuine mistake is not treated in the same way as deliberate deception, but it can still lead to refusal. If you discover a mistake in a document, tell us before you apply.

“A refusal for missing evidence can often be fixed with a better application. A finding of deception is much harder to undo.”

The next step after settlement: citizenship

Once you hold indefinite leave to remain, you may later be able to apply for British citizenship by naturalisation. It has its own requirements and its own documents, and it is a separate application, not a stage of the spouse visa route. See our British citizenship by naturalisation guide.

Frequently asked questions

Is the online checklist complete?

No. It is a guide to what to upload. It does not set out the Appendix FM-SE format rules or tell you which income category you are in.

How many months of payslips and bank statements do I need?

Six months for Category A. For Category B, payslips and bank statements for the periods you were employed in the 12 months before you apply. Payslips and matching bank statements are needed, not payslips alone.

My sponsor changed jobs three months ago. What do we use?

Usually Category B. You need a current employer's letter and payslip for the current salary, plus payslips and bank statements covering the periods your sponsor was employed in the previous 12 months, with each employer. Both parts of the test must reach the threshold, and savings cannot top up the second part.

We have no joint bills or bank accounts. Will that cause a refusal?

Not by itself. Provide individual bills at the same address for the same periods, a letter from the landlord or homeowner, and records of money sent between you. Explain it in your cover letter.

How many photographs should we include?

There is no required number. A small, dated selection that covers your relationship works better than a large bundle. They are the weakest tier, so use them to support official documents.

We live with my partner's parents. What do we need?

A letter from the homeowner confirming you can live there, proof of ownership, the number of rooms and occupants, and a council tax or utility bill. Your family unit needs exclusive use of at least the bedroom or bedrooms it needs.

My name is spelled differently on my passport and marriage certificate.

Explain the difference and provide evidence linking the names, such as a marriage certificate, deed poll or earlier passport. If that is not enough, a statutory declaration may help.

Can my overseas income count?

Not your earnings from work while you are overseas. Your partner's employment or self-employment income counts. Your own pension income and other specified income such as rent and dividends can also count. Once you are in the UK with permission to work, your own lawful earnings can count too.

Do I need to send previous passports?

Include any that show relevant immigration history or visits to your partner. A passport with nothing relevant does not need to be sent.

Is it worth using a solicitor?

Many straightforward applications can be made without one. We recommend advice if you are self-employed or a company director, have a refusal or criminal record, have variable income, or are relying on savings or an overseas divorce.

When to get professional help

A solicitor is especially worth involving if your income does not fit neatly into Category A, if you have never lived together, if a previous application was refused, if you are unsure which threshold applies, or if the Home Office has asked you for something and you are not sure how to answer.

“Documents are how someone who has never met you decides whether your application is true. Make that decision easy: the right category, the right period, the right format and one consistent story.”

Official sources

• Appendix FM: family members (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)
• Appendix FM-SE: specified evidence (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)
• Immigration Rules Part 1: leave to enter or stay in the UK (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)
• Immigration Rules: Part Suitability (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)
• Family life (as a partner or parent) and exceptional circumstances guidance (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)
• Minimum income requirement guidance (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)
• Adequate maintenance and accommodation guidance (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)
• Tuberculosis tests for visa applicants (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)

This article provides general information only and is not legal advice. The Immigration Rules and guidance change often. Check GOV.UK before you submit any application. KQ Solicitors is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (firm SRA number 619078).