United Kingdom Archives

IMPACT – MEDIUM

What is the change? The allocated quota for Tier 2 Restricted Certificates of Sponsorship has been exhausted for July. Requests from applicants with fewer than 41 points and with a salary below £41,000 per year were rejected. Employers will need to resubmit these requests in August.

What does the change mean? While the quota was exhausted for the eighth consecutive month, the points and salary cutoff was significantly lower than it was in May and June. This is likely a sign that demand for Tier 2 Restricted Certificates of Sponsorship is easing up, especially after the U.K.’s recent announcement that National Health Service doctors and nurses were removed from the quota.

Implementation time frame: Ongoing.
Visas/permits affected: Tier 2 (General).
Who is affected: Companies applying for Restricted Certificates of Sponsorship (RCoS) for non-EEA skilled migrants under the Tier 2 (General) category.
Impact on processing times: Rejected applications will need to be resubmitted in August, assuming that the resident market test remains valid.
Business impact: Companies sponsoring Tier 2 workers below the minimum salary level may need to delay work start dates. In some cases, employers may need to readvertise the positions.

Background: The annual quota for Tier 2 (General) visas is 20,700, allocated into monthly quotas with more visas allocated for the high-demand months of April through September. U.K. Visas and Immigration removed doctors and nurses from the quota in June, a move that appears to have already had a positive impact on the quota. The quota has been reached every month since December 2017; however, the points and salary cap dropped significantly compared with recent months. The points cutoff, for example, was 46 in April, 51 in May and 60 in June.

BAL Analysis: Pressure on Tier 2 quotas continues to pose challenges for employers recruiting non-EU workers. However, the removal of NHS doctors and nurses from the Tier 2 caps was met with approval from businesses and the backlog that built up over a period of months may be easing. BAL will follow matters in the U.K. to see if the drop this month becomes a long-term trend.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice and our network provider located in the United Kingdom.

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IMPACT – MEDIUM

The United Kingdom has published a 98-page white paper that outlines the country’s vision for the U.K.’s post-Brexit relations with the European Union.

The white paper envisions a future where the U.K. and EU would negotiate visa-free travel arrangements, establish intra-corporate transfer agreements and promote student mobility, and where the U.K. would maintain its open border with Ireland. Prime Minister Theresa May said in an introduction to the white paper that the government was working to fulfill the mandate of voters while still maintaining a strong relationship with EU member states.

“Our proposal is comprehensive,” she wrote. “It is ambitious. And it strikes the balance we need – between rights and obligations. It would ensure that we leave the EU, without leaving Europe.”

The white paper is split into sections on economic relations, security partnership, EU-U.K. cooperation and institutional arrangements. Among other key provisions on immigration, the document said:

The U.K. would end freedom of movement with the EU after a transition period that would last through December 2020. The U.K. would “seek reciprocal mobility arrangements” with the EU, in line with agreements the country would reach with other close trading partners.
The U.K. would work to establish travel arrangements with the EU such that U.K. and EU nationals would be able to travel to each other’s countries for short-stay business or tourism without obtaining a visa. These arrangements would only permit paid work in “limited and clearly defined circumstances” in line with the U.K.’s current business visa policy.
The U.K. would work to establish similar reciprocal provisions for intra-corporate transfers, aiming to permit U.K. and EU-based companies to “train staff, move them between offices and plants and to deploy expertise where it is needed.” These arrangements would also be based on existing arrangements that the U.K. currently has with some non-EU countries.
The U.K. would prioritize mobility for students and young people to allow them to access “world leading universities and the cultural experiences” in the U.K. and EU.
The U.K. would maintain the Common Travel Area with Ireland, such that the border between the Republic of Ireland and the U.K. would remain open and that Irish nationals would enjoy a status in the U.K. that would be distinct from other EU nationals.
The U.K. would honor a previously reached agreement that the 3.5 million EU nationals in the U.K. and the 800,000 U.K. nationals in the EU will be able to “move, live and work on the same basis as now” through the end of the transition period.

BAL Analysis: The white paper is the U.K.’s most detailed indication to date of how the U.K. would like to shape its post-Brexit relations with the EU. Still, it is not clear how the politics will play out in the U.K., where May has come under sharp criticism from elements within her own party who favor a cleaner break with the EU, i.e., a “hard Brexit.” Nor is it clear how the EU will respond the U.K.’s proposals. Some of the proposals are still lacking in specifics, with the white paper saying “details of the UK’s future immigration system will be set out in due course.” BAL will continue following Brexit-related developments and will provide updates to clients as negotiations continue.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.

