The Home Office has rowed back on plans to increase the salary threshold for family members of migrants in the UK following a backlash.
Home Secretary James Cleverly told the Commons earlier this month that the threshold for a family visa would rise from £18,600 to £38,700 by “next spring” in a bid to reduce the number of people coming to the UK.
But documents released by the Home Office suggest that the threshold will now only increase to an initially lower figure of £29,000, while no timeline is set out for when the higher threshold of £38,700 will be introduced.
Mr Cleverly unveiled the salary change as part of a five-point plan to reduce legal migration after net migration hit a record-breaking 745,000 last year.
Other measures announced in the plan include a ban on care workers bringing over their families and raising the minimum salary for a skilled worker visa from £26,200 to £38,700.
The backtrack on the family visa was confirmed by Lord Sharpe of Epsom in an answer to a written parliamentary question.
Lord Sharpe highlighted how 75% of the UK population currently meets the minimum income requirement level of £18,600, but that only 30% would meet the proposed salary threshold of £38,700 based on earnings alone.
Humza Yousaf mocked over claim world leaders ‘lining up’ for advice from Scottish government
Keir Starmer says ‘grounds for changing’ assisted dying law after Esther Rantzen’s plea
Sir Keir Starmer ‘strongly in favour’ of two-state solution after calls for him to snub Israeli ambassador
He said the minimum income requirement would be increased in “incremental stages to give predictability” and that in spring 2024, it would be raised to £29,000.
No date for when the threshold would rise beyond £29,000 was given in Lord Sharpe’s answer.
Mr Cleverly said following the update that it was “vital that British workers are not undercut and that we ease the strain on our public services.”.
“The measures I have announced prioritise those who will contribute significantly to our economy, whilst cracking down on those who seek to take advantage of our kindness.
“Today, I have provided further detail about how these measures will be applied and when they will be introduced.
“This plan will deliver the biggest ever reduction in net migration, with around 300,000 fewer people coming to the UK compared to last year, delivering on our promise to bring the numbers down.”
In response, Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Alistair Carmichael said: “You have to wonder who is in charge at the Home Office, or if anyone is.
“It was clear to everyone else that the raising of the earnings threshold was unworkable.
“This was yet another half thought through idea to placate the hardliners on their own back benches.
“James Cleverly needs to put down the spade and stop digging. Decisions like this should be made by experts and politicians working together.”
Leading immigration researchers warned that the new family visa rules could leave British citizens with a foreign partner facing greater restrictions on who they can live with than migrant workers.
The Migration Observatory at Oxford University concluded the rules will leave migrant workers employed in the NHS or other public service roles with more rights than British employees doing the same job.
During Prime Minister’s Questions last week, Labour MP Sir Stephen Timms warned that the marriage plans of “thousands of couples” had been “dashed” by Mr Cleverly’s announcement.
Rishi Sunak said the UK held a “long-standing principle that anyone bringing dependants to the UK must be able to support them financially”.
“We should not expect this to be at the taxpayer’s expense and the threshold hasn’t been raised in over a decade, it is right that we have now brought it in line with the median salary.”
