Five Years in Two and a Half Year Steps, and Two Income Thresholds Running at Once
Joining a British or settled partner is governed by Appendix FM, and the route is long, conditional and expensive before it is anything else. Entry clearance as a partner is granted for an initial period not exceeding 33 months, extended by periods not exceeding 30 months, and settlement comes after a continuous period of at least 60 months. Every grant carries a condition of no recourse to public funds, so the household is excluded from means-tested support for the whole five years while paying the immigration health surcharge for each grant. The money test is the part that decides most cases. A new applicant must show a specified gross annual income of at least 29,000 pounds, or specified savings of 16,000 pounds plus two and a half times the shortfall. But the Appendix still carries the old test alongside the new one: an applicant who first applied before 11 April 2024 and is applying again with the same partner meets a transitional requirement of 18,600 pounds, plus 3,800 pounds for the first child and 2,400 pounds for each additional child. The new threshold has no child element at all, so the two tests cross over: a couple with two children needs 24,800 pounds under the old rule and 29,000 pounds under the new one. English is required at CEFR A1 in speaking and listening at entry, and at settlement the applicant must satisfy Appendix KoLL instead.
At a glance
- Minimum income, new applicants
- A specified gross annual income of at least 29,000 pounds
E-ECP.3.1(a) of Appendix FM, which prints the figure as a sum in pounds sterling. There is no uplift for children under this test.
- Savings alternative
- 16,000 pounds, plus additional savings of 2.5 times the shortfall between the qualifying income and the amount required
E-ECP.3.1(b) of Appendix FM, which prints both the sum in pounds sterling and the multiplier.
- Minimum income, transitional applicants
- 18,600 pounds, plus 3,800 pounds for the first child and 2,400 pounds for each additional child
E-LTRP.3.7(a) of Appendix FM, which prints all three figures as sums in pounds sterling. It applies to an applicant who made a successful application before 11 April 2024 and is applying again with the same partner.
- Date that divides the two income tests
- 11 April 2024
E-LTRP.3.5 of Appendix FM. An application before that date, if it succeeded, keeps the old threshold for later applications with the same partner.
- What a change of partner costs
- The transitional threshold is lost: an applicant applying with a new partner must meet the 29,000 pound requirement
E-LTRP.3.6 of Appendix FM in terms.
- Initial grant of entry clearance
- An initial period not exceeding 33 months
D-ECP.1.1 of Appendix FM. A fiance(e) or proposed civil partner is granted not more than 6 months instead, with a prohibition on employment.
- Extension grant
- A period not exceeding 30 months
D-LTRP.1.1 of Appendix FM.
- Qualifying period for settlement
- A continuous period of at least 5 years (60 months)
E-ILRP.1.3(1) of Appendix FM. Time as a fiance(e) or proposed civil partner is disregarded in that calculation.
- Public funds
- Every grant on this route is subject to a condition of no recourse to public funds
D-ECP.1.1 and D-LTRP.1.1 of Appendix FM say so in the same sentence that sets the period.
- English at entry
- A test in speaking and listening at a minimum of CEFR level A1, or a majority English speaking nationality, or a qualifying degree taught in English
E-ECP.4.1 of Appendix FM. Exemptions at E-ECP.4.2 cover applicants aged 65 or over, disability and exceptional circumstances.
- English and knowledge of life at settlement
- Sufficient knowledge of the English language and sufficient knowledge about life in the United Kingdom, in accordance with Appendix KoLL
E-ILRP.1.6 of Appendix FM. Appendix KoLL has not been read for this record.
