News

The government has announced changes to the Immigration Rules in their Statement of Changes dated 11 March 2016. These changes are due to be implemented on 6 April 2016. Overseas Domestic Workers will be able to change employers under the new laws. The previous Rules state that Domestic Workers are only permitted to work with the employer for which they applied for entry clearance. This will allow more flexibility and ensure that those who are mistreated or abused have the option to change their employer. The changes apply to all applications submitted after the law has changed. All applications submitted prior to 5 April 2016 will be subject to the previous Immigration Rules.

Overseas Domestic Workers who have been victims of slavery or human trafficking may apply for extend their visa for up to 2 years in the United Kingdom.

According to the Office for National Statistics net migration reached an all-time high of 336,000 in the year to June 2015. Immigration remains a politically sensitive issue and the government has turned their interest to the Tier 2 entry route into the UK. They have commissioned the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to review the visa category with the view of further restricting the category. Results of this review are due to be published this month. Until then, you can find the recent changes to the Tier 2 category, implemented thus far this year, below:

Nurses were recently added to the Shortage Occupation List.
This is an interim measure while the MAC reviews the Tier 2 category. However, in the meantime this means that applications for Restricted Certificates of Sponsorship will be prioritised by the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) points’ allocation system, meaning applications submitted by nurses are likely to be granted. These applications will be considered a part of the shortage occupation list by the December 2015 allocation panel. Secondly, a potential employer can issue a migrant with a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) without having to satisfy the Resident Labour Market Test. With regards to settlement (Indefinite Leave to remain) the addition of nursing onto the Occupation Shortage List means that when applying for settlement the migrant will not be required to earn in excess of £35,000 per annum to qualify, provided that nursing was on the Occupation Shortage list while the migrant was employed as a nurse under Tier 2.

Addition of four digital security jobs to the Occupation Shortage List
Applications from product managers, data scientists, senior developers and cyber security specialists will also be prioritised by the Home Office during monthly Tier 2 visa allocations.

The minimum salary threshold was increased to £20,800
The salary threshold for Tier 2 migrants is increased annually. The thresholds relating to individual occupations, as outlined in the Codes of Practice, have also increased this year in the majority of cases. It is therefore important to confirm that your salary meets the required level stated on your Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Code before submitting an application.

Tier 2 Cooling-off period
Previously, a Tier 2 migrant who left the country was required to wait for a ‘cooling off’ period of 12 months before they were able to apply for a new Tier 2 visa. The new changes to the Tier 2 category now allow for UK sponsors to employ migrants for a period of three months or less. To clarify, the rules regarding the ‘cooling off’ period remain the same for all Tier 2 migrants except for those who are granted Tier 2 leave to remain for three months or less. This will mainly allow employers to sponsor interns and then be able to bring them back to the UK for a permanent job within a 12-month period.

Entry clearance
Entry clearance can now be post-dated to correlate with the applicant’s date of travel to the UK. The migrant’s visa can be issued 7 days before their intended date of travel provided this is not over 14 days after their employment is due to commence. The Home Office’s intention is to make it easier for individuals to collect their Biometric Residence Permits within 10 days of arriving in the UK.

Points Based System. What does the future hold? Changes to be introduced in 2016

Minimum salary for ILR applications from April 2016
Tier 2 (General) and Tier 2 (Sportsperson) migrants who wish to apply for indefinite leave to remain, after spending at least five years in the Tier 2 category, will need to demonstrate to the Home Office that they are earning a gross salary of at least £35,000 per annum, or the specified appropriate amount for the job as set out in the Codes of Practice Standard Occupational Classification (SOC), whichever is higher. However, migrants who are sponsored in a job listed in the Shortage Occupation List or are listed in the PhD level occupation list, at any point during the migrant’s sponsored employment, will be exempt from this requirement. Migrants in these two lists will need to meet the salary requirements published in the Codes of Practice SOC for their particular job.

Tier 4 switching to Tier 2
There have been reports in the media that the Home Office plans to stop Tier 4 migrants from switching into Tier 2 or Tier 5 categories after graduating. The possible changes will require the migrant to return to their home country in order to make an entry clearance application under the Tier 2 or Tier 5 category. If this in implemented it will further limit opportunities to current students regardless of their skill set.

