A human rights claim asks the Home Office to let you stay in the UK because making you leave would breach your human rights. Most claims rely on the right to respect for family and private life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. If the Home Office refuses a human rights claim, there is usually a right of appeal to an independent tribunal.
Human rights claims at a glance
- Who it is for
- You may qualify if you do not meet the usual rules, but refusing you would breach Article 8 and cause unjustifiably harsh consequences for you or your family.
- Where you can apply from
- If you are a refused asylum seeker sending further submissions, you must be in the UK and attend an in-person appointment at a Service and Support Centre.
- Family members
- Decision-makers consider how refusal would affect your partner, a child under 18 or another family member, treating the child's best interests as a primary consideration.
From the official GOV.UK guidance, checked 2 November 2026.
Overview
A human rights claim is a claim that removing you from the UK, or refusing you entry, would be unlawful under the Human Rights Act 1998. It must be properly explained and supported: simply writing "I am making a human rights claim" on a form is not enough.
Most claims fall into one of these groups:
- The 10-year family route, for partners and parents who cannot meet every requirement of the standard 5-year family route.
- Private life, for people who have lived here for many years or grew up here, under the private life route.
- Exceptional circumstances, where refusal would have unjustifiably harsh consequences, even though the rules are not met.
- Article 3, the ban on torture and inhuman or degrading treatment, including some serious medical cases.
When a claim succeeds, permission is usually granted for 30 months at a time, with settlement usually possible after 10 years (sooner for some children and young adults). From 8 October 2026, families in the Home Office's Family Returns Process can make family or private life claims directly to Home Office staff, without a form or fee.
Who this is for
We usually see human rights claims from:
- Partners of British or settled people who cannot meet the financial, English or immigration status requirements of the Spouse visa.
- Parents of a British child, or of a child who has lived here for 7 years.
- Adults and young people with long residence or strong ties here.
- People who fear serious harm, or who could not get essential treatment, in the country they would go to.
- People facing removal or deportation, and people with new evidence after an earlier refusal.
It is not the right process for an asylum claim, which follows a separate procedure. And if you meet every requirement of the 5-year family route, apply on that route instead: it leads to settlement in half the time.
Requirements
- A valid claim: in most cases, an application on the family or private life form with the fee and Immigration Health Surcharge, or a fee waiver. Claims made in detention, during an appeal or alongside an asylum claim are exceptions.
- Suitability: serious criminality, deception or certain debts can lead to refusal.
- Evidence: the claim succeeds or fails on proof of the relationship, the children's lives, the time spent here and what would happen on return.
The 10-year family route
A partner can qualify where there are insurmountable obstacles to family life continuing outside the UK. The rules define these as very significant difficulties that could not be overcome or would cause very serious hardship. A parent can qualify where they have a genuine and subsisting parental relationship with a child who is British or has lived here for 7 years, and it would not be reasonable to expect the child to leave.
Where neither applies, permission must still be granted if refusal would cause unjustifiably harsh consequences for you, your partner or a child. The best interests of any child affected are a primary consideration. Permission is granted for up to 30 months, and the no recourse to public funds condition can be lifted. After 10 years (120 months) you can apply for settlement, with English at B1, or B2 for settlement applications made on or after 26 March 2027.
Article 3 claims
Article 3 is absolute, but the threshold is very high, especially in medical cases. You need strong evidence that treatment would not be available or accessible to you, and of the serious and rapid decline in health that would follow.
Fresh claims
If a claim has been refused and any appeal has ended, new material can be sent as further submissions. Family and private life submissions are normally made by a new application on the correct form. The Home Office first decides whether they amount to a fresh claim: they must be significantly different from what was considered before and have a realistic prospect of success. If they do not, there is no right of appeal, and the only challenge is judicial review.
Appeal rights and certification
A refused human rights claim normally carries a right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal. The Home Office can limit this by certifying the claim: as clearly unfounded, which means any appeal can only be brought from abroad; as a claim that should have been raised earlier; or, in deportation cases, so that the appeal is heard after removal unless that would cause serious irreversible harm.
How the process works
- We assess your circumstances and decide whether you meet the rules, the 10-year route or only the wider Article 8 test.
- If you cannot afford the fees, a fee waiver request is made first.
- We gather evidence: relationship records, school reports, letters from doctors and social workers, and proof of residence.
- The application is submitted with written legal representations that set out the law and the facts.
- You prove your identity through the app or at a biometrics appointment.
- The Home Office decides. A grant is usually for 30 months; a refusal letter states your appeal rights and deadline.
- If refused, an appeal is lodged with the tribunal, usually within 14 days if you are in the UK.
Costs
An application normally carries the Home Office fee and the Immigration Health Surcharge, shown live on our UK visa fees page. A fee waiver is available if you cannot afford them. Claims made in detention or within the Family Returns Process need no fee.
An appeal has a tribunal fee, which is lower if the appeal is decided without a hearing; help with fees is available. Strong claims often need reports from doctors, psychologists, independent social workers or country specialists, and certified translations, each with its own cost.
Timescales
GOV.UK lists a typical decision time of 12 months for partner and parent applications based on private life or human rights grounds, with no service standard. Fee waiver requests add time. If you applied before your permission ran out, your existing permission continues while you wait.
After a refusal you have 14 days to appeal from inside the UK, or 28 days from abroad. Tribunal hearings are often many months away, and the written decision usually follows within 4 weeks of the hearing.
Common problems
- Using the wrong form, so the application is rejected as invalid and no appeal arises.
- Relying on statements without documents. A letter from a child's school or GP carries far more weight.
- Forgetting the public interest rules. Little weight is given to private life built while your status was precarious, or to a relationship formed while you were here unlawfully.
- Ignoring a "one-stop" notice. New grounds must be raised as soon as possible, or they may be certified or excluded at appeal.
- Leaving the UK while a claim or appeal is pending, which usually ends it.
- Missing the 14-day appeal deadline.
How we can help
Human rights claims depend on evidence and on how the law has been applied in similar cases. We give you a frank view of the strength of your claim, and of any better route, before you spend money on fees.
We gather and organise the evidence of your family and private life, commission reports where they will help, prepare fee waiver requests and detailed representations, and deal with the Home Office. If the claim is refused, we prepare the appeal and instruct a specialist barrister for the hearing (see Appeals and judicial review). You can book a consultation in person, by telephone or by video.
Frequently asked questions
Is a human rights claim the same as asylum?
No. Asylum is for people who fear persecution and follows a separate process. A human rights claim covers wider situations, most often family and private life.
My wife is British but we do not meet the income requirement. What can we do?
If you are in the UK, you may qualify on the 10-year route if there are insurmountable obstacles to living together abroad, or if refusal would be unjustifiably harsh. If your income later meets the requirement, you may be able to apply on the 5-year route instead, although time already spent on the 10-year route does not count towards the 5 years.
Can I work while my claim is decided?
Only if you applied while you held permission that allowed work. That permission continues until the decision and any in-time appeal end.
My appeal failed. Is there anything else I can do?
If the tribunal made an error of law, you can ask for permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal, within 14 days of the written reasons if you are in the UK. If your circumstances change, for example a child reaches 7 years' residence, a fresh claim may be possible.
What does "clearly unfounded" mean?
It means the Home Office considers the claim bound to fail. The certificate itself can be challenged by judicial review, which must be brought quickly.
Do I have to leave the UK to appeal?
Usually not. Claims made in the UK are normally appealed from here, unless the claim has been certified.
This page is general information about UK immigration rules, not legal advice on your circumstances. Home Office fees shown on this page are taken from GOV.UK; the date they were last checked is shown beside them. For advice on your case, request a consultation.
