Marriage-Related Migration to the UK

Spouses form the largest single category of migrant settlement in the UK. Research
and policy making on marriage-related migration to the UK has been dominated by a
focus on South Asian populations, which are among the largest groups of such
migrants. This article brings together the available evidence on marriage-related
migration and settlement to provide a much broader perspective on this phenomenon.
The varied and dynamic picture which emerges challenges conventional
understandings of marriage-related migration to the UK. It also exposes the limitations
and lacunae in existing research, highlighting the danger that policy made on the basis
of partial evidence will produce unexpected consequences.