Lower the Income Requirement for Spouse/Family Visas


Lower the Income Requirement for Spouse/Family Visas
The Issue
The current income requirement for British citizens to bring their non-EU spouses to the UK is £18,600. According to the BBC, 'the Migration Observatory estimates 51% of working people in Wales do not earn enough to meet the new requirements.' Across the UK, that figure is 47%. Britons earning minimum wage should have the right to a family.
The High Courts suggested £13,000 — still above National Minimum Wage — which is being appealed by the Home Office as too low. Meanwhile, members of the EU with non-EU spouses and children are not subject to any income requirement. British citizens should not be punished for the porous borders the EU has created.
As the Home Secretary, Theresa May, said herself, 'Equality is not an aside for me; it is not an after-thought or a secondary consideration. It is at the heart of what this coalition government is about.' However, these current laws openly discriminate against the poor.
We propose lowering the income requirement so that citizens working full-time (37 hours) on a minimum wage salary can be with their families — £12,140.
YOU CAN HELP
1. Sign and share the petition.
2. Find your MP (http://findyourmp.parliament.uk/) and write him/her a letter or email asking for action on this issue. Feel free to borrow information and wording from this petition.
The Issue
The current income requirement for British citizens to bring their non-EU spouses to the UK is £18,600. According to the BBC, 'the Migration Observatory estimates 51% of working people in Wales do not earn enough to meet the new requirements.' Across the UK, that figure is 47%. Britons earning minimum wage should have the right to a family.
The High Courts suggested £13,000 — still above National Minimum Wage — which is being appealed by the Home Office as too low. Meanwhile, members of the EU with non-EU spouses and children are not subject to any income requirement. British citizens should not be punished for the porous borders the EU has created.
As the Home Secretary, Theresa May, said herself, 'Equality is not an aside for me; it is not an after-thought or a secondary consideration. It is at the heart of what this coalition government is about.' However, these current laws openly discriminate against the poor.
We propose lowering the income requirement so that citizens working full-time (37 hours) on a minimum wage salary can be with their families — £12,140.
YOU CAN HELP
1. Sign and share the petition.
2. Find your MP (http://findyourmp.parliament.uk/) and write him/her a letter or email asking for action on this issue. Feel free to borrow information and wording from this petition.
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Petition created on 20 December 2013