There is no visa called a human rights visa. A human rights claim is a request to stay in the UK because removing you would breach your rights under the European Convention on Human Rights, which the Human Rights Act 1998 makes enforceable in UK law. From inside the UK, claims that do not rest on family or private life are made on form FLR (HRO), which also covers leave outside the rules on compassionate grounds and routes that have no application form of their own.
Choosing the right form matters. Family and private life claims are made on FLR (FP), asylum and protection claims have their own procedure, and some claims are free of any fee while others are not. The strongest human rights cases are also some of the hardest to win: Article 3 medical claims, for example, succeed only in very exceptional circumstances, so the evidence has to be prepared with that threshold in mind.
Sterling Law’s immigration solicitors advise on whether you have a human rights claim and which application to make, prepare the medical and country evidence and the legal representations, and challenge refusals in the First-tier Tribunal.
FLR (HRO) at a glance
| Key fact | Position on 28 September 2026 |
|---|---|
| Form | FLR (HRO), online from inside the UK |
| Used for | human rights claims other than family and private life, including Article 3 medical claims; leave outside the rules on compassionate grounds; routes with no other form |
| Home Office fee | £1,407 from 8 April 2026; Article 3 applications are free |
| Immigration Health Surcharge | not payable on Article 3 applications; for other grants outside the rules, 2.5 times the annual rate: £2,587.50 per adult |
| Fee waiver | available where the human rights claim is a substantive basis of the application |
| Processing time | no published service standard |
| Faster decision | no 5-day priority; super priority (£1,000) may be offered at a UKVCAS appointment |
| If granted | Article 3 medical claims: discretionary leave, usually up to 30 months, on a 10-year route to settlement; leave outside the rules: usually up to 30 months, not a route to settlement |
| If refused | right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal, unless the claim is certified as clearly unfounded |
Which application do you need?
| Your claim | Which application |
|---|---|
| Family life as a partner or parent, or private life in the UK | FLR (FP) |
| Partner of a British citizen or settled person who meets the five-year requirements | FLR (M) |
| Fear of persecution or serious harm on return | an asylum claim; see our asylum page |
| Extending discretionary leave granted after an asylum refusal | FLR (DL) |
| Article 3 medical claim, or another Convention right not covered above | FLR (HRO) |
| Leave outside the rules on compelling compassionate grounds | FLR (HRO); see leave outside the rules |
Article 3: serious harm and medical claims
Article 3 of the Convention prohibits torture and inhuman or degrading treatment, and the prohibition is absolute. In immigration cases it is most often relied on where a person is seriously ill. Following the Supreme Court in AM (Zimbabwe), the claim must show a real risk that, because treatment is absent or cannot be accessed in the country you would be returned to, you would face a serious, rapid and irreversible decline in your health resulting in intense suffering, or a significant reduction in life expectancy. Home Office guidance states that only in very exceptional cases will an Article 3 medical claim succeed.
The evidence therefore has to go beyond a diagnosis. It usually needs expert medical reports on your condition, treatment and prognosis, and evidence about whether the treatment is available in the country of return and whether you could actually obtain it there, including its cost and location.
Article 3 applications are free: no Home Office fee and no Immigration Health Surcharge are payable. If the claim succeeds on medical grounds, the Home Office grants discretionary leave, usually for up to 30 months at a time, with access to public funds, and settlement can normally be applied for after 10 years of discretionary leave. Our discretionary leave page explains extensions and settlement.
Article 8 and health
A health condition can also be part of an Article 8 claim, but there must be a strong healthcare case before Article 8 is engaged on that basis, and it is weighed with everything else in the Article 8 balance. Claims based on family life or private life in the UK are made on form FLR (FP), not FLR (HRO); our private life visa guide covers the private life tests.
Other Convention rights
Discretionary leave may also be granted where return would not justify humanitarian protection but would result in a flagrant denial of another Convention right. Home Office guidance notes that it will be rare for return to breach another article in this way without also breaching Article 3, so these claims need careful legal analysis before they are made.
Leave outside the rules on compassionate grounds
Where no rule, Article 8, Article 3 medical or discretionary leave policy applies, the Home Office can still grant leave outside the Immigration Rules on compelling compassionate grounds, and the application is made on FLR (HRO). Grants should be rare, are typically for a maximum of 30 months, and are not a route to settlement unless a specific concessionary route applies. When the leave ends, you are expected to leave the UK unless you can apply under a category of the Rules.
Fees and the health surcharge
The Home Office fee for FLR (HRO) is £1,407 from 8 April 2026. No fee is payable for an Article 3 application, including a claim that removal would breach Article 3 because of an ongoing medical condition, and such applicants are exempt from the Immigration Health Surcharge. Where Article 3 and Article 8 are relied on together, the whole application is free only if the Article 3 claim is a genuine basis of it with a realistic prospect of success.
