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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Universal credit administration  →  Thread

UC with a client whose husband has no recourse to public funds. 

Rachel1
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North East Law Centre, Newcastle upon Tyne

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Hi there,
I’ve had a client call stating that her husband is an American Citizen and was due to renew his spousal Visa. (client is a British Citizen and all 5 of their children have dual nationality)
However his spousal visa has already ran out - He thought it was 03/07/22 however he read it the American way and it actually ran out 07/03/22. They are getting specialist immigration advice for this. Client’s husband has unfortunately lost his job and has no recourse to public funds. Client is trying to make a claim for Universal Credit and has to put her husband’s details down though knows that he cannot get a joint claim with her.

I presume it would be OK to do this? I have not seem the online application system very much myself. Provided she put in all the relevant information accurately she should not have any issues and receive a benefit amount for herself and the relevant children?

Thanks for any information/advice in advance

Elliot Kent
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In a situation where one member of the couple has a right to reside and the other doesn’t, it is technically only the person with the right to reside who claims and they do so as a single person subject to certain special conditions regarding their partner’s income and capital.

From a practical point of view however, the DWP will insist that this goes in as a couple claim. They will only award benefit to the person with a right to reside and the other member of the couple will sit on the claim as an ‘ineligible partner’.

Whether an overstayer is likely to suffer any adverse immigration consequences by being recorded as an ‘ineligible partner’ on a UC claim is not, I think, for us to say. I don’t think that it should, because the ineligible partner is not technically a party to the claim, but whether or not the Home Office would see it like that I think falls squarely into immigration advice.

Rachel1
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North East Law Centre, Newcastle upon Tyne

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Total Posts: 145

Joined: 9 October 2019

Elliot Kent - 07 June 2022 01:51 PM

In a situation where one member of the couple has a right to reside and the other doesn’t, it is technically only the person with the right to reside who claims and they do so as a single person subject to certain special conditions regarding their partner’s income and capital.

From a practical point of view however, the DWP will insist that this goes in as a couple claim. They will only award benefit to the person with a right to reside and the other member of the couple will sit on the claim as an ‘ineligible partner’.

Whether an overstayer is likely to suffer any adverse immigration consequences by being recorded as an ‘ineligible partner’ on a UC claim is not, I think, for us to say. I don’t think that it should, because the ineligible partner is not technically a party to the claim, but whether or not the Home Office would see it like that I think falls squarely into immigration advice.

Thanks very much! Just waiting on one of my colleagues within immigration to get back to me.