Yes. A UK Expansion Worker’s husband, wife, civil partner, or unmarried partner, together with any dependent child under 18 at the date of application, can normally apply to join or accompany the worker in the United Kingdom as their ‘dependant’, provided each family member individually satisfies the relationship, financial, and immigration-history requirements set out in the Immigration Rules Appendix Global Business Mobility (UK Expansion Worker route). Home Office guidance on the route confirms this directly, stating that ‘a dependent partner and dependent children can apply to come to the UK on this route.’ This article explains what ‘dependant’ means on the UK Expansion Worker route, how much money each family member needs to show, what a dependant can and cannot do in the United Kingdom, how application timing affects what they must prove, and what an employer should confirm and budget for before any family member applies.
This article is written for the sponsoring employer’s HR, global mobility, or immigration compliance team, not for the visa holder personally, and it covers the UK Expansion Worker route only. It does not cover the dependant rules for the other four Global Business Mobility categories (Senior or Specialist Worker, Graduate Trainee, Service Supplier, and Secondment Worker), each of which has its own financial requirement, its own sponsor-certification rule, and its own maximum length of stay. Applying the figures or rules in this article to a different Global Business Mobility route in error could result in an incorrect application being submitted.
KeyTakeaways
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A UK Expansion Worker's husband, wife, civil partner, or unmarried partner, and any dependent child under 18, can normally apply to join or remain with the worker in the United Kingdom, provided each family member separately satisfies the relationship and financial requirements explained later in this article.
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An unmarried partner only qualifies as a dependant if the couple can show they have lived together in a relationship similar to marriage or civil partnership for at least 2 continuous years by the date the partner applies. A married partner or civil partner does not need to prove this, since the certificate itself satisfies the relationship requirement.
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Unless an exemption applies, each dependant must separately hold enough money to support themselves: £285 for a partner and £315 for the first child, with £200 for each additional child, held continuously for 28 days ending within 31 days of that person's own application.
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Each dependant submits a fully separate application from the worker, using the worker's application reference number, and can apply either at the same time as the worker or at a later date.
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A dependant's approved permission is set to end on the same date as the worker's, regardless of how much later than the worker they applied.
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A sponsor cannot certify maintenance for a UK Expansion Worker or for any of that worker's dependants. Current Home Office sponsor guidance confirms this is a blanket rule for the route, so every family member must independently evidence their own funds.
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The UK Expansion Worker route does not lead to settlement, and time spent on it, including as a dependant, does not count towards the qualifying period needed to settle later under a different route.
What Counts as a 'Dependant' on the UK Expansion Worker Route?
Under the Global Business Mobility (GBM) framework, the Home Office’s collective term for the five sponsored routes that let overseas businesses post staff to the United Kingdom, the word ‘dependant’ has a precise legal meaning defined by the Immigration Rules. It does not mean anyone the worker considers financially or emotionally dependent on them. On the UK Expansion Worker route, a person can only qualify as a dependant if they are:
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the worker's husband, wife, civil partner, or unmarried partner;
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the worker's child under 18 at the date of that child's own application, including a child born in the United Kingdom while the parent held permission as a UK Expansion Worker; or
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the worker's child aged 18 or over, but only where the child already holds current permission (leave to enter or leave to remain) in the United Kingdom as that parent's dependant.
Anyone outside these categories, such as a parent, sibling, or adult child without existing dependant status, cannot apply as a dependant on this route, however financially or emotionally dependent they may be on the worker. This is a firm rule, not a matter of Home Office discretion, and employers should make this clear to a sponsored employee early in the relocation planning.
A dependant’s eligibility is assessed under the same Immigration Rules appendix that governs the worker’s own application (referred to in Home Office guidance by the route code ‘UKX’), together with a separate section called Appendix Children wherever a child is applying. Appendix Children was inserted into the Immigration Rules by Statement of Changes HC 1780 on 7 September 2023, and it sets out the age, care, and ‘independent life’ requirements a dependent child must meet across multiple sponsored work routes. A child’s application can, in principle, be refused even where the worker’s own application succeeds, because Appendix Children is a distinct legal test.
Can a Partner Join an Expansion Worker in the United Kingdom?
A partner can apply if the relationship falls into one of three categories: marriage, civil partnership, or an unmarried partnership. Home Office guidance on dependent family members in work routes explains how each category is assessed, and the evidence required differs between them.
Where the partner is married to the worker or in a civil partnership with them, the certificate itself is the primary evidence of the relationship, and the couple does not need to separately prove how long they have lived together.
