This content provides a comprehensive guide to the UK spouse visa requirements for 2025, covering application processes, eligibility criteria, and essential documentation for both initial applications and extensions.
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This video will discuss the UK
spouse visa requirements in 2025 for both out-of-country
and in-country applications, including spouse visa extensions.
As an Immigration Advice Authority (IAA)
regulated UK immigration law firm that has helped more than 4,600
partners obtain the UK partner visas, we are very well placed to discuss this.
Before discussing the specific
requirements, it's essential to clarify what we mean by “UK spouse visa”.
Commonly, we see questions in the YouTube comments box about “UK dependent visas”,
which are not the same as UK spouse and partner visas.
Importantly, a UK spouse visa is only for applicants
who have a partner who is a British or Irish citizen, has Indefinite
Leave to Remain (ILR) or settled status, or has one of the following:
If the applicant's partner has a temporary visa, such as a Skilled Worker visa,
they should look into applying for a visa as a dependent - not a UK
spouse or partner visa.
The applicant is always the non-UK partner seeking to obtain the spouse visa.
Even if the UK partner, also referred to as the sponsor, assists
by filling out the online application form and collecting the necessary
documents, this does not alter who the applicant is.
The visa is valid for 33 months if the applicant applies
from outside the UK and 30 months if they apply from inside the UK.
We will also cover whether you should apply from inside or from outside the UK,
so there's no need to worry if you're uncertain at this stage.
A UK spouse visa can eventually lead to Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR),
otherwise known as ILR and British citizenship.
We discuss this further on our website, www.Migrate.org.uk.
And if the applicant obtains a UK spouse visa,
they will have no restrictions on working in the UK,
unlike those in the UK on a fiancé(e) visa.
Will we be applying from outside or inside the UK?
It's important to understand this distinction
because the application process, requirements and fees differ depending on
whether you're applying from inside or from outside the UK.
So let's address that question now.
If the applicant does not have any UK visas or is in the UK
as a visitor, they must apply from outside the UK.
If the applicant is in the UK as a visitor, they will be expected
to return to their country of nationality or a country where the applicant holds
any type of long term residency and then submit the application there.
To make the application from inside the UK, the applicant must be
in the UK on a visa that has been granted for longer than six months -
except if they're in the UK on a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partnership visa,
those of which who can apply from inside the UK.
So common visas
that allow making an in-country application include: UK spouse and partner
visas, UK fiancé(e) or proposed civil partnership visas, Tier 1 visas,
Tier 2 visas or Skilled Worker visas, Tier 4 visas including long term student
or graduate visas, Tier 5 visas including Youth Mobility Scheme visas.
If you're still uncertain whether your application was,
or will be, an out of country or in-country application,
we cover this topic in greater detail in a separate YouTube video.
At this point, it’s also important to emphasise that understanding
the requirements before you consider submitting the application is crucial.
Typically, all requirements must be met on the date that you submit
the application by paying the Home Office fees through the online application form.
We will begin by discussing the relationship requirements.
The first relationship requirement is that the applicant must meet
the definition of a partner, as specified in the Immigration Rules.
The applicant will only be a partner if they're a married partner,
a civil partner, a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner, or unmarried partner.
The only difference between those applying as a married or civil partner
and those applying as an unmarried partner is that instead of providing a valid
marriage certificate or civil partnership certificate, those applying
as an unmarried partner must show that they've been in a relationship
with their sponsor
that's similar to marriage or civil partnership for at least two years.
All the other requirements that we discuss in this video will be identical,
as would the duration and conditions of the partner visa that will be issued.
If you and your partner are married or in a civil partnership
when you submit the application, it's
important to ensure that the marriage or civil partnership is legally valid
according to the laws of the country where it took place.
For example, if you married in Finland, it is acceptable
as long as the marriage is legally recognised by Finnish law.
The second relationship requirement, as previously discussed,
is that the sponsor of the application,
also known as the UK partner, must be a British or Irish citizen
or present and settled in the UK, or one of the following:
The third requirement is that the applicant
and sponsor must be in a genuine and subsisting relationship.
Yes, it is a requirement to demonstrate that your relationship is genuine.
When assessing the genuine and subsisting relationship requirement,
the Home Office will evaluate your application in its entirety.
They will consider the factors of a genuine and subsisting relationship,
examine the supporting documents you provide,
and evaluate how those factors apply to your application.
We'll first start by discussing the factors of a genuine
and subsisting relationship
before discussing concerns partners commonly have about this, interviews
and the genuine relationship requirement as it applies to partner visa extensions.
The first point to know
is that unlike the financial requirement, which has an objective standard,
the genuine relationship requirement will involve the Home Office caseworker
making a subjective assessment on your relationship.
In other words, this will ultimately come down
to the Home Office caseworker that considers your application.
They will not need to be 100% certain that your relationship is genuine.
Rather, the Home Office caseworker must think that there's a greater
than 50% chance of your relationship being genuine.
If you're applying as an unmarried partner,
there is also an additional requirement for you and your partner to show
that you've been in a relationship similar
to marriage or civil partnership for at least two years.
We discussed this additional unmarried partner visa requirement further
on our website, Migrate.org.uk, and in a separate YouTube video.
One factor in determining a genuine and subsisting relationship is the length
of your relationship.
For those applying as a married partner, civil partner, or as a fiancé(e),
there are no hard and fast rules here.
For example, there is not a requirement for those applying
as a married or civil partner or as a fiancé(e) to have known each
other for 1 or 2 years before submitting the application.
Although it's common for partners to have known each other
for more than a year before submitting the application,
it is also typical for applicants from certain cultural and religious
backgrounds to have known the sponsor for a shorter period.
And for those applying as a married or civil partner,
there is no requirement concerning the time elapsed between getting married
or entering into a civil partnership, and then applying for the visa.
In fact, it's quite common for partners to apply shortly
after marrying or entering into a civil partnership.
If you submit the application shortly after marrying or entering
into a civil partnership,
however, you should delay the booking of the visa centre appointment
until you've obtained the marriage or civil partnership certificate.
This is because, as we discuss in our spouse and partner visa
process article on our website, the documents do not necessarily
need to be submitted on the date the online application is submitted.
One of the biggest factors of a genuine and subsisting relationship is that you
and your partner will have cohabited before submitting the application.
If you will not have cohabited before submitting the application, however,
this is not necessarily problematic.
In fact, it’s quite common for partners applying as a married partner,
civil partner, or as a fiancé(e) to not have cohabited
before submitting the application - especially in out of country applications
where one partner does not have the necessary visas to cohabit.
Furthermore, since Home Office caseworkers are instructed to take into account
cultural considerations, if it's part of the applicant and/or sponsor's culture
to not cohabit prior to marrying or enter into a civil partnership,
this should be taken into account.
For those applying as an unmarried partner, however, as we
discuss on our website, some partners who have not cohabited may struggle
to apply for an unmarried partner visa without prior cohabitation.
The single biggest factor that will impact the genuine
and subsisting relationship requirement is if you have shared children.
It will be quite unusual for the application to not satisfy
the genuine relationship requirements if you do have children.
If you do not have children, however, this is certainly not something
that is going to go against you.
Other factors of a genuine relationship include whether you share
financial responsibilities, such
as having a joint bank account, joint utility bills or insurance policies,
and whether you visited each other's home country and family.
Let's now discuss common concerns about the genuine relationship requirement.
If the applicant and/or sponsor have had prior marriages
or civil partnerships, whilst this will need to be disclosed,
this is not normally something that tends to cause an issue.
Rather, in addition to evidencing this in accordance with the Immigration Rules
you just need to ensure that there's no reason
for the Home Office caseworker to believe that any prior relationships are ongoing.
We mentioned earlier
that cohabitation is a factor of a genuine and subsisting relationship.
For many partners, however, it is common for the applicant and sponsor's
relationship to be primarily or entirely long distance.
The online application form will ask if you've lived together
and if not, “Why have you not lived together?”.
So if you will not have cohabited, please do not feel too intimidated
by this question.
Again, particularly if you're making an out-of-country application.
Being in a long distance relationship typically does not cause issues
and can usually be justified by the fact that the partners do not have
the required visas to live together, or because one or both partners
need to stay in their respective countries for work or educational reasons.
Another common justification is cultural or religious constraints.
For example,
the applicant may come from a country or family that does not approve
of the relationship type,
or the relationship may not be legal in the applicant's home country.
Where the applicant and sponsor
are in a long distance relationship, you should aim to show that living apart
is temporary and despite it, the relationship is still subsisting.
Whilst we previously discussed how no cohabitation is not generally problematic,
particular care should be made
when the applicant and sponsor have only met once or twice, very briefly in person.
Where relevant, you can explain the reasons
why I've not seen each other in person as much as you would like.
Again, cultural considerations can be relevant here.
Another concern that some partners have is age difference.
We deal with partner visa applications every day of the week.
And in fact, it's the only type of visa we deal with.
Whilst it's not too uncommon for there to be a larger age difference
such as 25 years, depending on the particular facts,
this may necessitate
a greater focus on proving the genuineness of the relationship.
Another possible concern about the genuine
relationship requirement relates to having a negative immigration history.
Whilst this depends on the particular facts, such a concern can be warranted
where the applicant
has previously committed immigration offences
such as overstaying or working illegally; or if the applicant has recently
had an application in another category refused, such as a skilled worker visa
refusal shortly before applying for a UK partner visa - particularly
for in-country applications; or if there's reason for the Home Office
to believe
that the applicant and sponsor are or previously have been in a sham marriage;
and it can sometimes be problematic if the sponsor has sponsored
numerous different applicants under the partner visa route.
It's also worth noting that inconsistent or contradictory information
in the application may affect the Home Office caseworkers
assessment of the genuine and subsisting relationship requirement.
