Using Savings to Meet the UK Spouse Visa Financial Requirement
The financial requirement for the UK Family Visa has increased. A visa applicant (or normally their sponsoring partner) now needs an income of £29,000 per year to meet the eligibility criteria.
Not all visa applicants and their sponsoring partners can meet the new income financial requirement of £29,000. The numbers unable to do so will continue to rise when the financial requirement is again increased.
In this blog, our Immigration Solicitors look at the rules on a sponsoring partner or Spouse Visa applicant using savings or capital to help meet the Family Visa financial requirement.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Lawyers and Spouse Visa Solicitors
For Family Visa and immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Our lawyers speak Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, French/Mauritian Creole, Spanish, Tamil Tagalog/Ilonggo, Urdu/Punjabi
Family Visas and the financial requirement
First, a recap on the financial requirement eligibility criteria for the Family Visa. The rules are contained in Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules and cover Family Visa applications for:
- Spouse Visas
- Unmarried Partner Visas
- Civil Partner Visas
- Fiance Visas
A visa applicant must meet the financial requirement when they apply for their first Family Visa and when applying to extend the Family Visa or settle in the UK.
The financial requirement was £18,600 but it increased to £29,000 in April 2024. When the financial requirement increased to £29,000 the rules changed about the need to add on extra income if the visa applicant is accompanied by dependent children. There is no longer a separate child add-on – good news if you have a large family.
The planned future rises to the financial requirement are:
| Mid to late 2024 | Rise from £29,000 to £34,500 |
| Early 2025 | Rise from £34,500 to £38,700 |
Transitional financial requirement rules apply if you are already in the UK on a Family Visa and want to apply to extend your visa or apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain. Contact our Immigration Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 to find out more.
Spouse Visa Solicitors say the increases to the financial requirement and planned further changes have resulted in a rise in inquiries about whether savings belonging to the visa applicant or their sponsoring partner can be used to meet the Family Visa financial requirement.
Like everyone else, Spouse Visa Solicitors do not know if the current government will change the rules on savings and the financial requirement. The advice is to apply for your Spouse Visa or Family Visa now if you do not meet the income-based financial requirement and you will be relying fully or partly on savings.
The immigration rules on cash savings to meet the Family Visa financial requirement
Appendix FM says that if you are relying on savings to meet the financial requirement they must be ‘’cash’’. This is not physical cash but money that is not tied up in non-cashable bonds or other non-realisable investments.
ISA funds and investments that can be accessed can count as cash under the rules. Even if there is a penalty for fund withdrawal the savings can still count provided they are immediately available rather than the account holder having to give notice to get the cash out.
The money does have to be in a UK bank, building society account or investment but if the money is held in an account overseas the account must be with a financial institution regulated by a regulatory body in that country.
If the savings are held in a different currency to sterling the Home Office will assess the value of the savings by notionally converting the amount to sterling using the Oanda.com currency site. The rules say the money cannot have dropped below the minimum amount during the relevant period. This is calculated by using the Oanda currency exchange rate at the date of the visa application.
The £16,000 cash rule
To use savings to help meet the financial requirement you must have at least £16,000 in cash savings. The savings do not need to all be in one account. The immigration rules say the savings can be held by:
- The visa applicant
- The sponsoring partner
- Jointly
If money is held by other family members it is worth speaking to specialist Spouse Visa Solicitors about the rules.
The 6-month cash savings rule
Spouse Visa Solicitors warn that the immigration rules require the cash savings to have been held by the account holder for at least 6 months. The intention behind this rule is to prevent an applicant from taking out a short-term loan to meet the financial requirement through cash that is not their savings.
The money in the account cannot have dropped below the minimum £16,000 during the 6 months.
Bank statements or other evidence of the savings must be dated no earlier than 28 days before the date of the visa application. If assets were sold to produce the cash (for example, the sale of an overseas family home) the property or other investments must have been owned for the 6 months before the visa application. Evidence will be needed to show the money paper trail.
Family gifts and the cash savings rule for the financial requirement
Cash can be given to the visa applicant or their sponsoring partner by an extended family member or third party but the money needs to have been given rather than loaned.
The immigration rules require the gift of cash to have been held by the recipient for at least 6 months. The Home Office will require evidence in the form of a signed declaration about the source of the funds and the fact that the money was gifted rather than lent.
