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spring 11
Immigration News & Views from Smith Stone Walters
April 2011 visa reforms
for workers –the bar is raised
iN ThiS iSSuEeditorial:Tier 2 limit – The story so far
latest changes:Statement of Intent – Tier 2
latest changes:
Independent report nds UKBAapproaches inconsistent
Student rule change proposal –A hostile act
latest news:Smith Stone Walters Hong Kong– Open for business!
10 great years...Thank you!
focus on:Changes to Settlement
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L A T E S T C h A N g
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INSiGHT from Smith Stone Waltersspring 1102
STATEmENT of iNTENT – TiEr 2
On 16 February 2011, the government published a Statement of Intent outlining changes to
the Tier 2 system, which will come into effect on 6 April 2011. A number of changes have been
announced, but this summary centres on the key changes that will impact most employers seeking
to engage migrant workers.
The Limit – who does it apply to?In the year 6 April 2011 – 5 April 2012, a limit of 20,700 places will apply for those seeking
admission to the UK under the Tier 2 General category to fill a vacancy attracting a salary of less
than £150,000 per annum (known as the Restricted Category).
The limit will not apply to the following applicants, who are part of the Unrestricted Category:
Tier 2 intra-company transfers
Tier 2 extensions
those seeking to fill a vacancy attracting a salary of £150,000 or more
Tier 2 migrants wanting to make a new visa application to switch employment to another
company within the UK
those currently in the UK in a different visa category and wanting to switch into Tier 2 General(e.g. Student/Tier 4, Tier 1 General, Tier 1 Post Study Work).
How will the new system operate?
Restricted Category
The 20,700 limit will be subdivided into
12 monthly allocations. In April, 4,200
places will be allocated. For each
subsequent month, the limit will be set
at 1,500 places. There may be some slight
movement of these numbers depending
on whether each month is under
or oversubscribed.The UKBA aim to start receiving applications for Restricted CoS from 16 March 2011.
The UKBA will set a published deadline for applications each month.
If the monthly quota is reached, applications will be considered against a ranking criteria,
using a points system designed to favour jobs on the shortage occupation list, scientific
research positions, and jobs with a higher salary.
Unrestricted Category
The ICT category will be changed to distinguish between Shorter Term and Longer Term assignments.
Shorter Term assignments:
must be paid over £24,000 per annum
can have no more than 40% of the salary package
consist of accommodation allowances
will be granted leave up to 12 months only.
Longer Term assignments:
must be paid over £40,000 per annum
can have no more than 30% of the salary package consist of accommodation allowances
will be granted leave up to 3 years initially and may extend for a further 2 years.
Other changes – all categories
The job must be on the published Graduate Occupation List for Tier 2 applications.
The English language requirement will be raised from basic to intermediate (B1) for Tier 2General applications.
The Resident Labour Market Test will not apply for Tier 2 General applications where the salary
is £150,000 or above.
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Monthly allocation
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INSiGHT from Smith Stone Waltersspring 11
L A T E S T C h A N g
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iNdEpENdENT rEporT fiNdS uKbA
ApproAChES iNCoNSiSTENT
The UK Border Agency needs to implement and maintain a consistent approach to decision making
and also increase its focus on the compliance of the skilled migrant tier (Tier 2) to the points-based
system, according to John Vine, the independent chief inspector of the agency.
In his report on Tier 2 of the points-based system, Vine pointed out that there were “inconsistent
approaches to the decision making process”, with some applicants rejected because of minor
omissions of evidence or information while others were given extra time to supply the missing
information.
Vine also found:
there was no evidence of a systematic approach to ensure that post-licensing visits were
carried out on sponsors retrospectively; and
the Agency did not routinely take the required action to curtail the leave of migrants who had
stopped working for their sponsor while on a Tier 2 visa.
The report found 150 cases where the visas were not cancelled for migrants who had finished jobsand were required to leave the UK. This number is expected to increase in the short term given the
current backlog of 3,000 potential cases yet to be processed.
To receive a copy of the full report, please contact your Smith Stone
Walters adviser.
STudENT ruLE ChANgE propoSAL – A hoSTiLE ACT
According to a report by the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI), universities across the UK
will lose many billions of pounds if the government enacts plans to restrict foreign students’ visas,
which will ‘amount to a hostile act against Britain’s universities.’
The Home Office has countered this claim by reiterating that their proposals focus on reducing
abuse of the current system and cutting down on the amount of foreign students studying below
degree level. However, the HEPI report said that the more likely outcome would be that the
number of foreign students in the UK would drop, taking away the significant amount of money
that they provide to universities.
Two-thirds of the non-EU migrants who enter the UK come as students. The government wants to
bring these numbers down as it tries to fulfil its pledge to cut net migration from 200,000 to the
‘tens of thousands’ by 2015.