Here issues can arise from the current partner
visa application or from previous applications submitted.
Inconsistencies might include significant discrepancies in personal details,
differing accounts of the relationship
timeline, or conflicting information about living arrangements.
Such contradictions can lead to doubts about the authenticity
of the relationship, prompting the need for further scrutiny and elaboration.
Therefore, you should do your best to ensure
that all provided information is accurate, consistent and truthful
to avoid complications and delays in the visa application process.
So, as previously mentioned, when considering the genuine
relationship requirement, the Home Office will consider the factors
of a genuine and subsisting relationship and the supporting documents you provide.
It's commonly the case that a lot of the relationship documentation that partners
submit is unnecessary and is not something that is given much weight,
if any, at all.
For example, letters from friends and family members, social media logs,
and gift invoices
are examples of documents which rarely add anything to the application.
The most beneficial documentation relates to the fact of a genuine
and subsisting relationship discussed earlier, such
as birth certificates of shared children, evidence of cohabitation and,
to a somewhat lesser extent, documentation of shared financial responsibilities.
Letters of support from both the applicant and sponsor
are also important documents for many applications.
Yes, the online application form asks you numerous questions, such as the date
when you first met and the date when your relationship begun,
but the online application form is rather limiting when it comes
to discussing the development of your relationship.
Furthermore, the letter of supports allows you to address any potential concerns
you think the Home Office caseworker may have about your application as a whole.
While many partners wish to submit as much relationship documentation as possible,
some may find it challenging to provide the desired amount of evidence.
A key consideration when there is a lack of relationship, documentation
or information is whether this is due to cultural or religious reasons.
On this point, Home Office caseworkers are told not to assume
that relationships always begin, grow, and continue like they do in the UK,
but to be conscious
that relationships are influenced by local customs and traditions.
Where there is a lack of documentation or information about the genuine
and subsisting relationship requirement,
the Home Office caseworker may consider arranging an interview
to explore the relationship in more detail before deciding the application.
Interviews, however, are quite rare and most partners should not anticipate this.
When it comes to partner visa extensions, the threshold
of the genuine and subsisting relationship requirement is lower.
The focus really will be on whether the relationship is subsisting -
in other words, that the relationship is not broken down.
Here emphasis is primarily placed on cohabitation.
If when the time comes for the extension, you're not living together
or did not live together
for a significant period since the last grant of the partner visa,
then needs to be a reasonable explanation for you living apart -
such as where one partner temporarily has to move away due to work,
or if one partner is temporarily
living together with a close family member to provide care.
With all this being said,
you'll be glad to hear that the genuine relationship
requirement is not a requirement that tends to be problematic.
Rather it is other aspects which causes refusals, such as not correctly evidencing
the breakdown of a previous relationship, which we'll discuss shortly,
or the financial requirement which we'll discuss later in this video.
The fourth, fifth and sixth requirements are as follows:
You both must have met in person; you and your partner must be 18 or over
when the application is submitted;
and you both must intend to live together permanently in the UK.
The intention
to live together permanently in the UK requirement is worth elaborating on here.
Firstly, for first-time partner visa applications,
you will generally not be required to provide supporting documents
to prove your intention to live together permanently in the UK -
this intention is usually implied by the very act of submitting the partner
visa application.
And for first-time partner visa applications,
this requirement
usually only becomes an issue if there's information in the application
that casts doubt on your intention to live together in the UK.
For example, if one partner mentions plans to relocate overseas.
Secondly, it's important to understand that the intention to live together
in the UK requirement will apply to each application
up to and including the Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) application.
So if you anticipate that one or both partners will spend
some time overseas before applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR),
you may need to plan carefully to meet this requirement.
So if the applicant and/or sponsor have spent a significant amount of time
outside the UK after being granted the first partner visa,
but before the ILR application, this could raise doubts
about the intention to live together permanently in the UK requirement.
This issue may arise when submitting either the first partner
visa extension or the ILR application.
The Immigration Rules relating to these applications do not specify
the amount of time that can be spent outside the UK
before the intention to live together in the UK requirement becomes problematic.
The reason for this is because the reason is highly relevant.
For example, if one or both partners are on a study
trip as part of a course or working overseas, these are considered
valid reasons that justify spending extended periods outside the UK
without undermining the intention to live together in the UK requirement
for these applications.
The next requirement to discuss is that you and your partner must not fall
within the prohibited degrees of relationships.
This essentially means that the applicant and sponsor cannot be immediate
family members.
Here is a list of the prohibited degrees of relationships.
If you're concerned about this requirement,
feel free to pause this video and review this list.
The next requirement is that any previous relationships of the applicant
and/or sponsor must have broken down permanently - unless it's a relationship
that falls within one of the very few and rarely relied on exceptions.
The Home Office is primarily concerned with previous legally recognised
relationships, such as previous marriages or civil partnerships.
If there have been previous marriages or civil partnerships, the breakdown
of these previous relationships must be evidenced accordingly.
For previous marriages, it's mandatory to provide a decree absolute or decree
absolute equivalent, and since the decree nisi or decree nisi
equivalents are not considered final, these will not suffice.
Other acceptable documents depending on the specific circumstances,
include a death certificate, annulment, or final order of partnership
dissolution document, or their overseas equivalents.
We will now discuss the UK spouse visa English language requirement
and the numerous ways that you can meet this requirement.
1) The age exemption.
If the applicant is aged 65 or over when the application is submitted,
the applicant will be exempt from the English language requirement.
2) Majority English speaking nationalities.
If the applicant has a nationality from a majority English speaking country,
the English language requirement will also automatically be met.
The majority English speaking nationalities are listed here.
The only documentation required will be the applicant's passport
showing this nationality.
3) UK awarded academic qualifications.
If the applicant already has an academic Bachelor's, Master's or PhD awarded
in the UK,
the degree certificate can be submitted to meet the English language requirement.
The certificate must display 1) The applicant's name; 2) The title
and date of the award; and 3) The name of the awarding institution.
4) Overseas awarded academic qualifications.
If the applicant has been awarded an English taught academic Bachelor's,
Master's or PhD outside the UK, this can be used to satisfy
the English language requirement if certain requirements are met.
To rely on such a qualification, the qualification certificate must be
accompanied by documentation from Ecctis, which was previously known as UK NARIC.
If the qualification was not awarded in one of these countries listed here,
you will only need to obtain 1) Documentation from Ecctis
which confirms that the qualification meets
or exceeds the recognised standards of a Bachelor's, Master's or PhD
in the UK; and 2) Documentation from Ecctis which confirms a degree was
taught or research in English at or above the required English language level.
If the qualification was awarded in one of these countries listed here,
you must only obtain Ecctis documentation confirming that the qualification meets
or exceeds the recognised standards of a Bachelor's, Master's or PhD in the UK.
There's no need to require documentation from Ecctis stating that the qualification
was taught or researched in English at or above the necessary level,
as it will be assumed that this requirement has been met.
Otherwise, if the applicant does not satisfy the English language requirement
via one of the ways previously discussed, the applicant must normally sit
and pass a Secure English Language Test, which is otherwise known as a SELT.
The first point to emphasise is that not just any English language
test will suffice.
Instead, the English language test must be a Secure English Language Test,
meaning it is approved by the Home Office
and taken at a Home Office approved English language test centre.
Here is the list of the current Secure English language tests.
The IELTS Life Skills Test is a commonly recommended option.
All IELTS Life Skills tests are administered at Home Office
approved test centres, and there is an abundance of test guidance
available online and in local bookstores worldwide.
Unless you have a very specific reason, we generally do
not recommend taking the IELTS for UKVI tests,
which include the IELTS for UK Academic and IELTS for UKVI General Training tests.
This is because of two reasons.
Firstly, we have observed that those who intend to book the IELTS for UKVI tests
sometimes accidentally book the non-secure English language test version
which has a similar name.
This is one of the most common reasons for refusal due to the English language
requirement.
To show you why this is a common mistake that partners make, this is an IELTS
for General Training
test certificate that was taken at a Home Office approved test centre. Here
you can see a UKVI number and therefore this is a type which can be relied on.
However, here is an IELTS Academic test certificate for a test
that was not taken at a Home Office approved test centre.
The certificate appears nearly identical to a secure English
language test certificate, but lacks a UKVI number.
Secondly, you only need to take a test
that evaluates the applicant speaking and listening skills.
This test, along with some others we previously stated, includes
assessments of reading and writing - which is completely unnecessary
as an assessment of reading and writing is not required in the Immigration Rules.
In this list you can see tests ranging from A1,
the lowest level, to C2, the highest level.
If the applicant is applying for their first spouse visa,
they will need to achieve at least an A1 level.
This requirement applies
even if the first spouse visa application is being made from inside the UK.
If the applicant is applying to extend their first spouse visa
after 30 months in the UK, then A2 will be the minimum level.
While Secure English language Tests are valid for two years,
if they were successfully relied on in a previous application,
the Home Office will accept that test as valid if it's past the expiry date.
Therefore, if the applicant's English language ability is good enough,
you may decide to arrange an A2 or B1 Secure English Language
Test for the first partner visa application,
and then re-use this in subsequent applications.
So if an applicant passes an A2 test for their first partner visa application,
they can normally rely on this test for their first UK spouse
visa application, and their spouse visa extension application.
If an applicant passes a B1 level test, they can normally re-use this test
for their first spouse visa application, their spouse visa extension application,
the Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) application,
and the British Naturalisation application -
if the applicant chooses to apply for that.
We will make two final points regarding Secure English Language Tests.
Firstly, always book the test
through the official website of the English language test provider.
This is important because there are several deceptive third
party websites that try to appear to be the official site.
Secondly, YouTube serves as a valuable tool for assessing
whether the applicant possesses the necessary skills
to pass the A1, A2 or B1 test in speaking and listening.
