UK family visas are often treated as a soft compliance category — the applicant is abroad, the route is personal, and HR teams assume it's the employee's problem to sort. That's changing. Where a Skilled Worker's right to work depends on continued sponsorship, a refused dependent visa for a spouse or child creates retention risk that lands back on HR. Understanding the financial eligibility logic is increasingly part of competent workforce immigration management.
The Current MIR Threshold
The minimum income requirement (MIR) for a UK spouse or unmarried partner visa is £29,000 gross per year, as of April 2024. This replaced the £18,600 threshold that had been frozen since 2012. A further phased increase to £34,500 was announced under the previous government but has been paused; £29,000 is the operative figure for applications submitted now.
The threshold applies to the UK-based sponsor — the settled or pre-settled person or British citizen already in the country. Income from the applicant abroad does not count.
Income Sources: What UKVI Accepts
Salaried employment
The cleanest path. UKVI calculates from the six months of payslips immediately preceding the application. The annualised rate is compared to £29,000. If the sponsor started a new job within the reference window, the calculation uses actual earnings multiplied to an annual equivalent — but only if that employment is continuing.
Key constraint: the employment must be expected to continue after the decision date. A fixed-term contract ending before the decision is a problem. Caseworkers will check termination dates.
Self-employment
Assessed from the most recent full HMRC self-assessment year. This creates a lag: someone who became self-employed in June 2025 cannot rely on that income for an application before April 2027 (when the 2025-26 tax year closes). Applications based on self-employment require SA302 or equivalent HMRC documentation.
Savings top-up
Where salaried income falls below £29,000, UKVI permits savings to fill the gap — but not at parity. The formula: for every £1 of annual income shortfall below the threshold, the applicant must hold £2.50 in qualifying savings. Those savings must have been held continuously for the six months immediately before application.
Example: a sponsor earning £25,000 has a £4,000 annual shortfall. Required savings: £4,000 × 2.5 = £10,000, held for six months, in accounts they control and can demonstrate ownership of.
Savings in joint accounts are permitted but require evidence that the funds originate from the sponsor, not a third party. UKVI's guidance on this is vague enough that caseworkers apply it inconsistently.
Non-qualifying income
- Cryptocurrency or investment returns: not accepted
- Rental income: accepted only with formal tenancy agreement evidence and documented payment history
- Income from outside the UK: excluded entirely
- Pension income: accepted if received in the UK and ongoing
Child Dependants: Threshold Uplift
When children are included in the application — either simultaneously or as dependants added to a future leave-to-remain — the threshold increases:
| Family composition | Gross income required |
|---|---|
| Sponsor + 1 partner | £29,000 |
| + 1 child | £32,800 |
| + 2 children | £35,200 |
| + 3 children | £37,600 |
Each additional child beyond the second adds £2,400.
For children applied for separately after a partner has already entered the UK, the assessment shifts to an adequacy test (no public funds, adequate maintenance and accommodation) rather than the fixed threshold. Most multi-child applications are made jointly at the outset, so the table above applies.
Adult Dependent Relative Route: Different Logic Entirely
The ADR route — parents and grandparents of British citizens, those with ILR, or those on most long-term visas — does not use the MIR framework. Instead, UKVI requires two things simultaneously:
- The relative requires long-term personal care due to illness, disability, or age
- That care is not available — or not available to the required standard — in the relative's country of residence
The second limb is where almost all refusals happen. "Not available" does not mean "more expensive" or "inconvenient." It means structurally unavailable. In practice, UKVI's caseworkers will check whether paid care services exist in the applicant's country, and if they do, will refuse on that basis regardless of cost.
There is no fixed financial threshold for ADR, but the sponsor must demonstrate they can support and accommodate the relative without public funds. The assessment is holistic: UKVI looks at income, savings, housing capacity, and the projected ongoing care costs.
Practical Failure Points for HR Flagging
If your workforce includes Skilled Workers who may be applying for family visas, these are the scenarios worth flagging proactively:
Salary recently increased to just above £29,000: UKVI calculates from payslips, not the contract rate. If a pay rise happened recently, confirm whether six months of qualifying payslips exist at the new rate, or whether a savings top-up will be needed.
Recent job change: New employer = new payroll reference period. If the employee started within the last six months, the calculation uses actual earnings from the new employment only — not blended across employers.
Fixed-term contract ending within 12 months: UKVI may refuse if there's no demonstrable expectation of continued employment beyond the decision date.
Income from abroad: Employees recently returned from an overseas posting will have a proportion of their recent income disqualified. The £29,000 is from UK earnings only.
Why This Matters for Workforce Planning
A refused spouse or dependent visa does not directly affect the sponsored worker's own visa. But the practical impact — a partner or child stuck abroad — affects retention in ways that show up in attrition data, not immigration compliance reports. HR teams that proactively check financial eligibility for employees they know are planning family applications reduce last-minute escalations significantly.
The documentation requirements for an MIR application are not complex but are mechanical and specific. Payslips, bank statements, employer letters confirming ongoing employment — all must be assembled in exact form. Common errors include sending bank statements that predate the six-month savings window, or omitting the employer's company registration number from the letter.
For sponsor licence verification and up-to-date immigration tools, see immigrationgpt.co.uk.
This article is for general information and does not constitute legal advice. Verify current rules on GOV.UK or consult a regulated immigration adviser for specific applications.
