Labour’s Baroness Blackstone said the country risked being in a “very unfortunate position” when it came to attracting lucrative overseas students – worth billions of pounds to UK universities.

Her concerns were echoed by several peers at question time in the House of Lords, but Home Office minister Lord Henley said latest UCAS figures showed a 13% increase in university applications from students from outside the European Union.

Lady Blackstone said: “Some bona fide institutions – universities – have lost as many as 20% of their overseas students, particularly from India.

“The restrictions on employment when graduating will put us in a very unfortunate position compared to our main competitors the United States and Australia, which have much more generous arrangements for students who wish to work for a temporary period when they graduate.”

Last year’s changes to Tier 4 student visa rules and the abolition of PSW this April is already deterring Tier 4 students form India, which is one of the biggest markets for UK universities.

Labour Viscount Hanworth, a professor at Leicester University, said it was “inappropriate” to treat students along with other immigrants.

He told peers: “The measures designed to combat bogus institutions are also having a severe effect on reputable institutions in the higher education sector. Under normal circumstances, without the impediments created by the Government, their numbers would be expected to follow a steeply upward trend which would be highly profitable for the UK.”

Lord Henley told peers it was right to “clamp down on bogus institutions” that were being used “merely as a vehicle to get round immigration rules”.

He added: “It might be that there are some particular institutions that have lost out but we have seen proportionate increases elsewhere.”

He acknowledged there had been a fall in applicants from the Indian sub-continent, but added: “There have been areas where there have been significant rises – particularly Australasia where there has been an increase of some 20% and Hong Kong 37%.” Source: Press Association.

It is not only the universities which are feeling the cold this winter. Last week the Centre Forum think tank warned that the government’s policy to cut immigration is having a devastating effect on private higher education where enrolments to some colleges had fallen by as much as 70% and many other institutions had gone bust.

Prohibiting some international students, those studying at private institutions, from working part-time to support their studies in the UK must be reversed, the Centre Forum think tank argued.

“Since these controls were introduced in 2011, enrolment numbers are estimated to have dropped by around 70 per cent,” the report said.

Cynthia Barker, Immigration Adviser for Bison UK, is receiving distressed calls from students on a daily basis.

She offers this advice for students who discover that their private college has had their Tier 4 Sponsors Licence suspended, revoked or has simply closed down due to financial pressures.

In order to continue their studies in the UK, an in-country student whose private college has closed down has no choice but to enrol at a more expensive government owned university or college, as this is the only option if they need to work part time or re-sponsor their dependants.

See also:

UK University applicants drops 8.7% but non-EU students increase, UCAS figures reveal

UK Immigration crackdown on Tier 4 students sees 70% fall in applications to private colleges

New Tier 4 student visa rules now in force

Student visa crackdown damaging our reputation abroad, Universities UK warns

MORE CHALLENGES FOR TIER 4 STUDENTS AS ‘3-YEAR RULE’ APPLIED

HIGHLY TRUSTED PRIVATE COLLEGE STUDENTS DO NOT HAVE THE SAME RIGHT TO WORK AS GOVERNMENT SPONSORED INSTITUTIONS

Important UK Border Agency update for Tier 4 sponsors – educational oversight and other changes

New Tier 4 sponsor guidance published for Highly Trusted Sponsorship – will your private college qualify?

Post Study Work Visa to be abolished April 2012 as part of student visa clampdown

UK university setting up a memorial scholarship in memory of murdered Indian student

Can family dependants of Tier 4 Students work while studying in the UK?

Free service launched to help overseas students study at UK Universities

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: 

info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

Looking for a Tier 4 college or University or need advice?

UKUS is a free University and College Admissions and advice service based in London, UK. Students interested in studying abroad can complete the Online UKUS Registration Form for more details.

Prohibiting some international students, those studying at private institutions, from working part-time to support their studies in the UK must be reversed, the Centre Forum think tank argued.

“Since these controls were introduced in 2011, enrolment numbers are estimated to have dropped by around 70 per cent,” the report said.

The report quotes Dr John Sanders, who was principal of London’s Cavendish College until its closure as an independent college this month.

“I find it incredible that the UK Border Agency considers the likes of Cavendish College to be a threat to immigration control,” Sanders said.

“There is now an enormous disparity in the treatment of international students in the private sector compared with those in public colleges and universities. The government clearly does not care how it reaches its net migration target.” Source: City Am.

UK Universities appear to be the beneficiaries of the private sector’s demise, with applications from non-EU students rising against a declining trend in the number of resident students, according to UCAS figures revealed this month.