IMPACT – MEDIUM

Brexit secretary David Davis and foreign secretary Boris Johnson have resigned from the government in protest of Prime Minister Theresa May’s softer Brexit plan that would keep the United Kingdom in the European Union customs union and single market.

The resignations pose a threat to May’s already fragile government and could lead to a no-confidence vote to oust her from power. Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said that May’s government “has no authority left and is incapable of delivering Brexit.” Those who oppose the U.K. leaving the EU have renewed calls for a second Brexit referendum.

On Friday, May met with her cabinet to agree on a Brexit plan that would create a free-trade zone between the U.K. and EU for goods and require the U.K. to follow EU regulations related to goods and agricultural products, but not services. The U.K. would also allow the EU Court of Justice to retain jurisdiction over some issues. There is no indication that the EU would accept the proposal, especially if the U.K. seeks free movement of goods while restricting the free movement of people.

By Sunday, Brexit Secretary David Davis resigned, saying that he did not support the plan and that May had given away “too much too easily” in Brexit negotiations. He was replaced Monday by former housing minister Dominic Raab. On Monday morning, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson followed suit and resigned in a letter arguing that the proposal would not allow the U.K. to make its own laws, but would relegate the U.K. to the “status of a colony.” The Brexit “dream is dying, suffocated by needless self-doubt,” the letter says. Jeremy Hunt, former health secretary, was named to replace Johnson.

BAL Analysis: May’s proposal indicates that the government is leaning toward a softer break from the EU, but the loss of support of “hard Brexit” cabinet members who want a clean break from the EU could make it more difficult for the proposal to gain the support of pro-Brexit members of parliament. In the immediate term, the resignations could topple May’s government, which is held together with the support of Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party. A no-confidence motion requires 48 Tory signatures to trigger a vote in the House of Commons. May said she will contest such a motion.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group. For additional information, please contact your BAL attorney.

IMPACT – MEDIUM

What is the change? The Home Office has reversed a rule that took effect in January on calculating acceptable absences during the five-year qualifying period for permanent residence.

What does the change mean? The old calculation rule that is less strict will be reinstated for immigrants who entered the U.K. before Jan. 11 and will remain in effect for the next five years. Additional immigration rule changes due to come into effect on Friday can be found here.

Implementation time frame: July 6, 2018.
Visas/permits affected: Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) applicants.
Who is affected: All U.K. employers and Tier 2 (General) skilled workers.
Business impact: The reinstatement of the prior rule makes it easier to calculate absences and avoid disqualifying absences due to business travel outside the U.K. during the five-year qualifying period.
Next steps: Companies are encouraged to make sure that Tier 2 (General) workers who intend to settle in the U.K. are aware of the residency requirements.

Background: Tier 2 (General) skilled worker migrants who have lived and worked in the U.K. for five continuous years are eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain in the U.K. on a permanent basis. The Home Office requires not only a five-year visa, but proof that the migrant has been physically resident in the U.K. throughout the period as evidenced through a schedule of absences. Applicants are disqualified if they have been absent from the U.K. for more than 180 days during a 12-month period, but the immigration rules govern how the absences are calculated. Before Jan. 11, the calculation method looked at whether the applicant was outside the U.K. for more than 180 days during any of the separate five 12-month blocks preceding the application date. It was therefore straightforward to analyse absences and calculate the optimum time to submit the application to ensure that business travel did not undermine the 180-day rule. Since Jan. 11, a stricter rule was applied that counted 180-day absences in any 12-month period during the previous five years. Following lobbying from stakeholders, the pre-Jan. 11 rule has been reinstated for all migrants who entered the U.K. before that date, and that calculation method will be in effect for the next five years.

BAL Analysis: Employers and migrants applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain (permanent residence) should be reassured by the policy reversal that applications can be submitted on the same basis as originally anticipated. Any ILR applications made now and in the next five years will be processed under the old rules, which allow for some tactical timing of the filing. New arrivals to the U.K. should be aware that their ILR applications will ultimately need to meet the new rules of no aggregate absence of 180 days in any 12-month period within the five years. A schedule of absences from the U.K. should therefore be maintained continually, and applicants should seek advice from BAL if frequent business travel or extended single absences (personal or business) will take them over or close to the 180-day threshold.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.

IMPACT – HIGH

What is the change? The allocated quota for Tier 2 Restricted Certificates of Sponsorship (RCoS) has been exhausted for June, the seventh consecutive month the quota has been reached.