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L A T E S T N E W S
04 INSiGHT from Smith Stone Waltersspring 11
SmiTh SToNE WALTErS hoNg KoNg –
opEN for buSiNESS!
10 grEAT yEArS... ThANK you!
Smith Stone Walters is pleased to announce the opening of its newHong Kong office
Following on from the successful establishment of the New York based office, the Hong Kong
office extends our ability to support those assignees seeking to enter the UK from this region and
reaffirms our commitment to being the premier UK immigration services provider.
The Hong Kong office will act as a regional hub for the APAC region. When your assignees are
moving to the UK from this part of the world, our experienced UK immigration advisors will be on
hand to provide first class UK immigration services on a local basis. The contact details for Smith
Stone Walters Hong Kong are:
Level 21 The Center, 99 Queen’s Road Central, Central, Hong Kong
Telephone: +852 3478 3757
Smith Stone Walters reaches its 10th anniversary next month and wishes to say a big thank you
to our team of loyal staff for sharing our vision and making our company the UK immigration
services provider of choice.
Having started out with just a team of four in 2001, the past decade has seen us open additional
offices in New York & Hong Kong and increase to 35 fabulous staff. The whole company shares the
same commitment to providing first class UK immigration solutions and unparalleled excellence
in customer service.
Loyal clientsIt has also been a pleasure working with and on behalf of our clients since 2001 and we feel
incredibly proud that so many of you have been working with us since the beginning. Thank you
all for your loyalty!
The team at Smith Stone Walters look forward to the next 10 years and continuing to excel in
what we do best – delivering effective UK Immigration solutions.
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In the recent Statement of Intent,
the government made it clear that,
as of 6 April 2011, there will be a
new income-based requirement
for Tier 1, Tier 2 and work permit
holders applying for settlement. This
means that all individuals seeking
permanent residency in the UK
need to show they have maintained
employment in a skilled or highly
skilled occupation and that their
income is at least the same or higher
as when they were last granted leave.
How will they assess this newmeasure?
When applying for settlement, Tier
1 migrants will be required to score
points against the same criteria as
they did for their last application.Work Permit and Tier 2 migrants
will need to be paid the appropriate
salary for their occupation, as set out
in the relevant Code of Practice. So
far, no information has been provided
as to how the UKBA will consider
applications from those individuals
on a reduced salary as a result of
maternity/paternity leave or a
flexible working arrangement.
The government has also confirmed
that the current criminality threshold
will be brought in line with that in
place for citizenship applications.
As such, all migrants (except
refugees) will need to be free of
unspent convictions when applying
for settlement. It has yet to be
announced as to whether they will
show any discretion in respect of very
minor convictions being ‘unspent’
at the time of the settlement
application being filed.
Are there any other changes
planned?
The United Kingdom Border Agency
has implied that the opportunity
to apply for settlement and the
requirements for applicants may
change further. They have suggested
that any such changes could impact
on those individuals who are already
in the UK and applying to switch into
an alternative route on or after 6 April
2011. Such individuals will need to
meet the rules in place at the time of
their application for settlement.
Where can I get further advice onapplying for UK settlement?
Please talk to your Smith Stone
Walters adviser. Our team have the
most up to date information on how
to apply for UK settlement and can
advise Tier 1 and Tier 2 holders how
switching status after 6 April may
impact on their ability to secure UK
permanent residence.
Changes to Settlement
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Th
i s p u b l i c a t i o n i s n o t m e a n t t o b e u s e d a s a s u b s t i t u t e f o r p r o p e r p r o f e s s i o n a l a d v i c e b a s e d o n t h e f a c t s o f
p a r t i c u l a r t r a n s a c t i o n a s i t i s n o t i n t e n d e d t o b e a c o m p l e t e c o v e r a g e o f t h e s u b j e c t . S m i t h S t o n e W
a l t e r s
i m i t e d a c c e p t s n o l i a b i l i t y f o r a n y a c t i o n
t a k e n b a s e d o n t h e c o n t e n t s o f t h i s p u b l i c a t i o n .
Smith Stone Walters
Level 21 The Center
99 Queen’s Road Central
Central, Hong Kong
Tel: +852 3478 3757
Email: hk@
smithstonewalters.com
To give clientsclear and concise information every quarter we focus on a key issue of UK immigration law. Our focus for this quarter falls upon...
Hong Kong:
focusSmith Stone Walters
111 John Street
Suite 800
New York, NY, 10038
Tel: +1 646 378 4406
Fax: +1 646 378 4409
Email: usa@
smithstonewalters.com
USA:
Smith Stone Walters Ltd
Title House
33-39 Elmfield Road
Bromley, Kent, BR1 1LT
Tel: +44 (20) 8461 6660
Fax: +44 (20) 8461 6661
Email: info@
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UK:INSiGHT from Smith Stone Waltersspring 11
For further guidance please
contact your Smith Stone
Walters account manager.