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Introduction

If you are eligible, you can make a Change of Conditions application to access public funds yourself. You do not need a lawyer and there is no application fee.

Who can apply?

• People with leave to remain on the basis of family or private life in the UK (on the ‘5-year’ or ‘10-year’ route to settlement)
• BN(O) visa holders from Hong Kong or their family members
• If you have any other type of visa, you may be able to apply but this involves risks – see our briefing here

How to apply

There are three main parts to the application:

1. Application form
2. Evidence
3. Cover letter (optional)

1. The ‘Change of Conditions’ application form

The application form is quite long and you cannot see the questions in advance. The later questions will change depending on the information you enter earlier on. 

The form opens text boxes where you can write extra information. They are generally very small. If you cannot fit everything in the text boxes, write ‘see cover letter’ and write your explanations in a separate cover letter. 

2. Evidence

When you have completed the application, you will be given a list of evidence to submit.

Have a look at our list of suggested evidence to provide. Not everything will be relevant in your case.

You can still submit the application even if you do not have all the requested evidence. You should explain why you cannot provide any requested evidence in the application form or in your cover letter.

You will be asked to submit bank statements for every account you have. The transactions need to be explained. You can do this via a short textbox in Section 3 of the form, or in the cover letter.

You will receive instructions about how to submit evidence when you have completed the online form. You should keep a list of all the evidence that you have submitted and keep scans/photos of all the evidence that you have submitted.

3. Cover letter

This is optional. It gives you the chance to explain anything that you didn’t have room to explain in the application form.

It can simply be one page with the title ‘cover letter’. You can use headings like ‘housing’, ‘health’, ‘family’, etc to structure the letter.

If you decide to write a cover letter, you should submit it along with your evidence.

What to include in your application

Why you need access to public funds

The Home Office provides the following reasons why people may need access to public funds. 

• You are ‘destitute’
• You are ‘at risk’ of becoming destitute
• There are reasons why you need access to public funds relating to the welfare of a child
• There are ‘exceptional circumstances’ relating to your financial situation (e.g. a health condition, etc)

You need to explain which of these reasons applies to you and you need to provide as much information and evidence as possible.

In most cases, this will involve talking about your family, accommodation, employment, health and finances.

Whenever you say something in the application form, you should also say what evidence you are providing to support what you are saying. For example: ‘I have serious back pain that stops me from working – see enclosed letter from my GP’.

Family

You should explain about your children and how the situation is affecting them.

You will usually also need to explain about their other parent(s) and your current partner (if applicable) to explain why they are not supporting you, or not supporting you enough. The Home Office may expect you to have tried your hardest to get the parent(s) of your children to support you. If this is not possible, you need to explain why.

Accommodation

If your accommodation is inadequate or you can’t afford it, you need to explain this and give evidence.

Your accommodation might be inadequate because it is overcrowded. This could mean that there are too many people living in one room or one property.

Your accommodation might also be inadequate if there are problems with the accommodation itself, for example:

• the accommodation does not have suitable provisions for your disability
• there are issues with mould 
• there are vermin. 

You should describe this in as much detail as possible.

It might be that your accommodation is adequate, but you cannot afford it. In this case, you should explain how much you owe in rent arrears or when you last paid the rent. If you have been asked to leave the accommodation, you should explain this and give evidence if possible.

Employment

You need to explain how much you are earning from your work and explain why this is not enough.

If you are not working, or you are only able to work part-time, you should explain why you can’t work more hours. This could be because of childcare, heath, inability to find work, etc. You should give evidence if possible.

If you are working too much, and this is having a damaging effect on your mental or physical health, or your children, you can explain this. It is a reason for needing recourse to public funds.

Health

If you have any medical condition which affects your life and ability to work, you need to explain what it is, how it affects you and give evidence of this.

You should also explain about your children’s health.

Finances

You usually need to provide bank statements covering 6 months from all your bank accounts. This includes any of your children’s accounts and any accounts that you don’t currently use.

You need to describe the bank statements fully – this means explaining all the money that is coming into the account and any unusual money going out of the accounts. Some transactions are obvious (e.g. payments to TFL are for travel, or payments in supermarkets), but it is best to try to explain all transactions to avoid confusion.

Explain anything unusual that comes into or leaves any of your bank accounts (e.g. money received from friends, friends using your account, large purchases, etc). Applications can be refused if there is not enough explanation and evidence of major and regular transactions shown in your bank accounts.

If somebody has given you money, and the Home Office asks you to provide a supporting letter, you can use the template below. You should only need to provide a support letter for major and regular transactions.

Application Timeline

The Home Office does not give a timescale for deciding applications and decision times vary a lot, from a matter or weeks to a number of months. We can advise you about current timeframes if we work together and we publish briefings every quarter about current decision making timeframes.

If the application is successful, you will be able to apply for all welfare benefits and housing assistance for the remaining period of your current leave.

If the application is unsuccessful, you might be able to make a new ‘Change of Conditions’ application. Alternatively, you might be able to request a review of the decision and even challenge the Home Office’s decision through a process Judicial Review.

The Home Office may respond to your application by asking you to submit more information. This could be because a piece of evidence is missing, or because the Home Office have not taken into account the information/evidence you’ve provided. These requests are usually made by email and usually have a 2-week response deadline. 

Frequently Asked Questions

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