Using employment income in your partner visa application

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In this post we consider how you can rely on employment income to meet the minimum income requirement.

This is a sub post of our full guide on How to apply for a partner visa, which has further information on the partner visa application process and the minimum income requirement.

This post is intended to provide general background on the relevant issues. These rules can be complex, and the requirements of the route will vary from application to application.

Whilst we have done our best to ensure that the information here is accurate at the time of writing, the UK immigration rules change frequently, so you should always check the position at the time you make your application.

This post was written by Nick Nason, director of Edgewater Legal. Book in a free initial call with Nick if you want to discuss getting help with your application, or would like to explore what getting help looks like.

Employment income: basics

To apply for a partner visa you need to show that you meet a minimum income requirement.

If you’re applying for the first time on or after 11 April 2024 the level of that requirement is £29,000.

The level may be £18,600 if you applied for the first time before this. See our main guide for more information on the applicable threshold in your case.

It is possible to meet the minimum income requirement by relying on salary you (if you have permission to be in the UK working) or your sponsor receive from employment.

Note that if you own a share in the company you are working for, you may be working for a “specified” company in which case additional evidence would have to be provided. See our post on specified companies for more information on this.

It may be possible to meet the minimum income requirement by combining salary and cash savings, and which serves to reduce the amount you need to be earning.

Take a look at our post on cash savings for how the level of cash savings can impact on the amount you need to earn.

Home Office categories

The Home Office categorises those relying on employment income into four groups:

  • Category A: With current employer for 6 months or more – person residing in the UK
  • Category A: With current employer for 6 months or more – overseas sponsor returning to the UK
  • Category B: Less than 6 months with current employer or variable income – person residing in the UK
  • Category B: Less than 6 months with current employer or variable income – overseas sponsor returning to the UK

The guidance the Home Office provides on these routes is extensive. Given the variety of ways that a person can be employed and remunerated, it is difficult to meaningfully summarise the requirements, and you should therefore read the guidance that applies to you.

However, the key evidence you will need to provide, whichever category you are in, is more straightforward to summarise.

Key evidence

In respect of salaried employment in the UK all of the following evidence must usually be provided:

  • Payslips covering either:

    • a period of 6 months prior to the date of application if the person has been employed by their current employer for at least 6 months
    • any period of salaried employment in the period of 12 months prior to the date of application if the person has been employed by their current employer for less than 6 months (or at least 6 months but the person does not rely on paragraph 13(a) of this Appendix), or in the financial year or years relied upon by a self-employed person

  • A letter from the employer or employers who issued the payslips confirming:

    • the person’s employment and gross annual salary
    • the length of their employment
    • the period over which they have been or were paid the level of salary relied upon in the application
    • the type of employment (permanent, fixed-term contract or agency)

  • Personal bank statements corresponding to the same period(s) as the payslips (as above), showing that the salary has been paid into an account in the name of the person or in the name of the person and their partner jointly.

The Home Office also requires to you show you are not a shareholder of your employer, and which you can usually do by providing your employer’s latest Annual Return filed at Companies House, or confirming this in the letter from your employer.

In addition to the evidence listed above, the rules confirm that, optionally, you can provide P60(s) for the relevant period(s) of employment (if issued) as well a signed contract(s) of employment.

If they are not submitted, the decision-maker may grant the application if otherwise satisfied that the requirements of Appendix FM-SE relating to that employment are met, or they may ask for the documents to be submitted in accordance with paragraph D of the Appendix.

In respect of salaried employment outside of the UK, evidence should be a reasonable equivalent to that set out above.

In respect of a job offer in the UK the following documents must be provided:

  • a letter from the employer confirming the job offer, the gross annual salary and the starting date of the employment which must be within 3 months of the applicant’s partner’s return to the UK
  • a signed contract of employment, which must have a starting date within 3 months of the applicant’s partner’s return to the UK

Other evidence may be required depending on your particular situation, so it is important to double check the guidance as referred to above.

In particular, there are special evidential provisions relating to statutory or contractual maternity, paternity or adoption pay.

This post is intended to provide general background on the relevant issues and does not constitute legal advice. The law (and fee rates) may have changed since the date this article was published. You should always take legal advice relating to your individual circumstances.