Question regarding disability exemption

[Piano_guy_34]

I am hoping to bring my American wife to join me in the UK. I am disabled and am unable to meet the £18,600 financial requirement to sponsor her.

I am in receipt of ESA (Employment & Support Allowance), and have been placed in the Support Group. I am aware that a person in receipt of DLA/PIP is exempt from the £18,600 income requirement. I applied for DLA/PIP, and my application was denied on the basis that I have not lived in the UK for the last 104 weeks. I have lived in the UK for the last 8 months, after living in the USA for three years. I therefore won't be eligible for DLA/PIP for another 16 months.

SDA (Severe Disablement Allowance) qualifies a person for the disability exemption. SDA was replaced many years ago by Incapacity Benefit, which itself was replaced by ESA.

In view of the fact that SDA qualifies a person for the disability exemption from the £18,600 financial requirement, I am wondering if being in the Support Group of ESA would qualify me, or would I need to be in receipt of DLA/PIP?

Thanks for your answers.

[Amber]

Unfortunately you must be receiving one of the following benefit:

Carer's Allowance.
Disability Living Allowance.
Severe Disablement Allowance.
Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit.
Attendance Allowance.
Personal Independence Payment.

I don't suppose you had an accident or disease caused by work?

The fact that ESA replaced SDA is not going to help as the conditions for entitlement were/are different. Unless you have considerable savings? Consider the Surinder Singh route (click)

[Piano_guy_34]

Thanks for your answer.

I'm not eligible for any of the other benefits listed. I would also rather not go down the Surinder Singh route. I think I'll just wait until 16 months from now when I will be eligible to apply for PIP, and then, if I'm granted the PIP, I'll try to get my wife into the country through the disability route.

In the meantime, I'd like for my wife to come to the UK for two visitor stays, each six months with a short gap between the two visits. She won't need a visa for this because she's from the USA. The 16 months will nearly be up by the end of this time.

I want to make sure that she is allowed to do this (to come to the UK for two consecutive 6-month visits). Is this allowed, or is she only allowed to be in the UK as a visitor for a maximum of six months within any 12-month period?

[Amber]

See Visiting the UK