Sunak U-Turn On Salary Threshold For Family Visa; Migrants Need To Earn £29k

The Home Office, a ministerial department of the British Government, has made a U-turn on its plan to raise the minimum salary requirement for migrants bringing family members to the United Kingdom. 

The ministers have pushed back on plans to increase the earning threshold Britons need to bring foreign family members to the UK to £38,700. The UK government has now set the threshold to £29,000 in spring 2024.

The threshold will first be raised to £29,000 instead of £38,700. The threshold would still eventually hit £38,700. However, the officials gave no timescale for when this would happen.

What to expect?

Migrants need to earn £29k instead of £38k to bring family members to the United Kingdom (UK). This will be a big relief for migrants.

James Cleverly, the Secretary of State for the Home Department, previously announced plans to increase the threshold from £18,600 to £38,700 as part of a package of measures to curb migration in the UK.

After receiving sharp criticism, Britain made a U-turn on its much-criticized plan. The official confirmed the change of plans in response to a written parliamentary question on Thursday.

According to the officials, the current threshold of £18,600 permits 75% of the UK working population to bring their family members into the UK to live.

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Home Office minister Lord Sharpe of Epsom said that increasing the threshold to £38,700 can limit the same right to 30% of the UK working population.

Lord Sharpe said, “In spring 2024, we will raise the threshold to £29,000, that is the 25th percentile of earnings for jobs which are eligible for Skilled Worker visas.”

Recently, the UK announced plans to slash the number of migrants arriving by legal routes amid pressure on Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, to tackle record net migration figures.

Rishi Sunak said, “Immigration is too high. Today, we’re taking radical action to bring it down.”

It is important to see the impact of these changes on the economy, families, and societal dynamics.