What does the change mean? Requests for Tier 2 (General) Certificates of Sponsorship earning points below the minimum 60 and a salary of less than £60,000 per year have been rejected for the month of June, and employers will need to resubmit them in July.

Implementation time frame: Ongoing.
Visas/permits affected: Tier 2 (General).
Who is affected: Companies applying for RCoS for non-EEA skilled migrants under the Tier 2 (General) category.
Impact on processing times: Rejected applications will need to be resubmitted in July, assuming that the resident market test remains valid.
Business impact: Companies sponsoring Tier 2 workers below the minimum salary level may need to delay work start dates and plan for continued pressure on quotas in the coming months as the backlog eases. As a result, employers may need to readvertise the positions.
Next steps: Employers should plan for delays to business schedules or plan alternative visa routes until removal of National Health Service doctors and nurses from the cap beginning in July eases the pressure in this route.

Background: The annual quota for Tier 2 (General) visas is 20,700, allocated into monthly quotas. In 2016, the monthly distribution was changed to provide higher quotas during the high-demand months of April through September and lower quotas in other months, thereby shifting pressure on months at the end of the fiscal year (December through March). The exhaustion of quotas at the end of the fiscal year, however, has carried over into the new fiscal year. When the monthly quota is reached, applications are ranked by points obtained, with more points earned for shortage occupations, higher salaries, and certain Ph.D.-level roles. The trend requiring ever higher salaries to be successful within the cap has continued this month, while employers wait for the impact of the removal of NHS doctors and nurses from the cap to be felt.

BAL Analysis: As BAL has reported, the pressure on Tier 2 quotas is a long-term trend that continues to pose challenges for employers recruiting non-EU workers in a tight labor market. The quotas have been exceeded every month since December 2017, and as the excess applications roll over to the next month, a backlog has developed. The Home Office announcement earlier this month to r emove NHS doctors and nurses from the Tier 2 caps has been met with approval by business, but it is not yet in effect and will potentially take time to ease the backlog. Companies that recruit higher earners will continue to be more likely to have their applications approved. Employers should consider salary as the deciding factor in the approval of an RCoS request and they should plan for all applicants on lower salaries to be delayed and potentially disqualified until, and if, the system returns to pre-December 2017 levels of use. While applications do roll over each month, this is only automatic while the advertising remains valid (typically six months). A more detailed risk assessment should be conducted for all roles prior to advertising.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.

IMPACT – MEDIUM

What is the change? The Home Office has published new right-to-work guidance that clarifies employers’ obligations in verifying employees’ work authorization.

What does the change mean? The guidance clarifies steps for employers in checking right-to work documentation for all U.K. employees and gives employers who follow the guidelines a “statutory defense” against any potential illegal working claim. The guidance has been updated to reflect the latest changes to the U.K.’s Immigration Rules, and now includes details on how to treat EEA nationals who lack work documentation but who have been long-term residents since before 1988 (“Windrush” generation workers), Croatian nationals, and workers transferring their employment under Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment), or TUPE, as a result of a merger or acquisition.

Implementation time frame: Immediate. The requirement for work permits for Croatian nationals will be removed July 1, when they will have full free movement rights in the European Union and can work on the basis of their Croatian passport alone.
Who is affected: All U.K. employees, but with specific changes for “Windrush” residents, Croatian nationals and TUPE transferees.
Business impact: Employers may be subject to heavy criminal and civil penalties if they are found to have employed a worker illegally. Following the correct right-to-work check procedure can provide a statutory defense if employee documents prove to be false.
Next steps: Companies are encouraged to review their right-to-work check procedures and update them according to the new guidelines.

Key changes:

Some non-EEA nationals who have been long-term residents of the U.K. since before 1988 may not be able to evidence right-to-work documentation if they are members of the Windrush generation. The Home Office recently set up a task force to allow these individuals to apply for documentation, however, and employers of non-EEA nationals who may be in this category should contact the Employer Checking Service, which will be able to verify their status with the task force. If verified, the employer will receive a Positive Verification Notice that gives the employer a six-month statutory period to accomplish issuance of appropriate documentation. At the end of the six months, the employer must re-check the individual’s right to work, by which time the appropriate documentation should have been issued.
Effective July 1, Croatian nationals may work without restriction in the U.K. They will have full rights of free movement in line with other EU nationals and will no longer need to obtain work permission from the Home Office. Therefore, employers confirming Croatian nationals’ right to work may accept an official document demonstrating their nationality, such as passport or national ID card.
Employers who acquire employees based on a merger or acquisition covered by TUPE regulations have a 60-day grace period from the date of transfer of the business to conduct fresh right-to-work checks.

