How much do I need in savings for my UK Ancestry visa?

November 26, 2009 11:39 AM

I'm applying for an Ancestry Visa to enter the United Kingdom. How much money do I need to have in my savings account to demonstrate I can support myself?

I have a job offer, my contract starts in January. I also have a cousin I can stay with when I arrive. Has any other Mefite applied for Ancestry and know approx how much I need to scrape together to improve my application?

Any other advice on this process is much appreciated.

posted by BAKERSFIELD! to travel & transportation (7 comments total)

This page says $3000 AUD.
This page says 1600 GBP.
posted by blue_beetle at 12:47 PM on November 26, 2009

(and this page says that $3000 AUD is 1600 GPB :)

The official rule is that you should be able to "adequately support and accommodate yourself and your dependants without help from public funds", so they can probably factor in more than just your current account statement. How long can you reasonably stay at your cousin's place? Do you have a written contract for the job? Is the salary good enough for someone starting from scratch? Do you have a reasonably solid economy today? Do you have dependents that you're leaving behind? Etc.
posted by effbot at 1:14 PM on November 26, 2009

Please, please check HOW LONG you are meant to have had a bank balance of £1,600 (especially if you tend towards the rather tanned look).

If you are pale-skinned, ignore this.

MeMail me for further details
posted by Wilder at 1:52 PM on November 26, 2009

1) No dependents, wife with good steady income but she's staying behind earning NZ $$$
2) Yes written contract, good salary. Figured I'd need to support myself for a month before first pay packet
3) Probably will be able to stay with cousin for a month at the most but would be looking for more suitable accommodation for the long term.
posted by BAKERSFIELD! at 1:58 PM on November 26, 2009

One additional question, can I use a joint account for this?
posted by BAKERSFIELD! at 2:03 PM on November 26, 2009

This should all be on the UK Border Agency website. Given the frequency with which UK immigration rules change, I would strongly recommend checking that site, and not relying on reports on other websites [on re-reading, I see effbot posted this already].

I also agree with Wilder about checking how long you need to have this balance. You need to be absolutely sure that your balance has never gone below this figure for the entire three month period (a New Zealander at my work was turned down because his balance went below £800 by a few pounds, for one day. And given my experiences, I'd suggest that being pale-skinned doesn't help much: these people are very pedantic and will turn you down for any possible reason).
posted by Infinite Jest at 12:21 AM on November 27, 2009

New rules have recently been introduced that you need to show the funds over longer than before. Generally, 3-6 months of bank statements are needed to show you didn't just find this money somewhere or were given it and deposited it just before the interview.

Dealing with the visa people is awful, be as overprepared as you can. We survived the long 11 week wait for a visa for my husband this year.
posted by wingless_angel at 6:13 AM on November 27, 2009