Clarification on travel frequency under a 5-year UK Standard Visitor Visa

[reema2023]

Hello,

My parents hold a 5-year UK Standard Visitor Visa issued in June 2022 (multiple entry).

Their travel history so far is as follows:

• July 2022 – 1.5 months stay in the UK
  November 2023 – 2 months stay
  April 2024 – 4.5 months stay
  May 2025 – just under 6 months stay

They returned to India recently and plan to visit again in approximately 1–1.5 months’ time to stay for around 2–3 months to help with childcare for their young grandchild as my wife isn't too well.

I would like to confirm whether this travel pattern could cause issues at the border or raise concerns for the immigration officer — for example, being questioned about frequent visits or being refused entry — even though each visit has been under 6 months and within visa validity.

Any guidance on the minimum advisable gap between visits and what documents they should carry to demonstrate genuine temporary visits would be appreciated.

Thank you,

[secret.simon]

I would like to confirm whether this travel pattern could cause issues at the border or raise concerns for the immigration officer — for example, being questioned about frequent visits or being refused entry — even though each visit has been under 6 months and within visa validity.

It can.

There is no numerical limit on how long a person can stay in the UK on a long-term visit visa, apart from the six month limit on each individual visit.

However, the Immigration Rules give immigration and Border Force officers a much wider discretion to look at visit visa patterns.

V 4.2. The applicant must satisfy the decision maker that they are a genuine visitor, which means the applicant:
(a) will leave the UK at the end of their visit; and
(b) will not live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits, or make the UK their main home; and
...

It has been suggested on these forums, though that is not in the Rules, that the visitor should have spent more time in their country of habitual residence than in the UK. Thus, if the parents have children in, say the UK and the US, and keep bouncing between them, that will also count against them (assuming that they are not habitually resident in the US either).

Even assuming that the regular visitors are not stopped by the Border Force, the pattern of their frequent visits to the UK will almost certainly flag up at the time of their visit visa renewal and can be grounds for refusal, as they will have demonstrated that their links to their country of habitual residence are weaker than their links to the UK.

I would suggest that your parents spend much more time in their country of habitual residence and don't stay for the full six months on each visit either.

to help with childcare for their young grandchild as my wife isn't too well.

It would be very unwise for your parents to state that to any UK Border Force official or in any immigration form.

Childcare is work and this will be seen as working on a visit visa in exchange for food and boarding. Working on a visit visa is forbidden on a visit visa and will likely lead to a long-term ban on visit visas.

[reema2023]

Thank you for the detailed explanation — that’s very clear and appreciated.

Just to clarify, our intention isn’t for my parents to make frequent or extended visits as a pattern — this would be a one-off trip. They’ve always complied fully with their visa conditions and have spent the majority of their time in India between visits.

Given this background, and the fact that they’d only be staying for a couple of months this time, would a return visit after about 1–1.5 months back home still be likely to raise concerns at the border? Or would it generally be considered reasonable if they can demonstrate strong ties to India (property, ongoing business, return tickets, etc.)?

I just want to make sure we handle this correctly and avoid any unintentional issues at entry.

[secret.simon]

April 2024 – 4.5 months stay

May 2025 – just under 6 months stay

10.5 months out of the past 19 months being in the UK on a visit visa may trigger at least a second look at their visit plans and at least a few questions at the time of their visit visa renewal.

the fact that they’d only be staying for a couple of months this time

Given that their last two visits were on the longer side, what faith can the Border Force officer place in their assessment that they will stay here for just a couple of months?

Also be aware that if they state to the Border Force officer that they are going to stay just for two months and then stay longer, though less than the six months limit for an individual stay, that can still cause issues on future visits.

[Ticktack]

Further to the above. If the officer decides to dig further and look at the application form, for the current visa. Would he find anywhere on that form that they'll be staying in the UK for multiple months?

I bet when filling the form, they probably said 2-3 weeks visit at the time.

If they can't be trusted to abide by the timeframe that they agreed to (signed and sealed). FYI, not like they've exactly broken the rules yet. Just to be very clear.

But trust has been broken. And that can always be an issue.