There is nothing in the immigration rules to prevent a visa applicant or their sponsoring partner from trying to protect family money by asking their husband, wife or civil partner to sign a prenuptial agreement or postnuptial agreement where a family member has irrevocably given them cash and the money has been put in an account in their name. For more information on prenuptial agreements speak to our Family Law Solicitors.
Using savings to fully meet the Family Visa financial requirement
If you do not want to evidence your income (perhaps because it is complicated to do so as your sponsoring partner is a company director or you receive a substantial income from investments) you can rely fully on cash savings to meet the financial requirement. The amount of cash savings you need is £88,500.
The cash savings calculation to meet the Family Visa financial requirement
If you or your partner has less than £88,500 you can rely on savings to partially meet the Family Visa financial requirement. To do this the savings must be over the £16,000 threshold.
The Home Office uses a formula to work out how the £29,000 income financial requirement is reduced by the amount of savings.
For example, if you have £50,000 in a joint bank account the standard income financial requirement of £29,000 is reduced by £13,600 using the formula. Therefore, you only need to evidence income of £15,400 gross per year.
Spouse Visa Solicitors
The immigration rules on the Family Visa financial requirement are complicated. Our specialist Spouse Visa Solicitors can help you with your Family Visa application or Spouse Visa extension application and guide you through the various ways you can prove that you meet the financial requirement and other eligibility criteria for a Family Visa. Our friendly team of expert Immigration Solicitors will make sure that your Family Visa application goes as quickly and as smoothly as possible.
If you have had a Spouse Visa application refused on financial requirement grounds then our Spouse Visa Solicitors can look at your options, including the use of the capital savings rules to help you meet the financial requirement.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Lawyers and Spouse Visa Solicitors
For Family Visa and immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Our lawyers speak Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, French/Mauritian Creole, Spanish, Tamil Tagalog/Ilonggo, Urdu/Punjabi
Related Posts
Spouse Visa Applications and the Accommodation Requirement
Which UK Family Visa Do I Need?
Appendix FM and UK Spouse Visa Applications
UK Partner Visa Applications – Immigration Rule Changes
OTS Solicitors Celebrates its Inclusion in the 2024 Chambers Guide to the Legal Profession
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Can I Live Permanently in the UK Without Applying for British Citizenship?
The financial requirement for the UK Family Visa has increased. A visa applicant (or normally their sponsoring partner) now needs an income of £29,000 per year to meet the eligibility criteria.
Not all visa applicants and their sponsoring partners can meet the new income financial requirement of £29,000. The numbers unable to do so will continue to rise when the financial requirement is again increased.
In this blog, our Immigration Solicitors look at the rules on a sponsoring partner or Spouse Visa applicant using savings or capital to help meet the Family Visa financial requirement.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Lawyers and Spouse Visa Solicitors
For Family Visa and immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Our lawyers speak Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, French/Mauritian Creole, Spanish, Tamil Tagalog/Ilonggo, Urdu/Punjabi
Family Visas and the financial requirement
First, a recap on the financial requirement eligibility criteria for the Family Visa. The rules are contained in Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules and cover Family Visa applications for:
- Spouse Visas
- Unmarried Partner Visas
- Civil Partner Visas
- Fiance Visas
A visa applicant must meet the financial requirement when they apply for their first Family Visa and when applying to extend the Family Visa or settle in the UK.
The financial requirement was £18,600 but it increased to £29,000 in April 2024. When the financial requirement increased to £29,000 the rules changed about the need to add on extra income if the visa applicant is accompanied by dependent children. There is no longer a separate child add-on – good news if you have a large family.
The planned future rises to the financial requirement are:
| Mid to late 2024 | Rise from £29,000 to £34,500 |
| Early 2025 | Rise from £34,500 to £38,700 |
Transitional financial requirement rules apply if you are already in the UK on a Family Visa and want to apply to extend your visa or apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain. Contact our Immigration Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 to find out more.
Spouse Visa Solicitors say the increases to the financial requirement and planned further changes have resulted in a rise in inquiries about whether savings belonging to the visa applicant or their sponsoring partner can be used to meet the Family Visa financial requirement.
Like everyone else, Spouse Visa Solicitors do not know if the current government will change the rules on savings and the financial requirement. The advice is to apply for your Spouse Visa or Family Visa now if you do not meet the income-based financial requirement and you will be relying fully or partly on savings.