Given that Secure English Language Tests generally cost between £150 to £200
per attempt, passing on the first time will save you both time and money.
We'll now cover two scenarios where the applicant is exempt
from the spouse visa English language requirement.
First, the applicant will not need to meet the English language requirement
if they qualify for a disability exemption.
This applies
if the Home Office
caseworker thinks that the applicant has a physical or mental condition
that stops them from learning English or taking the necessary test
at the required level.
Each application is judged individually.
But if the applicant provides medical proof from a qualified practitioner
showing that they're deaf, cannot speak or have a speech impediment that limits
their ability to communicate in English, the exemption will likely be granted.
Secondly, the applicant will be exempt if there are exceptional circumstances
that prevent the applicant from satisfying the English language requirement.
This exemption is often asked about where there are no Home Office
approved test centres in the applicant's country of residence.
In these situations, the guidance states that applicants are usually expected
to travel to another country to take the test.
Now let's discuss the tuberculosis requirement,
also called the TB requirement.
Some partner visa applicants applying from outside the UK must submit a TB
test certificate proving that they are free from active pulmonary TB.
However, partner visa applications from inside the UK
will not need to provide a TB test certificate.
If you're applying from inside the UK,
you can skip to the next section of this video.
Now let's talk about
which applicants must submit a TB test for out-of-country applications.
The gov.uk webpage states that a TB test is required “if you've lived in
any of these listed countries for six months or more,
and you were living there or another listed country within the last six months.
The wording of the Immigration Rules, however, does not use the words
“lived” or “living”, but instead says that a valid TB test
certificate is required “if
the applicant has been continuously present in a country or countries
listed at TB6 for six months or more, which includes a period
of any length within the six months before the date of application”.
This can be read to mean a stricter standard
because one can have been “present”
in a country without being considered to have been “living” in that country.
We won't elaborate too much on this here
as it will
only be a very small percentage of partners
where the difference in wording will be relevant.
But in short, it will commonly be the approach found on the Gov.uk webpage
that will be adopted by Home Office caseworkers.
First we will discuss the list of TB countries.
Obviously, if the applicant has never been to a TB country for six months,
or if the applicant has been continuously present in a listed country or countries
but has not been in any TB listed countries in the six months
before submitting the application, then you can skip this section
using the timestamps in this YouTube video as a TB test will not be required.
Similarly, if the applicant is a diplomat accredited to the UK, feel free
to skip this section as such applicants will be exempt from the TB test.
So what is the list of TB countries?
This list can be found by googling TB test Gov.uk”,
and then clicking check if you need a TB test for your visa application link here.
Ensure you are on the countries where you need a TB test for your UK
visa application, tap here And then you will find the up to date list here.
I say “up-to-date”
because whilst the list does not change too frequently, it does change over time.
So you can check this page
when you begin your application and again just before you submit it.
Here is the list at the time of shooting this video.
It's important to
emphasise that not just any TB test will be accepted.
It must be taken at a Home Office approved clinic.
Here, looking at the same Gov.uk page we mentioned earlier,
if you click on the relevant country and then click on this document here,
you will see the list of Home Office approved clinics,
along with more information about booking the test.
The certificates from TB tests taken at Home Office approved clinics
look like this.
In some cases, the TB test certificate will say Home Office instead of UK
Visas and Immigration, and sometimes it will be filled out by hand
rather than electronically.
Importantly,
the certificate must state that there's no evidence of active pulmonary TB.
The certificate typically states “You must carry this certificate with you
in your hand luggage
when you travel to the UK and present it to the immigration Officer on arrival.
Failure to do so will result in a delay to your journey,
and you may be required to undergo the tests again”.
The applicant should bring the TB document
on entry to the UK if it was required in the first place,
but it is rare for the Immigration Officer to ask to see it upon arrival.
TB test certificates are valid for six months.
However, the test only needs to be valid on the date you submit the application
by paying the Home Office fee.
So it does not matter if the TB test is expired by the time
the applicant attends the visa centre appointment or when they arrive in the UK.
Finally, while sponsors are never required to take TB tests,
the TB test requirement can apply to applying dependent children.
We will now discuss the adequate accommodation requirement for UK spouse
visas.
This requires that you provide documentation showing that there will be
adequate accommodation without relying on public funds
for the applicant, sponsor and any dependent children, if applicable.
When must there be adequate accommodation?
For out-of-country applications, the documents must show that
there's adequate accommodation when the applicant arrives in the UK.
For in-country applications, the documents must show
adequate accommodation at the time the application is decided.
This accommodation must be accommodation
which the family own or which they occupy exclusively.
“Occupy exclusively” does not mean that the whole property
must be owned by the applicant and/or sponsor.
It means that there must be at least one part of the accommodation
reserved exclusively for the family, as sleeping accommodation.
Therefore, it is acceptable if you rely on a friend
or family member's accommodation just for the purpose of satisfying
the adequate accommodation requirement.
In fact, using a friend or family member's
accommodation for the application is common practice and for good reason.
It won't tie you down to a financial contract.
It usually involves little to no cost, and the friend
or family member is often willing to help provide the necessary documentation.
Furthermore, relying on a friend or family member's accommodation is often
a helpful solution to those who are unable to provide sufficient documentation
relating to their current accommodation
- for instance, those who live in mobile homes.
However, having a part of the accommodation for the exclusive
use of the family and sleeping quarters is not enough by itself
as the accommodation must also not be overcrowded.
When determining if the accommodation will be overcrowded,
we must first consider the number of rooms available as sleeping
accommodation, not just the number of current bedrooms.
Kitchens and bathrooms cannot be counted as rooms for sleeping
accommodation, but reception rooms or living rooms can be.
Next, we must consider the number of people allowed
to sleep in the accommodation without it being overcrowded.
For example, if there are two rooms available for sleeping and four people
will be living in the accommodation once the spouse visa is granted,
the starting point is that the accommodation will be overcrowded.
I use the word “starting point”
because when it comes to this table, everyone is not treated equally here.
The age of the individuals is important.
Children under a year old are not counted, while children aged
between 1 and 10 are counted as half a person.
The Home Office guidance also considers whether the people in the accommodation
are a couple and their gender.
Furthermore, the Home Office guidance states
that the accommodation cannot contravene public health regulations.
This usually isn't a problem - unless the Home Office caseworker has
reason to believe that the accommodation does violate these regulations.
I've not once seen this to be an issue, and I've been involved
with more than 4,000 partner visa applications.
The last point to note about the adequate accommodation
requirement is that the accommodation cannot be prospective.
This means that you must provide documentation
at the time of the application
showing that adequate accommodation is already arranged.
You cannot simply say “we will arrange the accommodation once the visa is granted”.
Let's now discuss the financial requirement.
The financial requirement is the leading cause for refusals, so it's
definitely something you should take the time to understand thoroughly.
We will begin by talking about important general financial requirement
principles that are not immediately clear to partners.
Firstly, unlike the genuine relationship requirement, the financial requirement
is assessed objectively.
It is largely a box ticking exercise to not only show sufficient income
or cash savings, but also that each of the document-specific Immigration
Rules are met.
Since the financial requirement is assessed objectively, an application
that evidences income of £1,000,000 per year is as good as an application
which evidences employment income £1 above the required amount.
On the other hand, an application that evidence is £1 below
the required amount will not meet the financial requirement.
So what if the financial requirement is not met?
As with the other requirements such as the English language requirement,
if the financial requirement is not met, the starting point is that the application
will be refused.
However, for in-country applications, the application may instead
be granted on the 10 year route to Indefinite
Leave to Remain (ILR) rather than the 5 year route
if: 1) There is something in the evidence to suggest it would be unreasonable
for a child to leave; or 2) There are insurmountable obstacles to family life
with a partner outside the UK; or 3) If there are exceptional circumstances.
For out-of-country applications, the application may be granted on the 10
year route instead of the 5 year route if there are exceptional circumstances.
Exceptional circumstances here are set to a very high standard.
It is not sufficient to merely show that one circumstance are unusual
or challenging, or that they almost meet the requirements set by the Rules.
Essentially, the applicant must demonstrate that,
if the Home Office denies their application for entry or permission
to stay, it would violate their rights under Article 8 of the European Convention
of Human Rights (ECHR), which guarantees the right to private and family life.
The law here is relatively complex, and partners who are considering
rely on exceptional circumstances should consider legal advice.
The implication of this
is that, particularly in relation to out-of-country applications,
if the financial requirement is not met, it's almost always the case that no visa
will be granted at all.
If one source of income meets the financial requirements on its own,
there's no need to provide evidence of other income sources.
In fact, including them will only add to the requirements
that you will need to learn and increase the number
of supporting documents you'll need to submit.
For example, the sponsor receives £40,000 a year in employment income.
The sponsor also owns £150,000 a year as a self-employed sole trader.
The sponsor would typically be better only providing evidence of their employment
income as proving self-employment
income is often more complicated than proving employment income.
Additionally, when employment income is combined with self-employment income,
it alters the calculation
and requirements for the employment income - which we'll cover later in this video.
Particularly when it comes to the financial requirement,
you really want to keep things as simple as possible.
The date you submit the application by paying the Home Office application
fee will be known as the date of application.
Importantly, you must show that the requirements are met on this date.
Since any date after this date is not relevant to the submitted application,
including the date the applicant attends the visa center,
if you rely on employment income to satisfy
the financial requirement, it does not technically matter
if the applicant ends their employment shortly after submitting the application.
Similarly, if you rely on cash savings to satisfy the financial requirement,
it does not matter if the cash savings
drops below the required amount after the date of application.
You'll be pleased to know that you don't need to calculate the exact
amount of income being counted towards the financial requirements.
The Home Office will not penalise you for calculating your income differently
from their guidance,
as long as your income meets the financial requirement
according to their guidelines and the Immigration Rules.
