What is Switching? And when can a migrant apply inside the UK?
Switching is not an official term. Switching simply means changing a visa category while inside the UK, ie switching from one to another, such as from a Tier 4 Student to a Tier 2 General; or from Tier 4 to a Spouse visa. Officially it is called ‘applying for a leave to remain in a Tier 2 General category’ or ‘applying for a leave to remain as a Spouse of a UK citizen’. So, we can simply say ‘Switching from a Student visa to a Spouse visa’. The significance of switching is this: switching means applying inside the UK and it is only allowed if the Rules specifically allow so. If switching is not allowed then the applicant has to return to their country and apply for a visa from there. Whether a migrant can switch or not is a matter of the Rules. It has nothing to do with an inconvenience of having to travel to one’s country of origin just to make a new application can come back. If the applicant is trying to switch where the Rules don’t allow so then he/she will be refuse