Where the partner is not married and not in a civil partnership (an ‘unmarried partner’ under the Immigration Rules), the couple must instead show they have lived together in a relationship similar to marriage or civil partnership for a continuous period of at least 2 years, ending on or before the date the partner applies. This 2-year requirement is a fixed minimum, not a guideline: a couple together for less than 2 years cannot currently qualify under this category, however committed the relationship.
Where a couple do not live together for a specific, explainable reason, such as separate work locations, the Home Office will still expect clear evidence that the relationship is genuine, exclusive, and ongoing: for example, records of regular communication, financial support between the couple, or shared financial commitments. This is assessed on the facts and evidence submitted in each case, not assumed in the couple’s favour.
A partner who applies must also not be leading an independent life from the worker and must not be in a separate qualifying relationship with anyone else. The section headed ‘Can Dependants Apply at the Same Time as the Main Applicant, or Later?’ explains exactly how a partner’s period of permission is calculated once their application is approved.
What Are the Rules for Dependent Children?
A dependent child qualifies under one of two routes, and identifying which applies matters because the evidence required differs between them:
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Under 18 at the date of application
This is the position for most dependent children in practice: a child under 18 can apply for entry clearance from outside the United Kingdom, whether alongside the worker's own application or at a later date, in exactly the same way as a partner. The under-18 test applies identically whether the application is for entry clearance from outside the UK or permission to stay from inside it. This category also includes a child born in the United Kingdom to the worker while the worker held UK Expansion Worker permission, since such a child does not automatically acquire British citizenship or any automatic right to remain, and needs their own dependant application like a child born overseas.
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18 or over, but only where the child already holds current permission (leave to enter or leave to remain) as a dependant of the same parent.
In practice, this covers a child who was granted dependant permission under 18, has since turned 18 while still in the United Kingdom as a dependant, and now needs to extend or switch that existing permission. It does not cover a young adult applying as a dependant for the first time after their eighteenth birthday, which is not permitted.
A dependent child must also live with the sponsoring parent, subject to a limited exception for full-time education such as boarding school or university. The child must not be married, in a civil partnership, or otherwise leading an ‘independent life’ as defined in Appendix Children. Where the child’s other parent is not part of the application, the Home Office will also consider whether the applying parent has sole responsibility for the child, or whether there are serious and compelling reasons to grant permission regardless. Every child dependant needs a full birth certificate, or equivalent document, showing both parents’ names, together with any further evidence of the other parent’s immigration status or consent that is relevant to the case.
How Much Money Must Dependants Show to Qualify?
This is where employers most often underestimate the true cost of a family relocation, because the financial requirement is assessed separately for each family member, not once for the family as a whole. Unless an alternative method described in the next section applies, the worker and each dependant must individually hold and evidence the following amounts, as confirmed in guidance on the UK Expansion Worker’s partner and children:
There is one exemption: if, by the date a particular family member applies, the whole family has already lived in the United Kingdom continuously with valid permission for 12 months or more, this financial evidence is not required for that application. This exemption is assessed individually for each applicant, so it is possible for the worker to qualify while a more recently arrived dependant does not, or vice versa. Where a partner or child applies later than the worker, they only need to show funds if they, individually, have been in the United Kingdom for less than 12 months.
Worked example. A UK Expansion Worker relocating alone needs to evidence only their own £1,270. If the same worker relocates with a partner and one child, and none of the three has 12 months’ UK residence, the combined savings needed across the three applications is £1,270 plus £285 plus £315, giving £1,870 in total, each held for 28 days by the person relying on it. On top of this, each family member separately pays their own visa fee and their own Immigration Health Surcharge, currently £1,035 per year for the adult worker and partner and £776 per year for the child. For a family granted 12 months’ permission, that adds a further £2,846 in surcharge alone (£1,035 multiplied by 2 adults, plus £776 for the child), before visa fees. These figures are illustrative: the correct total depends on the length of permission actually granted and each person’s own circumstances, and should be recalculated for the specific family before being used in any budget.
Can Your Sponsor Certify Maintenance for an Expansion Worker's Family Instead of the Family Showing Their Own Savings?
No. On several other sponsored work routes, an employer can avoid the family showing personal savings at all by certifying on the Certificate of Sponsorship that it will maintain and accommodate the worker, and in some cases the dependants, for the first month of employment, up to £1,270. On the UK Expansion Worker route specifically, this option does not exist.
Current Home Office sponsor guidance on Global Business Mobility routes, updated 8 April 2026, confirms this in explicit terms: sponsors can certify maintenance for the other four Global Business Mobility routes if they hold an A-rated licence, but ‘you cannot certify maintenance if the worker you are sponsoring is applying as a UK Expansion Worker.’ This is a blanket rule for the route as a whole, not a rule limited to the worker’s own application. Because the certification mechanism is unavailable on this route at all, every dependant must also independently evidence their own funds rather than relying on the sponsor’s certification, in exactly the same way as the worker.
