Non-Employment Income Documents for British Spouse Visa Applications

 Non-Employment Income Documents for British Spouse Visa Applications

This article is part 3 of 6 of ‘What are the Supporting Documents to Prove the UK Spouse Visa Financial Requirement?’ article series.

You can read the first article from this series HERE. And the second one is HERE.

I’ve also created the online course, explaining how UK partners can meet the financial requirement and what information you need to provide with the application to increase your chances to succeed in the application. You can find out more about the course HERE.

Now let us have a look at specific documents, which you should consider submitting with the application if you have a ‘non-employment’ income (Category C).

 

What is Non-Employment Income?

In very generic terms, non-employment income is income that does not come from your employment.

The Home Office provided a detailed list of what this may be:

• property rental
• dividends or other income from investments, stocks and shares, bonds or trust funds
• interest from savings
• maintenance payments from a former partner (you’ll to have permission from the family court to disclose any documents)
• maintenance payments from a former partner
• UK Maternity Allowance, Bereavement Allowance, Bereavement Payment and
• Widowed Parent’s Allowance
• payments under the War Pensions Scheme, the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and the Armed Forces Attributable Benefits Scheme
• a maintenance grant or stipend (not a loan) associated with undergraduate study or postgraduate study or research
• insurance payments
• payments from a structured legal settlement
• ongoing royalty payments

 

Sale of Assets

Suppose you sell a property or land or some other assets. Will the Home Office accept this as your non-employment income? No, it won’t. However, the UKVI will accept evidence of profit from selling a business, property, investment, bond, stocks, shares or other assets as your cash savings.

I’ll discuss cash savings (Category D) in my next article. You’ll need to check that you can combine cash savings with your other source/s of income. I’ve explained the rules of combining income in the online course. You should be particularly careful if you are self-employed. It is because those in self-employment cannot combine their income from self-employment with cash.

 

Maternity, Paternity or Adoption Pay

If you are receiving statutory or contractual maternity, paternity or adoption pay, you’ll need to provide all of the following documents:

Personal Bank Statements

The statements will need to correspond to the same period(s) as the payslips. They’ll need to show that the salary has been paid into an account in your name, in the name of your partner or in a joint account.

Payslips

Your payslips will need to cover six months before the date of application. Alternatively, the payslip will need to evidence the commencement of the maternity, paternity or adoption leave if you were the same employer for at least six months.

If you were with the same employer for less than six months, this period is

twelve months before the date of application.

 

A letter from the employer

This letter will need to confirm four points:

• the length of the person’s employment;
• the gross annual salary and the period over which it has been paid at this level;
• the entitlement to maternity, paternity, parental or adoption leave; and
• the date of commencement and the end-date of the maternity, paternity, parental or adoption leave.

 

Paragraph 9(a) Companies Dividends

I’ve explained what paragraph 9 (a) companies are in my previous article.

If you are not sure what paragraph 9(a) company is, you may check the definition there.

If you receive dividends from a paragraph 9A company, you’ll need to provide all of the following documents:

• Dividend vouchers for all dividends declared in your favour during or in respect of the period covered by the Company Tax Return CT600. These vouchers will need to show the company’s and your details with your net dividend amount
• Personal bank statement(s) showing that you were receiving those dividends into an account in your name or the name of your partner or jointly.

 

Property Rental

To prove your property rental income, you’ll need to submit:

Property Ownership Documents

Confirmation that you or your partner (or jointly) own the property for which the rental income is received, through:

• A copy of the title deeds of the property or the title register from the Land Registry (or overseas equivalent); or
• A mortgage statement.

 

Bank Statements

Your personal bank statements for or from the 12-month period before the date of application. These statements will need to show the income relied upon was paid into your or your partner’s or a joint account.

 

A Rental Agreement or Contract

With your British Spouse Visa application, you’ll also need to submit a valid rental agreement.

 

Dividends

If you are getting dividends (not from a paragraph 9a company) or other income from investments, stocks, shares, bonds or trust funds, you’ll need to submit all of the following:

• A certificate showing proof of ownership and the amount(s) of any investment(s)
• A portfolio report. For a financial institution, it has to be regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Alternatively, the Prudential Regulation Authority can regulate the institution in the UK. Alternatively, this can be a dividend voucher showing the company and your details with your net dividend amount
• personal bank statements for or from the 12-month period before the date of application showing that your income was paid into an account in your or your partner’s or joint names
• Where you are a director of a limited company based in the UK, you’ll also need to provide evidence to prove that your company is not a paragraph 9(a) company. This can include (but not limited to) the latest Annual Return filed at Companies House.

 

Interest from Savings

To evidence interest from savings, you’ll need to provide your personal bank statements for or from the 12-month period before the date of application. These statements will need to show the amount of the savings you have in your bank account and that the interest was paid into an account in your or your spouse’s name jointly.

 

Maintenance Payments

Maintenance payments are typically from a former partner to support you and children from a previous marriage. For the Home Office to accept these payments towards meeting the financial requirements of your British spouse application, you’ll need to provide two types of documents:

 

1. A document reflecting the details of a maintenance agreement It can be a court order or some form of a written voluntary agreement. Alternatively, it can be child support agency documentation.

 

2. The UKVI will also want to see your personal bank statements for or from the 12-month period before the date of application. These statements will need to show the income you relied upon and that it was paid into your/your spouse’s/joint account.

Allowances

What sort of allowances will the UKVI allow? It will probably help if we identify which allowances the decision-makers will always disregard/not allow when assessing the financial requirement of the application.

