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01/07/08
From 30th June 2008 all highly skilled workers, entrepreneurs and investors wanting to come to the United Kingdom will be able to apply for their United Kingdom visa under a new Australian style points-based system.
Under the new system, applicants will need to earn points to prove that they can make a positive contribution to the United Kingdom. Points will be awarded for objective criteria such as qualifications, previous earnings, age and United Kingdom experience. Only those with enough points will be able to get a visa.
The system replaces the two staged Highly Skilled Migrant programme.
Border and Immigration Minister Liam Byrne said:
"The introduction of Tier 1 of the Points Based System is good for those wanting to work in Britain and good for the UK economy. We are clear that we will not tolerate any abuse of our systems. That is why we have introduced fingerprint technology to check all visa applicants, a new force to police our borders and new rules that ban anyone using false documents or deception from the UK for up to ten years."
Today's changes introduce the first tier of the points-based system. Other tiers for students, skilled workers with a job offer and temporary workers such as musicians, actors and sportsmen will both be introduced over the next year.
Source: http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/
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The Government announced on 12 February 2009 its proposed fee levels for all visa, immigration and nationality applications and services in 2009/10.
The revenue from these fees will enable the UK Border Agency to continue providing a world-class immigration service while reducing the burden on United Kingdom taxpayers.
The Government is currently delivering the biggest shake-up of the immigration system for 45 years, including:
- fingerprint checks before people come to the United Kingdom;
- a strong new force at the border;
- counting people in and out of the United Kingdom; and
- introducing identity cards for foreign nationals.
These important improvements cost money to deliver, and the Government's policy is that United Kingdom taxpayers should not bear the full cost of them.
In 2009/10 the UK Border Agency plans to spend over ﾣ2.2 billion on securing the border and managing the immigration system.
Approximately 30% of this spending will be recovered through fees from applications and the services offered. This will allow the UK to continue reaping the benefits of migration while also preventing abuse of the system.
Source: http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/
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A bill to make newcomers to the UK earn the right to stay here, strengthen the border, and ensure we have a firm but fair immigration system was published in Parliament on 15 January 2009.
The Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill will lay down a radical new approach to British citizenship that will require all migrants to speak English and obey the law if they want to gain citizenship and stay permanently in Britain - while speeding up the path to citizenship for those who contribute to the community by being active citizens.
Under the new system, full access to benefits and social housing will be reserved for citizens and permanent residents - which means if you are not a citizen full access to benefits will not be allowed.
These measures will work alongside the powerful new points-based system to ensure that only those people the country needs can come and stay. This system will allow the Government to manage immigration which in turn will help contribute to future population projections and control.
Border and Immigration Minister Phil Woolas said, "We are clear that newcomers should speak English, work hard, and earn the right to stay here - and only get British citizenship once they have proved their commitment to the country. Migration only works if it brings benefits, and these measures will ensure that only those migrants that make a positive impact on their local community will be able to stay in the UK."
The Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill will also ensure a firm and fair immigration system by introducing:
- a duty on the UK Border Agency to safeguard the welfare of children in its work;
- new rules to give automatic British nationality to a child born in the UK where at least one parent is a foreign or Commonwealth member of the British armed forces; and
- a remedy to fix the current situation whereby a father could pass on his British nationality to a child born abroad before 1961 while a mother could not.
These changes are part of the biggest shake-up to the immigration system for a generation, along with the new Australian-style points-based system, a high-tech system for counting people in and out of the country and the introduction of ID cards for foreign nationals.
Source: http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/
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04 November 2008
The age at which someone can apply for a marriage visa will increase from 18 to 21 from the end of this month, the Government announced today.
From 27 November both parties in a marriage will have to be 21 before a marriage visa can be issued. Raising the age is just one part of the Government's work to crackdown on forced marriage and on those who attempt to abuse the marriage visa route.
Border and Immigration Minister Phil Woolas said:
"It is important that we protect vulnerable young people and this measure will help avoid exploitation".
The changes being made to the marriage visa route are part of a package of measures being brought in today to deliver the biggest shake-up to immigration and border security in 45 years.
Source: http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/
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18th October 2008
Immigration Minister Phil Woolas told The Times that the government would not allow the UK population to pass 70 million. He said setting a population would enable the government to set a limit on migration. Mr Woolas told the Times: "It's been too easy to get into this country in the past and it's going to get harder. There has to be a balance between the number of people coming in and the number of people leaving."
Tougher immigration policies would also require getting the British "back to work", for example with more retraining for the unemployed, he said.
The government recently introduced a new points-based system to attract migrants from outside the EU to certain jobs. The Home Office said the UK's new system provided "a powerful and flexible set of controls" which allowed it to "raise or lower the bar" according to needs.
Keith Best, chief executive of the Immigration Advisory Service, said immigration quotas were not workable in a modern trading economy. "What are you going to say to the employer who is desperate to fill a job, but can't find anyone suitable in the European economic area?" he said.
Story from BBC NEWS: Click here for the full story
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08 September 2008
A strict new list of shortage jobs which targets migration better at the needs of British businesses, while reinforcing the selective approach of the new Australian-style points based system, was presented to the Home Office on September 8th by independent advisors.
The recommended shortage occupation list would bring in a more flexible, larger set of work categories but would see the number of individual positions open to migrants reduced by 30 per cent.
The Home Office tasked the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), an independent panel of economists, with overhauling the current shortage occupation list and will now pressure test their recommendations carefully before publishing the final list in October.
The MAC's recommended list follows the most comprehensive study of its kind ever conducted anywhere in the world. It reduces the number of jobs open to migrants from one million to 700,000. The list also defines more tightly which positions cannot easily be filled by resident workers.
Border and Immigration Minister Liam Byrne said:
"Our new Australian-style points system is flexible to meet the needs of British business while ensuring that only those we want and no more can come here to work. This tough new shortage occupation list supports that.
"This strict list means 30 per cent fewer jobs are available to migrants via the shortage occupation route.
"Those that do come will need to work hard, play by the rules and speak English."
The final shortage occupation list will be published by the Home Office next month ahead of the skilled worker tier of the points system - known as Tier 2 - coming on-line in November.
Tier 2 will ensure that opportunities for British jobseekers are maintained by requiring companies to prove they cannot fill the post with a resident worker before recruiting from outside Europe. To get in under Tier 2 skilled foreign workers must have:
- a good grasp of English;
- prospective earnings of more than ﾣ24,000 or have a good qualification; and
- enough money to support themselves for the first month of their stay.
The MAC report recommends that sectors should develop training strategies and look beyond migration for new recruits, which directly supports the Government's aim to upskill the British workforce and ensure Britain remains a global leader in skills.
Mr Byrne said:
"We are grateful for the work the Migration Advisory Committee has carried out. We will be pressure testing their conclusions before publishing our final list in October, so that the points system can come online just as we promised - on time.
"Our tough new points system plus our plans for newcomers to earn their citizenship will reduce overall numbers of economic migrants coming to Britain and the numbers awarded permanent settlement.
"Crucially, the points system means only the migrants with the skills Britain needs can come - and no more. Unlike made-up quotas, this stops Government cutting business off from the skills it needs when they need them."
Source: http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/ Are you eligible to emigrate? Find out now. Click here for a FREE initial immigration assessment provided by the Migration Bureau (officially recognised immigration and visa consultants). For information on the Migration Bureau Click here.
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