This resolves what has previously been inconsistent guidance from some third-party sources, a number of which incorrectly suggested that certification was available on the UK Expansion Worker route in the same way as the other four Global Business Mobility routes. Employers should plan the family’s finances on the basis that every family member, without exception, will need to gather and evidence their own 28 days of savings.
What Can Dependants Do While in the United Kingdom, and What Is Off Limits to Them?
Once a dependant’s application is approved, they can generally:
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work in most roles, subject to a small number of excluded occupations such as professional sportsperson or sports coach;
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study, subject to the Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) condition for certain sensitive academic disciplines, which requires an ATAS certificate before starting the course;
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travel outside the United Kingdom and return, for as long as their permission remains valid; and
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access National Health Service treatment, having paid their own Immigration Health Surcharge.
A dependant cannot access most public funds or state benefits, and cannot claim the State Pension, while on this status. Importantly, a dependant’s permission is tied to the worker’s own status, not to the dependant’s own job, tenancy, or school place. If the worker’s sponsorship ends, for example because the sponsor licence is revoked or the worker leaves the role, every dependant’s basis for remaining in the United Kingdom is affected at the same time. Employers should explain this to affected employees and their families early in the assignment, not only after a problem arises.
Can Dependants Apply at the Same Time as the Main Applicant, or Can They Apply Later?
A dependant can apply either at the same time as the worker or at a later date, and the choice affects what needs to be evidenced and when.
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Applying together
This is the most common approach for a first relocation. Each dependant still submits a fully separate application and pays their own fee; there is no single combined family application. Each dependant uses the worker's application reference number (a Global Web Form, GWF, or Unique Application Number, UAN) to link the applications, and every family member's 28-day financial evidence window runs in parallel, which is usually easier to plan around.
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Applying later
A partner or child can join after the worker has already relocated, for example once a child finishes a school term abroad. They still need the worker's reference number, and the same financial requirement applies: if that person has spent less than 12 months in the United Kingdom by the date they apply, they must independently evidence their own funds for 28 days. Once that person has personally accumulated 12 months of continuous permission, the financial evidence requirement for them falls away, assessed on their own residence history rather than the family's.
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What every dependant must submit, regardless of timing
Proof of identity; evidence of their relationship to the worker (a marriage or civil partnership certificate, a full birth certificate for a child, or a portfolio of evidence such as joint bank statements and a joint tenancy agreement for an unmarried partner); financial evidence unless exempt; and their own visa fee and Immigration Health Surcharge payment.
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Visa length matches the worker's, for both partner and child, regardless of when the dependant applied
A dependant's approved permission is set to end on the same date as the worker's own permission, so a child joining six months after the worker's arrival does not receive a shorter visa calculated from their own application date. Where a child has two parents on different visas with different expiry dates, the child's permission aligns with whichever date falls earliest.
This alignment is not automatic when the worker later extends or switches routes. A dependant’s existing permission remains valid only until its own original end date, even after the worker is granted new, later permission. To stay aligned, each dependant must submit their own extension or switching application, either alongside the worker’s or at any point before their own permission expires.
Do Dependants Have Any Path to Settlement in the United Kingdom?
No. The UK Expansion Worker route does not lead directly to indefinite leave to remain, the Home Office’s term for permanent settlement, and dependant status attached to it does not lead to settlement either. This reflects the route’s purpose as a temporary bridge to help an overseas business establish a UK presence, rather than a long-term or settlement-track category like the Skilled Worker visa.
Home Office guidance on the Immigration Rules Appendix Global Business Mobility routes confirms that time spent on any Global Business Mobility route, including as a dependant, does not count towards the qualifying period needed to settle later under a different route, even if the person later switches into a route that does lead to settlement. Time as a UK Expansion Worker or their dependant also counts towards a separate five-years-in-any-six-year cumulative limit across all Global Business Mobility routes and certain legacy Intra-Company Transfer categories, further limiting how long the family can rely on this route even if extended.
Where settlement is the eventual goal, the usual approach is for the worker, and separately any dependants who remain eligible, to switch into a settlement-bearing category such as the Skilled Worker visa once the UK entity is trading and can obtain the relevant sponsor licence. That switch is a separate application with its own eligibility test, and it is never automatic.
What Should Employers Confirm and Budget for Before an Expansion Worker's Family Applies?
