Meridian · Freshness tracker

What's changed.

Dated updates to visa, tax, residency, citizenship, housing, and labour policy across every country tracked. Every entry cites its primary source and the date we last verified it.

Subscribe via RSS ↗ · 4 entries shown

Country All countriesAQAntarcticaAUAustraliaBRBrazilCACanadaCNChina (Mainland)EGEgyptFRFranceDEGermanyHKHong KongIEIrelandITItalyJPJapanMXMexicoMAMoroccoNLNetherlandsNZNew ZealandPTPortugalSGSingaporeZASouth AfricaKRSouth KoreaESSpainAEUnited Arab EmiratesGBUnited KingdomUSUnited States
Category All categoriesVisa & immigrationResidencyCitizenshipTaxationLabourHousingHealthcareOther
In force 10 Jun 2025
Announced Residency

Migration Advisory Committee recommends reducing family-visa threshold

The MAC's statutory review of the family-visa financial requirement, published in June 2025, concluded that the £29,000 threshold is high by international standards and recommended a more reasonable range of £23,000–£25,000 for most partners. The Labour government is considering the recommendations; no implementation decision has been published as of April 2026.

Who it affects: UK residents planning future partner-visa applications; signals potential near-term reduction.

Migration Advisory Committee ↗ · House of Commons Library — Research Briefings ↗ · verified 2026-04-19

In force 22 Jul 2024
Repealed Residency

Rwanda removals scheme formally abandoned by Labour government

Shortly after taking office, the Labour government formally ended the UK–Rwanda asylum-removals scheme. Planned removals did not take place; Rwanda-scheme infrastructure and associated Treaty arrangements were wound down. Related components of the Illegal Migration Act that depended on the scheme became operationally inert.

Who it affects: Asylum-seeker processing; broader political signalling on asylum policy direction.

GOV.UK — Home Office ↗ · House of Commons Library — Research Briefings ↗ · verified 2026-04-19

In force 11 Apr 2024
In force Residency

Family visa minimum income threshold raised from £18,600 to £29,000

Effective 11 April 2024, the income threshold for sponsoring a partner on a family visa rose from £18,600 (in place since 2012) to £29,000. The previous Conservative government committed to further increases — to ~£34,000 and then ~£38,700 — which were not implemented. The Labour government has paused further increases pending the Migration Advisory Committee review.

Who it affects: UK residents sponsoring non-UK partners on family visas from 11 April 2024 onwards. Not retrospective.

GOV.UK — Home Office ↗ · House of Commons Library — Research Briefings ↗ · Migration Advisory Committee ↗ · verified 2026-04-19

In force 20 Jul 2023
In force Residency

Illegal Migration Act 2023 receives Royal Assent

The Act imposed a statutory duty on the Home Secretary to remove anyone arriving in the UK irregularly and provided the framework for third-country removals. Many of its provisions depended on the Rwanda scheme, which was subsequently held unlawful by the Supreme Court in November 2023 and formally abandoned by the Labour government in July 2024. Parts of the Act remain in force but its practical impact has been substantially reduced.

Who it affects: Asylum seekers arriving through irregular routes; broader policy signal on UK approach to asylum.

GOV.UK — Home Office ↗ · House of Commons Library — Research Briefings ↗ · verified 2026-04-19