With that being said, please do not become too complacent about this
as the way that the income is calculated when it comes to the financial requirement
is not always intuitive - as you'll see shortly.
We will now discuss three very important aspects of the financial requirement.
First, we will discuss
the required level of income to satisfy the financial requirement.
Second, we will discuss the requirements for each different sources
of permitted income.
And then third, we will explain exactly how to calculate your income
in line with the Immigration Rules and Home Office guidance.
So how much income is required to satisfy the UK partner
visa financial requirement?
The first question is
whether the sponsor receives any of these -
whether that's on behalf of their child or not.
If the sponsor receives one of these, the good news is that you'll need to show
significantly less income than usual as the adequate maintenance test will apply.
We discuss the adequate maintenance test
in detail on our website, www.Migrate.org.uk.
Since the adequate maintenance test changes the requirements and is less
commonly relied on, much of this video as it discusses the financial requirement
will assume that the sponsor does not receive one of these.
If the sponsor does not receive one of these, the next question is
whether you'll be making a first-time partner visa application or not.
By first-time partner visa applications, we mean out-of-country partner visa
applications or in-country partner visa applications
where the applicant is in the UK on a non-partner visa.
For first-time partner visa applications, the required level of income will be
the minimum income threshold in force when the application is submitted.
As of shooting this video, the minimum income threshold is £29,000 gross.
Whether or not there are dependent children also applying
will not affect this £29,000 figure.
This £29,000 figure is expected to remain until at least June 2025.
Obviously, where there are any updates on this, we'll keep our website,
www.Migrate.org.uk, updated and we'll aim to upload an updated YouTube
video as quickly as possible, so feel free to subscribe to this YouTube channel.
What about partner
visa extensions or Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) applications?
Here, we're referring to applicants who submitted their first application
as a fiancé(e), proposed civil partner, or married civil or unmarried partner
before 11th of April 2024; and are applying with the same sponsor;
and were granted on the 5 year route to a settlement or Indefinite
Leave to Remain (ILR).
The minimum income threshold for such applications will be £18,600.
This £18,600 figure will change
if there are dependent children applying, as seen on this table.
You'll note that the minimum income
threshold stops increasing at 4 dependent children.
So some of you will be wondering what will the minimum income threshold
be for partner visa extensions and the Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR)
application for applicants who first submitted their first time
partner visa on or after 11th of April 2024?
The current guidance states that the minimum income threshold will be £29,000.
When the minimum income threshold increases in the future,
it is expected that similar transitional arrangements
will apply to those who first applied when the threshold was £29,000,
resulting in the £29,000 figure remaining until the Indefinite Leave to Remain
(ILR) application.
However, this remains to be confirmed.
It's also worth noting here that although we've used the word income in relation to
the minimum income threshold, cash savings can also be used to meet the minimum
income threshold alone, or be combined with other sources of permitted income
to satisfy the financial requirement - as we'll discuss later in this video.
Cash savings can also
be completely disregarded if the minimum income threshold is met by income.
Now we'll go over the different sources of permitted income
you can include, along with how to calculate that income.
We will refer to Categories A
to G when discussing the various sources of permitted income.
Even though the online application form does not mention the word “Category”
at all, it's
important to know which Category or Categories your income falls under.
This is because each Category has its own requirements,
calculations, and specific documentation needed.
Regardless of what Category we discuss, income or cash
savings does not need to be in British pounds (£).
Income or cash savings in a foreign currency
will be converted to Pound Sterling using the spot
exchange rate, which appears on oanda.com on the date of application.
This is the case
unless one you're relying on Iranian Rials, which will be converted into pound
sterling using the monthly
FCDO Consular Exchange Rate applicable on the date of application.
Or 2) You're relying on a currency that does not appear on Oanda.com, such
as Syrian pounds.
These will be converted using the monthly
FCDO Consular Exchange Rate on the date of application.
We will now discuss Category A, which is the Category for including
non-specified limited company employment income towards the financial requirement.
And we will explain what a non-specified limited company means.
So if you are unsure, this will become clear shortly.
Category A is split into two categories.
1) Where the employed partner is residing in the UK; And 2)
Where the sponsor is residing outside
the UK and is returning to the UK once the application is successful.
You will note that
the focus is on where the person is based when the application is submitted.
Whether the employer is based in the UK or overseas is not something
that matters here.
The calculations and requirements differ if you're relying on the sponsor’s
employment income
while the sponsor is living overseas at the time the application is submitted.
In this case, the overseas based sponsor must also provide a UK job offer
that meets the minimum income threshold,
either on its own or combined with other permitted income sources.
This video will discuss the calculation and requirements where the employed
partners residing in the UK, since that is by far
the most common type of employment income relied on.
On this note,
if the employed partner is a UK seafarer and spends most of the time at sea
and qualifies for HMRC Seafarers Earning Deduction, they are typically considered
a UK resident when assessing the financial requirement.
Let's go over the requirements for Category A.
The first key requirement is that the person must be employed.
Whilst this may seem straightforward, in some cases, further inspection
reveals that individuals who claim that they're employed
are actually self-employed.
We won't go into too much detail here as this mistake is rare,
but if the person doesn’t receive payslips referencing PAYE
or an overseas equivalent, it's important to understand the difference
between being self-employed and employed.
An exception does apply here to self-employed subcontractors under the
Construction Industry Scheme, who can opt to include their income under Category
A - provided they meet the specific documentary requirements.
The second requirement
is that the employer must not be a specified limited company.
If the sponsor is a specified limited company, the calculation is different,
the requirements are different, and the required documents are different.
A specified limited company and a limited company are not necessarily
the same thing.
Whilst a specified limited company will always be a limited company,
a limited company will most commonly not be a specified limited company.
A specified limited company is something that is defined in the Immigration Rules
as a limited company that is registered in the UK; and the person whose income
you are relying on is an employee and/or director of that company;
and the applicant, sponsor or family members of the applicant
or sponsor hold shares in the employing company;
and any remaining shares not including the applicant, sponsor
or family members of the applicant or a sponsor, must be held
either directly or indirectly, by fewer than five other persons.
Please note all of these “ands” because all of these need
to apply for the employer to be a specified limited company.
For example, if the company is registered overseas,
it will technically not be a specified limited company.
If the applicant, sponsor, or family members of the applicant or sponsor
do not hold shares of the employing company,
that company cannot be a specified limited company.
If shares are held but there are more than four other persons
that hold the remaining shares, it will not be a specified limited company.
If the employing company is a specified limited company,
we will cover this later in this video when we discuss Category F.
If you're still unsure whether the company is a specified limited company,
you can find more details on our website, www.Migrate.org.uk.
The third requirement is that the person must have been employed for six months
or longer by the same employer when the application is submitted.
If the person will have been employed for fewer than six months
by the same employer when the application is submitted,
you should then look to Category B.
On this point,
it's important to correctly identify who the employer technically is.
In most cases this will be clear, but where the person works for one
or numerous companies via an agency, it is most commonly the case that it is
the agency that is the employer,
not the company or companies for which the work is performed.
Correctly identifying the employer is also important because,
as we will elaborate later and the Category A, you can only include
employment income from current employers - not previous employers.
Fourthly, applicants can include their employment
income if they're in the UK and working legally.
The implication for this is that for out-of-country applications,
applicants cannot include their employment income towards
meeting the financial requirement.
This applies even if they earn a high income overseas or have a job offer.
For in-country applications, this means that most applicants
can include their employment income towards the financial requirement.
An example where they cannot are those in the UK on a fiancé(e) visa
because fiancé(e) visas do not permit working in the UK.
Sponsors, however, will always be able to include their employment income towards
the financial requirement.
And finally, it's worth noting two things.
1) If there is only been a change in job title,
this is not something that affects eligibility to apply under Category A.
This is because what matters is the length of employment,
not the length of time the employee has performed a certain role for the employer.
And 2) If there have been changes in the employed person's pay,
this is not something that affects eligibility to apply under Category A.
This is something which often confuses partners because, if in the online
application form,
you select the dropdown option which states that “the person has received
not the same amount continuously”, the online application form
currently assumes that you intend to apply under Category B,
which allows you to rely on employment income from up to the 12 months
before submitting the application rather than the relevant period for Category
A, which is the six months before submitting the application, as we will
now discuss.
So how do you calculate employment income under Category A?
You must first identify whether the employment is salaried
or non-salaried.
This is because salaried and non-salaried employment income is calculated
completely differently.
Salaried employment typically means that the employee receives a fixed basic
amount annually, such as £50,000 per year - as stated in their contract.
In addition to the fixed basic salary, the employee may also earn
overtime, bonuses, commission, and similar extra payments.
On the other hand, non-salaried employment typically means
that the employee is based on the hours or days worked, such as £20 an hour
or £200 a day, and they can also receive commission, bonuses and overtime.
The distinction between salaried and non-salaried employment
isn't always clear, but payslips can often provide useful clarification.
Here is an example of a salaried payslip.
This payslip shows a basic monthly pay of £3,213.46
and a bonus of £1,466.
The basic monthly pay, which in this example is
£3,213.46, typically remains consistent month after month
unless the employee receives a pay rise or pay cut.
The bonus figure, on the other hand, tends to fluctuate from month to month.
Here is an example of a non-salaried payslip.
Here you can see the term “hourly pay” and importantly,
the other payslips from the six months before submitting the application
show that this hourly pay amount varies from month to month.
To calculate salaried employment income under Category
A, first collect the payslips from the six months
leading up to the submission of the application.
Next, identify the payslip with the lowest total gross pay.
This includes basic pay, overtime, commission based pay, payments
for travel time, bonuses and skills or UK location based allowances.
For example, in this case, since we're focusing on the total gross
pay, the relevant figure would be £4,679.46.
We are not concerned with the PAYE and National Insurance
deductions, nor are we concerned with the net pay.
