What’s the minimum income requirement?
£29,000 gross per year for new partner applications since 11 April 2024. Some existing applicants remain on the previous £18,600 threshold under transitional protection.
What if we don’t earn £29,000?
Cash savings of £88,500, held for six continuous months, can meet the requirement on their own, or income can be combined with savings above the threshold in permitted ways.
What documents prove employment income?
Payslips, matching bank statements, and a letter from the employer, covering either six months (Category A) or twelve months (Category B), depending on how long you’ve been in the job.
At a Glance
£29,000 a year. That’s the number, since 11 April 2024. £18,600 if you’re already on the route from before then.
Six months of payslips and bank statements if you’ve held the job six months or more. Twelve if you haven’t.
Every payslip has to match a bank statement, month for month. Miss that, and the income barely matters.
Key Takeaways
01
£29,000 is the current threshold
Applies to new partner applications from 11 April 2024 onward, regardless of whether children are also applying.
02
Transitional protection may apply
Those already in the partner route before 11 April 2024 are generally assessed against the earlier £18,600 threshold.
03
Category A needs six months
For salaried employment held at the same rate for six months or more, six months of payslips and bank statements are required.
04
Category B needs twelve months
Newer or variable employment requires twelve months of evidence plus confirmation of the current rate of pay.
05
£88,500 in savings can stand alone
Cash savings of £16,000 plus 2.5 times the income threshold, held for six continuous months, can meet the requirement without any income.
06
Every document must reconcile
Payslip figures must match bank statement credits for the same month, and non-English documents need a certified translation.
The Minimum Income Requirement Explained
The financial requirement itself is set out in Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules, at paragraph E-ECP.3.1 for entry clearance applications and paragraph E-LTRP.3.1 for applications made for leave to remain in the UK. The detailed evidence rules sit in a separate section, Appendix FM-SE, with the general evidential requirements at paragraph A1. For most new applicants, the minimum gross annual income is currently £29,000, a threshold that has applied since 11 April 2024 and does not increase simply because children are included in the same application.
If you were already in the partner route before 11 April 2024, transitional provisions generally mean you continue to be assessed against the earlier £18,600 threshold for the remainder of that five-year route, including at extension. Whether the transitional rules apply to your specific circumstances is worth confirming rather than assuming, since the provisions are precise about which applications qualify.
Evidencing Employment Income: Category A and Category B
Where the financial requirement is met through employment income, the Home Office places applicants into one of two categories under Appendix FM-SE, paragraph 2, depending on how long the relevant job and salary have been held. A different set of rules applies where the income comes from a specified limited company, as defined at paragraph 9(a); that falls under Category F or G instead, and isn’t covered here.
| Category | When it applies | Evidence period required |
|---|---|---|
| Category A | Same employer, same or higher salary, for 6 months or more before the application | 6 months of payslips and matching bank statements |
| Category B | Less than 6 months in current employment, or variable income | 12 months of payslips and bank statements, plus current rate of pay |
Example. Marcus has worked for the same employer on the same salary for two years. He’s Category A: six months of payslips, six months of matching bank statements, one employer letter. Priya started a new job four months ago on a higher salary. She’s Category B: twelve months of payslips and bank statements covering both her old job and her new one, plus a letter confirming her current rate of pay.
In both categories, three documents work together: the payslips, the bank statements, and a letter from the employer, all set out at paragraph 2 of Appendix FM-SE. Bank statements must meet the format requirements at paragraph 1(a); payslips must meet those at paragraph 1(bb). The letter should confirm the job title, the length of employment, the gross annual salary, how long that salary has been paid at its current rate, and the type of contract held. Where formal payslips aren’t available, the employer’s letter must additionally confirm that the payslips provided are genuine. Category B evidence must be provided in two parts under paragraph 13(b): the twelve months of payslips and bank statements, and separate confirmation of the current rate of pay.
The Home Office reconciles these documents against each other, not in isolation. Each net pay figure on a payslip has to appear as a matching salary credit on the bank statement for the same month, in the same account named on the application. A gap, an unexplained mismatch, or a missing month puts that month’s income in doubt, even where the salary is genuine. Check the bundle before you submit. Not after.
