# Rental income and minimum financial requirement



## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

Hello, 

Have been searching online and on the UK immi website, but unable to find a consistent answer for this one...

Can rental income count toward, or make up the entire, minimum financial requirement for a spouse visa application?

My partner, a UK citizen, owns two properties. One he rents out and one he lives in. His currently salary is above the £18,600 threshold, but if he was to, say, move to Australia with me (an Australian citizen) for a year (during which time we will be married), could his rental income on the two places while he is away be counted to meet the requirement?

The two rental incomes combined would be above £18,600.


Can the entire requirement be made up of rental income?
Can the whole rental income be counted, or is it what's left after tax, management/agent fees are taken out?
Does rent have to be coming in consistently for a required period of time?
What kind of proof would be required?
Anything else we need to know that I am missing?

We're just looking an an alternative option that wouldn't require him going back to the UK without me for 6+ months while he finds a job with an annual salary of £18,600+, then works that job for six months before I can apply for a spouse visa.

Thanks in advance!


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## clever-octopus (May 17, 2015)

Yes, you can indeed meet the financial requirement entirely through rental income. The gross amount (before deductions for taxes, mortgage payments, etc.) is used. It doesn't need to be consistent income (for instance, you can use profits from a holiday rental) as long as it meets the financial requirement over the course of the past 12 months. 

Evidence needed:



> (a) To evidence property rental income:
> (i) Confirmation that the person or the person and their partner jointly own the property
> for which the rental income is received, through:
> (1) A copy of the title deeds of the property or of the title register from the Land Registry
> ...


All of this information can be found in the financial requirement guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploa...708/Appendix_FM_1_7_Financial_Requirement.pdf


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## nyclon (Apr 3, 2011)

However, if you intend to occupy one of the properties this isn't going to work. The assumption is that the rental income will continue at a level of £18, 600/year or more once you return to the UK.


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

clever-octopus said:


> Yes, you can indeed meet the financial requirement entirely through rental income. The gross amount (before deductions for taxes, mortgage payments, etc.) is used. It doesn't need to be consistent income (for instance, you can use profits from a holiday rental) as long as it meets the financial requirement over the course of the past 12 months.
> 
> Evidence needed:
> 
> ...



Thanks clever-octopus - I had read that on the immi site, but wanted to be sure I was understanding in correctly. Some other sources I found were saying that you could only count profit - ie only what you were making after deductions. 

So to be sure I am definitely giving him the correct information - if he rents out both his properties and comes to live with me in Australia for around 12 months - and the total rent taken from the two properties (before any agent fees, tax or mortgage payments etc are taken out) is £18,600 or above for the 12 months before I apply for the spouse visa - even if there are periods in those 12 months where there are vacancies at the properties - then I can apply for a spouse visa before we return to the UK and we could return together (rather than him have to go back and work six months in a £18,600+ job)?

Is there anything he needs to do to ensure the income is counted towards the minimum income requirement, other than ensuring he's paying tax on the rental income?


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

nyclon said:


> However, if you intend to occupy one of the properties this isn't going to work. The assumption is that the rental income will continue at a level of £18, 600/year or more once you return to the UK.


Ah ha - ok. That's good to know. Thank you. So would he need to be working in a £18,600+ pa job for 6 months before we could move back into one of the properties? ie the only way this idea of using his rental income as the financial requirement would work is if we rented/stayed with family until he'd been working for 6 months?


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

clever-octopus said:


> Yes, you can indeed meet the financial requirement entirely through rental income. The gross amount (before deductions for taxes, mortgage payments, etc.) is used. It doesn't need to be consistent income (for instance, you can use profits from a holiday rental) as long as it meets the financial requirement over the course of the past 12 months.
> 
> Evidence needed:
> 
> ...


Hi again clever-octopus, further to the last two questions I asked you, which were...



