Asked by: Baroness Benjamin (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of changes to the ability of those on student visas to bring dependants to the UK on the ability of those in the Caribbean to access higher education in the UK.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Nationals of Caribbean countries remain able to apply for permission to come to the UK to study at our higher education institutions, including through the Student route. The change referred to has no direct impact on the ability of any national to apply for the Student route.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of family migration on levels of net migration beyond the original principal applicant.
Answered by Jo White - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government's Immigration White Paper, published last year, highlighted the growth in work visas in recent years, particularly in medium-skilled roles, and the associated growth in dependent visas. That is why the Government acted to restrict workers sponsored in medium-skilled roles from bringing dependants and introduced new language requirements for dependants.
Those work and study visa holders who are able to bring dependants can only sponsor their partners/spouses and dependent children under age 18, not wider family members.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what analysis is undertaken of the long-term immigration consequences of granting Family and other Dependent Visas linked to work and study routes.
Answered by Jo White - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government's Immigration White Paper, published last year, highlighted the growth in work visas in recent years, particularly in medium-skilled roles, and the associated growth in dependent visas. That is why the Government acted to restrict workers sponsored in medium-skilled roles from bringing dependants and introduced new language requirements for dependants.
Those work and study visa holders who are able to bring dependants can only sponsor their partners/spouses and dependent children under age 18, not wider family members.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of Family and Dependent Visa arrangements on incentives for chain migration.
Answered by Jo White - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government's Immigration White Paper, published last year, highlighted the growth in work visas in recent years, particularly in medium-skilled roles, and the associated growth in dependent visas. That is why the Government acted to restrict workers sponsored in medium-skilled roles from bringing dependants and introduced new language requirements for dependants.
Those work and study visa holders who are able to bring dependants can only sponsor their partners/spouses and dependent children under age 18, not wider family members.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, published on 30 June 2026, whether the Department modelled the impact of different household sizes when estimating the fiscal effects of Article 8 appeals; and if so, what assumptions were used.
Answered by Jo White - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
In the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, the costs and benefits associated with the Article 8 reforms have been quantified for the individuals directly impacted. Table 13 in Appendix A1 states that 81% of in-country family and private life visa grants were main applicants and 19% were dependants.
The Impact Assessment sets out a lifetime fiscal cost of -£141,000 per main applicant on the Family and Private Life route. In line with the Migration Advisory Committee’s methodology for estimating the lifetime fiscal impact of family partner visas, which did not account for the dependants of these main applicants, the equivalent lifetime fiscal cost of dependants has not been calculated, either for Article 8 or Asylum claimants.
The analysis produced by the Migration Advisory Committee can be found at:
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, published on 30 June 2026, what estimate has been made of the average number of dependants assumed for each successful Article 8 claimant in the fiscal modelling.
Answered by Jo White - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
In the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, the costs and benefits associated with the Article 8 reforms have been quantified for the individuals directly impacted. Table 13 in Appendix A1 states that 81% of in-country family and private life visa grants were main applicants and 19% were dependants.
The Impact Assessment sets out a lifetime fiscal cost of -£141,000 per main applicant on the Family and Private Life route. In line with the Migration Advisory Committee’s methodology for estimating the lifetime fiscal impact of family partner visas, which did not account for the dependants of these main applicants, the equivalent lifetime fiscal cost of dependants has not been calculated, either for Article 8 or Asylum claimants.
The analysis produced by the Migration Advisory Committee can be found at:
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, published on 30 June 2026, what estimate has been made of the average cost to the public purse of dependants remaining in the United Kingdom.
Answered by Jo White - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
In the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, the costs and benefits associated with the Article 8 reforms have been quantified for the individuals directly impacted. Table 13 in Appendix A1 states that 81% of in-country family and private life visa grants were main applicants and 19% were dependants.
The Impact Assessment sets out a lifetime fiscal cost of -£141,000 per main applicant on the Family and Private Life route. In line with the Migration Advisory Committee’s methodology for estimating the lifetime fiscal impact of family partner visas, which did not account for the dependants of these main applicants, the equivalent lifetime fiscal cost of dependants has not been calculated, either for Article 8 or Asylum claimants.
The analysis produced by the Migration Advisory Committee can be found at:
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, published on 30 June 2026, what estimate has been made of the average lifetime fiscal impact of (a) a single asylum claimant, (b) an asylum claimant with a partner and (c) an asylum claimant with a partner and dependent children.
Answered by Jo White - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
In the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, the costs and benefits associated with the Article 8 reforms have been quantified for the individuals directly impacted. Table 13 in Appendix A1 states that 81% of in-country family and private life visa grants were main applicants and 19% were dependants.
The Impact Assessment sets out a lifetime fiscal cost of -£141,000 per main applicant on the Family and Private Life route. In line with the Migration Advisory Committee’s methodology for estimating the lifetime fiscal impact of family partner visas, which did not account for the dependants of these main applicants, the equivalent lifetime fiscal cost of dependants has not been calculated, either for Article 8 or Asylum claimants.
The analysis produced by the Migration Advisory Committee can be found at:
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, published on 30 June 2026, what estimate has been made of the average net fiscal impact on the public purse of each additional dependant associated with an asylum claimant.
Answered by Jo White - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
In the Immigration and Asylum Bill 2026: Impact Assessment, the costs and benefits associated with the Article 8 reforms have been quantified for the individuals directly impacted. Table 13 in Appendix A1 states that 81% of in-country family and private life visa grants were main applicants and 19% were dependants.
The Impact Assessment sets out a lifetime fiscal cost of -£141,000 per main applicant on the Family and Private Life route. In line with the Migration Advisory Committee’s methodology for estimating the lifetime fiscal impact of family partner visas, which did not account for the dependants of these main applicants, the equivalent lifetime fiscal cost of dependants has not been calculated, either for Article 8 or Asylum claimants.
The analysis produced by the Migration Advisory Committee can be found at:
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January 2026 to Question 107232 on Veterans: Visas, whether it remains his policy to waive applicable fees for Indefinite Leave to Remain for the spouses and children or current and former personnel who have served for more than four years.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
This Government remains fully committed to delivering the manifesto commitment to scrap visa fees for non‑UK veterans who have served for four years or more, and their dependants. This work is ongoing, and the Department will update Parliament in the usual way once cross Government decisions have been finalised.