The Cash Savings Alternative
Where income alone doesn’t meet the threshold, cash savings can be used instead, either on their own or in combination with certain income sources, under Appendix FM-SE, paragraphs 11 and 11A. The savings figure is calculated as £16,000 plus 2.5 times the shortfall against the income threshold, which at the current £29,000 level means savings of £88,500 held for six continuous months can meet the requirement without any income at all.
Savings must be held in cash, be under the applicant’s or sponsor’s control, and be lawfully derived. They generally cannot be combined with self-employment or specified limited company director income, though they can typically be combined with salaried or non-salaried employment income above the minimum threshold. Getting the permitted combination wrong for your specific circumstances is a common and avoidable cause of refusal.
Common Evidence Mistakes That Lead to Refusal
- Mismatched dates. Payslips and bank statements that don’t cover exactly the same period as each other, leaving a gap the Home Office can’t reconcile.
- Salary paid into an undisclosed account. Income that lands in an account not listed in the application, even where the same person clearly received it.
- An incomplete employer letter. A letter that confirms employment but omits the salary, contract type, or how long the current rate of pay has applied.
- Evidence that’s gone stale. Under paragraph 1(l) of Appendix FM-SE, the most recent document in the bundle must be dated no earlier than 28 days before the application is submitted.
- Uncertified foreign-language documents. Bank statements or employer letters not in English or Welsh, submitted without a certified translation.
None of these are fatal if caught early. Uncaught, they’re the reason financially sound couples get refused anyway.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you were granted a spouse or partner visa under Appendix FM before 11 April 2024, transitional protection generally means you continue to be assessed against the previous £18,600 threshold for the remainder of the five-year partner route, including at extension. Once you move onto a different basis of stay, or if your case falls outside the transitional provisions, the current £29,000 threshold can apply instead. Because the transitional rules are specific about which applications qualify, it is worth having your exact position checked before you assume the lower figure still applies to you.
Combining is permitted between some income categories, but the rules are specific about which sources can sit together. Employment or non-employment income can generally be combined with cash savings above the minimum threshold, but cash savings cannot be combined with self-employment or specified limited company director income under the current rules. Getting the combination wrong is one of the more common reasons a financial requirement is refused, so the permitted combination for your specific income sources should be confirmed before you gather evidence, not after.
Variable income, or employment held for less than six months at the date of application, is assessed under Category B rather than Category A. This requires payslips and bank statements covering the twelve months before the application, together with evidence of your current annualised rate of pay, rather than the simpler six-month Category A evidence. The two-part evidential requirement for Category B is set out at paragraph 13(b) of Appendix FM-SE. The calculation method also differs, since the Home Office will look at your income over the full period rather than simply annualising your most recent payslip. This category typically needs more careful preparation, since inconsistent months can otherwise appear to undermine the application.
Yes. Under the general evidential requirements at paragraph 1 of Appendix FM-SE, any document that is not in English or Welsh must be accompanied by a certified translation. The translation must confirm it is an accurate translation of the original document, include the translator’s or translation company’s contact details and credentials, and be dated. A translation that is missing any of these elements can be treated as if the underlying document had not been provided at all, so this is worth checking carefully rather than leaving until the evidence is otherwise ready.
The Home Office reconciles payslips against bank statements figure by figure under paragraph 2 of Appendix FM-SE, checking that each net pay amount shown on a payslip appears as a matching salary credit in the corresponding bank statement for the same month. A gap, a mismatch, or a missing month can interrupt that reconciliation and put the income for the affected month in doubt, even where the underlying salary is genuine. Common causes include a payslip dated differently to when the salary actually clears, or income paid into an account not disclosed in the application. These are usually explainable, but the explanation needs to be in the application, not left for a caseworker to guess at.
Not Sure Your Evidence Will Hold Up?
A Strategic Immigration Assessment gives you a clear, candid review of your financial evidence before you submit, not after a refusal.
Book a Strategic Immigration Assessment
The rules discussed above are set out in full in Appendix FM and Appendix FM-SE of the Immigration Rules on GOV.UK.
UK Spouse Visa
Appendix FM
Appendix FM-SE
Minimum Income Requirement
Partner Visa Evidence
This article reflects the Immigration Rules and Home Office guidance as understood at 23 July 2026 and is provided for general information only. It is not a substitute for advice on your individual circumstances. Immigration Rules change, and figures such as the £29,000 threshold are reviewed periodically by the Home Office.