When calculating income to meet the financial requirement of UK partners visa application, the decision-maker will not consider and entirely disregard:

• Loans and credit facilities
• Income-related benefits: Income Support, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Pension Credit, Housing Benefit, Council Tax Benefit or Support (or any equivalent) and income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Contributory benefits: contribution-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance and Incapacity Benefit
• Unemployability Allowance, Allowance for a Lowered Standard of Occupation and Invalidity Allowance under the War Pension Scheme
• Child Benefit
• Working Tax Credit
• Child Tax Credit; and also
• Universal Credit

However, they will consider allowances, which you are/were receiving not due to low income, but as a result of some event in your life. For example, they’ll allow UK Maternity allowance, Bereavement allowance, Bereavement payment and Widowed Parent’s allowance.

To evidence the allowable allowances, you’ll need to provide two types of documents:

• Department for Work and Pensions documentation confirming that you or your partner are or were in receipt of the allowable benefit in the 12-month period before the date of application.
• your/your partner’s/joint personal bank statements for or from the 12-month period before the date of application showing that you were receiving this income into the account.

 

Payment Schemes

Payment scheme may include, but are not limited to payments under the War Pensions Scheme, the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme or the Armed Forces Attributable Benefits Scheme. It is provided these schemes are not treated as a pension.

For you to relay on these payments, when proving that you meet the financial requirements of your UK Spouse Visa application, you’ll need to provide only two types of documents:

• Veterans Agency or Department for Work and Pensions documentation. This should be in the form of an award notification letter confirming the person or their partner is or was in receipt of the payment at the date of application
• your/your partner’s/joint personal bank statements for or from the 12-month period before the date of application showing that the Income from the allowable scheme was paid into the account.

 

Grant or Stipend

If you received a maintenance grant or stipend (not a loan) associated with undergraduate study or postgraduate study or research, you can rely on it when proving the financial element of your British spouse visa application.

First of all, you’ll need to check if your grant of a stipend is gross or net. I’ve provided the conversion table in the online course on “How to Meet the Financial Requirement of Your British Spouse Visa Application when Applying from Outside the UK”. Where the grant or stipend is or will be paid on a tax-free basis, the amount of the gross equivalent may be counted as your income.

Then you’ll need to provide the documents. The Home Office will accept:

• a letter (or any other official document) from the body or company awarding the grant or stipend. In this letter, the writer will need to confirm that:
  • you are currently in receipt of the grant or stipend or will be within three months of the application date.
  • the grant or stipend will be paid for at least 12 months. Alternatively, that you are going to receive it for at least one full academic year from the date of application. Or, this can be from the date on which payment of the grant or stipend will commence.
  • this letter will also need to include details of the annual amount of your grant or stipend.

• your/your partner’s/joint personal bank statements for any part of the 12-month period before the date of the application during which you have been in receipt of the grant or stipend showing the Income was paid into the account.

 

 

Insurance Payments

To relay on ongoing insurance payments when proving that you meet the financial requirement of UK Spouse visa application, you’ll need to provide:

A Letter from the Insurance Company

This letter will need to confirm:

• • that in the 12 months before the application date you have been in receipt of insurance payments. Also, this letter will need to show the amount and frequency of the payments
  • the reason for the payments and their expected duration
  • that, provided any relevant terms and conditions continue to be met, the payment(s) will continue for at least the 12 months following the date of application

 

Bank Statements

You’ll also need to provide your/your partner’s/ joint personal bank statements for or from the 12-month period before the application date showing that you received the insurance payments into the account.

 

Structured Legal Settlement Payments

There may be all sort of structured legal settlement payments. For example, these can be settlements arising from the settlement of a personal injury claim.

For you to rely on these types of payments, you’ll need to provide:

1. documentation from a court or your legal representative confirming:
   • that in the 12 months before the date of application you have been in receipt of structured legal settlement payments and the amount and frequency of those payments
   • the reason for the payments and their expected duration
   • that the payment(s) will continue for at least the 12 months following the date of application.

2. your/your partner’s/joint personal bank statements for or from the 12-month period before the date of application showing that you were getting these payments into the account, either directly or via your legal representative.

 

About this Article and How to Get Further Help

This article is a part of the article/video series : “What are the Supporting Documents to Prove the UK Spouse Visa Financial Requirement?’

This article/video series consists of the following six parts:

 

1. General Rules for All Categories
2. Employment Income Documents for British Spouse Visa Applications (Categories A and B)
3. Non-Employment Income Documents for British Spouse Visa Applications (Category C)
4. Cash Savings – Documents to Provide with Your UK Spouse Visa Application (Category D)
5. Pension Income and the Exempt Category- Documents to Provide with UK Spouse Visa application (Category E and exempt category)
6. Self-Employment – Documents to Provide with UK Spouse Visa application (Categories F and G)

I’ve written the above articles and created six videos to help you understand the nature of UK Spouse visa applications. A number of people find this very of law to be very confusing. These articles clarify which documents you need to submit to prove that you meet the financial requirement of your UK Spouse visa application.

Further Help

And finally, if you are thinking of submitting your UK Partner visa application in near future, first of all, you need to understand the rules of the game. At THIS PAGE you’ll get access to ‘How to Meet the Financial Requirement of Your British Spouse Visa Application when Applying from Outside the UK’ online course. This course will help you dramatically reduce the chances of the refusal of your UK spouse visa application. As after attending the course you’ll understand the financial requirements you need to satisfy in order to succeed.