Why UK’s new immigration curbs will will be crushing for those hoping to reunite their families

The government has announced a host of new restrictions aimed at cutting net migration to the United Kingdom. Headline announcements include increasing the salary requirements for skilled foreign workers from £26,200 to £38,700, and banning health and care workers from bringing family dependants to the UK.

In the fine print is a doubling of the minimum income requirement, or MIR, for family visas to £38,700. This means that many British citizens will be unable to bring their non-British spouse or partner to the UK. If implemented, it will cause the separation of thousands of couples and of children and parents.

The UK already has the second-most restrictive family immigration regime in Europe, if not the world. The MIR was first introduced to the UK immigration rules in 2012 at £18,600 per annum. At that time, this was above the income of 47% of the UK adult population overall, and an even higher proportion of women, young people, some ethnic groups and those outside south-east England.

Its impact on families was devastating. By 2015, an estimated 15,000 children had been affected because the family couldn’t meet the requirements for reunification in Britain. Foreign parents remained stuck overseas (with or without their children), and many thousands of children were separated from them.

Although average wages have since...

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