Requirements
- A partner who is a British citizen, present and settled, holding protection status, holding limited leave under Appendix EU or Appendix ECAA, or holding permission as a stateless person
- Both parties aged 18 or over, having met in person, in a genuine and subsisting relationship, intending to live together permanently in the UK
- A specified gross annual income of at least 29,000 pounds, or specified savings, or the disability-benefit alternative
- English at CEFR A1 in speaking and listening, or a listed exemption
- Adequate accommodation for the family without recourse to public funds
In detail
Two thresholds, and which one you are under is set by a date
The Appendix publishes both the new financial requirement and the one it replaced, and the dividing line is whether the applicant made a successful application as a fiance(e), proposed civil partner or partner before 11 April 2024. Under the old test the figure starts at 18,600 pounds and rises with children: 3,800 pounds for the first and 2,400 pounds for each after. Under the new test it is a flat 29,000 pounds with no child element at all. The two cross over at two children: a couple with one child needs 22,400 pounds on the transitional test and 29,000 pounds on the new one, and a couple with four children needs 29,800 pounds on the transitional test, more than the new figure. The protection is also fragile. E-LTRP.3.6 says that an applicant applying with a new partner must meet the current requirement, so the transitional threshold belongs to the relationship rather than to the person.
The sponsor's income, not the household's
E-ECP.3.2 lists the only sources that count, and the list is narrower than readers expect. The applicant's own employment income counts only where their partner is returning to the UK with them; otherwise it is the partner's employment or self-employment, specified pension income, a short list of benefits, other specified income and savings. A couple where the applicant earns a large salary overseas and the British partner has just started a job in the UK is assessed on the British partner's salary. The disability alternative at E-ECP.3.3 is the only complete exit from the figure: where the partner receives one of fourteen named benefits, the test becomes adequate maintenance and accommodation without recourse to public funds.
Five years without a safety net
Every grant under D-ECP.1.1 and D-LTRP.1.1 is subject to a condition of no recourse to public funds, stated in the same sentence as the period. Over the sixty months to settlement that means the migrant partner is outside means-tested benefits and most housing assistance throughout, while the household has paid the immigration health surcharge for each grant of leave. A reader comparing this with the family routes of the European countries in this corpus should note the shape rather than only the figure: the United Kingdom sets one of the higher income thresholds and attaches a five-year exclusion from support to it, where several neighbours set a lower threshold and no such condition.
Exceptions by origin
No exceptions recorded
Nothing we have read treats any nationality differently for this topic. The rule above applies to everyone.
What the law says
«E-ECP.2.1. The applicant’s partner must be- 1. (a) a British Citizen in the UK, subject to paragraph GEN.1.3.(c); or 2. (b) present and settled in the UK, subject to paragraph GEN.1.3.(b); or 3. (c) in the UK with protection status; or 4. (d) in the UK with limited leave under Appendix EU, in accordance with paragraph GEN 1.3.(d); or 5. (e) in the UK with limited leave as a worker or business person under Appendix ECAA Extension of Stay, in accordance with paragraph GEN.1.3.(e); or 6. (f) in the UK with permission as a Stateless person. E-ECP.2.2. The applicant must be aged 18 or over at the date of application. E-ECP.2.3. The partner must be aged 18 or over at the date of application. E-ECP.2.4. The applicant and their partner must not be within the prohibited degree of relationship. E-ECP.2.5. The applicant and their partner must have met in person. E-ECP.2.6. The relationship between the applicant and their partner must be genuine and subsisting. E-ECP.2.7. If the applicant and partner are married or in a civil partnership it must be a valid marriage or civil partnership, as specified. E-ECP.2.8. If the applicant is a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner they must be seeking entry to the UK to enable their marriage or civil partnership to take place in the United Kingdom. E-ECP.2.9. (i) Any previous relationship of the applicant or their partner must have broken down permanently, unless it is a relationship which falls within paragraph 278(i) of these Rules; and (ii) If the applicant is a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner, neither the applicant nor their partner can be married to, or in a civil partnership with, another person at the date of application. E-ECP.2.10. The applicant and partner must intend to live together permanently in the UK.»The relationship test in full. E-ECP.2.5, that the parties must have met in person, is the one that catches couples who married by proxy or online. The numbering inside the quotation is the list markup of the published page.