Next, multiply the lowest total gross pay figure by 12
if the payslips are monthly, or 52 if they're weekly.
As this is a monthly payslip, £4,679.46
multiplied by 12 is £56,153.52.
Therefore, if the application is evidenced correctly, this £56,153.52 figure is
the figure that can be used to satisfy the financial requirement.
If the figure you reached here is above the minimum income threshold, all is well.
But if the figure you reached here falls short of the minimum income threshold,
you can use a longer calculation to see if the minimum income threshold is met.
This ties back to the earlier point that whilst it's essential to meet the minimum
income threshold, you generally don't need to calculate the exact amount.
First, multiply the lowest total basic gross pay from the payslips
covering the six months before submitting the application by 12
if you receive monthly payslips, or by 52 if you receive weekly payslips.
Referring back to this payslip, the relevant figure for this calculation
would be £3,213.46 -
not the £4,679.46 total gross pay.
The figure you calculate here will represent the gross annual basic
salary that can be included in meeting the financial requirement.
The second step is to add up the overtime, bonuses, commission based pay, payments
for travel time and skills and UK location based allowances shown on the payslips
from the six months leading up to the submission of the online application.
Step 3 involves dividing the total from Step
2 by 6, then multiplying that result by 12.
And then Step 4 is to add this figure
to the gross annual basic pay figure calculated in Step 1.
Again, most partners can skip this more complicated calculation
as is only in very rare cases where the initial calculation
won't meet the finance requirement, but can be satisfied using this method.
To calculate non-salaried employment income and the Category
A, the first step is to collect the payslips from the 6 months before
submitting the application and then total the gross amount received.
In this step you can include the standard basic pay, such as £20 an hour,
commission based pay, overtime, payments for travel
time, bonuses and skills and UK location based allowances.
For example, this table displays the total monthly gross pay from the monthly
payslips covering the 6 months before submitting the application.
These six figures add up to a total of £17,000.
Step two: Divide this figure by 6, regardless of whether the payslips
are received monthly or weekly.
£17,000 divided by
six is £2,833.33.
And then finally Step 3 will require you to multiply this figure by 12.
£2,833.33 multiplied by
12 equals £33,999.96.
It is this amount that can be included
as non-salaried employment income under Category A.
If maternity, paternity, adoption or sick pay has been received in the 6 months
before submitting the application, there is more flexibility
in calculating the gross
annual income that can be included towards meeting the financial requirement.
In this case, you can choose the relevant period
for calculating employment income to be either: the 6 months before
submitting the application, as is standard; or the 6 months
before the start of the maternity, paternity, adoption or sick pay.
We cover this in more detail on our website, Migrate.org.uk.
Category A employment income can be combined with other Category
A employment income.
For example, if the person is employed by two employers, both of whom
who have employed the person for six months or longer
when the application is submitted, employment
income from both employers can be included.
Similarly, for in-country applications, if both the applicant and sponsor
have been employed for six months or more when the application is submitted, both
the applicant's and sponsor's employment income can be included under Category A.
Category A employment income can also be combined with non-employment
income under Category C, cash savings under Category
D and pension income under Category E.
We discuss these other sources of income later in this video.
Category A employment income can also be combined with specified limited company
income and self-employment income as a sole trader under Category F.
However, this will alter the calculation and the relevant period
for including the employment income.
We'll cover this
in more detail later in this video when we discuss the Category F incomes.
Category A employment income cannot be combined with Category
B employment income.
In such a case, both employment incomes must be included under Category B.
Let's now discuss non-specified
limited company employment income in the UK under Category B.
Like Category A, Category B is split into two Categories.
1) Where the employed partners
residing in the UK; and 2) Where the sponsor is residing
outside the UK and is returning to the UK once the application is successful.
This video will discuss the calculation and requirements for situations
where the employed partner is residing in the UK - as
this is the most common type of employment income relied on.
In short, Category B is for employees who have been employed
for fewer than 6 months at the time the application is submitted.
It is also for employees who will have been employed
for longer than 6 months at the time the application is submitted,
but do not meet the financial requirement under Category A.
Again, if the finance requirement is met under Category
A, feel free to ignore Category B completely -
I'm sure you have more productive or enjoyable things
to do than diving into the visa requirements that are not relevant to you.
For the most part,
the requirements for Category B are similar to those for Category A.
Firstly, the person must be employed at the time of submitting the application.
Second, the employer must not be a specified limited company.
Third, applicants can include their income if they're in the UK
and are working legally.
The implication of this is that, for out-of-country applications, applicants
cannot include their employment income towards the financial requirement.
The key difference between Category A and Category B is that, unlike Category A,
there is no minimum length of employment requirement.
As we will explain later,
high earning partners can meet the financial requirement under Category
B after just one month or even one week of employment.
There are two tests that must be satisfied under Category B.
If you only meet one of these two tests,
unfortunately, the financial requirement will not be met.
The first test that must be satisfied is that the current gross annual
income from employment must equal or exceed the minimum
income threshold, which we discussed earlier in this video.
We use the word “current” here because we are only concerned about the
gross annual income that is being received when the application is submitted.
Therefore, we are not concerned about previous employment income.
The calculation for the current gross annual income from employment
depends on whether the employment is salaried or non-salaried.
For salaried employment, multiply the total gross employment
income from the most recent payslip that is being submitted
before the submission of the application by 12 if payslips are issued
monthly or by 52 if payslips are issued weekly.
For non-salaried employment, follow these three steps.
Step 1: Total the gross employment income received
since employment started up to a maximum of 12 months.
Step 2: Divide this by the number of months if monthly payslips have issued,
weeks if weekly payslips are issued, or by days if daily payslips are issued,
since employment started - again up to a maximum period of 12 months.
Step 3: Multiply this figure by 12 if monthly payslips are issued, 52
if weekly payslips are issued, or by 365 if daily payslips have issued.
The result will be the figure from non-salaried employment
that can be included towards the financial requirement in Test 1.
The figure in Test 1 can be combined with other Category B
employment income, non-employment Category C income such as property rental income,
cash savings under Category D and pension income and Category E.
Test 2 requires the person to receive the level of employment income
required in up to the 12 months before the application submission.
To calculate Test 2, first collect the payslips covering up to the 12 months
before submitting the online application, and then total the gross amount received
during that period.
Under Category B, you can include basic pay or salary,
payments to cover travel time, over time, commission based pay,
skills and UK location based allowances and bonuses.
For example, for this payslip, we will add this £4,679.46 figure here.
Since we concerned about the gross figure here, ignore
any deductions as we are not concerned with the net pay figure.
And importantly, in Test 2, you can also include employment
income from previous non-specified limited company employers
in up to the 12 months before submitting the application.
I specifically use the phrase “up to the 12 months”, because the employee
does not need to have been employed
for the entire 12 months before submitting the application.
So is perfectly fine if there are gaps in employment during that period.
Furthermore, unlike Category A, which requires the person
to have been employed for 6 months
at the time of submission, Category B has no minimum employment length requirement.
Instead,
the employee must simply be employed at the time the application is submitted.
So technically, for particularly high earnings, it is possible to meet
the financial requirement under Category B based on fewer than 6 months employment.
For example, Hannah has been employed for only 2 months in the previous 12 months.
She receives £240,000 per year, and her most recent payslip,
which is her second monthly payslip, shows a total gross payment of £20,000.
This payslip meets Part 1 of the 2-Part Test because it shows that her
current gross annual employment
income of £240,000 is higher than the minimum income threshold.
The two payslips she receives meets Part 2 of the 2-Part test
because they show that she earned more than the minimum
income threshold in employment income during those two months of employment.
This figure in Test 2 of the 2-Part Category B test can be combined
with other Category B employment income, non-employment Category C
income such as property rental income, and the total gross amount of pension
income received in the same 12 month period under Category E.
Importantly, cash savings cannot be combined with Test
2 of the 2-Part Category B test - it can only be combined with Test 1.
So if you don't meet the financial requirement by combining employment income
and the Category B with cash savings under Category D, partners often resolve
this by waiting until the employed partner has worked for 6 months.
Then they can combine employment income under Category A with cash savings
under Category D, as there is no such restrictions on combining cash savings
there.
Let's now discuss specified limited company income.
The first requirement is that the company that provides
the income must be a specified limited company.
We discussed the specified limited company definition earlier on in this video
when we discussed employment income.
In short, a specified
limited company is one where all of the following conditions are met:
A company is a limited company registered in the UK; and the person
whose income you are relying on is an employee and/or
director of that company; and the applicant, sponsor
or family members of the applicant or sponsor hold shares in the employing
company; and any remaining shares not including the applicant, sponsor
or family members of the applicant or sponsor must be held, either directly
or indirectly by fewer than five other persons.
If you're still uncertain but the company qualifies as a specified limited company,
consider reading our article on this topic on our website www.Migrate.org.uk.
It offers a step-by-step
guide to help you determine if the company fits the criteria.
The second requirement is that the specified
limited company must have completed at least one full financial year.
This is necessary
because you'll need to submit company related documents, like accounts
and business bank statements, specifically from that financial year.
If the specified limited company hasn't completed a full financial year,
there are usually two options.
1) Use another source of income to meet the financial requirement;
or 2) Wait until a full 12 month financial year has passed,
and then submit the application - provided the financial requirement is met.
A third requirement is that the most recent full
financial year should be a 12 month financial year.
Although UK limited companies typically have a 12 month financial year,
there are instances where the financial year may not be 12 months long.
And this is common in the first year of trading,
where the initial financial year can be either shorter or longer than 12 months.
If the specified
limited company's most recent full financial year is not 12 months,
this could cause issues
- depending on the Home Office caseworker, handling your application
since the guidance explicitly refers to a 12 month financial year.
