ILR Financial Requirement: The £29,000 Partner Visa Income Rule
How the Appendix FM minimum income requirement works on the partner route, the £29,000 threshold, the income categories, the cash savings route, combining sources, and who is exempt.
To sponsor a partner on the 5-year route to ILR you must usually meet a minimum income requirement of £29,000 a year (for first applications made on or after 11 April 2024). The money can come from employment, self-employment, pensions, other non-employment income, or cash savings above £16,000, to meet £29,000 from savings alone you need £88,500. Applicants who began the route before 11 April 2024 keep the transitional £18,600 threshold. The proposed rises to £34,500 and £38,700 are paused.
What the financial requirement is
The financial requirement, formally the minimum income requirement (MIR), is the rule that the sponsor (and sometimes the applicant) must show a set level of income or savings to support the family without relying on public funds. It applies at every stage of the partner route: the initial application, the extension, and the ILR application. It sits in Appendix FM, with the detailed evidence rules in Appendix FM-SE. It is the single most common reason partner-route applications are refused, almost always because the income was real but the evidence did not match the strict rules. If you are working towards settlement on this route, read it alongside our spouse visa ILR guide.
The £29,000 threshold and the transitional rate
The headline figure depends on when you first applied. The £29,000 threshold replaced the long-standing £18,600 rate on 11 April 2024.
| Applicant group | Minimum income | Children element |
|---|---|---|
| First application on/after 11 April 2024 | £29,000 | None, children are included in the figure |
| Transitional (first applied before 11 April 2024, same sponsor) | £18,600 | +£3,800 first child, +£2,400 each additional (capped at £29,000) |
| Sponsor on a qualifying disability / carer benefit | No MIR | Adequate maintenance test applies instead |
Source: UK Immigration Rules, Appendix FM (E-LTRP.3.1) and Home Office family financial-requirement guidance, in force June 2026. Transitional protection applies where you keep applying as the partner of the same sponsor.
The ways you can meet the requirement (Categories A–G)
Appendix FM-SE sets out the permitted income sources as lettered categories. Most applicants rely on Category A or B (employment) or D (savings), but the others matter where income is mixed or the sponsor is self-employed.
| Category | Source | How it is assessed |
|---|---|---|
| Category A | Salaried / non-salaried employment, current employer 6+ months | Current annual gross salary; 6 months of payslips |
| Category B | Employment under 6 months, or variable income | Current rate plus actual income over the last 12 months |
| Category C | Non-employment income (e.g. property rental, dividends) | Income received in the 12 months before applying |
| Category D | Cash savings | Held 6 months; amount above £16,000 (see savings route) |
| Category E | Pension (state, occupational or private) | Gross annual pension income |
| Category F | Self-employment, last full financial year | Last year’s net profit; SA302 and accounts |
| Category G | Self-employment, average of last 2 financial years | Average where income fluctuates between years |
Source: Appendix FM-SE, UK Immigration Rules. Each category has detailed specified-evidence rules; supplying the wrong document is the usual cause of refusal.
The cash savings route
You can meet the requirement entirely from cash savings (Category D), but the maths is demanding because the savings have to cover the whole period until the next application. At the entry-clearance and extension stages the formula is £16,000 plus 2.5 times the income shortfall. With no other income, meeting £29,000 from savings alone therefore needs £16,000 + (2.5 × £29,000) = £88,500, held and under your control for at least 6 months.
Combining income sources
If no single source reaches the threshold, you can usually combine them, for example employment income topped up with cash savings, or pension plus rental income. The key restriction is that you generally cannot combine Category A or B employment income across both partners under different categories, and savings used to top up must still be above the £16,000 floor. Because the combination rules are technical, model your figures carefully before you apply and keep evidence for every source for the full required period.
Exemptions and adequate maintenance
The minimum income requirement does not apply to everyone. Where the sponsor receives a specified disability or carer’s benefit, Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Disability Living Allowance (DLA), Attendance Allowance, Carer’s Allowance and certain others, the MIR is replaced by the adequate maintenance test. That test asks whether, after housing costs, the family would have income at least equivalent to the level of basic income support, a lower and more flexible bar than £29,000. You still have to evidence it carefully.
Reform: the paused rises
When the £29,000 threshold came in, the government announced it as the first stage of a planned increase, with later steps to £34,500 and then £38,700 to align the family route with the Skilled Worker salary level. Only the first stage was implemented. The remaining rises were paused and referred to the Migration Advisory Committee, and they remain under government review.
Financial requirement: frequently asked questions
What is the minimum income requirement for a UK partner visa?
How much savings do I need for a spouse visa?
Can I combine income and savings to meet the requirement?
Does the financial requirement increase for children?
Is there an exemption if my sponsor receives benefits?
Is the £29,000 income requirement going up to £38,700?
Our editorial and accuracy standards
ILR Calculator UK is an independent, free settlement-planning resource. The thresholds, categories and figures on this page are taken directly from Appendix FM, Appendix FM-SE and GOV.UK guidance, with the primary source linked at the point it is used. We review the content after each Statement of Changes and record the review date at the top of the page.
This site provides general information, not regulated immigration advice. The financial requirement is the most evidence-sensitive part of the partner route, and the specified-evidence rules are unforgiving. For a binding assessment of your own figures, contact an adviser regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) or a solicitor listed on the Law Society’s Find a Solicitor register.