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Since 1 April, a concession has been in place from the UKBA for non-visa nationals wishing to enter the country through temporary employment as sheep shearers , without an employment visa. In 2009, with the introduction of the Points-Based System, businesses across the UK were struggling to shepherd a smooth path into the country for the skilled shearers, many of whom were coming from Australia and New Zealand. There was outcry from the wool industry at the time... Read more »

In an effort to discourage bulk booking of Public Enquiry Office (PEO) appointments by those with the intent of selling on appointments at a premium, the UKBA has introduced a £100 booking fee. A booking hotline has been set up which applicants and representatives must call before 3:30pm the next working day after booking the appointment in order to pay the fee. Failure to call and pay the fee before this deadline will result in the appointment being cancelled. An acknowledgement... Read more »

Why does the UKBA persist in not putting phone or fax numbers on most of its correspondence? It must be a matter of deliberate policy to stop people asking what are no doubt perceived as irritating questions. However, no other sensible organisation functions in this way. It reinforces the image of a faceless, uncaring institution that isn't interested in getting the right answer, just in keeping people (customers) off its back. The result in many cases is to increase the workload rather... Read more »

Are you a Tier 2 sponsor? Then bring yourself up to date with the latest changes to the Immigration Rules . Read more »

A new statement of changes to the Immigration Rules comes into effect on 6 April. See our update on how this will affect applying for a Restricted Certificate of Sponsorship . Read more »

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper outlined Labour's new approach to immigration last Thursday in an attempt to seize the initiative from a Coalition fraying at the edges and struggling to reach a consensus on its own policy. Despite the Prime Minister stressing that the party would not "lurch to the right" in the wake of the Eastleigh by-election, the rhetoric from some ministers has seemingly been at odds with this statement. Home Secretary Theresa May has announced plans to... Read more »

In early January there was widespread national media coverage of the fact that the UKBA had employed a contractor (Capita) to track down illegal immigrants. Capita had then sent text messages to thousands of people stating: " Message from the UK Border Agency: You are required to leave the UK as you no longer have the right to remain ". This became headline news both because of the abruptness of the message (considered by many to be spam) and the fact that many of those who received... Read more »

The Home Office yesterday announced urgent changes to the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) rules, which took effect as of today, 31 January 2013 . The following changes are applicable to all Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) applications that have not yet been decided and apply to applicants who seek entry clearance or leave to remain in the UK as a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) migrant for the first time. Changes to note are as follows: The introduction of a 'genuine entrepreneur test' which, it... Read more »

Gherson has represented many clients in appeals to the First-tier and Upper Immigration Tribunals . Recently we have started to see a worrying trend in withdrawals of the UKBA decision days or minutes prior to the hearing. We have been told that the Home Office Presenting Officer’s unit that represents the UK Border Agency at appeals has a new policy that, where they consider the refusal to be indefensible, they withdraw the decision and refer the matter back to the... Read more »

We recently dealt with a Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) application, which was initially refused. The applicant's dependant partner was also refused, as a result. We sought a review, which was successful. However, the UK visa section overseas refused to review the case of the dependant on the grounds that his was not a points-based application, so review was not a remedy available to him. This created a most peculiar and unfair result. The applicant's visa was granted, but... Read more »

The mechanisms for creating UK immigration law and the nature of the laws themselves have changed immeasurably over the centuries. The changes have mostly reflected changes in British history, global development and public perceptions of immigration. Immigration control has been a power exercised by kings, queens, ministers and parliament. In recent times the progress towards a truly democratic immigration system has begun to stall. Too much focus has been placed on people’s perceptions... Read more »

It is becoming more and more expensive to live in the UK. Forget inflation and rocketing house prices - for some it costs literally millions to simply gain the right to live in the UK and apparently, judging by the reported rise in investor visas recently, it's worth the money. Given the Coalition Government's crackdown on immigration and the subsequent restrictions on (or even closure of) various categories under the Points-Based System, obtaining the right to live and work in the... Read more »

My abiding perception after listening to the Home Office on Thursday is that it is all about 'abuse'. Stamp out abuse and the migration figures will start to resemble the government's projected targets. When Tier 4 was introduced, I thought I knew what 'abuse' was: bogus colleges that fronted as educational establishments with the sole aim of sponsoring illegal workers without any intention on either side to undertake a course of study. These abusers were giving genuine colleges and students... Read more »

A tempting solution for many of us to deal with our problems would be to box them up and hide them away. Whilst only a reckless few would dare take such a course of action for fear of the inevitable repercussions, this has been precisely the UKBA’s recent approach to addressing part of its backlog of unresolved cases. Early in November, perhaps whilst searching for last year’s boxed Christmas decorations, a considerable number of unopened letters relating to unresolved cases were stumbled... Read more »

As previously posted , Gherson recently attended the fourth annual Post-Secondary Transfer Options Fair at SAIT Polytechnic in Calgary, Canada. The Transfer Options Fair continues to grow, with institutions from around the world providing Canadian students with the opportunity to study abroad. The event was hugely popular with around 800 students stopping by and visiting the stands. Many students who were concerned with the restrictions placed upon them under UK... Read more »

Yesterday, the Prime Minister gave a speech to the CBI in which he said that the country was in "the economic equivalent of war today... and we need to throw everything we've got at winning in this global race". He set out five ways in which he was going to change things to "get things done": 1) Cutting back on judicial reviews; 2) Reducing government consultations; 3) Streamlining European legislation; 4) Stopping the gold-plating of legislation at home; and 5) "quite... Read more »

It has been widely reported in the press that a growing number of ex-members of HM Forces who are foreign nationals are being refused British citizenship or indefinite leave to remain based on convictions imposed under military law whilst serving in our armed forces. These convictions are often for very minor military offences. For immigration purposes, a military summary punishment counts the same as a criminal conviction in a civilian court, which is then highly likely to disqualify... Read more »

It was announced by the UK Border Agency in July 2012 that following a 'successful pilot' carried out last year, a targeted interview system for students was being introduced, which would concentrate on high-risk applicants . If you are a student, you may be interviewed and asked a number of questions about your immigration and education history, study and post-study plans, and financial circumstances. The UKBA expects to interview up to 14,000 students in the next 12 months.... Read more »

It comes as a surprise to many applying for indefinite leave to remain in the UK or for naturalisation as a British citizen that they do not meet the "good character" requirement and therefore potentially face their applications being refused or deferred. This is often because they have an unspent conviction. There have been a number of high-profile cases recently concerning British soldiers from Commonwealth countries or elsewhere who have been in breach of the good character requirements... Read more »

As the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats approach the halfway point of their term in office, many of their pledges on immigration have been broken or forgotten. There has been little progress on the policies outlined in section 17 of the Coalition's programme for government. Ideas supposedly shared by the coalition partners have been quietly abandoned to be replaced with ideas announced in Conservative manifestos and party conferences. This is particularly worrying given the democratic... Read more »