ECO former client MJ Roehead with hubby Steven and cute daughter Leila having fun at the Hartlebury Fireworks and Street Food. Manila, Philippines - It is very heart breaking to see an elderly British citizen who assumes he cannot bring his Filipina girlfriend/partner to the UK on a UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa because he thinks he is not eligible as a sponsor for lack of income.
A truly tragic situation especially if the elderly sponsor badly needs someone to grow old with, talk to and maybe care for him.
Based on ECO-Friendly’s experience, most British partner/sponsor who lacks the yearly income requirement of GBP29,000 only has two options to choose from.
The British sponsors can either choose the first option, which is to make do with a long-distance relationship and visit his Filipina girlfriend/partner occasionally in the Philippines.
The second option is to settle in the Philippines, live happily with his Filipina girlfriend, maybe marry her and then remain in the Philippines for the rest of their lives.
Based on ECO-Friendly interviews and consultations with clients, most British partners of Filipinas opt for the latter choice spending their retirement days here in the Philippines. However, if majority of them would have their way, they just want to visit the Philippines on a temporary basis and still prefer to spend their remaining years in their native Great Britain.
If the Filipina partner would also have her way, she would rather file for either the UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa and stay and settle in the UK.
Most applicants for the UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa are not aware that there is a way around the minimum income requirement for those who have insufficient income but are eligible for the ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE route.
If the British sponsor receives certain benefits as provided under the rules, they may be exempted from complying with the requirement on the minimum income threshold and are not required to earn GBP29,000.
In other words, British sponsors who receive certain benefits from the government are allowed to sponsor their Filipina partners, either for a UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa even if their annual income is less than the required GBP29,000.
This exemption from the minimum income threshold of GBP29,000 applies only where the sponsor receives any of the following permitted benefits enumerated below:
So if the British partner/sponsor receives any of the above benefits, he is no longer required to prove that he earns a yearly minimum income of GBP29,000 for the UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa application of his partner to be successful.
However, this is not an absolute and unconditional rule. There are certain conditions that must be met by the British sponsor before he can be eligible for the exemption.
According to the provision on ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE, “‘adequate’… in relation to a maintenance requirement shall mean that, after income tax, National Insurance contributions and housing costs have been deducted, there must be available to the family the level of income that would be available to them if the family was in receipt of Income Support.”
The rules also provide that, “The Immigration Rules do not specify the level of income or amount of funds sufficient for ‘adequate’ maintenance. This will be case specific and depend on the number of dependants in the family unit. If dependants of the main applicant are going to accompany them to, or remain with them in, the UK, then sufficient resources must be available for the whole family unit to be adequately maintained, regardless of their nationality or immigration status.”
According to a formula devised by the UKVI, the difference between the net income (after deduction of income tax and National Insurance contributions) minus the housing costs (that is what needs to be spent on accommodation) should be equal to or more than the amount of Income Support an equivalent British family of that size can receive.
Using the above as basis, here is the formula that must be taken into consideration to determine whether the British partner/sponsor may be entitled to exemption with the minimum income requirement in the filing of e UK Spouse Visa or UK fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa:
A minus B is greater than or equal to C
A – B > C
The rule emphasizes that, “Personal debt, including loans and credit card debt, should not be taken into account in this assessment” and only the weekly housing costs shall be deducted from the weekly net income.
To learn more about ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE and how to avail of the exemption from the minimum income threshold of GBP29,000 when filing for a UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa, please do not hesitate to contact us.
A truly tragic situation especially if the elderly sponsor badly needs someone to grow old with, talk to and maybe care for him.
Based on ECO-Friendly’s experience, most British partner/sponsor who lacks the yearly income requirement of GBP29,000 only has two options to choose from.
The British sponsors can either choose the first option, which is to make do with a long-distance relationship and visit his Filipina girlfriend/partner occasionally in the Philippines.
The second option is to settle in the Philippines, live happily with his Filipina girlfriend, maybe marry her and then remain in the Philippines for the rest of their lives.
Based on ECO-Friendly interviews and consultations with clients, most British partners of Filipinas opt for the latter choice spending their retirement days here in the Philippines. However, if majority of them would have their way, they just want to visit the Philippines on a temporary basis and still prefer to spend their remaining years in their native Great Britain.
If the Filipina partner would also have her way, she would rather file for either the UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa and stay and settle in the UK.
Most applicants for the UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa are not aware that there is a way around the minimum income requirement for those who have insufficient income but are eligible for the ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE route.
If the British sponsor receives certain benefits as provided under the rules, they may be exempted from complying with the requirement on the minimum income threshold and are not required to earn GBP29,000.
In other words, British sponsors who receive certain benefits from the government are allowed to sponsor their Filipina partners, either for a UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa even if their annual income is less than the required GBP29,000.
This exemption from the minimum income threshold of GBP29,000 applies only where the sponsor receives any of the following permitted benefits enumerated below:
- Carer’s Allowance;
- Disability Living Allowance;
- Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit;
- Severe Disablement Allowance;
- Personal Independence Payment;
- Attendance Allowance;
- Constant Attendance Allowance;
- Mobility Supplement;
- War Disablement Pension under the War Pensions Scheme;
- Armed Forces Independence Payment;
- Guaranteed Income Payment under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme;
- Policy Injury pension;
- Child Disability Payment; or
- Adult Disability Payment.
So if the British partner/sponsor receives any of the above benefits, he is no longer required to prove that he earns a yearly minimum income of GBP29,000 for the UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa application of his partner to be successful.
However, this is not an absolute and unconditional rule. There are certain conditions that must be met by the British sponsor before he can be eligible for the exemption.
According to the provision on ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE, “‘adequate’… in relation to a maintenance requirement shall mean that, after income tax, National Insurance contributions and housing costs have been deducted, there must be available to the family the level of income that would be available to them if the family was in receipt of Income Support.”
The rules also provide that, “The Immigration Rules do not specify the level of income or amount of funds sufficient for ‘adequate’ maintenance. This will be case specific and depend on the number of dependants in the family unit. If dependants of the main applicant are going to accompany them to, or remain with them in, the UK, then sufficient resources must be available for the whole family unit to be adequately maintained, regardless of their nationality or immigration status.”
According to a formula devised by the UKVI, the difference between the net income (after deduction of income tax and National Insurance contributions) minus the housing costs (that is what needs to be spent on accommodation) should be equal to or more than the amount of Income Support an equivalent British family of that size can receive.
Using the above as basis, here is the formula that must be taken into consideration to determine whether the British partner/sponsor may be entitled to exemption with the minimum income requirement in the filing of e UK Spouse Visa or UK fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa:
A minus B is greater than or equal to C
A – B > C
The rule emphasizes that, “Personal debt, including loans and credit card debt, should not be taken into account in this assessment” and only the weekly housing costs shall be deducted from the weekly net income.
To learn more about ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE and how to avail of the exemption from the minimum income threshold of GBP29,000 when filing for a UK Spouse Visa or UK Fiancée Visa or any other UK Settlement Visa, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Click this ECO-Friendly contact box for your queries
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