Background: In 2016, the U.K. made it a criminal offense to work illegally or to employ an undocumented worker if the employer knows or has “reasonable cause to believe” it is doing so. Authorities can seize wages and assets and employers may face up to five years of imprisonment and an unlimited fine. As a best practice, employers should follow the specified three-step regime to ensure acceptable right-to-work check documents are retained prior to employment, to follow-up these right-to-work checks and to retain records as specified in the guidance.

BAL Analysis: The amendments to the guidance are not extensive and the overall immigration compliance and right-to-work framework remain unchanged. However, all U.K. employers should ensure up-to-date right-to-work guidance is available to their HR professionals and take this as an opportunity to review HR procedures to ensure that they are in full compliance.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.

IMPACT – HIGH

The U.K. Home Office has published its Statement of Intent detailing how it will administer the mass registration of EU nationals currently resident in the U.K. in light of Brexit.

There are approximately 3.5 million EU citizens currently living in the U.K. on the basis of their EU passports alone, exercising their right to free movement under EU law. Under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement between the U.K. and the European Union reached in December 2017, once the U.K. leaves the EU on March 29, 2019 (“Brexit”), there will be a transition period extending free movement rights until December 31, 2020 during which time EU nationals and their family members can continue to enter, live and work in the U.K. visa-free. EU nationals either already living in the U.K. or arriving before Dec.31, 2020 should apply for “settled status” or “pre-settled status” in order to document their right to reside in the U.K. beyond this transition period. The Statement of Intent sets out the framework for EU nationals (and likely EEA and Swiss nationals) to register their legal right to reside in the U.K. under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, either as permanent residents or in a temporary status that will allow them to become permanent residents after five continuous years in the U.K.

Summary of EU Settlement Scheme:

Irish nationals. Irish nationals are automatically considered settled in the U.K. and may continue to live and work in the U.K. freely on the basis of their Irish passport alone after Brexit. They are exempt from needing to apply for settled status under this EU Settlement Scheme.
Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway (European Economic Area nationals) and Switzerland. Although the Withdrawal Agreement does not expressly cover these countries, the U.K. expects to shortly reach an agreement with the four countries and apply the EU Settlement Scheme to their nationals on an equivalent basis.
Implementation dates. A pilot program of the EU Settlement Scheme is expected in Autumn 2018. The scheme will be fully open for applications by March 30, 2019 (the day after Brexit).
Time frame. EU nationals and their family members will retain the same rights to work, study and access public benefits that they currently enjoy under EU law until the end of the transition period, i.e. until Dec. 31, 2020.
Eligibility.
- EU nationals and their family members who have been continuously resident in the U.K. for five years as of Dec. 31, 2020 can be registered with “settled status.”
- EU nationals and their family members who arrive in the U.K. before Dec. 31, 2020 but who will not have accrued five years of continuous residence at that date can be registered with “pre-settled status.” This temporary status will enable them to stay in the U.K. until they accrue the five years of continuous residence to be eligible for settled status.
- Close family members (spouse, civil partner, durable partner, dependent child or grandchild, and dependent parent or grandparent) living overseas will still be able to join an EU national resident in the U.K. after Dec. 31, 2020, if the relationship existed as of that date and continues to exist when the person wishes to come to the U.K. Future children are also protected. They would be granted either “settled status” or “pre-settled status” in line with the EU national.
Deadlines. The deadline to apply for settled or pre-settled status will be June 30, 2021, giving EU citizens approximately six months from the end of the transition period to register their status. Close family members joining an EU national after Dec. 31, 2020 will have three months from their arrival to apply for settled status under the scheme (or until June 30, 2021 if they arrive before April 1, 2021).
Procedures.
Applications will be filed online or through a mobile app (to be launched) to reduce paperwork. Applicants will need to verify their:
- Nationality and identity, e.g., upload a biometric passport.
- Period of residency in the U.K. This should be automated using government tax and pension records, and applicants may upload additional supporting documents if needed to fill in gaps. (They will not need to document that they have been working, studying or held Comprehensive Health Insurance as currently required for permanent residence applications.)
- Criminal records check.
Family members will need to document their nationality and identity (passport), relationship (e.g. marriage or birth certificate), and residence in the U.K.
Those who already hold indefinite leave to remain or permanent residence documents can exchange these –subject to criminal record and government tax record checks to ensure their residency has not lapsed.
Government fees. An application will cost £65 per person (£32.50 for children under 16), but is free for those who were previously issued a permanent residence or indefinite leave to remain document. Those who apply for pre-settled status will not have to pay the fee again when applying for settled status.

