By Habeeb Ibrahim
The United Kingdom has announced plans to allow eligible migrant couples to combine their earnings to meet the financial requirements for permanent settlement, in a move that could benefit families, including Nigerians living and working in the country.
Under the proposed Earned Settlement framework, couples will be able to use their combined household income to satisfy the minimum economic contribution requirement rather than requiring each partner to meet the individual earnings threshold.
The household income threshold has been set at £25,142, representing twice the individual minimum income requirement of £12,571.
According to the policy document, either partner can meet the entire household income requirement through their earnings, or both can combine their incomes to reach the threshold.
This means a partner who works fewer hours or temporarily leaves employment to care for children, elderly relatives or family members with disabilities will not necessarily be required to earn the individual minimum of £12,571, provided the couple meets the combined threshold.
The government said the arrangement recognises the different responsibilities within families and the fact that couples often make joint decisions about employment and caregiving.
It added that the household income threshold would remain twice the individual rate and would change in line with future adjustments to the National Insurance threshold.
However, the arrangement will only apply to couples in genuine and subsisting relationships, while only one partner will be allowed to rely on the other’s income for the purpose of meeting the requirement.
Meanwhile, Nigerian care workers who entered or switched into the UK’s care worker immigration route before the publication of the government’s Immigration White Paper in May 2025 may retain the existing five-year pathway to settlement.
Under the transitional arrangement, affected Nigerian care workers can continue to qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) after five years, provided they meet the applicable immigration and settlement conditions.
These include earning the specified annual salary threshold of £25,000, maintaining genuine sponsored employment and complying with sponsorship and employment requirements.
They must also satisfy strengthened criminality and English language requirements, alongside other mandatory settlement conditions.
The policy, however, clarifies that completing five years in the UK does not automatically guarantee permanent residency, as applicants must still meet all the applicable requirements.
The changes form part of the UK government’s wider Earned Settlement framework, which seeks to make permanent residency dependent on applicants meeting specified economic and other qualifying conditions.
