Subscribe to our newsletter
Dear visitor,
2018 is our thirtieth anniversary year. workpermit.com is one of the most influential and important visa consultancies in the World and one of the most popular visa related sites in the World. Millions of people a year visit a workpermit.com site. Our news reports appear as top news stories in google search around the World.
To make sure that you keep on seeing our newsletter in your main inbox add us to your whitelist or safe sender list. If our email ends up in another folder we suggest that you move this to your main inbox.
We remind you that the Immigration Health Surcharge is expecting to double this month affecting Tier 2 Visa, Tier 1 Entrepreneur Visa applicants and others. It could happen any day now.
New H1B and L1 visa administrative regulation cause friction
New administrative H1B and L1 visa regulations were recently announced by the US Labor Department, as the Trump Administration continues its efforts to restrict immigration. The new administrative regulations came after the Trump Administration and Congress failed to push through changes to actual H1B and L1 visa legislation.
The Trump administration and indeed Obama before him had great difficulty in passing new substantive US visa legislation. It proved impossible for both Houses of Congress to agree. Therefore, attempts have been made to restrict immigration that do not require changes in the law. We wonder if Trump changes will lead to legal challenges in the Courts.
UK Visa situation and Theresa May not providing full details
It’s been a turbulent two years for UK Prime Minister, Theresa May as she attempts to secure a deal for Britain’s exit from the EU. This also affects the UK visa situation. However, in a recent twist, the Prime Minister called off an MPs’ vote on her Brexit deal, with a view to going back to the European Parliament and asking for changes.
Assuming it actually happens there is little more than three months to go until Brexit occurs at 11pm on 29 March 2019. There are currently huge problems. It seems that Parliament will not accept the proposed agreement with the EU. The EU is unwilling to change the agreement. A no-deal Brexit or a second referendum seems increasingly likely.
If Brexit does occur then there should be a major overhaul of the Tier 2 Sponsor Licence and Tier 2 visa system.
Tier 2 Sponsor Licence employers see 7% Tier 2 visa rise
According to official figures, the number of UK work visas issued in the last year was the highest since 2009. There has been an increase in demand from employers with a Tier 2 Sponsor Licence. This has been largely attributed to a 7% rise in Tier 2 visas granted to skilled workers, of which 55% were issued to Indian nationals.
Despite the expense and inconvenience of applying for a Tier 2 sponsor Licence and Tier 2 visa there has been an increase in demand for this UK visa. The Health Surcharge is about to double to £400 a year which will make it even more expensive to hire people from outside the EEA. If Brexit does eventually happen and the Tier 2 visa system remains in place there may very well be a further increase in Tier 2 Sponsor Licence and Tier 2 visa applications in 2019.
UK Tier 1 Exceptional Talent visa for architects announced
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and the Home Office have announced a new, Tier 1 exceptional talent and exceptional promise visa for architects. The new visa is set to launch on 10 January, 2019 after 12 months of negotiations to deliver a new UK visa scheme for highly-skilled architects to come to Britain.
The problem with the UK Tier 1 Exceptional Talent visa scheme is that most people do not meet the requirements. There are only a tiny number of top people who can come under this. Probably in most cases people will continue to come under the Tier 2 Sponsor Licence and Tier 2 visa scheme.
Thank you for reading our immigration newsletter,
You can keep up to date on the latest news on top immigration destinations worldwide via our website workpermit.com. If you would like help with your visa application complete an online assessment form or give us a call!
