Spouse Visa £29,000 Income Rule: How It Works and Will It Change in 2027?

As of October 2026, the UK spouse visa minimum income requirement is £29,000 a year in combined gross income. Savings can replace some or all of that income using the formula £16,000 plus 2.5 times the shortfall, so £88,500 if you have no qualifying income. The government has not decided whether to change the figure; it expects to publish a new family migration policy in early 2027.

Key points

• £29,000 has applied since 11 April 2024 (GOV.UK).
• Couples first granted before 11 April 2024 and extending with the same partner can use the old £18,600 rules.
• Savings formula: £16,000 + 2.5 × shortfall (1 × shortfall at the ILR stage) (Appendix FM).
• The planned £38,700 figure was never implemented. The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) did not recommend it.
• Rules can change by Statement of Changes. Check the position on the day you apply.

Who needs to meet £29,000

The requirement applies to the first application and to each extension on the 5-year partner route, and in a modified form at settlement. Our main UK spouse visa guide covers the other requirements (relationship, English and accommodation). This post deals only with money.

The older £18,600 rules

If your partner visa was first granted under the rules before 11 April 2024 and you are extending with the same partner, you need:

Family	Income needed
Couple, no non-exempt children	£18,600
Plus first non-exempt child	+£3,800
Plus each further child	+£2,400
Maximum	£29,000

Children who are British, Irish, settled or have pre-settled status are not counted (GOV.UK).

Under the £29,000 rules there is no extra amount for children.

What income counts

Appendix FM groups qualifying income into categories, each with its own evidence rules in Appendix FM-SE. The main ones are:

Source	Typical evidence
Salaried employment of the UK partner (same employer 6+ months)	6 months of payslips and matching bank statements, plus an employer letter
Salaried employment (under 6 months with current employer)	Current salary plus 12 months of earnings
Self-employment or company director income	Tax returns and accounts for the last full financial year (sometimes two)
Non-employment income (rental, dividends, interest)	Documents covering 12 months
Pension	Pension statements
Maternity, paternity, adoption or sick pay	Evidence of pay and the underlying job
Cash savings	6 months of bank statements

Whose income counts?

• UK partner: UK earnings count. If they are returning to the UK with you, they normally need to show a job to return to as well as earnings abroad.
• Applicant: for a first application from outside the UK, the applicant’s own overseas earnings generally do not count. Once in the UK with permission to work, the applicant’s UK employment income can count towards extensions.
• Third parties: gifts or support from parents generally do not count, with narrow exceptions.

The evidence rules are strict and technical. A small gap, such as one missing payslip, can lead to refusal.

Combining income sources

Under the Rules, some categories can be combined and some cannot. For example, salaried income, non-employment income and pensions can usually be added together, and cash savings can top up a shortfall. The MAC review noted that the current rules restrict how savings can be combined with income from self-employment or with employment income evidenced over 12 months, and said it disagreed with the economic logic of that restriction. Until any change, follow Appendix FM-SE exactly for the combination you plan to use.

Common evidence mistakes

• Payslips that do not match the deposits shown on bank statements
• Gaps in the 6-month period, such as a missing month of statements
• Misunderstanding how overtime, bonuses or variable pay can be counted
• Submitting a self-employed tax return for the wrong financial year
• Counting the applicant’s overseas income at the entry stage

Each of these can lead to a refusal even where the couple’s real income is above £29,000.

The savings formula, with worked examples

Savings above £16,000 can make up an income shortfall. For the first application and extensions you need 2.5 times the shortfall, plus £16,000. At the settlement stage the multiplier is 1 (Appendix FM, E-ECP.3.1, E-LTRP.3.1 and E-ILRP.1.3).

Your qualifying income	Shortfall from £29,000	Savings needed (entry or extension)	Savings needed (ILR)
£0	£29,000	£88,500	£45,000
£15,000	£14,000	£51,000	£30,000
£22,000	£7,000	£33,500	£23,000
£27,000	£2,000	£21,000	£18,000
£29,000 or more	£0	£0	£0

Example: your partner earns £22,000 a year. The shortfall is £7,000. You need 2.5 × £7,000 = £17,500, plus £16,000 = £33,500 in savings, held for 6 months.

Savings must be in the name of you, your partner or both, and held for at least 6 months before you apply (Appendix FM-SE, paragraph 11). Funds can be held in cash accounts; property and investments that cannot be quickly accessed generally do not count.

Exemptions and exceptions

Benefits exemption

If your UK partner receives certain benefits, including Disability Living Allowance, Attendance Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, Carer Support Payment, Personal Independence Payment or Adult Disability Payment, the £29,000 threshold does not apply. You must instead show “adequate maintenance”: that you can support yourselves without relying on public funds (GOV.UK).

Human rights exceptions

If you cannot meet the requirement but refusing you would breach your family’s human rights, you may be granted leave on a 10-year route to settlement. This is often relevant where you have a British child or a child who has lived in the UK for 7 years. These cases are complex and take longer: inside-UK applications relying on exceptions take about 12 months.

Will the £29,000 rule change in 2027?

What happened so far

• 11 April 2024: the threshold rose from £18,600 to £29,000. Further rises to £34,500 and then £38,700 had been announced but were never put into the Rules.
• 10 June 2025: the MAC review said reasonable values for a threshold based on the sponsor’s income fall in a range of £21,000 to £28,000, with several measures clustering around £23,000 to £25,000. It did not recommend a single figure. It also suggested the government explore counting the foreign partner’s earnings where they have a verified UK job offer.
• 9 July 2026: Statement of Changes HC 259 made no change to the financial requirement.

What is expected

On 15 September 2026, the Home Secretary told the Commons Home Affairs Committee that a new family migration policy is expected in early 2027, and that work is under way to align family routes so the same rules apply regardless of the sponsor’s immigration status. The work will take the MAC review into account (Lewis Silkin summary).

No figure has been announced. The policy could raise, lower or keep the threshold, or change how income is counted. Any change would normally come through a Statement of Changes, often with transitional rules for people already on the route. Until then, £29,000 is the law.

We will update this post when the policy is published. You can also follow the updates page and our UK hub.

Planning tips

• If you meet £29,000 now, there is no benefit in waiting. Applications are decided under the rules in force on the date you apply.
• If you are close, check whether combining income sources or savings gets you over the line.
• If you rely on savings, start the 6-month clock now and do not move the money between accounts unnecessarily.
• If you are on the old £18,600 rules, extend with the same partner on time to keep that protection.

If your partner is self-employed, recently changed jobs, or you rely on several income sources, speak to an OISC-regulated adviser or solicitor. Financial evidence is one of the most common reasons for refusal.

What to do next

1. Add up your qualifying income using the category that applies to each source.
2. If you fall short, use the formula above to work out the savings you need.
3. Collect 6 months of payslips and bank statements, and an employer letter.
4. Read our spouse visa guide for the rest of the application, and the earned settlement explainer for how proposed reforms could affect partners at the ILR stage.