Women with No Recourse to Public Funds and the cost of living crisis - Evidence Submission
December 2023
Praxis recently submitted evidence to the Women and Equalities Committee inquiry into women and the cost of living crisis. The following is an extract from this submission. You can read the full version here.
Immigration policies, and particularly the No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) condition, limit the incomes of migrants, making them vulnerable to rising prices. Migrants face challenges accessing income-based social security benefits until they acquire Indefinite Leave to Remain because of the NRPF condition. The high cost of maintaining immigration status and settlement also adds a unique financial burden to migrant households.
Migrant women, often dependents on their partner’s visa, are more likely to have precarious immigration status. They are overrepresented on longer and more costly routes to settlement. Typically, as primary care-givers for children and other family members, they can struggle to work and earn a sufficient income. This is exacerbated by NRPF restrictions on support with the costs of childcare.
Findings from our cost of living research reveal significant struggles among migrants due to the rising cost of living, with a majority reporting experiencing hunger and resorting to foodbanks. Government cost of living support, mostly channelled through existing social security benefits, leaves migrant households ineligible for crucial assistance.
The simplest way to ensure that all vulnerable households, regardless of immigration status, have access to timely support in the face of external shocks like the cost of living crisis would be for the Government to abandon the blanket application of NRPF. Short of that, we recommend that the Government:
Amend cost of living support schemes to include NRPF-affected individuals
Change the eligibility criteria for existing cost of living support schemes so that individuals with NRPF have alternative means of applying;
Adjust legislation to make discretionary welfare funds accessible to those with NRPF.