Britons with foreign spouses rush to beat visa salary rule change

British people with foreign partners have rushed to apply for visas so their other half can stay in the UK ahead of a looming change in the immigration rules, top lawyers have revealed.

From Thursday, the minimum salary required for a UK resident to sponsor a family member’s visa jumps from £18,600 to £29,000.

The figure is due to rise to £38,700 over the next year as part of a package of measures designed to push down net migration from the record level it has reached recently.

Ministers argue that the measure will ensure foreigners who settle in Britain are always able to support themselves financially.

But a number of leading immigration lawyers told i the change had prompted confusion among Britons hoping to bring their partners to the UK as well as pushing up the number of applications in the short term.

“We have definitely noticed an increase in inquiries,” said Katie Newbury of legal firm Kingsley Napley. “What we have been saying to clients is, even if you are over the threshold now, it may be worth putting in an application in case your circumstances change.”

The rules require applicants to show they have consistently met the minimum requirements over a set period of time – meaning that people could move into and out of eligibility at various points.

Zeena Luchowa, a partner at law firm Laura Devine, warned of the uncertainty created by this change and multiple other tweaks to the visa requirements made by the Home Office in recent months.

She said: “We have noticed a surge in activity in terms of the inquiries coming in, and the nature of the inquiries. Quite concerningly, we have received a number of queries from those who are already in the family route worried that the changes affect them – which they do not.”

Labour has suggested it is not planning to reverse the salary threshold changes but some aspects of the Opposition’s migration policy remain unclear.

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Ms Luchowa said: “There will be a general election and that could potentially change the direction of the family route. It feels like it is quite an unsettling time for family members in the UK or overseas.”

The Government argues that the time between the announcement of the new rules in early December and their taking effect has allowed those affected to adjust their plans accordingly.

But Harbottle & Lewis partner Sarah Gogan said: “I don’t think a lot of clients had picked up on it until we notified them.”

She revealed that a number of her younger clients – including an actress who has appeared in a major Netflix show who is in a relationship with a British academic, and a TikTok influencer who has lived in the UK for 12 years – have given up on trying to settle here and are set to move abroad instead.

Naomi Hanrahan-Soar of Lewis Silkin claimed that the increasing salary requirements were unfair on British women trying to start a family with a partner from overseas, given they are less likely to be a high earner.

She said: “It has always had an indirect sex discrimination element. If the British spouse is a woman, and they are not working, then they don’t meet it.”

Home Secretary James Cleverly has insisted it is fair to take action to cut the overall migration numbers as well as minimising the danger that immigrants will end up dependent on the state.

But Ms Hanrahan-Soar argued: “The average person just thinks, I’m married to a British person, I’m going to meet the requirements. If you are a lay person, I think it is impossible to get all the details that you need.”