Short answer
If your partner is in the UK as your dependant on the Student route, they are generally allowed to work in the UK with very few restrictions. Unlike you as the main Student, your dependant partner is not limited to a set number of hours per week and can usually take full-time employment, part-time work, self-employment, or voluntary work. There are only a small number of specific restrictions, explained below.
This assumes your partner actually holds valid dependant permission linked to your Student visa. Since 1 January 2024 the rules on who can bring dependants in the first place changed significantly, so it is worth confirming your partner was eligible to be granted that permission.
Who can bring a dependant partner at all
The work question only arises if your partner qualified for dependant permission. For courses starting on or after 1 January 2024, a Student can normally only bring a dependant partner if the Student is:
1. A full-time student on a postgraduate research programme, meaning a PhD, other doctoral qualification, or a research-based higher degree; or
2. A government-sponsored student on a course lasting longer than six months.
Students on taught master’s courses and most undergraduate courses can no longer bring dependants. If your partner was granted permission under the old rules (for a course that began before that date, or as a continuation of such permission), that permission remains valid on its original terms. So the first thing to check is which category applied when your partner was granted their visa.
What work your dependant partner is allowed to do
Under Appendix Student of the Immigration Rules, a dependent partner is granted permission that expires on the same date as your permission, subject to conditions. Work, including employment, self-employment and voluntary work, is permitted. In practice this means your partner can:
Take full-time or part-time employment with no cap on weekly hours.
Be self-employed or set up and run a business.
Do voluntary or unpaid work.
This is a genuine advantage compared with your own position as the main Student, who is normally restricted to a maximum number of hours during term time.
The restrictions that do apply
There are three main limits to be aware of.
No work as a professional sportsperson. Your partner cannot work as a professional sportsperson, and this expressly includes working as a sports coach. This mirrors the restriction on the main Student.
No access to public funds. Dependant permission is granted on a no recourse to public funds basis. Your partner cannot claim most state benefits, tax credits or housing assistance. Working and paying tax is permitted, but claiming means-tested benefits is not, and doing so can breach the visa conditions.
Work not permitted in limited short-course or below-degree situations. The rules withhold the right to work from certain dependants where the Student was granted less than nine months’ permission, or where the Student is studying a course below degree level. In practice, because only postgraduate research and longer government-sponsored students can now sponsor dependants, this restriction bites on a narrow set of cases. If your partner’s biometric residence permit or eVisa states that work is prohibited, that condition governs regardless of the general rule, so check what their permission actually says.
Check the visa itself
The safest course is to look at the exact conditions attached to your partner’s permission. This appears on their biometric residence permit, in their UKVI online immigration status (eVisa) via the View and Prove service, or in their visa decision letter. It will state either that work is permitted or that it is prohibited. Employers will also check this through a right to work check, so the recorded condition is what matters in practice.
Practical points for your partner
1. Confirm the work condition on the eVisa or BRP before accepting a job.
2. Obtain a National Insurance number, which can be applied for once in the UK and is needed for employment.
3. Keep employment within the permitted categories and avoid any professional sportsperson or coaching role.
4. Do not claim public funds, as this can jeopardise both your partner’s status and any future applications.
5. Remember that the dependant’s permission ends on the same date as yours, so their right to work ends when your Student permission ends unless a further application is made in time.
Where the answer could change
The position turns on a few facts I do not have: the exact category of your Student course, when it started, the length of permission granted, and the precise wording of the work condition on your partner’s permission. If your course is below degree level, or your own grant of permission was for less than nine months, your partner’s right to work may be restricted or excluded. If any of those apply to you, tell me and I can be more specific.
This answer draws on broad legal knowledge and checks current law, guidance and procedure against relevant sources.
Immigration Rules - Immigration Rules: Appendix Student - Guidance - GOV.UKgov.ukStudent visa : Your partner and childrengov.ukStudent visa : Overviewgov.ukStudent route: caseworker guidance - GOV.UKgov.ukKNOW WHERE YOU STAND
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