Latest news with #familyvisa
BBC News
11 hours 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.
BBC News
a day ago
- Business
- BBC News
Family visa income threshold should be lower, review says
The minimum income threshold for family visas should be relaxed, a government-commissioned review has recommended.A report by the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has suggested a reduction from the current level of £29, warned against previous proposals to raise the threshold to the same level as for skilled workers - £38,700 a year - saying it could breach the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).The Conservatives said that the UK should leave the ECHR if it "stops us from setting our own visa rules". Article 8 of the ECHR enshrines the right to family threshold is the minimum income a British citizen or settled resident must earn to bring their partner to join them in the UK. If the partner is already in the UK on a valid visa, their income also counts towards the minimum applications are made by people not already living in the UK. The MAC suggested a range of possible new thresholds. It said a level between £23,000 to £25,000 would enable families to support themselves.A threshold of between £24,000 to £28,000 meanwhile would put more emphasis on economic wellbeing - both of the families themselves and for said it did "not understand the rationale" for setting the family visa threshold at the £38,700 level for skilled workers, as the two visas have "completely different objective[s]".A £38,700 level would be the "most likely to conflict with international law and obligations".It is the government's decision whether to accept any of the MAC's recommendations. Prof Brian Bell, chairman of the MAC, said that 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 higher threshold would also have a "negative impact on the family life of a larger number of people", the MAC said. It noted many families with lower incomes still earn enough to support themselves even if they do not make a net positive fiscal impact on the said an adult would need to earn £27,800 to have a neutral impact on the public finances - and £40,400 for a couple to have no impact in the first year a spouse arrived in the MAC did not recommend a higher threshold for families with children, saying the impacts on family life for them would be "particularly significant". In 2023 the previous Conservative government announced plans to raise the salary threshold to £38,700, as part of plans to cut the level of they backed down following criticism that this would keep families apart, settling on a £29,000 threshold with plans to gradually increase it did not implement those further rises when the party came into government and asked the MAC to review the committee said the threshold of £29,000 was already high compared to other high-income countries it had looked at. The MAC said it "was not possible to predict with any confidence" the impact different thresholds would have on the level of net migration - the difference between those entering and leaving the did suggest lowering the threshold from £29,000 to roughly £24,000 may increase net migration by up to 8,000 migration in 2024 was an estimated 431,000 people, down almost 50% on the previous followed record high levels in recent years, with the government under political pressure to get numbers down further. The MAC also criticised the Home Office for its data collection, saying insufficient data "greatly hindered" their review.A Home Office spokesperson said the government was considering the review's findings and would respond in due course. Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp said migration figures remain too high and that the government "must urgently re-instate the Conservative plan to further increase the salary threshold"."If the ECHR stops us from setting our own visa rules, from deporting foreign criminals or from putting Britain's interests first, then we should leave the ECHR," he ECHR, which was established in 1950, sets out the rights and freedoms people are entitled to in the 46 signatory countries and is a central part of UK human rights month, the government said it would bring forward legislation to clarify how aspects of the ECHR should apply in immigration cases.
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Warning Euro judges may sabotage new migrant rules by stopping salary hike for family visas
PLANS to cut migration risk being sabotaged by the European Convention on Human Rights, a review warns. Raising the salary threshold for British citizens and settled migrants wanting to bring in a spouse on a family visa could breach international law, it says. The Migration Advisory Committee said lifting the bar to £38,700 — the current threshold for skilled worker visas — was unrelated to family migration. It was likely to break protections under Article 8 of the ECHR, which could trigger UK court challenges. But it is understood Home Secretary Yvette Cooper will reject the advice and press ahead with tougher rules. The previous Tory government came up with the planned rise to help cut net migration by 300,000. After taking office, Ms Cooper ordered a review of the plan, saying the system must be 'fair and coherent'. The MAC has now recommended a lower threshold of £23,000 to £25,000. It warned the £38,700 figure was copied from a different visa route, the skilled worker system, which has 'a completely different objective and purpose'. Sticking to that figure, the review says, may spark challenges on Article 8, which guarantees family life rights and is used to overturn immigration decisions. A Home Office source insisted: 'The MAC offered advice but it's a decision for the Home Secretary.' Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: 'If the ECHR stops us from setting our own visa rules, we should leave the ECHR.' Sir Keir Starmer has unveiled a sweeping immigration overhaul - vowing to -finally take back control of our borders A Home Office spokesman said: 'We are considering the findings and will respond in due course.' 1
Zawya
28-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Kuwait tightens enforcement on family visa rules for expats
KUWAIT CITY: Under the latest ministerial decision, the Kuwaiti Residence Affairs Investigations Department has recently summoned dozens of expatriates for violating family visa regulations. The violators were granted a one-month grace period to either regularize their status or return their families to their home countries. The move targets expatriates who initially met the KD 800 salary requirement and secured family visas (Article 22) for their spouses and children, but later fell short of income. While their initial applications were approved based on valid work permits and salaries exceeding KD 800, subsequent job changes or salary reductions placed them in breach of the updated visa conditions. The source emphasized that the KD 800 salary requirement was implemented based on studies ensuring that expatriates can provide a decent standard of living for their dependents. The Interior Ministry has clarified that all expatriates, regardless of nationality or educational qualification, can apply for family visas, provided they meet the salary condition. According to the source, the government's automated systems are key in detecting fraudulent transactions and cross-verifying data across departments such as the General Directorate of Residency Affairs and the General Traffic Department. The updated rules stem from Ministerial Resolution No. 56 of 2024, initially introduced in January by First Deputy Prime Minister and Acting Minister of Interior Sheikh Fahad Yousef Al-Sabah. The resolution initially required applicants to earn at least KD 800, hold a university degree, and work in a profession matching their qualifications. However, an amendment in July 2024 allowed expatriates without degrees to bring in their families, provided their salary met the KD 800 threshold. Under Article 29 of the amended regulation, family residency can only be granted to those earning no less than KD 800 per month from work related to their designated profession. Exceptions may be granted for children under five or those born inside Kuwait, subject to the discretion of the Director General of Residency Affairs. Arab Times | © Copyright 2024, All Rights Reserved Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
