UK Visa For Indians

News about UK Visa

• India excluded from the list of countries deemed as ‘low risk’ by UK

  The United Kingdom has not included India in the list of countries that have been deemed ‘low risk’ by the government. The countries that were already included in the ‘low risk’ were US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand. New entrants to the list include China, Bahrain, Indonesia, Mexico, Maldives, Macau, Kuwait, Thailand and Serbia. The UK government has relaxed visa rules for students of countries that have been included in the ‘low risk’ list.

  The benefits enjoyed by the students of countries included in the ‘low risk’ list will be put into effect by the UK government from July 6 onwards. Students of the ‘low risk’ countries as deemed by the United Kingdom foreign department will not have to provide any financial, educational or English skill requirements proof. It does not get any easier for Indian students who will have to pass through stringent security and document verification before getting a student visa to study in the UK.

  Head of UK council for international student affairs, Lord Bilimoria said that the UK government’s non-inclusion of India in ‘low risk’ list is a setback for Indian students aspiring to study in the UK. He even described the UK government’s actions as an insult to India. However, the UK government has defended its decision to not include India in the list by saying that after China and the US, Indian students are the biggest beneficiaries of the UK student visa.

  

  19 June 2018

• UK home secretary’s immigration rethink welcomed

  The announcement made by the new UK home secretary Sajid Javid regarding a rethink on the key aspects of Britain’s immigration policy has been welcomed by the country’s university bodies, the Indian industry among others. It needs to be mentioned that the country is planning on making some changes to its policy which is likely to have an impact on foreign students and Tier 2 visa holders.

  A spokesperson for Universities UK stated that removing students from the net migration target would be a positive policy change. Dr. Hollie Chandler, a senior policy analyst at Russell Group while supporting the announcement said that international students bring in new ideas and ensure that there is a diverse, dynamic learning environment.

  Dr. Ramesh Mehta, who is the president of British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin while terming the proposed change of putting a cap on doctors as ‘ridiculous’, urged the policymakers to remove healthcare workers in the country from the tier 2 visa category.

  

  12 June 2018

• Indian Migrants Appeal for Restoration of Work Rights Pending Visa Review

  A number of highly-skilled professionals are urging the UK Home Office to restore work and healthcare access rights to those whose visa applications are being reviewed. The review was announced after a number of Tier 1 (General) visa holders had their residency rights revoked due to minor corrections in their tax returns.

  Under current law, reviews of such visa applications result in the suspension of access to public healthcare and work rights.

  Close to 1,000 highly skilled professionals have been affected by this policy, with the majority being form India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

  

  7 June 2018

• Indian doctors receive support from UK public for visas

  A survey conducted by UK based campaign group ‘38 Degrees’ has revealed that the UK public are in favor of more visas being granted to Indian doctors due to the ongoing medical crisis going on in the country. 71% of the people who voted in the survey wanted the government to decide for visa access depending on the requirements rather than following the current policy of granting visa access to NHS workers based on monthly cap.

  Only 20,700 tier 2 visas are granted to companies to bring in highly skilled workers from outside the European Union (EU) every year by the British government which means the monthly count is 1,600. This cap means that despite the shortage of doctors faced by the medical community in Britain, the monthly cap does not allow the NHS to recruit adequate doctors from India. According to the experts, the cap in bringing workers from outside the EU could have serious effects on the British economy’s development. The Home Office however does not agree with this stance and as per them the cap will enforce the recruiters to first look for skilled professionals in Britain first which would increase employment in the country.

  

  31 May 2018

• Skilled workers from India hit hard by UK immigration cap

  As per data released recently, as many as 6,080 skilled workers from India that also comprised engineers, IT professionals, doctors and teachers holding a UK job offer were denied visas to the UK since December 2017. This indicates that skilled workers from the country are most likely to be the hardest hit given the introduction of UK’s annual visa cap. The data was acquired by the Campaign for Science and Engineering (CaSE) via a Freedom of Information (FOI) to the UK Home Office.

