Adult Dependent Relative Visa UK: 2026 guide for families

By GigaLegal Solicitors, London

Families often come to us with a simple hope: “Can I bring my mum or dad to live with me in the UK so I can look after them?” The Adult Dependent Relative visa, often shortened to the ADR visa, is the route people naturally find. It is also one of the strictest family routes in the Immigration Rules.

This is not because the Home Office doubts that families love each other. It is because the legal test is built around a narrow idea: the ADR route is for situations where an adult relative needs long-term personal care and that care cannot reasonably be provided in their home country, even if the UK family can pay for it.

What is the Adult Dependent Relative visa?

The ADR route allows an adult family member aged 18 or over to come to the UK to live with a close relative permanently where they require long-term personal care because of age, illness or disability, and where the UK sponsor can maintain, accommodate and care for them without relying on public funds.

The sponsor must fall within specific categories, which include a British citizen or a person settled in the UK, a person with protection status, and certain specified EEA nationals with status under Appendix EU.

Where must the application be made?

An ADR application is an entry clearance application. In plain terms, it is made from outside the UK. If someone is in the UK as a visitor and later decides to apply as an adult dependent relative, that is not the route the rules are designed for, and it usually creates avoidable legal and practical difficulty.

Why are ADR cases refused so often in practice

Most refusals are not about the medical diagnosis itself. They are about the second and third hurdles: whether the required level of care can be obtained in the home country and whether it is reasonable to expect it to be arranged there, including through private care funded by the UK family.

The decision maker's guidance is explicit that the route is assessed through the lens of whether the requirements in the ADR rules are met, and where they are not met, families sometimes try to rely on Article 8. That approach is legally complex and fact sensitive, which is why the planning and evidence matter so much.

The legal tests you must satisfy

Long-term personal care must be required

The starting point is not simply that a relative is unwell or elderly. The test is whether they require long-term personal care to carry out everyday tasks. This is usually evidence dby clear clinical evidence that links the condition to day-to-day functioning and care needs, rather than a bundle of medical records with no narrative.

A strong case typically demonstrates the need for assistance with personal care, the frequency of this assistance, and the reason for its long-term nature.

The required care cannot reasonably be provided in the home country

This is the key battle ground in ADR cases. The Home Office looks at whether the required care is available and affordable where the applicant lives, and whether it is reasonable to expect it to be arranged there, even if the UK sponsor can pay. Decision makers consider practical availability, accessibility, reliability, and the reality of securing that care in the specific location.

In practice, families often lose this point because the application asserts that care is “not possible” but provides no independent evidence about local care options, costs, waiting lists, or service quality.

No one can reasonably provide that care

The rules and guidance lead caseworkers to look at whether care could reasonably be provided by a family member, a community support network, or paid carers. If care has been provided previously, you will normally need to explain why that arrangement has broken down and why it cannot be resumed.

The sponsor must be able to maintain, accommodate and care without public funds

The sponsor must show they can provide adequate maintenance and accommodation, and arrange care without relying on public funds. Home Office guidance on adequate maintenance and accommodation is used by decision makers in family routes, including ADR cases.

The ADR route also includes a maintenance undertaking requirement, meaning the sponsor is committing to meeting the applicant’s needs in the UK without recourse to public funds forthe relevant period.

Evidence that usually makes or breaks an ADR application

A successful ADR application reads like a structured care case, not a compassionate letter. It typically includes medical evidence that explains functional care needs, evidence about care options in the home country that is specific to the applicant’s circumstances and location, financial evidence showing the sponsor can fund the arrangement, accommodation evidence, and a realistic UK care plan that shows how care will actually be delivered once the person arrives. The Home Office policy guidance makes clear that decision makers assess validity and requirements under the ADRrules, so a “gap” in any core area can be fatal.

What about Article 8 and exceptional circumstances?

Where an ADR application cannot meet the Immigration Rules, applicants sometimes argue that refusal would breach Article 8 family life rights. This is not a fallback you can assume will succeed. It is a legally demanding argument that depends on the intensity of dependency, the real-world consequences of refusal, and proportionality. For that reason, if Article 8 is part of the strategy, it must be drafted carefully and evidenced properly, not added as a short paragraph at the end.

How GigaLegal Solicitors can help

ADR cases succeed when the evidence is planned early and presented with discipline. At GigaLegal Solicitors in London, we support families by stress testing whether ADR is realistically viable, building an evidence plan that matches the legal tests, co ordinating medical and care needs reporting, analysing care availability in the country of residence, and preparing detailed legal representations that are clear, human, and tribunal-ready if needed.

If you are considering an Adult Dependent Relative application for a parent or other eligible adult relative, speak to GigaLegal before you apply. A well-prepared case can save months of delay and the emotional toll of a refusal that could have been avoided.

Important disclaimer

This article is for general information only and reflects the Immigration Rules and published Home Office guidance available at the time of writing. It is not legal advice. ADR outcomes are highly fact specific, and you should obtain advice tailored to your circumstances before making an application.

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