Our response to the review of the minimum income requirement

The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has reviewed the financial requirements for British citizens and settled individuals seeking to bring partners and children to the UK. 

The Government asked the MAC to advise on how to set a minimum income requirement (MIR) for the Family route that balances economic wellbeing and family life. The MAC declined to recommend a specific income threshold, stating this is a political and ethical decision for the Government to make itself.
 
Crucially, the review rejected the previous government's proposal to raise the MIR to £38,700 to match the Skilled Worker threshold, noting:

“We do not understand the rationale for the threshold being set using this method... [It] is unrelated to the Family route and is the most likely to conflict with international law and obligations (e.g. Article 8 of the ECHR).”

Instead, the MAC outlined a range of potential thresholds between £19,000 and £28,000, depending on policy priorities. It also acknowledged the profound negative impacts of the MIR, particularly on children and their mental health, noting how family separation leads to serious emotional distress and long-term harm.

In our submission to the MAC’s call for evidence - one of 36 organisational contributions - we also highlighted the deep harm caused by this policy. The MIR disproportionately affects women, part-time workers, young people and ethnic minorities. We regularly support clients who have been separated from loved ones purely because of income levels. Children grow up without parents, and families suffer immense emotional strain.

The MAC estimated that lowering the threshold from £29,000 to £24,000 would increase net migration by only around 8,000 people, just 1–3% of projected future net migration. The idea that such a small change in migration numbers could justify the government continuing to separatie families is deeply concerning. It highlights the extent to which this policy prioritises numerical targets over family life and common sense.

Fundamentally, we believe family life should not depend on income. The MIR is a cruel and counterproductive policy that damages mental health, undermines integration, and violates the basic right to family unity.

Even politicians with hostile views on immigration, such as (previously Reform) MP Rupert Lowe, have publicly criticised the MIR as “expensive,” “stressful,” and “disrespectful” to British citizens. This cross-party consensus reflects a growing understanding that the MIR is both unfair and unsustainable.

Now that the MAC has confirmed this is a political choice, Labour must act. Reducing the threshold is not enough. The Minimum Income Requirement should be scrapped entirely in favour of a system that respects the right to family life regardless of income.