The immigration rules on cash savings to meet the Family Visa financial requirement
Appendix FM says that if you are relying on savings to meet the financial requirement they must be ‘’cash’’. This is not physical cash but money that is not tied up in non-cashable bonds or other non-realisable investments.
ISA funds and investments that can be accessed can count as cash under the rules. Even if there is a penalty for fund withdrawal the savings can still count provided they are immediately available rather than the account holder having to give notice to get the cash out.
The money does have to be in a UK bank, building society account or investment but if the money is held in an account overseas the account must be with a financial institution regulated by a regulatory body in that country.
If the savings are held in a different currency to sterling the Home Office will assess the value of the savings by notionally converting the amount to sterling using the Oanda.com currency site. The rules say the money cannot have dropped below the minimum amount during the relevant period. This is calculated by using the Oanda currency exchange rate at the date of the visa application.
The £16,000 cash rule
To use savings to help meet the financial requirement you must have at least £16,000 in cash savings. The savings do not need to all be in one account. The immigration rules say the savings can be held by:
- The visa applicant
- The sponsoring partner
- Jointly
If money is held by other family members it is worth speaking to specialist Spouse Visa Solicitors about the rules.
The 6-month cash savings rule
Spouse Visa Solicitors warn that the immigration rules require the cash savings to have been held by the account holder for at least 6 months. The intention behind this rule is to prevent an applicant from taking out a short-term loan to meet the financial requirement through cash that is not their savings.
The money in the account cannot have dropped below the minimum £16,000 during the 6 months.
Bank statements or other evidence of the savings must be dated no earlier than 28 days before the date of the visa application. If assets were sold to produce the cash (for example, the sale of an overseas family home) the property or other investments must have been owned for the 6 months before the visa application. Evidence will be needed to show the money paper trail.
Family gifts and the cash savings rule for the financial requirement
Cash can be given to the visa applicant or their sponsoring partner by an extended family member or third party but the money needs to have been given rather than loaned.
The immigration rules require the gift of cash to have been held by the recipient for at least 6 months. The Home Office will require evidence in the form of a signed declaration about the source of the funds and the fact that the money was gifted rather than lent.
There is nothing in the immigration rules to prevent a visa applicant or their sponsoring partner from trying to protect family money by asking their husband, wife or civil partner to sign a prenuptial agreement or postnuptial agreement where a family member has irrevocably given them cash and the money has been put in an account in their name. For more information on prenuptial agreements speak to our Family Law Solicitors.
Using savings to fully meet the Family Visa financial requirement
If you do not want to evidence your income (perhaps because it is complicated to do so as your sponsoring partner is a company director or you receive a substantial income from investments) you can rely fully on cash savings to meet the financial requirement. The amount of cash savings you need is £88,500.
The cash savings calculation to meet the Family Visa financial requirement
If you or your partner has less than £88,500 you can rely on savings to partially meet the Family Visa financial requirement. To do this the savings must be over the £16,000 threshold.
The Home Office uses a formula to work out how the £29,000 income financial requirement is reduced by the amount of savings.
For example, if you have £50,000 in a joint bank account the standard income financial requirement of £29,000 is reduced by £13,600 using the formula. Therefore, you only need to evidence income of £15,400 gross per year.
Spouse Visa Solicitors
The immigration rules on the Family Visa financial requirement are complicated. Our specialist Spouse Visa Solicitors can help you with your Family Visa application or Spouse Visa extension application and guide you through the various ways you can prove that you meet the financial requirement and other eligibility criteria for a Family Visa. Our friendly team of expert Immigration Solicitors will make sure that your Family Visa application goes as quickly and as smoothly as possible.
If you have had a Spouse Visa application refused on financial requirement grounds then our Spouse Visa Solicitors can look at your options, including the use of the capital savings rules to help you meet the financial requirement.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Lawyers and Spouse Visa Solicitors
For Family Visa and immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Our lawyers speak Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, French/Mauritian Creole, Spanish, Tamil Tagalog/Ilonggo, Urdu/Punjabi
Related Posts
Spouse Visa Applications and the Accommodation Requirement
Which UK Family Visa Do I Need?
Appendix FM and UK Spouse Visa Applications
UK Partner Visa Applications – Immigration Rule Changes
OTS Solicitors Celebrates its Inclusion in the 2024 Chambers Guide to the Legal Profession
Immigration Law Firm 2024 - OTS Solicitors
Can I Live Permanently in the UK Without Applying for British Citizenship?