BAL Analysis: Generating documentation for 3.5 million migrants is a gargantuan administrative task and will depend on the Home Office utilizing the latest technology for online applications as well as applying a “light touch” in terms of documentary evidence. While the commitment to allow EU nationals to remain in the U.K. was made clear by the Withdrawal Agreement, the Statement of Intent provides procedural details on the timing and steps for EU nationals to secure this new documentation.

Although EU nationals and their employers do not need to take any steps immediately, they should be aware of the expected deadlines and prepare to apply when the EU Settlement Scheme is launched in Autumn 2018. EU nationals should be aware that this is a mandatory registration scheme and is not optional (unlikely previous EU/EEA registration schemes)—the right of EU citizens to remain in the U.K. post-Brexit is not automatic and those who do not apply within the published deadlines will become undocumented with no legal right to live and work in the U.K.

EU nationals should weigh various considerations as to the timing of their registration depending on their individual circumstances. BAL has produced a Brexit decision tree to help employers identify different EU migrant groups based on date of entry to the U.K. and support their registration under the post-Brexit settlement scheme.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.

IMPACT – MEDIUM

UK Visas and Immigration is piloting significant changes to U.K. visa processing operations and will be rolling them out to business users over the next six months, as the agency continues its push to digitalize. UKVI intends to make ever greater use of online platforms to deliver services, process visa applications and audit sponsoring employers. This move toward great digitalization should ultimately provide employer-sponsors and U.K. visa applicants faster turnaround times and consistency of service, but may also lead to greater levels of scrutiny.

Key changes are highlighted below:

UKVI is committed to moving all U.K. immigration processing onshore, centralizing case-working expertise in Sheffield, and taking decision-making work away from U.K. overseas posts. This reverses the previous Home Office policy of requiring “local expertise” and physical examination of documents and applicants on a country-by-country basis as the best means of preventing visa fraud.
UKVI’s visa processing capacity in New York, the former case-working hub for all U.S. applicants, is due to close in October. This coincides with the introduction of online services that will allow U.S. customers to upload their visa applications electronically and have their cases reviewed digitally from the U.K.
Onshoring will be facilitated by scanning technology that will allow evidence and supporting documents to be submitted electronically rather than physically at a visa processing center.
Electronic compliance audits of employer sponsors are being piloted by UKVI to allow auditors to oversee and regulate the terms of sponsor licenses. The future of employer compliance is likely to involve more frequent electronic communications between sponsors and the UKVI over the course of a sponsor license, rather than focusing solely on site visits to enforce compliance. Digital uploading of compliance records should allow UKVI to expand the number of U.K. employers audited and frequency of audits, based on assessment of risk.
UKVI plans to unbundle its premium services which should give employers greater choice and flexibility in choosing which aspects of the enhanced services they are willing to pay extra for. (Currently, employers are required to make a single substantial payment for premium services.)
Customer service for applicants in the U.K. should improve as the introduction of online application and payment continues. Starting this fall, in-country applicants should experience a service similar to overseas visa applicants, whereby they will apply and pay online and then attend various outsourced service centers in the U.K. to scan their passports and documents to allow digital case working by UKVI in Sheffield. This submission approach will replace current priority postal submissions and means that documents do not need to leave the individual. It will also purposely cut in-person visits at UKVI’s public-service centers as applicants have greater choice to attend local outsourced centers (as is currently the case for biometric enrollment).

BAL Analysis: BAL supports UKVI’s commitment to digitalization, as online systems will generally improve efficiencies to deliver a better overall experience for corporate and individual visa applicants. U.K. employers should be aware, however, that digital technologies will also provide UKVI with greater means to audit and monitor sponsor compliance with license-reporting and recordkeeping requirements on a more regular basis.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.

IMPACT – HIGH

U.K. Visas and Immigration has published a Statement of Changes to the U.K.’s Immigration Rules, including changes to the Tier 2 route for skilled workers that will be of direct relevance to U.K. sponsoring employers.

The most important change is that nurses and doctors will no longer be counted in the overall 20,700 quota for Tier 2 (General) restricted certificates of sponsorship. UKVI stated that this change was made in response to the acute shortages and pressures currently facing the National Health Service, and the fact that the limit has been oversubscribed in each month since December. The changes will mean that health sector employers will be able to sponsor doctors and nurses directly from the shortage occupation list, without requiring restricted Tier 2 certificates of sponsorship.