In such a situation, you can 1) Consult with an accountant
to see if the accounting year can be adjusted to a 12 month period; 2)
Wait until the company's most recent full financial year spans 12 months; 3)
Use another permitted source of income to meet the financial requirement; or 4)
Proceed with the application,
even if the most recent full financial year is not 12 months.
The key factor in determining whether this will be
an issue is the Home Office caseworker that is assigned to your application.
A financial year shorter than 12 months is less likely to cause a problem,
where is a financial year longer than 12 months is more likely to raise concerns.
The next requirement to address is that there must be a continued receipt
of employment and/or dividend income since the end of the specified
limited company's most recent full financial year.
If you cannot demonstrate ongoing receipt of employment and/or
dividend income, for example, if the company has been liquidated,
you will not be able to rely on income from the specified limited company.
The fifth requirement is that if the company is not required to produce
annual audited accounts, which is true for most specified limited companies,
an accountant will be needed.
You will also need to provide an accountant certificate of confirmation,
which we discuss in more detail on our website, www.Migrate.org.uk.
Now let's look how to calculate the amount of specified limited company income
that can be included towards meeting the finance requirement.
Firstly, it's worth noting that specified limited company
income is included under Category F in the vast majority of cases.
It can also be included under Category G, but since Category G requires
significantly more paperwork, in 99% of cases,
partners can usually completely disregard this option entirely.
The first step in calculating specified limited company income
is to identify the company's most recent full financial year
by reviewing the CT600 Company Tax Return document.
Here is a CT600 company tax return document example.
By zooming in on this example, we can see that the financial year begins
on the 1st of November and ends on the 31st of October.
So using this financial year as an example,
if an application is submitted on 30th of October 2024, i.e.
just before the financial year ends, the relevant financial year will begin on
1st of November 2022 and end on the 31st of October 2023.
If, however, an application is submitted just after the financial year ends
on 1st of November 2024, the relevant financial year will begin on
1st of November 2023 and end on 31st of October 2024.
As a result, in many cases, the accounts for the new financial year will need
to be filed much earlier than what is typically required under UK tax rules.
The second step involves calculating the total gross employment
income received during the financial year identified in Step 1.
If the person also received dividend income that was declared during
or in respect of the relevant financial year, that amount can be included as well.
So the words “or in respect of” means that the dividend income
does not actually need to have been received in the relevant financial year.
Rather, it can be received after the financial year ends,
as long as it's before the application is submitted.
The combined total of the employment income and dividend income, as mentioned
earlier, is the amount
that you can include towards the financial requirement under Category
F - provided that all of the necessary evidence is correctly submitted.
So for small business owners, it’s common practice to withdraw the money
from the business as needed and then just leave it to the accountant
to manage the accounts and categorise those payments accordingly.
Since it's normally the accountants responsibility to ensure
that these payments are as tax efficient as possible, it's common to see them
get creative by labelling payments as something other than salary
or dividends, such as repayment of a director's loan.
The amount of employment and dividend income you're
relying on should be clearly specified in your application,
as it is only these two types of income that can be included
towards the financial requirement.
If the financial requirement is met under Category F, there's no need
to worry about Category G, as it requires submitting significantly more paperwork.
Whilst Category F is based on the company's most recent full
financial year, Category G considers the two most recent full financial years.
This means that you not only need to provide documentation for both years,
but you'll also need to calculate the average of the employment
and dividend income over those two financial years.
Specified limited company
income under Category F can be combined with employment income
from a non-specified limited company, other employment income under Category
C, such as property rental income, and pension income under Category E.
However, when specified limited company income is combined
with other sources of income, the relevant financial period for the other source
of income generally changes
to match the same period as the specified limited company income.
For example, the date of application was the 1 January 2025.
And the relevant financial year
of the specified limited company, as stated in the CT600 Company Tax Return
document, was the 1 November 2023 to 31 October 2024.
The figures in November and December of 2024 here
will be irrelevant regarding the amount that can be included towards the
financial requirement as it falls outside of the most recent full financial year.
If we total the specified limited company income between November and October here,
the relevant financial year, this will mean that £18,000 specified
limited company income can be included towards the financial requirement.
For non-specified limited companies under Category A, the relevant period
will normally be the 6 months before submitting the online application.
However, when you combine specified limited company income with non-specified
limited company income, in this example it will only be November to October
which are relevant when determining the amount of non-specified limited
company income that can be included towards the financial requirement.
And this is because when you combine specified limited company
income with other sources of income, the general rule is that the relevant
period changes to match the specified limited companies relevant period.
Specified limited company income under Category F cannot be combined
with cash savings, self-employment income, and sources of income
which are not still a source of income when the application is submitted.
Continuing with the example of combining specified limited company
income with non-specified limited company income, here
you can see that the non-specified limited company income stopped
becoming a source of income two months before submitting the online application.
Therefore, in this instance, since the non-specified limited company
employment income is no longer
being received at the time of submitting the online application,
it cannot be included towards meeting the financial requirement.
Let's now discuss other non-employment income.
Both the sponsor and applicant can include this income towards the
financial requirement for out-of-country and in-country applications.
Other non-employment income included
under Category C consists of various types of income.
You can find a list of these income types here.
Let's discuss other non-employment income requirements under Category C.
There are two general mandatory requirements.
Firstly the relevant asset generating the income must be in the name of
the applicant, the sponsor or both the applicant and sponsor jointly.
For example, with property rental income, if the applicant or sponsor
receives rental income from a property owned by a family member,
that income cannot be included towards meeting the financial requirement.
Secondly, the relevant assets generating the income must be held
or owned at the time the application is submitted.
For example, if you want to rely on property
rental income but have sold the house that is being rented out
before submitting the application,
that income cannot be included towards meeting the financial requirement.
However, this does not mean that the asset must have been held for 12 months prior
to submitting the application.
For instance, if a property was held for four months
before submitting the application and generated rental income
during that time, those four months of income
can still be included towards meeting the financial requirement.
Additional requirements
can apply depending on which one of these you choose to rely on.
The calculation of Category C income.
The general rule for these sources of income, with the exception
of maintenance grants and stipends, is that you can include the gross amount
received during the 12 months leading up to the submission of the application.
Each of the Category C sources of income may have additional complexities
regarding their calculation, which are further explained
in the Minimum Income Requirement document from the Home Office.
For example, in the case of property rental income, the amount typically
included is the gross rental income received during the 12 months prior
to submitting the application before deducting any management fees.
A common misunderstanding is regarding dividends or other income
from investments, stocks and shares, bonds or trust funds.
For example, an applicant holds £100,000 worth of Microsoft stock.
Microsoft stock pays dividends to its shareholders.
The applicant received £1,000 in dividends in the 12 months before
submitting the application from the holdings of Microsoft.
The amount included under Category C here will be £1,000.
If an applicant sells all of their Microsoft stock for £100,000,
this would not be considered as income under Category C for the UK
spouse or partner visa application.
Instead, the £100,000 proceeds would be treated
as cash savings under Category D - if the cash savings requirements are met.
We will discuss including cash savings under Category D shortly.
Category C non employment income can typically be combined with employment
income under Category A and B; other non-employment income under Category C;
cash savings under Category D; pension income under Category E; specified
limited company income under Categories F and G and self-employment
income as a sole trader, partner or franchise under Category F or G.
Please note, however, as we discussed earlier in the video,
when Category C income is combined with Category F, the relevant period
of the Category C income changes to the Category F relevant period.
We will now cover how cash savings can be relied on for UK
spouse and partner visa applications, which falls under Category D.
There are three different types of cash savings applications.
1) Where cash savings have been held for at least six months
when the application is submitted; 2) Where cash savings have been held
for fewer than six months when the application is submitted,
but are the proceeds of the sale of property
that took place within the six months before submitting the application; And 3)
Where the cash savings have been held for fewer than six months
when the application has been submitted, but there has been a liquidation
or transfer of investments, stocks, shares, bonds
or trust funds within the six months before submitting the application.
We will discuss each of these in turn.
Let's begin by going over the general cash savings requirements that apply
to all types of cash savings applications.
In every case, the cash savings must have been held in one of the following:
The applicant's personal account; the sponsor's personal account; or
joint account shared by both the applicant and the sponsor.
Yes, applicants can indeed count their cash savings towards
the financial requirement for all partner visa applications - provided
that they meet the criteria.
It's also worth noting that the Immigration Rules do not state that
the cash savings can be in the applicant or sponsor's account
which is a joint account with someone other than the applicant or sponsor.
For instance, if the cash savings account is held jointly by the sponsor
and their mother, it would not meet the requirements in the Immigration Rules.
The cash savings do not need to be held in British pounds.
Instead, they will be converted using the closing spot exchange
rate on Oanda.com on the day the application is submitted.
This is the case unless: 1) You're relying on Iranian
rials, which will be converted to pound sterling using the monthly FCDO
Consular Exchange Rate applicable on the date of application; or 2) You're
relying on a currency that does not appear on Oanda.com, such as Syrian pounds.
This will be converted using the monthly
FCDO Consular Exchange rate on the date of application.
The cash savings can be held in a bank or savings account
that is a current, deposit or investment account.
But particular care needs to be taken where the funds are held in a brokerage
in which funds are used by stockbrokers to purchase shares for the account holder
and betting accounts held with a bookmaker or gambling operator,
as these are specifically mentioned in the Guidance as accounts
which do not meet the criteria of being a bank or savings account.
The cash
savings must be immediately withdrawable - either with or without a penalty.
This means that if at the time of the application,
the funds are held in a fixed deposit account
that cannot be accessed immediately, you must either
wait until the account matures or withdraw the funds prematurely.
The source of the cash savings must be legal.
Whilst you are required to declare this source, the Home Office
typically takes your declaration at face value and does not conduct detailed
forensic investigations into the origin of the funds.
