When they were younger, that led the boys to believe Daddy ‘lived in the phone’.

Professor Katharine Charsley’ research explores families, relationships and migration. In particular, she focuses on transnational couples. During the course of her research there was a government policy shift towards these couples, that began to see them as more of a problem. The minimum income requirement to sponsor a spouse or partner’s visa in the UK was set to rise to £38,700, putting this option out of reach for many working people. How will these restrictions effect families? In this film, Professor Charsley explains how she worked with Reunite Families UK to share the stories and experiences of families being affected by the UK’s minimum income requirement policy, and understand the consequences of this policy for people.

Exclusive: fears that UK residents could be stranded abroad due to system glitches prompts rethink