The following additional changes are being made to Tier 2:

Croatian nationals will require full status as EU nationals on July 1 and therefore will no longer be counted in the quota, creating further relief on the figures.
Transitional rules on the skill level of roles suitable for sponsorship have closed—all roles must now be at NQF level 6, i.e., senior and skilled professional graduate level posts.
The restriction on Tier 2 migrants holding more than 10 percent of shares in their sponsor will be expanded to restrict such ownership being held indirectly, e.g., through another corporate entity.
The evidentiary requirements will change for Tier 2 migrants applying for settlement who have been absent from work on maternity, paternity, shared parental or adoption leave. These applicants will be required to provide evidence of the underlying adoption or birth that necessitated their leave. This change brings the requirements in line with similar requirements elsewhere in the Immigration Rules.
References to Find a Job, the service replacing Universal Jobmatch, have been included for the Resident Labour Market Test.
Minor drafting corrections were made to correct the Standard Occupational Classification code used for midwives. These corrections have no impact on the way applications for midwives are considered.

Additional changes will impact other immigration categories, including:

Making provision for long term U.K. residents, including those affected by Windrush and left with no current proof of status in the U.K., to apply for indefinite leave to enter in order to return to the U.K. if absent for two years or more (to demonstrate that permanent residence has not lapsed).
Creating a route for locally engaged Afghan staff to apply for settlement in the U.K. and to extend the ex-gratia redundancy scheme by six years, to include those made redundant on or after May 1, 2006.
Creating a new settlement route for Turkish ECAA business persons, workers and their family members.
Creating a new form of leave for people transferred to the U.K. under the Dubs Amendment on protection of children, who do not qualify for international protection.

Additional information on the changes, which come into effect on July 6, can be found here.

BAL Analysis: The change to exempt doctors and nurses from the quota has been campaigned for vigorously as a means to relieve the National Health Service from a resourcing crisis, but will also have a positive effect on corporate employers looking to fill skilled vacancies under the Tier 2 (general) scheme. Fewer applicants for Tier 2 Restricted Certificates from the NHS, which currently accounts for half of all applications, should equate to greater access for other U.K. employers and a return to situation where the monthly quota availability largely meets employer demand. The changes for doctors, nurses and Croatians will free up places within the limit for other employers, but because these changes will be kept under review, there remains a possibility of a policy reversal.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.

IMPACT – MEDIUM

What is the change? The U.K. has announced that it will launch a start-up visa route in the spring of 2019.

What does the change mean? The visa route will be available to foreign entrepreneurs who have an endorsement from a university or an approved business sponsor, such as an accelerator. The route is likely to supersede the current Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) visa route, which is currently available only to applicants who hold a U.K.-recognized bachelor’s degree, master’s degree or Ph.D.

Implementation time frame: The visas are expected to be introduced in the spring of 2019.
Visas/permits affected: Tier 1 visas for foreign entrepreneurs.
Who is affected: Foreign entrepreneurs who meet the eligibility criteria, including having an endorsement from a university or an approved business sponsor.
Next steps: Additional details are expected to be released between now and when the visas become available next spring.

Background: The U.K. announced that it would launch the start-up visa route as part of London Tech Week, recognizing the demand for changes to the entrepreneur category from stakeholders in the tech community and on recommendation from the Migration Advisory Committee.

It is difficult to gauge how broad an impact the visas will have. Currently, the Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) visa route is available to applicants who (1) hold a U.K.-recognized bachelor’s degree, master’s degree or Ph.D.; (2) have an endorsement issued in the last three months from an authorized U.K. institute of higher education; (3) have at least £945 in savings for in-country applicants and £1,890 for out-of-country applicants; (4) have met the applicable English language requirement; and (5) have permission from their sponsor to remain in the U.K. if their sponsor is a government agency or an international scholarship agency.

With the newly announced visa route, the U.K. intends to open up to “a wider pool of talented business founders,” but few details are available yet regarding who will qualify for the visas or how many will be available.

BAL Analysis: The new visa program is welcome news and will provide a new route for some entrepreneurs coming to the U.K. Detailed information on the visa route is not yet available, however, and the impact could be limited. Companies will continue to use Tier 2 (General) visas to meet the bulk of their high-skilled immigration needs. BAL will follow developments in the U.K. and will provide additional information on the new visas as it becomes available.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.