The account holding the funds must be with a financial institution
that is regulated by the appropriate authority
for the country where the institution operates.
In the UK this would be the Financial Conduct Authority, the FCA,
or the Prudential Regulation Authority, the PRA.
The Home Office does not specify the relevant regulatory bodies
for other countries.
So if you're using an overseas account, it is your responsibility to verify
that the institution is regulated by an appropriate authority in that country.
In all cases, you must submit regular bank
or savings statements as evidence of your cash savings.
The Home Office does not define exactly what constitutes
regular bank statements, but in most cases, this should be clear.
For example, the statement should clearly identify the account holders, include
an identifiable account number and show the name of the financial institution.
They should also be complete.
And this means that the statement should provide
all the necessary details to determine whether the financial requirement is met.
And also when you submit
the documentation to the Home Office, please do not redact your statements.
Finally, as stated by paragraph 1(e) of Appendix
FM-SE, savings must be held in cash.
Whilst this may seem like an obvious point to state, some partners
overlook that stocks and shares are not cash,
bonds are not cash and equity in a house is not cash.
While stocks, shares, bonds and equity in a house are not cash,
these are nevertheless included if they are liquidated before applying.
We will discuss this shortly.
Let's first discuss how the Home Office calculates the amount of cash savings
you can include towards the financial requirement
where the cash savings
have been held for six months before submitting the application.
Step 1 involves identifying the lowest total amount of cash savings
available at any time during the 6 months before submitting the application.
If all of the cash savings are held in a single account, this is straightforward.
You just need to look through those statements
and find the lowest balance during that period.
If you're relying on cash savings spread over multiple accounts,
and it's not immediately
clear from the statements that the financial requirement
is met, it's often helpful to create an Excel sheet.
This allows you to clearly track all of the balances across all of the accounts
and pinpoint the lowest total at any given time during the 6 month period.
By organising the data this way, you make it easier to calculate
and demonstrate that the required amount has been held consistently.
Not only does this approach make the Home Office caseworkers job easier,
which is a definite positive, but it also helps
you ensure that you fully meet the financial requirement.
Whilst creating an Excel sheet that tracks each day's balance
over the 6 months period before submitting the application may seem
very tedious, most banks offer the option to download statements in Excel format.
This can save you significant time by eliminating the need for manual data
entry, allowing you to quickly organise and verify the relevant figures.
And as this screenshot shows, if the cash savings are not in British
pounds, you should list the relevant conversion figure as we discussed earlier.
The second step will require you to minus the figure in step one by £16,000.
And this means that, if your total cash savings amounts are £16,000 or less,
they will not contribute towards
meeting the minimum income threshold for your application.
Only total savings above £16,000 can be counted.
The final step, Step 3, will then require you to divide this number
by 2.5 - assuming you're applying for a spouse or partner visa
and not Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) where this step is not relevant.
The figure you reach here will be the cash savings gross annual income
equivalent figure that can be included towards the financial requirement.
To give you an idea of the cash savings gross annual income equivalent figures,
we can look at this table here.
The second type of cash savings application is where cash savings
have been held for fewer than 6 months when the application is submitted,
but are the proceeds of the sale of property
within the 6 months before submitting the application.
Instead of calculating the lowest amount of cash savings
held during the six months period, this approach adjusts the calculation
by shortening the 6 month period for which the cash savings are assessed.
The time between the start of the 6 month period before submitting the application
and the deposit of the property
sale proceeds will be deducted from the standard 6 month period.
This means that the savings do not need to have been held for a full 6 months
prior to submitting the application,
as long as they result from the sale of the property
and proper documentation is provided to verify the transaction.
For example,
if the proceeds from the sale of the property were deposited two months
before submitting the application, you would only need to provide
personal bank or savings
statements covering the two months prior to the submission of the application.
This reflects the shortened time frame based on when the property's sale
proceeds were received.
If the property was co-owned with a third party, i.e.
someone other than the applicant
and/or sponsor, only the portion of the proceeds from the sale
that corresponds to the share owned by the applicant, sponsor,
or both jointly can be counted towards the financial requirement.
This means that any portion
of the proceeds belonging to a third party cannot be included.
The required documentation for cash savings from the sale of property
is more comprehensive and goes beyond just submitting personal bank
statements or savings statements and a cash savings declaration.
You will also be required to provide documentation which shows: 1)
The property or relevant share of the property was owned
by the applicant, sponsor or applicant and sponsored jointly at the beginning
of the period of 6 months before submitting the application
and at the date of sale; 2) The applicant and those sponsors
shares, if the ownership of the property was shared with a third party, i.e.
someone other than the applicant or sponsor,
And 3) The funds deposited as cash savings are the net proceeds of the sale
once any mortgage or loan secured on the property
or the relevant share of the property has been repaid, and once any taxes
and professional fees associated with the sale have been paid.
The Home Office suggests
the following documents may be submitted: 1) Registration information
or documentation, or a copy of this from the Land Registry; 2)
A letter from a solicitor instructed in the sale of the property
confirming the sale price and/or other relevant information; 3) A letter
from a lender on its headed stationery regarding the repayment of a mortgage
or loan secured on the property; 4) Confirmation of payment of taxes
or professional fees associated with the sale;
And 5) Any other relevant evidence that shows the requirements are met.
The third type of cash savings application applies where cash savings
have been held for fewer than 6 months at the submission of the application,
but the funds come from the liquidation or transfer of investments, stocks,
shares, bonds or trust funds within the six months
before submitting the application.
In this case, as with the sale of property,
the standard 6 month period will be shortened by the amount of time
between the start of the six month period before
submitting the application and the transfer or liquidation into cash.
For example, if a stock portfolio that was held for more than 6
months is sold three months before submitting the application,
you would technically only need to provide personal bank or savings
statements covering the three months before the submission of the application.
In addition to providing bank or saving statements and a cash savings
declaration, you must provide evidence showing that The investments, stocks,
shares, bonds or trust funds were in the ownership and under the control
of the applicant, sponsor or both jointly for the part of the six month period
before the date of application prior to being liquidated into cash savings.
The value of the investments, stocks, shares, bonds or trust funds at
or before the beginning of that 6 month period was at least equivalent
to the amount of cash savings relied on in the application,
and that the general cash savings requirements are met.
For a detailed write up about the cash savings requirements as they apply to UK
spouse and partner visas, feel free to check out our website www.Migrate.org.uk.
Combining cash savings with other sources of income.
Cash savings can be combined with employment income under Category
A and Part 1 of the 2-Part Category B test; other non
employment income under Category C; and pension income under Category E.
Cash savings cannot be combined with specified limited
company income under Category F, and self-employment income
as a sole trader, partner or franchise under Category F.
Let's now discuss the pension income requirements and calculation
under Category E.
First, it is worth noting that both the applicant
and sponsor can include their pension income towards the financial requirement
for both out-of-country and in-country spouse visa applications.
Second, the pension income
must have become a source of income at least 28 days before applying.
Pensions here can be state pensions, whether that's from the UK or overseas,
and it can also be occupational or private pensions.
The amount of pension income that you can include towards the financial requirement
is the gross amount that is being received when the application is submitted.
In most cases it is not the total amount of pension
income received in the 12 months before submitting the application.
For example, the person started to receive £2,000
a month gross in the form of a pension annuity 3 months before applying.
Since the person receives £2,000 a month, we multiply this monthly figure by 12
to come up with the gross annual figure, which is £24,000.
£24,000 is therefore the amount incredible in this instance.
The relevant figure will not be £6,000 which is the gross
amount received in 12 months before applying.
Broadly speaking,
there are two different types of pensions - annuities and drawdowns.
Annuities essentially provide a guaranteed income for life or a fixed period.
Drawdowns, on the other hand, involves
leaving the pension funds invested and withdrawing the money as needed.
When it comes to pension income under Category
E, the Home Office is primarily concerned with annuities.
If you're relying on pension drawdowns, this would typically be included
as cash savings under the provision discussed earlier in this video.
As discussed there, this provision allows you to rely on cash savings
which were not held for 6 months before applying, but were the proceeds of selling
investments, stocks or shares within the 6 months before applying.
Pension income can be combined with other sources of income.
It can be combined with employment income under Category A and B, other
non-employment income under Category C, cash savings under Category D,
specified limited company income under Categories F and G and self-employment
income as a sole trader, partner or franchise under Categories F or G.
As we discussed earlier in this video, however, when pension income
is combined with Category F or G, the relevant period of the pension
income changes to the relevant period in Category F or G.
Self-employment income as a sole trader, partner or franchise.
The first thing to note is that self-employment income specifically refers
to those self-employed as a sole trader, partner, or franchise.
If a person owns a UK limited company, that income is typically classified
as specified limited company income, which we discuss in this video -
assuming no more than four other individuals hold the remaining shares.
Secondly, to rely on self-employment income, one
financial year must have passed since the person became self-employed.
This is important because, as we will discuss later,
you'll need to provide documentation for the most recent financial year,
which in the UK runs from 6 April to 5 April.
Thirdly, self-employment must still be ongoing at the time
the application is submitted.
This will need to be evidence in the form of: A bank statement dated
no more than three months before applying showing transactions relating to ongoing
trading; or evidence dated no more than three months before
applying of the renewal of a license to trade or ongoing payment of business
rates, business related insurance premiums, employer National Insurance
contributions, or franchise payments to the parent company.
Fourthly, applicants can only include their self-employment
income if they're in the UK and are working legally.
This means that for out-of-country applications, applicants cannot include
their self-employment
income towards the financial requirement, regardless of how much they earn.
Finally, the Immigration Rules
make a distinction between those who are self-employed
in the UK when the application is submitted
and sponsors who are self-employed overseas
and would be returning to the UK with the applicant to work.
