Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons guidance was removed from her Department's website that stated that non-EU spouses of British nationals would not be disadvantaged in their application for a spouse visa if they cannot meet their income requirement due to the covid-19 outbreak.
The Home Office has put in place a range of measures to support those affected by the Covid-19 outbreak. We continue to monitor the situation closely and take these exceptional circumstances into account.
To ensure a spouse or partner applying for entry clearance, leave to remain or indefinite leave are not unduly affected by circumstances beyond their control, for the purpose of the minimum income requirement:
The minimum income requirement can also be met in several ways in addition to or instead of income from employment or self-employment. For example, income from the couple’s investments, property rental or pension may also be taken into account, together with their cash savings.
These concessions are set out for customers on GOV.UK and are available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-advice-for-uk-visa-applicants-and-temporary-uk-residents.
An earlier draft of the guidance was uploaded to GOV.UK, but was quickly replaced with the correct version, thereby ensuring our guidance is as clear as possible on how a spouse or partner will not be disadvantaged.