Most partner applications must show a minimum income. As at 13 October 2026 the figure is £29,000 a year. It can be met from the sponsor's income, the applicant's income if they are already in the UK with permission to work, savings, or a combination.

The current figure and the transitional figure

£29,000 for new applications and for extensions by anyone who first applied as a partner on or after 11 April 2024.
£18,600 if you first applied as a partner before 11 April 2024 and are extending with the same partner, plus £3,800 for the first child and £2,400 for each further child who is applying or dependent, capped at £29,000. No addition for British, Irish or settled children.

Income that counts

Salaried or non-salaried employment in the UK, usually evidenced over six months (or twelve months if you have changed jobs).
Self-employment or a company you own, evidenced over the last full financial year.
Pension income, maternity or sick pay, and some non-employment income such as rent or dividends.
The applicant's own UK earnings where they already have permission to work here. Overseas earnings of the applicant do not count.

Savings

Cash savings held for at least six months can make up a shortfall or meet the whole requirement. The formula is: savings above £16,000, divided by 2.5, count as annual income. To meet £29,000 with savings alone you need £88,500. Savings must be in your or your partner's name, under your control and evidenced by bank statements.

Exemptions

If your partner receives one of the following, the income requirement is replaced by a test of "adequate maintenance": Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment, Attendance Allowance, Carer's Allowance, Severe Disablement Allowance, Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit, Armed Forces Independence Payment or Guaranteed Income Payment, Constant Attendance Allowance, Mobility Supplement or War Disablement Pension, Police Injury Pension, and the Scottish equivalents (Adult Disability Payment, Child Disability Payment, Carer Support Payment, Pension Age Disability Payment, Scottish Adult DLA).

If you cannot meet it

You may still be granted leave on the ten-year route where refusal would breach your family life, for example where there is a British child or there are insurmountable obstacles to living together abroad. The route is slower and the evidence is different.

Why applications fail on this requirement

Nearly always evidence, not the figure: payslips and bank statements that do not match, the wrong period, a pay rise part-way through the period, or self-employment evidence that is incomplete. Appendix FM-SE lists exactly what is required and the Home Office applies it strictly. We check the evidence against the rule before anything is submitted.

Ask a question

If you are not sure which route applies, ask a solicitor and we will reply by phone or email. For an open discussion with other applicants, see ukspousevisa.co.uk, our separate site about partner visas.