Do you think the new £38K income visa threshold for UK spouse visas is fair?

[zendeveloper]

It is set at the same level as for work visas.

Feels completely crazy to me, but then, I am also an immigrant (although the changes don't affect me), so probably too sensitive to the topic. Would be interesting to hear MN opinion.

what the heck is a median average
It is either the median or the average

It is but people rarely marry during their peak earning years. my DH is currently on 75k but he was 28 when he earned above 38k (was on 46k) and had 6 months payslips to show for that. We would have been separated for 3 years after marriage had this threshold been in place. today we earn 120k as a household income at age 31 and 33. There are also significant regional and industry differences. DH's 46k job now pays £65k but this is probably not the case for many jobs! 38k would be quite easy nowadays in london where average room rents for £1k but still difficult in some northern towns. This is a threshold for the whole of the UK, not just london, the south and big cities and not only for graduates.

Median income would take into account graduates and non graduates, men in peak earning years and also younger people who overwhelmingly would need spouse visas.

*Brilliant. I assume that's because you meet the threshold? What about if you both didn't meet the threshold and were forced to make extremely difficult decisions, like if you had to leave the country to go to your partner's country?

Is that still fair? Or is it only fair in your eyes because the parameters set by the government suit your circumstances?*

Wrong, he didn't rely on me for a Visa and got PLR on his own merit.

Only on MN is £120k a "middle manager's salary" (in the context of doctors' pay) and £38k an impossible pipe dream for all immigrants. I personally think the salary threshold is reasonable in the context of out of control immigration, and shocking public services, although I have zero confidence that the Tories will do anything other than generate headlines saying the "right" things.

It isn't an impossible pipe dream but many people don't marry during their peak earning years. We married at 22 and 24. We earn 120k combined now in our early 30s but we didn't earn that when we were younger. However, the year my DH earned in excess of 40k, we were able to start looking to buy a flat in London and even bought the next year with a combined household income of 75k (2 38k salaries).

The fact that 120k is a middle manager salary in london is neither here nor there. This isn't a threshold for london, this is a threshold for the whole of the uk unless you are saying only graduate professional types should be able to have foreign spouses

So, he didn't rely on the spousal visa. He is highly skilled so he could enter on another path. But what if that path ISN'T available to you? What if you want to move to the UK to be with the person you love, and you can't access a skilled visa?

If you aren't highly skilled and can't access another route... then oh well, tough sh*t?

The reality is, partner visas are not the reason the UK has inflated immigration. These visas make up a tiny percentage of legal visas granted every year. The majority of visas are for skilled migrants (like your partner!) and student visas.

You could literally ban every single person from bringing their partner here and it wouldn't scratch the surface of the country's legal immigration problems.

If you aren't highly skilled and can't access another route... then oh well, tough sht?*

Pretty much, yes. I can't go and live wherever I choose because my qualifications don't travel well. Them's the breaks. <shrug>

But your partner could move here because checks notes... he is skilled and he felt like it?

Cool. Super fair! Way fairer than a British person who wants to live with their husband/wife.

Evidently your DH comes from a very different background than mine. Good for you I guess.

There needs to be a threshold and this feels like about the right level. I think it is reasonable in all the circumstances. It's less than I earned (allowing for inflation) when I met DH. The fact that it would have been personally inconvenient doesn't make it wrong.

Evidently your DH comes from a very different background than mine

I hope so. His childhood was mainly war and rationing.

I just got married. I've completed 1 month of payslips. My 6 months will finish on 26th April. This isn't fair how will I earn 38k gross income I barely get 20k

Exactly @Oliotya

Exactly how much difference to the net migration figures do you think a further income-based restriction on spouse/family visas will make?

NB: They're less than 10% of net migration already, and have actually declined while other migration routes expanded.

I was more referring to the access to the sort of work experience and education that allows access to those visas. Surely you can see that not everyone has the same opportunity.

Scotland's not even on the map!

But according to the figures, the median for the 30-38 age group is almost £38k. So many people will meet the threshold. The average age for a first marriage is 31.

According to this median salary is £35,518 in Scotland. https://www.statista.com/statistics/416139/full-time-annual-salary-in-the-uk-by-region/

I dont really know, but for the sake of fairness shouldnt it be if you are already here under previous rules you get to stay? Employers are not going to up salaries to those levels, can`t see that happening.

I wonder what the average female salary is? I suspect it will be lower. I do agree this will affect females wanting their partners to come more than men.

So in Scotland women on average (taking into account more part time female workers) earn about £170 a week less than a man.

Is it a 100% certainty that this income threshold will be put in place, or is it something the Tories are saying to get the gammon votes but may not be put in place if they don't get voted in?

This 8s an interesting infographic. It’s only full time workers, so won’t take into account increased amount of part t8me female workers but does look at age groups. So women In all age groups earn less. But looking at the 22-29 age group which I would say would probably make up the biggest (maybe 2nd biggest) group of people who are getting married then even the men don’t make 38k on average.

So the average U.K. wage is bumped up by older people, who are more likely to be already married.

And no age group of women make the cut.

They say it’ll be done in April, election won’t be till May at the earliest so sounds like will be done by then.

@cashewcashew I'm genuinely sorry to read about your situation, I can't imagine how stressful that must be. DH (British) and I (EU citizen) moved from the UK to the EU pre-brexit. Luckily I was granted British citizenship before we moved or we'd find ourselves in the same situation as you (DH is the lower earner, also wants to retrain as a teacher and we own a property outright in the UK). I hope things work out for you.

Um? There is a gap of over £1200 to meet the threshold. It doesn't matter if it is "almost". Do you think UKVI care you almost earn enough? They look for any reason to reject an application.

The average age of a marriage is 31. Yet the figures show the average for 22-29 year olds is £30,316. Are they going to magically start earning nearly £8k more just before they get married?

Even despite all this. Imagine having to earn a specific amount to live with the person you love? What a sad, sad policy.