The UK Spouse visa category enables a husband, wife or civil partner of a British national or a person who is settled in the UK to apply for leave to enter, or leave to remain in the country.
Under the current Immigration Rules, in order to qualify for any family settlement visa (spouse, fiance, family dependent etc.) you must meet the financial requirements – by earning above what is referred to as the Income Threshold. Normally, you can do this in two ways:
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By earning a minimum of £18,600 annually
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By having a minimum of £62,500 in cash savings.
An amount based on the cash savings above £16,000 held by the applicant, their partner, or both jointly for at least the 6 months prior to the date of application and under their control can count towards the financial requirement under Category D. (£16,000 is the level of savings at which a person generally ceases to be eligible for income-related benefits).
At the entry clearance/initial leave to remain stage and the further leave stage, the amount of cash savings above £16,000 must be divided by 2.5 (to reflect the 2.5 year or 30-month period before the applicant will have to make a further application) to give the amount which can be used in meeting the financial requirement.
Savings must be held in cash in a personal bank/savings account in the name of the applicant, their partner or the couple jointly. The savings can be from any legal source, including a gift from a family member or other third party, provided the source of the cash savings is declared. The applicant and/or their partner must confirm that the money, which cannot be borrowed, is under their control and evidence that it has been held in their bank account for at least the 6 months prior to the date of application.
The bank/savings account can be a current, deposit or investment account, provided by a financial institution regulated by the appropriate regulatory body for the country in which that institution is operating. Current and deposit accounts are usually easily identifiable. An investment account must also meet all of the other cash savings requirements to be considered as a bank/savings account for the purposes of the cash savings rules at paragraphs 11 and 11A(a).
Please note:
- This calculator is only for illustrative purpose, and should not be relied upon without the advice of a solicitor.
- We will endeavour to keep all information updated but the comparable government figures are subject to change and therefore the result should always be confirmed with reference to this.