For the sponsoring business, three matters are worth confirming before any family member applies:
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Plan the family's finances on the basis that sponsor certification is not available on this route
Current Home Office sponsor guidance confirms that a sponsor cannot certify maintenance for a UK Expansion Worker, and this extends to every dependant. The worker and each family member must independently gather and evidence their own 28 days of savings well before the application window opens, rather than assuming the employer's certification will remove the need for this.
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Budget the full, combined family cost at the planning stage
Rather than treating dependant costs as an afterthought. As the worked example shows, the combined cost of application fees, the Immigration Health Surcharge, and the personal savings requirement across a family can significantly exceed the cost of relocating the worker alone.
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Plan and time every family member's application individually
Rather than assuming the family can apply as a single unit. Every dependant needs their own application, their own relationship evidence, and, where applicable, their own 28-day financial evidence window. A mismatch in visa expiry dates, or an application submitted on the wrong assumed rule, creates avoidable compliance problems later.
Conclusion
None of the individual rules in this article is, by itself, especially complicated. What makes a real Expansion Worker family relocation difficult to get right the first time is how several of these rules interact in a single case: the worker’s own eligibility, the family’s financial evidence and timing (with no sponsor certification available on this route to fall back on), and how each family member’s visa length aligns with the worker’s own permission as it is extended or switched. A small factual difference, such as an unmarried partner a few months short of the 2-year requirement, or a child approaching their eighteenth birthday during the application process, can change the correct answer entirely.
Getting these wrong carries a real cost: a refused dependant application can delay the whole family’s relocation, require a second application fee and surcharge payment, and in some cases affect the worker’s own start date. If your business is planning, or midway through, a UK Expansion Worker assignment and needs the dependant position confirmed before any family member applies, the section below explains how we can help.
GLOBAL BUSINESS MOBILITY SPONSOR SUPPORT: Sterling & Wells
At Sterling & Wells, we support employers running Global Business Mobility assignments with sponsor licence compliance, Certificate of Sponsorship preparation, and pre-application review of dependant eligibility and financial evidence for the specific family involved.
To find out exactly what is included and discuss your specific assignment, contact our team directly.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. They can apply together, using the worker’s application reference number, or join later. Applying later does not shorten their eventual permission, since it is still set to align with the worker’s existing end date. However, if the dependant has spent less than 12 months in the United Kingdom when they apply, they must still evidence their own funds for 28 days.
No. Only a spouse, civil partner, unmarried partner, or child in the categories set out in the Immigration Rules can apply as a dependant on this route. Parents, siblings, and other relatives are not eligible, regardless of financial dependency.
Yes, in most cases. An unmarried partner must show the relationship has been similar to marriage or civil partnership for at least 2 years by the date they apply. Where a couple have not lived together for a specific, evidenced reason, the Home Office still expects proof the relationship is genuine and ongoing.
Yes. Each dependant pays the Immigration Health Surcharge in their own right, based on their own length of permission: currently £1,035 per year for an adult dependant and £776 per year for a child under 18. This is paid upfront for the whole period of permission applied for.
A dependant’s leave does not automatically end the moment the worker’s job ends, but their basis for remaining is tied to the worker’s sponsored status. If the Certificate of Sponsorship is withdrawn or sponsorship otherwise ends early, the family’s position needs urgent review.
Generally yes. Dependants are not tied to the sponsoring employer and can normally take up most types of work, aside from a small number of excluded roles such as professional sportsperson or sports coach. This differs from the worker, who can only work in the sponsored role.
Sometimes. A dependant generally cannot switch if they are currently a visitor, short-term student, seasonal worker, domestic worker in a private household, or on permission granted outside the Immigration Rules.
No. The Immigration Skills Charge is calculated on the worker’s own Certificate of Sponsorship and is unaffected by how many dependants apply. Dependant costs sit with the family, not the sponsor’s Immigration Skills Charge liability, though many employers choose to cover some of these costs as part of a relocation package.
Glossary
Global Business Mobility (GBM)
The Home Office’s collective name for five sponsored work routes, including UK Expansion Worker, that let overseas businesses post staff to the United Kingdom for temporary assignments, none of which leads to settlement.
Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS)
An electronic record issued by a licensed sponsor confirming the job and worker being sponsored, required before a visa application can be made.
Dependant
A partner or child who satisfies the relationship and eligibility categories in the Immigration Rules for a given route, and can therefore apply to join or remain with the main visa holder.
Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS)
A mandatory upfront fee giving visa holders and dependants access to NHS treatment for the length of their permission.
Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR)
The Home Office’s term for permanent settlement, distinct from the time-limited permission granted under this route.
Appendix Children
The section of the Immigration Rules, inserted by Statement of Changes HC 1780 on 7 September 2023, setting out the age, care, and independent-life requirements a dependent child must meet.