HOW CAN WE HELP?
If you have any questions or queries, please contact Douglass Simon Solicitors. Your matter will be dealt with by an experienced solicitor who can assist you with your Tier 2 visa as well as assisting your employer in obtaining a Tier 2 Sponsorship License.

On 13 July 2015 Statement of Changes HC 297 was presented to parliament.

It introduces changes that became effective on the 14th July 2015, 3rd August 2015 and 12th November 2015.

Changes effective from 14 July 2015

Applicants who made an application prior to the 14th July 2015 that are still pending will also be subject to this change.

Entry clearance start dates

• Entry clearance will now be granted to a Tier 4 student starting one month before the course start date specified on the student’s CAS or seven days before the intended date of travel, whichever is later.

Changes effective from 3 August 2015

Banning students at publicly-funded colleges from working

• Work rights have been removed from new Tier 4 students applying to study at publicly-funded further education colleges. 

Academic progression

• Students who wish to extend their Tier 4 (General) leave must be moving up a level on the National Qualifications Framework, unless they are a university student and their new course is related to their previous Tier 4 study, or the previous course and new course in combination support the applicant’s genuine career aspirations.
• Applicants applying to complete a PhD or other doctoral qualification can still apply to extend their leave in order to complete their course.

Changes affecting Tier 4 (Child) students

• Tier 4 (Child) students can be sponsored by Independent Schools (which must not be Academies) only. Tier 4 cannot be used by Academies or schools maintained by a local authority.
• The Tier 4 (Child) route is only for use by children attending Independent Schools, and not by those aged 16 or 17 coming to the UK for further education courses designed to prepare them for entry to higher education, such as degree pathway programmes. Applicants for such courses should use Tier 4 (General).

Time limit calculations

• The Tier 4 of the Points Based System – Policy Guidance, sets out a new method for calculating time spent in the UK counting towards time limits under Tier 4. This takes into account all leave granted including leave before and after the course dates.

Changes effective from 12 November 2015

These changes take effect from 12 November, and will apply to applications made for entry clearance or leave to enter or remain on or after this date.

Time Limits

• The length of time that a Tier 4 (General) student may spend studying further education courses (i.e. courses at National Qualifications Framework levels 3- 5 and equivalents) is being reduced from three years to two years. This brings the maximum length of time a Tier 4 (General) student may spend on these courses in line with the length of time spent by most British students on such courses.

Preventing college students from extending their Tier 4 (General) visa or switching to other points-based routes

• Tier 4 (General) students studying at colleges cannot extend their stay in Tier 4 or switch into any other points-based route, unless they are studying at a college which the UKVI classes as an “embedded college offering pathway programmes”, designed to prepare students for entry to a higher education course.
• Students at other colleges, who wish to go on to study at a college or a university, may do so by applying for leave to enter from outside the UK.

Maintenance Requirements

• The level of funds that Tier 4 (General), Tier 4 (Child) and Tier 4 dependants must demonstrate for living costs have been increased to the following:

Tier 4 (General)

• £1,265 in London/£1,015 outside London per month of study, up to a maximum of 9 months.

Tier 4 (Child)

• Studying at a non-residential Independent School, in private foster care or staying with a close relative: £560 a month per month of study, up to a maximum of 9 months.
• Studying at a non-residential Independent School, under 12 years old and accompanied by a parent: £1,560 per month of study for main student up to a maximum of 9 months, and £625 per month of study for each additional student.
• Studying at a non-residential Independent School, 16 or 17 years old and living independently: £1,265 in London/£1,015 outside London per month of study, up to a maximum of 9 months.

Tier 4 Dependant

• £845 in London/£680 outside London per month of study, up to a maximum of 9 months.
  
  
• The ‘established presence’ provision is being removed, so that all students must show they have sufficient funds to support themselves throughout the duration of their remaining study, or for up to a maximum of nine months. This is to ensure that all migrants can demonstrate they can maintain and accommodate themselves for the full duration of their course, or up to nine months, whichever is shorter.
• The area in which Tier 4 students have to demonstrate a higher level of funds is being expanded to include the University of London or institutions wholly or partly within the area comprising the City of London and the Former Metropolitan Police District. This is to bring the definition into line with that used in the Education (Student Support) Regulation 2011 to determine the rates of support for English students.
• The maximum amount already paid for accommodation which can be offset against the maintenance requirements is also being increased to £1,265 in line with these changes.