Given the coronavirus pandemic, it’s understandable that the upcoming changes to immigration rules will be low down in priority, but for some, having the right talent will be essential for bouncing back when things return to something closer to normality.

On 19 February 2020, the UK government announced the upcoming changes to the UK’s points-based immigration system that will come into effect from 1 January 2021 after the freedom of movement with the EU ends on 31 December 2020, although, in light of the Coronavirus pandemic, there is a real possibility that the UK might extend the transition period beyond 31 December 2020. As per UKVI, “this new immigration system will treat EU and non-EU citizens equally and will aim to attract people who can contribute to the UK’s economy.”Below is a summary of the upcoming changes.

Tier 2 (General): The Tier 2 visa is an employer sponsored visa route which allows skilled migrant workers to enter the UK on a long term basis to fill a skilled job vacancy.

Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF) level: In order to sponsor a migrant under the Tier 2 (General) visa route, employers are required to offer a role that is RQF level 6 (roles skilled at a Degree level) or above as per the current immigration rules, however, when the new immigration system launches in 2021, the threshold for the RQF level requirements is being dropped to RQF level 3 (roles skilled at an A level). This means medium-skilled jobs (except those that are on the Short Occupation List) that sit below RQF level 6 and are currently not eligible to be sponsored under the Tier 2 (General) visa route will also be eligible. While this will be a welcome change for some employers offering medium-skilled jobs, this threshold will not include lower-skilled jobs which remain an important issue for affected sectors such as hospitality, construction and social care.

Minimum salary: Currently migrants must be paid a minimum of £30,000 per annum (experienced workers) or the ‘appropriate rate’ for the type of job – whichever is higher. Similarly, for new entrants, a minimum salary of £20,800 per annum or the ‘appropriate rate’ for the type of job – whichever is higher must be paid to meet the required salary threshold for a Tier 2 (General) visa. In the new immigration system, this salary threshold is being dropped to £25,600 per annum for experienced workers and £17,920 for new entrants. Also, certain jobs that pay less than £25,600 but no less than £20,490 per annum, may still qualify by trading points on specific characteristics. This change will be particularly welcomed by employers based outside of London.

Resident Labour Market Test (RLMT): Abolishing the RLMT or waiver of advertising to prove that an employer is unable to find a suitable settled worker may be the most welcome change announced by the UK Government in the new immigration system of 2021. This change will allow employers to choose migrant workers from a wider pool of skilled workers and will make the current cumbersome process of hiring a migrant worker much simpler and quicker as they will no longer need to advertise the job for 28 days.

Cap on Tier 2: The 20,700 cap on the Tier 2 (General) visa applications will no longer be applied. This will avoid the chaos of 2018, when the Tier 2 (General) monthly Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) allocation limit was reached in consecutive months. This made it incredibly difficult for many employers to hire migrant workers whose salary wasn’t ‘high’ (£46,000 per annum or more) enough or those that were not filling shortage roles or undertaking PhD level jobs. Although this issue didn’t affect employers in 2019 because Doctors and Nurses were eventually taken out of this cap, abolishing the cap on the Tier 2 (General) visa applications sends the right signal to the rest of the world.

Immigration Health Surcharge

In 2015, the UK government introduced the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) which is yearly a healthcare surcharge charged to non-EU migrants if they are coming to the UK for longer than 6 months to allow them to use the NHS. This charge was £200 per year per migrant in 2017, it then doubled in 2019 to £400 per year and now the Chancellor has announced that as of October 2020 this will go up to £624 per year. The measure also increases the discounted rate for students, their dependents and those on the Youth Mobility Scheme from £300 to £470 per year and will be set at £470 per year for all children under the age of 18. This charge will also be expanded to include EEA migrants when the new immigration system comes in to play in January 2021.

The Government promised to increase the IHS in its manifesto during the 2019 general election campaign, so it is no surprise that Rishi Saunak announced this change in his budget speech last week. Under these new changes if a migrant was applying for a 5-year visa, they would need to pay £3,120 for just IHS alone, alongside the already exorbitant UKVI fees. The increasing costs of the UKVI visa fees and the IHS sends a message that unless migrants have deep pockets they are not really welcome in the UK.

Graduate Visa

After abolishing the very successful two-year Post-Study Work (PSW) visa route in 2012, international students can breathe a sigh of relief as the government is introducing a Graduate Immigration visa route in summer 2021.

Eligible international students who graduate in the summer of 2021, or after, will be able to take advantage of this visa route. The details of how this visa route will work have not yet been disclosed. If this visa is meant to work like the PSW visa, it will allow international students in the UK who complete a degree level course or above at a Higher Education Provider to remain in the UK and look for work or undertake unsponsored employment with no minimum skill or salary level.

International students or graduates who either do not complete a degree level or above course in the UK or whose Tier 4 (Student) visa expires before this route is introduced can continue to take advantage of the Tier 5 Government Authorised Exchange route which allows them to seek internships with UK employers for little as 4 weeks up to a maximum of 24 months.

What Next?

UK employers should plan for their workforce requirements ahead of January 2021 and consider applying for a Tier 2 Sponsorship Licence now especially if their business relies on migrants (EU and non–EU). A sponsor licence application is usually approved within three to six weeks or it can take up to eight weeks if the UKVI decides to audit the business before issuing the licence but given the unprecedented demand for these sponsor licences, processing times are likely to increase even more.

Finally, as Leonard Cohen said that “there’s a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in” – I appreciate the steps this government is taking to reform the current immigration system won’t go far enough for many business owners, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel.

Zenia Chopra is Adviser to The Entrepreneurs Network and works in the Immigration department of Kingsley Napley.