Latest news with #CarolineCoombs
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Lowering UK family visa income bar may raise net migration; says advisory panel
A threshold of £24,000 to £28,000 would prioritise economic concerns and reduce burden on public funds. A threshold of £23,000 to £25,000 would help families remain self-sufficient without exceeding the minimum wage. Live Events The UK's Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has recommended that the government lower the minimum income required for a British citizen or settled resident to sponsor a partner's visa. The committee said that a threshold between £23,000 and £25,000 could support families without forcing them to live apart, but it also warned that such a move could slightly raise net migration, according to a report by The Guardian As of April 2024, the income requirement for sponsoring a foreign partner was raised to £29,000. The MAC's new report suggests the increase to £38,700—planned by the previous Conservative government—should be dropped. It found the policy would likely conflict with international law, especially Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects the right to family committee offered several options:(Join our ETNRI WhatsApp channel for all the latest updates)If the threshold drops to £24,000, the report estimates that net migration could rise by 1% to 3% in future per the Guardian report, committee chair Professor Brian Bell said, 'While the decision on where to set the threshold is ultimately a political one, we have provided evidence on the impacts of financial requirements on families and economic wellbeing.'The MAC also advised that the threshold should not be higher for families with children, despite their higher living costs, due to the severe impact separation has on children. It recommended maintaining the same threshold across all regions of the reacted with mixed feelings. Caroline Coombs, co-founder of Reunite Families UK, said: 'Any threshold even at minimum wage would still separate many groups of people who just want to be a family here in the UK.'She added: 'We are calling on the home secretary to have the political courage to change a system … destroying the lives of British and settled residents and their children for over a decade.'The Home Office confirmed it is reviewing the MAC's findings. A spokesperson said, 'The home secretary commissioned the independent migration advisory committee to undertake a review. We are now considering its findings and will respond in due course.'
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
UK may ease family visa income rule after 'Tax on Love' criticism
The UK government is reviewing its family visa rules, including the current minimum income requirement of £29,000, after strong public and expert criticism. The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has submitted its findings to the Home Office, recommending changes to ease the burden on British citizens and settled residents who wish to bring their foreign spouses to the UK, according to a report by BBC. First introduced in 2012 and raised in 2024, the income threshold is meant to reduce net migration. However, it has been criticised for breaking up families and ignoring the economic contributions of foreign partners once in the UK. Campaign group Reunite Families UK, based in Bristol, shared evidence with MAC highlighting the mental health toll on children who are separated from one parent due to the rules. "Children are the biggest victims of these rules," said Caroline Coombs, co-founder and executive director of the group. She urged the government to consider the lived experiences behind the numbers: "We ask her to look to that evidence – those very real-life experiences – when it comes to making her decisions which could ultimately make or break British citizens and settle residents' family life." The MAC review received over 2,000 responses, the highest in its consultation history. It explored income ranges between £23,000 to £25,000 as more realistic for maintaining family life without imposing economic strain. It noted that a lower threshold could increase migration by up to 8,000 people but stressed that this must be weighed against the social cost of family separation. (Join our ETNRI WhatsApp channel for all the latest updates) As per the BBC report, Green Party MP Carla Denyer called the income threshold a "cruel tax on love" that "tears families apart and puts untold stress on those with the misfortune to simply fall in love with someone who is not from this country." Live Events MORE STORIES FOR YOU ✕ UK job market slowdown raises concerns for international students UK tightens student visa rules: Shorter stays, stricter checks, fewer perks « Back to recommendation stories I don't want to see these stories because They are not relevant to me They disrupt the reading flow Others SUBMIT Professor Brian Bell, Chair of MAC, acknowledged the challenge of balancing economic costs with family rights. "There is a cost to the UK economy and UK taxpayers of having this route, and we should just be honest about that and say there is a trade-off," he said. "But... people who say 'we should set it at very high numbers to make sure that we don't lose any money' ignore the massive impact that has on families." The Home Office stated it is reviewing the committee's recommendations and will respond in due course.
BBC News
3 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Family visa income requirement should be lowered, says review
Campaigners have welcomed a much-anticipated review into family visa requirements previously labelled a 'tax on love' by a Bristol Home Office said it is considering recommendations which include lowering the minimum income required for a British partner or settled resident to apply for a visa for their partner in the UK, currently set at £29, Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has reviewed the impact of the current visa process on families, including on children's mental health and the right to family of Reunite Families UK, Caroline Coombs, from Bristol, said "children are the biggest victims of these rules". The minimum income requirement (MIR) has long been contested by couples who are unable to meet the threshold and, in some cases, are therefore forced to live introduced in 2012, it increased from £18,600 to £29,000 in April 2024, as part of measures by the previous Conservative government to reduce Labour government commissioned an independent review of the policy, which has been carried out by the MAC, and was published on current threshold applies only to the British partner or settled resident and does not account for potential earnings from the foreign partner once settled in the UK - a rule the review is also calling on the Government to reconsider. The review received 2,089 responses - the highest ever for a MAC consultation - and contributions from 36 Families UK, a not-for-profit helping families navigate the UK family visa route, provided evidence including testimonies from families evidence relating to the mental health of the children analysis reported, as well as feeling stress and loneliness, some children showed symptoms of anxiety, selective mutism and inability to focus in testimony included in the review reads: "My daughter's lived without her dad since she was six. From six to 11, the main memory of childhood is with her dad through a screen."Caroline Coombs, co-founder and Executive Director of Reunite Families UK, said: "The Home Secretary previously said that her work would be led by evidence."We ask her to look to that evidence - those very real-life experiences - when it comes to making her decisions which could ultimately make or break British citizens and settled residents' family life." 'MIR should be removed' The MAC review considered various factors including whether lowering the income requirement would increase net suggested a range of possible new thresholds. For example, it said a level between £23,000 to £25,000 would enable families to support did suggest lowering the threshold from £29,000 to roughly £24,000 may increase net immigration by up to 8,000 Ms Coombs said the Government should consider removing the MIR altogether:"Any threshold even at minimum wage would still separate many groups of people who just want to be a family here in the UK," she said. Carla Denyer, Green Party co-leader and MP for Bristol Central, described the minimum income requirements for family visas as a "cruel tax on love"."[It] tears families apart and puts untold stress on those with the misfortune to simply fall in love with someone who is not from this country," she said she has heard "devastating stories" from constituents who have been "forced to move halfway across the world" because of the income threshold."Whether it's for love, for work, or to flee violence or oppression, people move – that's a fact of life, and it's down to the government to make it work," she said. 'Real trade-off' Net migration in 2024 was an estimated 431,000 people, down almost 50% on the previous year. This followed record high levels in recent years, with the government under political pressure to get numbers down previous Conservative government planned to increase the threshold further, to £38,700, thus aligning it to the Skilled Worker the MAC said it "did not understand the rationale" for it and said a higher threshold was "likely to conflict with international law and obligations", referring to Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which enshrines the right to family chairman Prof Brian Bell said balancing family life and economic wellbeing was a "real trade-off"."There is a cost to the UK economy and UK taxpayers of having this route, and we should just be honest about that and say there is a trade-off," he said."But similarly, on the other side, people who say 'we should set it at very high numbers to make sure that we don't lose any money' ignore the massive impact that has on families and the destruction of some relationships and the harm it causes to children."A Home Office spokesperson said the government was considering the review's findings and would respond in due course.
