Uk Spouse Visa Financial requirements advice

To fill you in briefly with my situation, me and my partner met back in 2010 when i visited San Francisco on a holiday, 8 months of emails and skype followed before i got up the guts to go back out there and see her. We haven't looked back since, with regular visits to each other burning holes in our pockets. In late August 2012 she decided to come stay with me for a while to try the whole living together scenario which has worked perfectly. Now with her Visa expiring she is heading back to America, where i will meet her and we will marry in the coming months. We then want to apply for the UK spouse visa so she can return to the UK with me.

I'm really looking for some advice about the financial requirements of the sponsor. As far as i understand the minimum Gross salary must be £18,600. I'm working as a trainee accountant and so as i progress through my studies my pay increases and bonuses are awarded. My current pay which runs from 06/04/12 - 05/04/2013 is £18,000pa however with bonuses i have received in the year i will pass £19,500 gross income by the end of this month (January 13) and have pay slips to prove this. Also due to completing Level 3 of my qualification in the year i have been awarded a payrise to £20,000pa affective as of the 6Th April 2013.

Basically my query/worry is will this be enough to satisfy the visa requirements?? I'm flying to America in March to Marry my partner, after which we will submit our application. I'm worried as my salary is only £18,000 for the year it will be rejected, but it has surpassed the £18,600 and will be clearly shown in my payslips. Also my boss at work has said he will write a letter on my behalf stating the confirmation of the pay increase.

Or should i wait for the pay increase and for my p60 to arrive confirming the figures?

Any advice will be greatly appreciated

Many Thanks
Confused Brit!

Also as the sponsor,how many months worth of Bank Statements are recommended to submit? On the UK border agency website its says 3 minimum however looking at alot of the posts on this website many people have submitted 6?

Sorry for the simple question, just very anxious not to make any silly mistakes.

Many Thanks again

If you can wait until you have received your P60 and official documentation of your pay increase, you may be able to qualify under Category B of the Salaried Employment requirement.

Category B is for people who either have only just started their job and have not been in it for 6 months (but their pre-tax base salary is above £18,600) or they have a variable salary, for example their salary has recently increased from below £18,600 to above £18,600 (i.e. your situation).

From Annex FM 1.7, which details the financial requirements:

5.2. Category B: Less than 6 months with current employer or variable salary

5.2.1. This category is used where the applicant’s partner (and/or the applicant if they are in the UK with permission to work) is in salaried employment at the point of application and has not been with the same employer and earning the salary level relied upon for at least the last 6 months. It can therefore be used by those who have been with their current employer for less than 6 months, or who have been with their current employer for at least 6 months but earning a variable salary and wish to be considered in this category rather than under Category A.

5.2.2. Under Category B, the financial requirement must be met and evidenced in two parts.

5.2.3. First, where the applicant’s partner and/or the applicant (if they are in the UK with permission to work) is in salaried employment at the date of application and has been with the same employer or earning the amount relied upon for less than the last 6 months, the applicant can count the gross annual salary at the date of application towards the financial requirement.

5.2.4. If necessary to meet the level of the financial requirement applicable to the application, the applicant can add to this:

• The gross amount of any specified non-employment income received by the applicant’s partner, the applicant or both jointly in the 12 months prior to the application, provided they continue to own the relevant asset (e.g. property, interest from shares) at the date of application;
• An amount based on the cash savings above £16,000 held by the applicant’s partner, the applicant or both jointly for at least the 6 months prior to the application and under their control. At the entry clearance/initial leave to remain stage and the further leave stage, the amount above £16,000 must be divided by 2.5 (to reflect the 2.5 year or 30-month period before the applicant will have to make a further application) to give the amount which can be added to income. At the indefinite leave to remain stage, the whole of the amount above £16,000 can be added to income; and/or
• The gross annual income from any State (UK or foreign) or private pension received by the applicant’s partner or the applicant.

