Spouse & Family Visas Minimum Income Requirements

The UK Home Office recently announced that there would be a phased increase in the minimum income requirement for Spouse or Family Visas. Currently, the minimum income requirement for anyone applying for a Spouse Visa is set at £18,600, but this is set to rise to £29,000 in Spring 2024, before eventually reaching £38,700 in 2025.

This is a significant increase, placing the new minimum income requirement at broadly the same level as that soon to be required for the Skilled Worker Visa.

What are Spouse & Family Visas?

The Spouse Visa, sometimes known as a Partner Visa, allows foreign nationals who meet certain eligibility criteria to move to the UK and live with a partner who is a British citizen or settled person. An Unmarried Partner Visa works similarly for long-term partners who are not married or in a civil partnership.

The right to live in the UK is not automatically conferred via marriage or civil partnership with a British citizen. Instead, the non-UK national will need to apply for a Spouse Visa and meet a set of eligibility criteria such as proof that you are in a genuine relationship. One of these criteria is a minimum income requirement.

If granted, a Spouse Visa will last for 2 years and 9 months. It may then be possible to extend your stay and ultimately acquire Indefinite Leave To Remain. After this has been acquired, it may then be possible to apply for British citizenship by marriage.

A Family Visa allows applicants to bring dependent children who do not have British citizenship into the country. The sponsor must earn an extra £3,800 a year for the first child and £2,400 a year for each child the visa applicant has after their first child.

Will the minimum income requirement apply to extensions to existing visas?

The UK government has confirmed that the increased minimum income requirement will not apply to people already in possession of a Spouse Visa who are applying for an extension.

This means that someone in possession of a Spouse or Unmarried Partner Visa before the increase will only need to meet the existing minimum income requirement of £18,600

Immigration advice & support from BS Consulting

At BS Consulting, our experienced team of immigration and settlement consultants can help you negotiate the complexities of the UK immigration system and answer your questions about Spouse and Family Visas.

Contact us today to find out more about our services and how we can help.