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«E-ECP.3.1. The applicant must provide specified evidence, from the sources listed in paragraph E-ECP.3.2., of: 1. (a) a specified gross annual income of at least £29,000 2. (b) specified savings of: 1. (i) £16,000; and 2. (ii) additional savings of an amount equivalent to 2.5 times the amount which is the difference between the gross annual income from the sources listed in paragraph E-ECP.3.2.(a)- (d) and the total amount required under paragraph E-ECP.3.1.(a); or 3. (c) the requirements in paragraph E-ECP.3.3. being met.»The current financial requirement, with the savings alternative and its 2.5 multiplier. The income is the sponsor's and the applicant's together only from the sources listed at E-ECP.3.2.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«E-ECP.3.2. When determining whether the financial requirement in paragraph E-ECP. 3.1. is met only the following sources will be taken into account- 1. (a) income of the partner from specified employment or self-employment, which, in respect of a partner returning to the UK with the applicant, can include specified employment or self-employment overseas and in the UK; 2. (b) specified pension income of the applicant and partner; 3. (c) any specified maternity allowance or bereavement benefit received by the partner in the UK or any specified payment relating to service in HM Forces received by the applicant or partner; 4. (d) other specified income of the applicant and partner; and 5. (e) specified savings of the applicant and partner.»A closed list of sources. An applicant's own overseas earnings are not on it, which is why a couple who both earn well abroad can still fail: only the partner's employment income counts, and only where they are returning to the UK with the applicant.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«E-ECP.3.3. The requirements to be met under this paragraph are- 1. (a) the applicant’s partner must be receiving one or more of the following - 01. (i) Disability Living Allowance; or 02. (ii) Severe Disablement Allowance; or 03. (iii) Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit; or 04. (iv) Attendance Allowance; or 05. (v) Carer’s Allowance; or 06. (vi) Personal Independence Payment; or 07. (vii) Armed Forces Independence Payment or Guaranteed Income Payment under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme; or 08. (viii) Constant Attendance Allowance, Mobility Supplement or War Disablement Pension under the War Pensions Scheme; or 09. (ix) Police Injury Pension; or 10. (x) Child Disability Payment (Scotland); or 11. (xi) Adult Disability Payment (Scotland); or 12. (xii) Carer’s Support Payment (Scotland); or 13. (xiii) Pension Age Disability Payment (Scotland); or 14. (xiv) Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance (Scotland); and»The disability route out of the income test. Where the partner receives one of these benefits the test becomes adequate maintenance without recourse to public funds instead of a figure.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«E-ECP.4.1. The applicant must provide specified evidence that they- 1. (a) are a national of a majority English speaking country listed in paragraph GEN.1.6.; 2. (b) have passed an English language test in speaking and listening at a minimum of level A1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages with a provider approved by the Secretary of State; 3. (c) have an academic qualification which is either a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree or PhD awarded by an educational establishment in the UK; or, if awarded by an educational establishment outside the UK, is deemed by the qualification and language assessments provider to meet or exceed the recognised standard of a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree or PhD in the UK, and the qualification and language assessments provider has confirmed that the degree was taught or researched in English to level A1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages or above; or 4. (d) are exempt from the English language requirement under paragraph E-ECP.4.2. E-ECP.4.2. The applicant is exempt from the English language requirement if at the date of application- 1. (a) the applicant is aged 65 or over; 2. (b) the applicant has a disability (physical or mental condition) which prevents the applicant from meeting the requirement; or 3. (c) there are exceptional circumstances which prevent the app»A1 in speaking and listening only, which is a far lower standard than the Student or Skilled Worker routes require, and lower than the B1 required at settlement.