Family (spouse) visa 6-month requirement

Hi All,

Long story short, my wife and I have been caught out by the Home Office changing the financial requirements of family visas.

We satisfy all requirements for the family visa, but the new rules come in a matter of days before we would be ready to apply, meaning I will only have 5.6 months of the 6 required enployment months. Once they change, I won't meet the income requirement.

My employer has given me the 6th month early, along with a letter stating as much (along with all the other required info). We tick all the other boxes apart from this 6 month employment box.

What are our chances? Is the Home Office likely to refuse our application for the sake of a few days?

Any insight will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

The Home Office are almost certainly going to refuse the application. One day short is the same as a 100 days to the Home Office.

Where the applicant’s partner (and/or the applicant if they are in the UK with permission to work) is in salaried employment at the date of application and has been with the same employer for at least 6 months prior to the date of application, they can count their gross annual salary towards the financial requirement. In doing so they must have been paid throughout the period of 6 months prior to the date of application at a level of gross annual salary which equals or exceeds the level relied upon in the application.

Were you also employed with a different employer within the last 12 months?

Do you have savings?

Frontier Mole wrote: ↑

Sun Mar 31, 2024 12:58 am

The Home Office are almost certainly going to refuse the application. One day short is the same as a 100 days to the Home Office.

Thank you for your reply and feedback.

vinny wrote: ↑

Sun Mar 31, 2024 9:04 am

Were you also employed with a different employer within the last 12 months?

Do you have savings?

My wife and I were running a business abroad. We do not have savings in the UK.

We returned to the UK in September. I started work for this company in October. They announced the new rules in December. The new rules come into force in April.

It seems odd to me that they're changing rules that carry a 6-month requirement in only 4 months. It feels like a shell game. Now you see it, now you don't. Nobody has time to adjust. I suspecr that was the idea.

When you say “we” returned in September I am a bit confused. Is your wife with you now?
If so under what immigration route / visa?

Frontier Mole wrote: ↑

Mon Apr 01, 2024 3:15 pm

When you say “we” returned in September I am a bit confused. Is your wife with you now?
If so under what immigration route / visa?

We returned together with her coming on a 6-month tourist visa. That expired in Feb so she left the UK. I do not believe we can apply for this with her in the country. She is currently working abroad.

There is not a simple answer to your situation. Have you already applied for the spouse visa? If so it is fingers crossed and wait. There is a massive surge of applications in recent months since the announcement so it is likely to be a longer turnaround time.
Is your wife in her home country? Or a country where she has a right to remain on a long term basis?

Frontier Mole wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 02, 2024 9:31 pm

There is not a simple answer to your situation. Have you already applied for the spouse visa? If so it is fingers crossed and wait. There is a massive surge of applications in recent months since the announcement so it is likely to be a longer turnaround time.
Is your wife in her home country? Or a country where she has a right to remain on a long term basis?

We have not yet submitted our application. We have been looking into our options.

She is not currently in her home country. She does not currently have a long-term visa as she only intended to be there for a short time. Do you think that will make a difference? We plan to pay extra for a faster decision due to her only having a short term visa.

Longstrides wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 03, 2024 12:20 am

Frontier Mole wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 02, 2024 9:31 pm

There is not a simple answer to your situation. Have you already applied for the spouse visa? If so it is fingers crossed and wait. There is a massive surge of applications in recent months since the announcement so it is likely to be a longer turnaround time.
Is your wife in her home country? Or a country where she has a right to remain on a long term basis?

We have not yet submitted our application. We have been looking into our options.

She is not currently in her home country. She does not currently have a long-term visa as she only intended to be there for a short time. Do you think that will make a difference? We plan to pay extra for a faster decision due to her only having a short term visa.

Though reported on here that application not in consonance with what I wrote below can be made but cannot find the posts

Usually, such an application is to be made in
1. Home country where applicant is a citizen of
2. A country in which they have long term visa not as a visitor

An application for a spouse visa would have to be made from her country of origin or a country where the individual has a form of long term residency.
Although an online application you have to state what country the application is to be processed in. In other words where will the documents be presented and biometrics given.