The UK's Dependants Ban on Taught Masters: What It Means for ASEAN Students with Families
By Muntasir • Published Jun 02, 2026 • Updated Sep 20, 2026 • Study Abroad
Since 1 January 2024, only PhD and other research-based UK postgraduate students, plus students on a government-sponsored course over 6 months, can bring a partner or children on a Student visa. Taught masters students starting after that date cannot.
🎓 PhD, doctorate, and research-based degrees still qualify for dependants
📩 Government-sponsored students on courses over 6 months still qualify, taught or research
🏠 Taught masters such as MSc, MA, and MBA starting from 1 January 2024 do not qualify
💵 Each dependant needs £845 a month in London or £680 a month outside London, on top of your own funds
What changed on 1 January 2024
Before 2024, most full-time postgraduate students on a course at RQF level 7 or above lasting 9 months or longer could bring a partner and children to the UK on their Student visa. As part of a wider push to lower net migration, the UK government narrowed this route for postgraduate courses starting on or after 1 January 2024.
The change affects course type, not nationality or funding source alone. Whether you can bring your family now depends on what you study and, in some cases, who pays for it.
Who still qualifies
Two groups of postgraduate students keep the right to bring a partner or children under the current rules, set out on gov.uk .
Students on a PhD, other doctorate, or another research-based higher degree at RQF level 8
Students on a government-sponsored course lasting longer than 6 months, whether the course is taught or research-based
Who lost the right to bring family
Self-funded and privately-scholarship-funded students on a taught postgraduate course, such as an MSc, MA, LLM, or MBA, cannot bring a partner or children if their course starts on or after 1 January 2024, even where the course runs 9 to 12 months and sits at RQF level 7.
This hits ASEAN students who plan a 1-year UK masters as a family unit the hardest, since a taught masters is the most common postgraduate route into a UK university.
How much money each dependant needs
If your course type still allows dependants, each partner or child needs their own maintenance funds on top of your amount as the main applicant.
| Where you study | Amount per dependant per month | Maximum months counted |
|---|---|---|
| Inside London | £845 | 9 months |
| Outside London | £680 | 9 months |
These figures sit alongside your own maintenance funds requirement and follow the same 28-day holding rule, confirmed on gov.uk .
What ASEAN students with families are doing
Applying for a PhD or a research masters (MRes, MPhil) that leads into a PhD, since research-based degrees still allow dependants
Seeking a government scholarship, since government sponsorship keeps the dependants route open even on a taught course
Starting a 1-year taught masters alone and reuniting with family after graduation, rather than relocating the household for a short course
Comparing other study destinations where family reunification rules differ, since Australia, Canada, and the UK have each tightened dependant and visa conditions on their own timelines through 2025 and 2026
Check the course start date on your offer letter closely. The rule applies based on when your course begins, not when you submit your visa application, so a course starting in December 2023 followed the old rules while the same course starting in January 2024 does not.