For other grants outside the Rules, the surcharge is 2.5 times the annual rate, which is £2,587.50 for an adult. If you cannot afford the fee, you can request a fee waiver before applying, provided the human rights claim is a substantive basis of the application. Fee waivers are not available for applications for settlement outside the rules. Our article on fee waivers and section 3C leave explains the timing.
How to apply
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Choose the right basis | Article 3, another Convention right or compassionate grounds; family and private life claims belong on FLR (FP) |
| 2. Build the evidence | medical reports, evidence about treatment and access to it in the country of return, and any other evidence of the harm or circumstances relied on |
| 3. Fee waiver, if needed | request it before the main application; not needed for Article 3 applications, which are free |
| 4. Online application | form FLR (HRO) on GOV.UK, with the fee unless it is waived or not payable |
| 5. Identity and documents | UKVCAS appointment or ID Check app, then upload your evidence |
| 6. Decision | a grant is recorded as an eVisa; a refusal of a human rights claim can usually be appealed |
Apply before your current permission expires, so that your permission continues while the application and any appeal are decided under section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971. Do not travel outside the Common Travel Area while the application is pending.
Processing time
The Home Office does not publish a processing time or service standard for FLR (HRO) applications, and complex medical claims can take many months. There is no five-day priority service for these applications; the super priority service may be offered at a UKVCAS appointment for £1,000, and you must hold permission to be in the UK to use it. See our guide to UK visa processing times for other routes.
If your human rights claim is refused
A decision to refuse a human rights claim carries a right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber). From inside the UK you have 14 days from receiving the decision letter to appeal; the tribunal fee is £82 for a decision without a hearing and £144 with a hearing. If the Home Office certifies the claim as clearly unfounded, there is no right of appeal at all, so the way the claim is presented at the outset matters. Where an application sought only leave outside the rules and no human rights claim was decided, a refusal carries neither an appeal nor an administrative review.
See how we won an appeal on human rights grounds and an appeal in a highly complex human rights case.
How Sterling Law can help
Our immigration solicitors act on human rights claims from the first assessment to appeal:
- advising whether you have a human rights claim and which application it belongs on;
- Article 3 medical claims, including instructing medical experts and evidence on treatment in the country of return;
- leave outside the rules on compassionate grounds;
- fee waiver requests where a fee is payable;
- extensions of discretionary leave and settlement at the end of the route;
- appeals to the First-tier Tribunal.
Speak to our immigration solicitors
Tell us about your circumstances, your health if it is relevant, and your immigration history. We will tell you whether a human rights claim is realistic, which form to use and what evidence it will need.
FAQ about human rights claims and FLR (HRO)
1. Is there a human rights visa in the UK?
No. There is no visa with that name. A human rights claim is a request to stay because removal would breach your rights under the European Convention on Human Rights. If it succeeds, you are granted permission to stay, such as discretionary leave or leave outside the rules, rather than a visa of a particular type.
2. What is FLR (HRO)?
FLR (HRO) is the Home Office form for applications to extend your stay in the UK on human rights grounds other than family and private life, for leave outside the rules on compassionate grounds, and for routes with no form of their own. It is made online from inside the UK.
3. How much does FLR (HRO) cost?
The fee is £1,407 from 8 April 2026. Applications based on Article 3, including Article 3 medical claims, are free and do not pay the Immigration Health Surcharge. A fee waiver can be requested for other human rights based applications.
4. What is the threshold for an Article 3 medical claim?
The claim must show a real risk that, because treatment is absent or inaccessible in the country of return, you would face a serious, rapid and irreversible decline in your health resulting in intense suffering, or a significant reduction in life expectancy. Home Office guidance says such claims succeed only in very exceptional cases.
5. How long does a human rights application take?
The Home Office does not publish a processing time or service standard for FLR (HRO) applications. The super priority service may be offered at a UKVCAS appointment for £1,000 if you hold permission to be in the UK.
6. What is the difference between FLR (HRO) and FLR (FP)?
FLR (FP) is used for claims based on family or private life, including partners and parents who cannot meet the five-year requirements. FLR (HRO) is used for other human rights claims, such as Article 3 medical cases, for leave outside the rules on compassionate grounds and for routes not covered by another form.
7. Can I appeal if my human rights claim is refused?
Usually yes. A refused human rights claim carries a right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal, which must be lodged within 14 days of receiving the decision from inside the UK. If the Home Office certifies the claim as clearly unfounded, there is no right of appeal.