  Of the 6,080 visa refusals under the Tier 2 category, 3050 skilled workers were for engineering, IT, technology, teaching and medical roles. It needs to be mentioned that companies are given a cap of 20,700 per year to bring in professionals from outside the EU under the Tier 2 visa category, with a monthly limit of around 1,600. It is noteworthy that as per UK Office of National Statistics (ONS) figures, Indians are granted the largest chunk of skilled work visas in the country which is comprised of 57%.

  

  21 May 2018

• India-UK bilateral agreement on returning immigrants facing fresh hurdles

  As per a newspaper report, the bilateral agreement between India and the United Kingdom on returning illegal immigrants has hit fresh hurdles. This comes after the agreement was put off when prime minister visited London in April this year. The report while quoting an Indian official has stated that issues like consent clause, fear of large-scale deportation and security concerns needs to be addressed first before the signing of the agreement takes place.

  The consent clause seems to be the bone of contention as both the countries are not being able to reach a common ground. While the Indian government is pushing for it, the UK government is not very keen as that would need them to make an exemption with regard to an undocumented individual staying in their country.

  It needs to be mentioned that the number of illegal immigrants from India who are residing in the United Kingdom is estimated to be between 75,000 to one lakh. The report published in a leading daily highlighted that around 5,000 Indians had voluntarily returned while nearly 700 were deported in 2017.

  

  16 May 2018

• Residents of Pune and Bengaluru can get super priority visa to UK in 24 hours starting May 1

  With the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) announcing that it is extending its Super Priority Visa (SPV) service to Pune and Bengaluru from May 1, the residents of these places can avail their visas within 24 hours. UK’s Immigration minister Caroline Nokes, who informed of the development stated that the move was aimed at supporting UK-India technology partnership, which involves setting up ‘tech clusters’ in the above mentioned cities. With the addition of Pune and Bengaluru, the total number of locations in the country from where SPV service can be used has jumped to five. It needs to be mentioned that the optional service of SPV is for those who need to travel to UK immediately. The service was first introduced in the year of 2013 by making it available at Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai.

  

  26 April 2018

• UK priority visa now available in Pune, B’luru

  The UK government has recently made an announcement with regard to the availability of the Super Priority Visa to Indian cities such as Pune and Bengaluru. What this essentially means is that all Indians will get to know the status of their respective vias within a 24-hour window or in many cases lesser. This facility will be made available from May 1, 2018.

  This facility can be made use of by people who are in the need to travel to the UK on an ‘urgent’ basis. App applications made for this type of visa will be handled by the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) on a ‘highest priority’ basis. The service is already offered in other cities such as Mumbai, Chennai, and Delhi.

  People who apply for this type of visa can enjoy a turnaround time of less than 24 hours.

  

  24 April 2018

• New affordable visa for Indians from now on

  In an effort to boost tourism, especially Indian tourists, a UK-based think tank has published a report calling for a need to provide more affordable visa options for Indians.

  The number of visitors in the UK was not as much as that in France in 2016. In fact, as per information given out by the Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS), 1,85,000 more Indian visitors went to France in that year as compared to the UK.

  To sum it up, the number of Indian tourists who visited the UK came down by 1.73% in 2016, while in the same year the numbers grew in France by 5.3%. In this light, the society presented ‘Britain and India: Building a New Visa Partnership’. The main aim behind this is to bring down the cost of tourist visas. This means that the price of a two-year visa will be reduced to 89 pounds from the earlier 388 pounds.

  The idea is likely to be presented or announced during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) which will see the attendance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. it is possible that a new visa agreement between the two countries will boost more tourism and trade.

  

  14 March 2018

• UK Visa: Health surcharge for Indians increases

  The health surcharge fee has been increased for all Indians who are applying for a UK visa. The fee, which was earlier 200 British pounds for one person has been increased to 400 British pounds.

  Students who earlier paid 150 British pounds, will have to pay 300 British pounds. This new announcement was made by the health and social care department. This decision has been taken because the Conservative Party made a commitment in this regard before the elections in 2017. It is also likely that immigration skill charges will be increased.

  

  12 February 2018