Getting my partner a visa when I'm in the process of getting a divorce.

[natam]

Hi, we're in a very tricky situation so I'm not sure whether someone here can offer us some advice. 'Ive been separated from my ex for a few years but we didn't start the divorce process until Jan 2019 because we had postponed it due to some family issues he was dealing with (like his father's illness and death), as under those circumstances, it wasn't a priority. However, I now have had a partner for about 1.5 years, I'm British, he's from New Zealand and he's here on a two-year work visa. My divorce is in the decree nisi stage. My partner's visa expires on the 16th of June. He's been working as a Head Chef for the past two years but it now seems that as my divorce won't come through on time he will have to quit his job and leave the country. We want to know if we have any options. Is there any way we can do anything so he can stay here while my divorce comes through and he can apply from inside the UK to stay here as my partner? We are planning on getting married as soon as I legally can do so.
His dad and grandad also leave here, but they are not British-born. His great-grandfather was born here.

[secret.simon]

Have you lived together in a relationship akin to marriage (with joint bank accounts, joint bills, etc) with your new partner for at least two years?

[natam]

No, not for 2 years. We've been together for 1.5 years and living together for about 8 months and have joint bills and bank accounts and a rental contract for our flat. However, we are planning on getting married. The issue is that my divorce hasn't come through yet because the court has a backlog of paperwork. We want to know if there's any visa he could switch to in the meantime or if there's any way we can get some sort of exemption until my divorce finalises.

[Lewis1987]

Hello natam, hope you are doing okay. Have you decided which option you wanted to do?