> So to be sure I am definitely giving him the correct information - if he rents out both his properties and comes to live with me in Australia for around 12 months - and the total rent taken from the two properties (before any agent fees, tax or mortgage payments etc are taken out) is £18,600 or above for the 12 months before I apply for the spouse visa - even if there are periods in those 12 months where there are vacancies at the properties - then I can apply for a spouse visa before we return to the UK and we could return together (rather than him have to go back and work six months in a £18,600+ job)?


and



> Is there anything he needs to do to ensure the income is counted towards the minimum income requirement, other than ensuring he's paying tax on the rental income?



...is it possible to use a combination of rental income and savings?

And finally, given you can't move back into the property upon return to the UK if you are using the rental income for your minimum financial requirements, as per nyclon's advice above, do you know at what point you can move back into the property? For example, could we move back into one of his properties if he was working in a £18,600+ pa job for 6 months? ie the only way that using his rental income as the financial requirement would work is if we rented/stayed with family until he'd been working for 6 months? 

I hope I have explained myself clearly.

Thanks in advance for your help.


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

Hi again, 

Just wondering if anyone can answer these questions? I have been reading over the Financial Requirement document from the UK immi site and trawling these forums and Google, but can't find the specific answers I need. 

This is regarding my fiance renting out his two properties in the UK while we spend a year or so in Australia (during which time we will get married). We would then like to return to the UK with me applying for a spouse visa.

1. Given you can't move back into a property in the UK that you have been using as rental income to meet the financial requirements, is there a point after the spouse application has been approved that we could move back into one of the properties? For example, could we rent a place for six months then movie back in to one of his properties? Or could we move back in after he/me has been working in £18,600+ pa job for 6 months? Can't find anything at all that gives any sort of advice if moving back into a property used for rental income is an option.

2 Is the rental income that can be counted definitely the amount before taxes, mortgage, agent fees etc. are taken out. So if he will make £18,600 in rental income on both properties, but after all the mortgage, fees etc come out, that goes down to £10,000, will that still be ok?

3. Is there anything he needs to do to ensure the income is counted towards the minimum income requirement, other than ensuring he's paying tax on the rental income?

4. If the £18,600 minimum requirement happens to go up while we are overseas, can we use rental income + another income source? What other sources can be counted? Would his/my income in Australia count?

5. At what point would I be looking to apply for the spouse visa if we wanted to be going back to the UK at the same (or spending as little time apart as possible)?

6. What is the 'usual' path people take in this situation? I actually thought it would be common for people to rent out properties while living overseas and use that income to meet the financial requirements, then go back to live in the UK, but there is definitely a lack of information or personal experiences about this online!

Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated as this will be a big decider on whether we settle in Australia for a year or so before we move back to the Uk.

Thank you SO MUCH in advance!


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## TazCaz (Dec 11, 2013)

clever-octopus said:


> Yes, you can indeed meet the financial requirement entirely through rental income. The gross amount (before deductions for taxes, mortgage payments, etc.) is used. It doesn't need to be consistent income (for instance, you can use profits from a holiday rental) as long as it meets the financial requirement over the course of the past 12 months.



Hi clever-octopus, if you have a spare moment, would you mind having a look at my reply to your comments from a couple of days ago? I summarised my questions hopefully more clearly in my follow-up post yesterday. I apologise for bothering you - I know you are very busy on these forums!


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## pedrodssa (Nov 24, 2017)

clever-octopus said:


> Yes, you can indeed meet the financial requirement entirely through rental income. The gross amount (before deductions for taxes, mortgage payments, etc.) is used. It doesn't need to be consistent income (for instance, you can use profits from a holiday rental) as long as it meets the financial requirement over the course of the past 12 months.
> 
> 
> 
> Does overseas rental income tax return evidence need to be provided as supporting documentation?


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## pedrodssa (Nov 24, 2017)

Anyone?

I am applying under Cat B + C ( Overseas Rental Income ).

My partner and I own an investment property in Australia which will be used to meet the financial requirement. This property is rented out via real estate agent who provides us monthly rental invoices.

I am supplying the following supporting docs:

1. Tenancy Agreement
2. 12 months Bank Statements
3. Copy of Property Title
4. 12 Rent Invoices ( showing gross rent minus management fee matching what is shown on bank statements )

Do I need to supply my tax return showing taxes paid on this source of income?

Thanks


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