The UK government has announced a proposed change to credit union rules that would allow a member who moves away from the area where their credit union operates to refer a relative or household member for membership. Under current rules, a person must generally live in the same area as the credit union to join. The reform was announced at the second reading of the Financial Services and Markets Bill in parliament.

According to Bank of England data cited in the announcement, over 50,000 people across Great Britain who cannot currently refer a relative or household member would be able to do so. The government said the change could extend access to savings accounts and small loans at lower interest rates to tens of thousands more people. It follows earlier action to raise the membership cap on local credit unions from three million to ten million members, alongside measures covering students and retired members of employment-based credit unions.

Economic Secretary to the Treasury Lucy Rigby said credit unions offer a trusted route to affordable finance and support financial inclusion. Industry figures, including Matt Bland of All Together Money, Sarah Harrison of the Building Societies Association and Laura Willerton of The Co-operative Bank, welcomed the reform. The government framed the proposal as part of wider efforts to expand access to credit unions and double the size of the sector.