Looking Ahead to FLR(M)/Husband Going Self-Employed

Hello, hello! Been a bit MIA as of late dealing with some health stuff but getting better now. Hope everyone is doing well! 

So, my husband has an opportunity to switch up his job status and make more money. Long story short, he's currently a permanent employee, and we applied under Cat B with my spouse visa because he didn't quite meet the requirements for Cat A due to spending time with me in the US. In his industry, most guys end up working through agencies and are classed as self-employed because the money is better and there are better opportunities to work on sites that are close to home. He's spoken with an agency and is ready to make the jump for the better income, but his uncle (who recently moved to one of these agencies as a manager) advised us to be prepared for the extra headache when it comes to getting a mortgage. We won't be in a position to get a mortgage any time soon, but we are wondering how it'll affect us when I apply for FLR(M) in Spring 2021.

From my understanding, the next step in the process is similar to the initial visa, with proof of accommodation and income, but also proof that we are living together and still married. I'm thinking if my husband switches to agency work, it will be similar to our initial application and we'll be providing 12 months of bank statements and pay slips under Cat B again. Obviously, my employment status when it gets closer to renewal time will also be taken into consideration, and I know when using both incomes we have to choose either category A or category B.

Am I on the right track or is there something I'm missing? It's not a huge concern yet because I'm just now coming up on the 10 month anniversary of moving here on spouse visa, but we just want to be sure we're not shooting ourselves in the foot with my husband switching to an agency.

If he is self-employed, it's not Cat A or B.  It's Cat F or G for self-employed, and it's a WHOLE lot of paperwork.  It's a difficult category to get right, especially when you switch into it and don't have enough time to complete full financial years.  Appendix FM 1.7  See the section 9, on self-employment.

If you know you can make £18,600 yourself in the year before your FLR(M) is due, you can apply using your own income under Cat A or B.  But if you don't already know you'll have that income, I personally would not risk your husband giving up the good steady paycheck to do self-employed and have to do the difficult paperwork.

If he is self-employed, it's not Cat A or B.  It's Cat F or G for self-employed, and it's a WHOLE lot of paperwork.  It's a difficult category to get right, especially when you switch into it and don't have enough time to complete full financial years.  Appendix FM 1.7  See the section 9, on self-employment.

If you know you can make £18,600 yourself in the year before your FLR(M) is due, you can apply using your own income under Cat A or B.  But if you don't already know you'll have that income, I personally would not risk your husband giving up the good steady paycheck to do self-employed and have to do the difficult paperwork.

Yikes! Okay, I think the best thing to do is have my husband clarify what exactly the work entails - because I've heard him use "working for an agency" and "being self-employed" interchangeably. Seems that some of the agencies in that industry do class you as an employee of their agency and some will class you as self-employed.

The kicker is that I did land a job that puts me above the minimum limit for the income requirements. Sadly, I had to leave because of health. They encouraged me to get back in touch but I'm keeping my options open. Hopefully I can get back into employment soon now that I'm doing better. 

Yikes! Okay, I think the best thing to do is have my husband clarify what exactly the work entails - because I've heard him use "working for an agency" and "being self-employed" interchangeably. Seems that some of the agencies in that industry do class you as an employee of their agency and some will class you as self-employed.

The kicker is that I did land a job that puts me above the minimum limit for the income requirements. Sadly, I had to leave because of health. They encouraged me to get back in touch but I'm keeping my options open. Hopefully I can get back into employment soon now that I'm doing better. 

It isn't how the agency classes itself.  It's how Home Office will view it.  This thread is discussing a member whose partner worked for a Construction Industry Scheme, which Home Office specifically accepts as an employer, rather than self-employment.  Is this the sort of thing your husband is looking at?

It isn't how the agency classes itself.  It's how Home Office will view it.  This thread is discussing a member whose partner worked for a Construction Industry Scheme, which Home Office specifically accepts as an employer, rather than self-employment.  Is this the sort of thing your husband is looking at?

Ah, yes! I think that’s the same thing he’s going for just through a different company. So if the agency takes his taxes and NI out then he can be considered an employee. If not, then he’ll be self-employed. (Correct me if I’m wrong but that’s what I’ve gathered from the linked thread).

Still well over a year to go for this and it’s already stressing me out. 

Edit: forgot to add - in addition to having taxes and NI taken out, the agency is also a part of CIS

Ah, yes! I think that’s the same thing he’s going for just through a different company. So if the agency takes his taxes and NI out then he can be considered an employee. If not, then he’ll be self-employed. (Correct me if I’m wrong but that’s what I’ve gathered from the linked thread).

Still well over a year to go for this and it’s already stressing me out. 

Edit: forgot to add - in addition to having taxes and NI taken out, the agency is also a part of CIS

If he's signing up with a CIS, then you would apply under Cat A, providing all the Cat A specified evidence (payslips, bank statements, letter from employer (in this case, the CIS), optionally his latest P60 (I would definitely include it!), and a copy of his contract with the CIS).  Before he makes the switch, have him check that the CIS will issue the employer letter for him when the time comes.  If they're not willing to do that, then you won't be able to apply under Cat A, but would have to apply under the self-employed category, and that is above my knowledge set.

If he's signing up with a CIS, then you would apply under Cat A, providing all the Cat A specified evidence (payslips, bank statements, letter from employer (in this case, the CIS), optionally his latest P60 (I would definitely include it!), and a copy of his contract with the CIS).  Before he makes the switch, have him check that the CIS will issue the employer letter for him when the time comes.  If they're not willing to do that, then you won't be able to apply under Cat A, but would have to apply under the self-employed category, and that is above my knowledge set.

Brilliant, thank you for your help!  Glad we looked into it before he made the jump. The visas are stressful enough without adding extra headache to them.