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«E-LTRP.3.5. A person who has permission as a partner on the five-year route to settlement, or as a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner, at the date of application, must meet the transitional financial requirement at E-LTRP.3.7. if they made an application for entry clearance or permission to stay as a fiancé(e), proposed civil partner or partner under Appendix FM before 11 April 2024, which was successful. E-LTRP.3.6. To fall within E-LTRP.3.5. the applicant must be applying for permission to stay with the same partner for which they were last granted permission. Those applying for permission to stay with a new partner must meet the financial requirement at E-LTRP.3.1. to E-LTRP.3.4. 1. E-LTRP.3.7. The applicant must provide specified evidence, from the sources listed in paragraph E-LTRP.3.2., of: 1. (a) a specified gross annual income of at least: 1. (i) £18,600; 2. (ii) an additional £3,800 for the first child; and 3. (iii)an additional £2,400 for each additional child; alone or in combination with»Two income tests live in the same appendix at the same time, divided by the date of the first application and by whether the partner is the same person.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«D-ECP.1.1. Except where paragraph GEN.3.1.(2) or GEN.3.2.(3) of this Appendix applies, an applicant who meets the requirements for entry clearance as a partner (other than as a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner) will be granted entry clearance for either an initial period not exceeding 33 months, or; where the sponsor has been granted 30 months’ permission on the basis of protection status, for a period which ends on the same date as the sponsor’s permission. Any grant of permission under this paragraph will be subject to a condition of no recourse to public funds, and they will be eligible to apply for settlement after a continuous period of at least 60 months in the UK with leave to enter granted on the basis of such entry clearance or with limited leave to remain as a partner granted under paragraph D-LTRP.1.1. (excluding in all cases any period of leave to enter or limited leave to remain as a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner); or, where the applicant is a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner, the applicant will be granted entry clearance for a period not exceeding 6 months, and subject to a prohibition on employment and a condition of no recourse to public funds.»Thirty-three months, then settlement after sixty. The arithmetic means a second application in between, with its own fee, its own health surcharge and its own financial test.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«D-LTRP.1.1. If the applicant meets the requirements in paragraph R-LTRP.1.1.(a) to (c) for limited leave to remain as a partner the applicant will be granted limited leave to remain for either a period not exceeding 30 months, or, where the sponsor has been granted 30 months’ permission on the basis of protection status, for a period which ends on the same date as the sponsor’s permission. Any grant of permission under this paragraph will be subject to a condition of no recourse to public funds, and they will be eligible to apply for settlement after a continuous period of at least 60 months with such leave or in the UK with leave to enter granted on the basis of entry clearance granted under paragraph D-ECP.1.1. (excluding in all cases any period of leave to enter or limited leave to remain as a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner); or, if paragraph E-LTRP.1.11. applies, the applicant will be granted limited leave for a period not exceeding 6 months and subject to a condition of no recourse to public funds and a prohibition on employment.»The extension grant, and the same no recourse to public funds condition attached in the same sentence.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«E-ILRP.1.3. (1) Subject to subparagraph (2), the applicant must, at the date of application, have completed a period of continuous residence in the UK of at least 5 years (60 months) with the following: 1. (a) leave to enter granted on the basis of entry clearance as a partner granted under paragraph D-ECP.1.1; or 2. (b) limited leave to remain as a partner granted under paragraph D-LTRP.1.1; or 3. (c) a combination of leave under (a) and (b). (1A) In respect of an application falling within subparagraph (1) above, the applicant must meet all the requirements of Section E-LTRP: Eligibility for leave to remain as a partner (except that paragraph E-LTRP.1.2. cannot be met on the basis set out in sub-paragraph (c), (d), (e) or (f) of that paragraph, and in applying paragraph E-LTRP.3.1.(b)(ii) or E-LTRP.3.7.(b)(ii) disregard the words “2.5 times”). (2) In calculating periods of leave for the purposes of subparagraph (1) above, any period of leave to enter or leave to remain as a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner will be disregarded.»Sub-paragraph (1A) is worth reading twice: at settlement the whole eligibility test is applied again, but the words "2.5 times" are disregarded in the savings calculation, which makes the savings route materially easier at the last step than at the first.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«E-ILRP.1.6. The applicant must have demonstrated sufficient knowledge of the English language and sufficient knowledge about life in the United Kingdom in accordance with the requirements of Appendix KoLL of these Rules.»The settlement language and knowledge test is in a different appendix from the entry test, and is not expressed as a CEFR level here.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
