UK hikes family visa income threshold by 55%

The minimal income requirement for sponsoring a family member on a family visa within the United Kingdom has been elevated, additional tightening the factors for immigration. The income benchmark has been elevated from 18,600 kilos to 29,000 kilos – a rise of greater than 55 per cent.

The Rishi Sunak authorities introduced the hike final yr as a part of its staged plan to align the family visa wage threshold with that of the Skilled Worker visa, and it got here into pressure on April 11.

“The sponsoring family member, or in combination with the applicant if they are in the UK with permission to work, must now have an income of at least GBP 29,000 earned in the UK. The requirement can be met in several ways, including through savings exclusively or in addition to a lower income,” the UK Home Office acknowledged.

The transfer, based on the Home Office, marks the ultimate measure in Prime Minister Sunak’s package deal to scale back authorized migration and “ensure those arriving here do not burden the taxpayer”.

“We have reached a tipping point with mass migration. There is no simple solution or easy decision which cuts numbers to levels acceptable to the British people,” Home Secretary James Cleverly mentioned.