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UK visitor visa from India
UK flag — visa destinationYour parents in Punjab, you in the UK

Bring your parents to the UK from India

Parents visit on the Standard Visitor visa: up to 6 months per visit, with long-term versions valid for 2, 5 or 10 years. When you pay for the trip or house them, UKVI wants to see what you provide, that you can afford it and that you are their child. Here is what you send, what your parents prepare in Punjab, and the fees.

Government facts checked on official sites on 26 Oct 2026.

The visa your parents use

Standard Visitor visa

  • Up to 6 months per visit
  • Long-term versions valid for 2, 5 or 10 years, still up to 6 months per visit
  • Decision usually within 3 weeks; the earliest you can apply is 3 months before travel
Full guide

What you send from the UK

  • What you are providing, and howFlights, money, accommodation: say which, and how it reaches them.
  • Your financesEvidence you can support yourself and your own dependants as well as your parents' visit.
  • Proof you are their childYour birth certificate naming them, or equivalent records.
  • Proof you are in the UK legallyYour British passport or residence document.
  • Your address and passport detailsThe application asks where they will stay and for the name, address and passport number of family members in the UK.

What your parents prepare in Punjab

  • Valid passportsAnd previous passports showing travel history.
  • Their own financial evidenceAccessible funds and their origin: pension, savings, rent.
  • Evidence of their circumstances in IndiaProperty, pension, family remaining in Punjab.
  • Certified translationsFor any document not in English or Welsh.

Retired, with no employer to show? How a pension, property and family in India make the return case: visas for senior citizens. Full document checklist.

Government fees

Standard Visitor visa, up to 6 months
£135
2-year long-term visit visa
£506
5-year long-term visit visa
£903
10-year long-term visit visa
£1,128

Paid to the government, not to us, and separate from our fee. Official fee page, checked 26 Oct 2026. Visa-centre service charges, medical exams and insurance, where they apply, are extra.

The steps, in order

  1. 1You send your sponsor documentsWhat you provide, your finances, your status and the relationship proof.
  2. 2Online applicationFiled on gov.uk no earlier than 3 months before the trip; the visa fee is paid online.
  3. 3Biometrics in PunjabYour parents give fingerprints and a photo at a VFS UK centre and submit documents.
  4. 4DecisionUsually within 3 weeks of biometrics. Priority services cost extra.

Your parents give biometrics at VFS UK centres in Chandigarh, Jalandhar or New Delhi. UK appointment dates we checked.

Worth knowing

  • UKVI lists a sponsor's utility bills and council tax bills as less useful evidence. Send the documents that show support, funds, status and relationship instead. Source
  • The guide does not list an invitation letter as a requirement for a family visit. It asks for evidence of the support and of the relationship. Source

Paying from the UK

Government fees are paid online during the application. Our professional fee is invoiced by Pro Lifeset Overseas Pvt Ltd and paid by a payment link we send on WhatsApp to whoever is paying: you, or your parents in Punjab. If you want to pay with a card issued outside India, tell us first and we will confirm the link accepts it. Never pay anyone's personal account or UPI handle on our behalf.

Questions

Should my parents get a 2, 5 or 10-year UK visa?

If they will visit you regularly, a long-term visa saves a fresh application each time; every visit is still limited to 6 months. It costs more up front: £506, £903 or £1,128 against £135 for one visa.

Do I need to write an invitation letter?

UKVI's supporting-documents guide does not list one for a family visit. What it asks for is evidence of what you provide, that you can afford it, that you are legally in the UK and that you are their child. A short covering letter that ties those documents together is still useful, and we draft it.