«GEN.3.1.(1) Where: 1. (a) the financial requirement in paragraph E-ECP.3.1., E-LTRP.3.1., E-LTRP.3.7. (in the context of an application for limited leave to remain as a partner), E-ECC.2.1., E-ECC.2.5., E-LTRC.2.1., or E-LTRC.2.5. applies, and is not met from the specified sources referred to in the relevant paragraph; and 2. (b) it is evident from the information provided by the applicant that there are exceptional circumstances which could render refusal of entry clearance or leave to remain a breach of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, because such refusal could result in unjustifiably harsh consequences for the applicant, their partner or a relevant child; then 2. the decision-maker must consider whether such financial requirement is met through taking into account the sources of income, financial support or funds set out in paragraph 21A(2) of Appendix FM-SE (subject to the considerations in sub-paragraphs (3) to (8) of that paragraph).»The exceptional circumstances valve. Where the financial requirement is not met from the specified sources and refusal could breach Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the decision maker must consider a wider set of sources. It is a duty to consider, not a duty to grant.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source
Practical notes
Appendix FM is read here as published by the Home Office on gov.uk on 10 October 2026. The page carries no version date; the most recent statement of changes on the department's own collection page when it was read is HC 584 of 3 September 2026.
The evidence rules for every financial test in this record are in Appendix FM-SE, which has not been read. Where Appendix FM says "specified evidence" or "specified savings", the specification is in that other appendix.
Appendix KoLL, which carries the settlement language and knowledge of life requirement, has not been read for this record.
This record covers the partner route. Appendix FM also contains routes for a child, for a parent of a child in the UK, for an adult dependent relative, and settlement routes for a bereaved partner and for a victim of domestic abuse, none of which has been read here.
There is a ten-year route to settlement for applicants who meet the requirements only through the exceptions at Section EX or through GEN.3.1 and GEN.3.2. Its length is not quoted in this record because the paragraph fixing it has not been read.
- issuesImmigration Rules Appendix FM: family members
Home Office (UK Visas and Immigration)
About this source
The department that lays the Immigration Rules before Parliament under section 3(2) of the Immigration Act 1971 and publishes them on gov.uk. The Rules - HC 395 as amended - are the operative law of almost every immigration route: the Acts set the framework and delegate, and what a person must actually satisfy is in an appendix. The consolidated appendices are served one per page under gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules, with an index page listing every Part and Appendix with a one-line description of each, which is the only published closed list of the routes that exist. Changes are made by a statement of changes laid before Parliament, and those are collected at gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-rules-statement-of-changes.
Standing: Issues the instrument
Cannot be cited for: No appendix page carries a version date or an in-force date on its face. The only way to date the text is the statement of changes collection, which gives the most recent statement laid but not which appendix it touched, so a citation to an appendix can be dated only to "the consolidation current at or after HC <n> of <date>". The Rules are not enacted: Parliament may disapprove a statement but does not pass it, so this is a department publishing its own rules and the site is both the issuer and the only publisher of the consolidated text - there is no independent consolidation to check it against. A closed route is hollowed rather than removed: the headings for Tier 1 (Investor), Tier 1 (General) and retired persons of independent means still stand above paragraphs reading DELETED, so the presence of a heading proves nothing. It is not a source for departmental guidance, for fees, for sponsor licensing decisions or for the lists of endorsing bodies, approved tests and designated institutions that the Rules make load-bearing and publish elsewhere.
We re-read it every 45 days. More about this source