For sponsors self-employed overseas who will be returning to the UK
with the applicant to work
will need to provide evidence
of either: 1) That their self-employment income is ongoing
and will be continuing in the UK; or 2) A confirmed job offer
of salaried or non-salaried
employment in the UK, starting within three months of their return.
Let's now see how self-employment income is calculated.
The first step is to identify the most recent full financial year that passed.
For those self-employed in the UK, this will be the most recent 6th
to 5th of April self-assessment tax return period that passed.
For example, if the application is submitted on the 4
April 2025, just before the financial year ends, the relevant financial period
will be 6 April 2023 to 5 April 2024.
On the other hand, if you apply on the 6 April 2025, just after the financial year
ends, the relevant period will be 6 April
2024 to the 5 April 2025.
Two key points are worth making here.
Firstly, if the person is self-employed
overseas, the relevant financial period will vary depending
on the tax regulations of the country where the person is a tax resident.
The best person to consult about
this would be an accountant from the relevant country.
Secondly, the Immigration Rules
may require the self-employed person to submit their self-assessment tax return
much earlier than what is required under UK tax regulations.
Therefore, if you apply shortly after the 5th of April of any given year,
even though HMRC does not require you to submit the self-assessment
tax return right away, the Immigration Rules unfortunately do.
The second step is to identify the gross taxable profits from the person's
share of the business in this period, not including any deductible, allowances,
expenses or liabilities which may be applied to the gross
taxable profit to establish the final tax liability.
It will be this figure that is includable
under Category F - if the application is evidenced correctly.
So this is
obviously a technical definition and therefore the easiest way to identify
this figure is to ask the self-employed person's accountant.
The Home Office caseworker is very likely not going to be an accountant,
and will probably be unable
to identify this figure based on the accounts provided alone.
Therefore Home Office caseworkers
tend to go with the figure specified by the self-employed person's accountant.
If the self-employed person does not have an accountant, they would likely need one
to satisfy the Immigration Rules depending on their circumstances.
We discuss this
further in our “Accountants and UK Spouse and Partner visas” YouTube video.
Self-employment income can also be included under Category G.
The key difference in calculation under Category G is that you must calculate
the mean average of the two most recent full financial year figures.
However, it is quite rare for partners to rely on Category G, and for good reason.
Since it requires significantly more documentation,
using Category G is typically considered a last resort
only if the financial requirement is not met under Category F.
Self-employment income as a sole trader, partner, or franchise can be combined
with non-specified limited company employment income, other non-employment
income under Category C, pension income under Category E
and other self-employment income as a sole trader, partner
or franchise if the relevant financial year period is the same.
However, when self-employment income is combined with another source of income,
the relevant period
for that other source of income typically adjusts to match the self-employment
income period,
which in the UK is 6th to 5th of April for those self-employed in the UK.
For example, the applicant wants to submit the application in June 2025.
The sponsor wants to combine their non-specified limited company employment
income with their self-employment income as a sole trader in the UK.
Normally, the relevant period for the employment
income will be the 6 months before applying under Category A
or up to the 12 months before applying under Category B.
The amount of employment income included will be the gross amount
received during 6th of April 2024 to 5th of April 2025.
Self-employment income as a sole trader under Category F cannot be combined
with either cash savings, specified limited company income, or sources
of income which are not a source of income when the application is submitted.
Let's move on to discuss the sources of income
that cannot be included in the financial requirement.
Firstly, as mentioned earlier, for out-of-country applications,
the applicant's employment and self-employment
income cannot be included towards the financial requirement.
Secondly, the starting point is that income from benefits cannot be included
in the financial requirement for UK spouse and partner visas.
The exception to this is if the sponsor receives,
whether that is on behalf of their child or not, one of the following:
As previously mentioned,
if the sponsor does receive one of these benefits,
the adequate maintenance test applies.
This test requires you to demonstrate that your weekly net income,
after deducting housing expenses, is equal to or greater than, the amount
of income support an equivalent British family of your size will receive.
We provide a detailed step-by-step guide for the adequate maintenance
test on our website www.Migrate.org.uk.
Thirdly, loans and credit facilities cannot be included towards
meeting the financial requirement.
For example, you cannot take a loan of £100,000 from the bank
and then rely on that as cash savings to meet the financial requirement.
Fourthly, in nearly all cases, third parties, meaning individuals
other than the applicant and sponsor, cannot financially sponsor the application
simply because of
the financial requirement is not met through the permitted sources of income
we've already discussed.
There are exceptions to this general rule, however.
One exception is if a generous friend or family member
gifts, but does not loan, cash savings.
However, you will need to wait 6 months until the cash savings have been held
in your account before you can apply relying on the gifted cash savings.
For example, On the 1st of January 2025, the applicant's mother gifted
the applicant £100,000 by transferring it to the applicant's personal bank account.
On the 1st of July 2025, 6 months after the date that the cash savings
will have been gifted,
the applicant can consider submitting the application
if the application is evidenced accordingly.
Another exception to the rule against third party sponsorship applies
in the cases of exceptional circumstances where refusal of the application
could breach Article 8 due to the risk of unjustifiably harsh
consequences for the applicant, sponsor or relevant child.
That said, it is almost always the case that circumstances are not deemed
exceptional enough
for the Home Office as the threshold for meeting this requirement is very high.
Now let's talk about the spouse visa suitability requirements.
These are situations where the application must be refused, situations
where it's usually refused, and situations where it may be refused.
The suitability requirements state that an application must be refused if: 1)
The Secretary of State has personally directed that the exclusion
of the applicant from the UK is conducive to the public good; 2)
If the applicant is currently subject to a deportation order; and 3)
If the applicant left or is removed from the UK as a condition of a caution
issued in accordance with Section 22 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003
less than five years prior to the date on which the application is decided.
These three situations will only apply
to a small number of applications since they are quite serious.
You should be aware of any of these apply to you.
4) If the applicant without reasonable excuse, has failed to undergo
a medical examination or provide a medical report
where asked or required, the application will be refused.
An example is the tuberculosis requirement, which, as we discussed
earlier, only applies to certain out-of-country partner visa applications.
5) If the applicant, without reasonable excuse, has failed to comply
with a requirement to attend an interview or provide physical data
or information, the application will be refused.
This is rarely applicable, and it will only be an issue
if you don't follow the standard application process.
And the application will be refused if the applicant’s conduct, character,
associations or other reasons is such that the Home Office caseworker
thinks that their presence in the UK is not conducive to the public good.
So this criterion allows the Home Office caseworker
to refuse applications for various reasons based on their discretion.
It'll be obvious
when a spouse visa application will be refused in certain situations
- such as where the applicant has been convicted of an offence
and sentenced to at least four years in prison.
But due to the discretionary nature of the suitability requirements,
if you're particularly concerned about anything discussed here,
you might consider consulting a qualified and experienced immigration advisor.
The suitability requirements state that an application will normally be refused
if the applicant has provided false information, representations or documents,
or has failed to disclose material facts in relation to the application,
whether that's intentionally or unintentionally.
Whilst you should thoroughly double check your application, it's
reassuring to know that simple typos, such as misspelling a name
or misstating a travel date typically do not cause refusals.
Instead, it depends on the specific circumstances.
For example, not declaring a previous criminal conviction
could lead to an application being refused.
Applications will normally be refused if a maintenance and accommodation
undertaking has been requested or required, and has not been provided.
We've handled thousands of partner visa applications and we've never seen
this suitability requirement to cause an issue.
A common question is whether an SU07 Sponsorship
Undertaking Form is needed for spouse visa applications.
This document is not required.
The application will normally be refused if it is undesirable
to grant entry clearance to the applicant for medical reasons.
This is only relevant in very specific circumstances, usually
when the applicant has specific infectious diseases such as Ebola.
There are three more suitability
provisions to discuss, so don't worry - we are almost finished.
The application will normally be refused if the Home Office decides that granting
the visa will not be for the public good because the applicant's offending
has caused serious harm, or the applicant is a persistent offender
who shows a particular disregard for the law.
Another common question is whether traffic and petty criminal offences
could be problematic.
Typically, past traffic and petty criminal offences do not lead to refusals.
However, as mentioned earlier, providing false information or failing
to disclose material facts can cause refusals.
Therefore, such offences
should be disclosed when asked in the online application form.
However, for some it's worth noting that the application will normally be refused
if the Home Office decides
that the granting of the spouse visa will not be for the public good
because the applicant has been convicted of or admitted an offence
for which they received a non-custodial sentence
or other out-of-court disposal that is recorded on their criminal record
within the 12 months before the application is submitted.
So if there have been such an offence within the 12 months before
submitting the application, but you're not sure
whether this constitutes a non-custodial sentence
or other out-of-court disposal that is recorded on their criminal record,
the best person to speak to you regarding this will be a criminal lawyer.
And then finally, if the applicant is failed to pay NHS charges amounting
to at least £500, or if the applicant has failed to pay litigation
costs awarded to the Home Office, the application may be refused.
Regarding NHS charges, if you're unsure whether there are outstanding NHS charges
amounting to at least £500, you should speak with the relevant clinic
or hospital in the UK.
And regarding litigation costs, since this is quite serious,
you should definitely be aware if there are any outstanding.
I know I've mentioned “refused”
many times in this video which can understandably cause anxiety.
The good news is that it's uncommon for applications to be refused due
to the suitability requirements.
More often it’s the financial requirement that leads to refusals, so please
make sure that you spent ample time familiarising yourself with that.
If you found this video helpful and want to see more videos like this,
please let us know in the YouTube comments by liking the video and by subscribing.
We have many detailed articles about each of the spouse visa requirements
on our website, Migrate.org.uk, so you're welcome to check that out.
We also have a detailed video
where we go through the UK spouse and partner visa process in detail.
If you'd like more information
about the UK spouse and partner visa requirements, or if you'd like help
with your application, you can visit our website, www.Migrate.org.uk.
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