5.2.5. Second, the couple must in addition have received in the 12 months prior to the application the level of income required to meet the financial requirement applicable to them, based on:
• The gross salaried employment income of the applicant’s partner (in the UK or overseas) and/or the applicant (if they are in the UK with permission to work);
• The gross amount of any specified non-employment income received by the applicant’s partner, the applicant or both jointly; and/or
• The gross amount of any State (UK or foreign) or private pension received by the applicant’s partner or the applicant.

5.2.6. The assessment of the financial requirement will therefore be based on:

(1) The gross annual salary from salaried employment at the date of application. This source can be combined with Category C: non-employment income, Category D: cash savings and Category E: pension; and

(2) The actual gross income received from all salaried employment in the 12 months prior to the application. This can be combined with the actual gross income received from Category C: non-employment income and Category E: pension over the same 12- month period. Cash savings cannot be used for (2).

So, as long as your new salary is above £18,600 before tax AND your total gross income from the last 12 months is more than £18,600, you should be able to apply under Category B.

Also as the sponsor,how many months worth of Bank Statements are recommended to submit? On the UK border agency website its says 3 minimum however looking at alot of the posts on this website many people have submitted 6?

The minimum under the old rules was 3 months (preferably 6 months), but the new rules are very strict about exactly what you must send.

You now have to send a minimum of 6 months of bank statements and payslips, However if you will be relying on Category B to meet the financial requirement, as I have posted about above, you will need to send a minimum of 12 months of each to prove that you have earned the required gross income in the last 12 months.

The official rules for what you must send as specified evidence to meet the salaried income requirements are:

5.4. Salaried Employment – Specified Evidence

5.4.1. The necessary evidence to demonstrate income from salaried employment is specified in Appendix FM-SE of the Immigration Rules

2. In respect of salaried employment in the UK, all of the following evidence must be provided:

(a) Wage slips covering:
(i) a period of 6 months prior to the date of application if the applicant has been employed by their current employer for at least 6 months (and where paragraph 13(b) of this Appendix does not apply); or
(ii) any period of salaried employment in the period of 12 months prior to the date of application if the applicant has been employed by their current employer for less than 6 months (or at least 6 months but the person does not rely on paragraph 13(a) of this Appendix), or in the financial year(s) relied upon by a self-employed person.

(b) A letter from the employer(s) who issued the wage slips at paragraph 2(a) confirming:
(i) the person's employment and gross annual salary;
(ii) the length of their employment;
(iii) the period over which they have been or were paid the level of salary relied upon inthe application; and
(iv) the type of employment (permanent, fixed-term contract or agency).

(c) Personal bank statements corresponding to the same period(s) as the wage slips at paragraph 2(a), showing that the salary has been paid into an account in the name of the person or in the name of the person and their partner jointly.

In addition to the evidence listed above P60(s) (if issued) and a signed contract(s) of employment may also be submitted in respect of salaried employment in the UK. If they are not submitted then the caseworker may grant the application if otherwise satisfied that the requirements of this Appendix relating to that employment are met or they may ask for the documents to be submitted.

Thankyou soo much Ksand24! for your quick and detailed response, its been extremely helpful. As i want to be sure i get this absolutely right i will wait until i have received my P60 for the 2011/12 year, which will state my Gross earnings being over £18,600 and by which point i will be on my new salary aswel which surpasses the minimum requirement. I have all my payslips and bank statements so these should not be a problem.

Something i forgot to mention, i have just under 10k in a savings account, will this have any affects on my financial requirements?

Many thanks again,

Sadly the UKBA do not take the first £16k of savings into account, so your £10k, while probably being quite helpful in real life, is not worth anything when it comes to immigration.

Oh ok i see, thankyou very much for the info, My salary is over the minimum requirement so savings hopefully wont need to come into account..... i hope
This has to be the most stressful thing ive ever had to do, so much to think about. Will be absolutley worth it in the end though