For instance, in order to continue their studies in the UK an in-country student whose private college has closed down has no choice but to enrol at a more expensive government owned university or college, as this is the only option if they need to work part time or re-sponsor their dependants.

Earlier this month Immigration Matters reported that UK universities had seen a 13.7% increase in applications from overseas students from non-EU countries, despite changes to Tier 4 student visa rules and the abolition of PSW this April.

Immigration Matters has received hundreds of comments and emails from Tier 4 students who have been left stranded, and often broke, after their college had closed down or been removed from the Tier 4 Sponsors Register or ‘Register of Sponsors Licensed Under the Points-based System’.

Cynthia Barker, Immigration Adviser for Bison UK, is receiving distressed calls from students on a daily basis.

She offers this advice for students who discover that their private college has had their Tier 4 Sponsors Licence suspended, revoked or has simply closed down due to financial reasons.

‘The first thing to do is seek professional advice rather than panicking or hiding. Also talk to your college and find out exactly what is their status, as only they, the regulator and the UK Border Agency will normally have this information. There is no official list of suspended or revoked colleges published by the UK Border Agency, and websites which claim to publish lists of suspended colleges are usually out of date or publishing inaccurate and often misleading information.

‘If your college has been suspended from the Tier 4 sponsors register you can continue studying until they get their licence back or your visa expires.

‘However, if their licence has been revoked you will normally be given 60 days in which to find another Tier 4 sponsor.

Cynthia adds that many of the students have paid for courses in advance and do not have enough money left to prove maintenance in order to apply for a new visa.

Others are affected by the ‘3 year rule’ because they have failed to complete a course or make satisfactory academic progress with their previous college.

In some cases this is because the college has closed and the student can no longer obtain a progress report, but sometimes it is the fault of the student who has not taken the course seriously or has run away without paying their fees.

Finally, Cynthia reminds Tier 4 students that they must be studying to legally remain in the UK.

‘I have come across hundreds of students who have not yet registered with another college, are not in full time study, but have continued to work illegally.

‘If you get caught you will be deported and banned from returning to the UK for up to 10 years, and your employer could be fined up to £10,000.’

See also:

UK University applicants drops 8.7% but non-EU students increase, UCAS figures reveal

New Tier 4 student visa rules now in force

Student visa crackdown damaging our reputation abroad, Universities UK warns

MORE CHALLENGES FOR TIER 4 STUDENTS AS ‘3-YEAR RULE’ APPLIED

HIGHLY TRUSTED PRIVATE COLLEGE STUDENTS DO NOT HAVE THE SAME RIGHT TO WORK AS GOVERNMENT SPONSORED INSTITUTIONS

Important UK Border Agency update for Tier 4 sponsors – educational oversight and other changes

New Tier 4 sponsor guidance published for Highly Trusted Sponsorship – will your private college qualify?

Post Study Work Visa to be abolished April 2012 as part of student visa clampdown

UK university setting up a memorial scholarship in memory of murdered Indian student

Can family dependants of Tier 4 Students work while studying in the UK?

Free service launched to help overseas students study at UK Universities

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: 

info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

Looking for a Tier 4 college or University or need advice?

UKUS is a free University and College Admissions and advice service based in London, UK. Students interested in studying abroad can complete the Online UKUS Registration Form for more details.

“The scholarship is a fitting and lasting way of remembering Anuj, who was an outstanding said Lancaster University’s vice-chancellor Professor Mark E Smith.

Bidve, 23, was studying engineering at Lancaster when he was killed in Salford on December 26.

The annual scholarship will fund an engineering MSc for a student graduating from the University of Pune in India, where Bidve studied. The scholarship, which is for fees and accommodation, has been agreed in line with the wishes of Bidve’s family, the BBC reported.

The UK university said it hoped the first student to receive the award would come to Lancaster in October 2012.

Bidve was on a visit to Manchester with a group of university friends when he was shot in the head at close range as he walked along Ordsall Lane.

A 20-year-old youth nicknamed “Psycho Stapleton” has been charged with Anuj’s murder and remanded in custody until a plea and case management hearing on March 20. He is due to appear at Manchester Crown Court in March.

Three other people arrested on suspicion of Anuj’s murder have been granted bail until March pending further inquiries. A fourth man, aged 19, had his bail cancelled.

Bidve, a postgraduate student of Microelectronics at the university, was shot in the head at close range, a day after Christmas, as he walked along Ordsall Lane with friends in Greater Manchester.

Despite the tragic incident, the UK is still a safe place for overseas students and migrants. Attacks of this nature against any of the hundreds of thousands of overseas students and migrant workers are rare.

This week Immigration Matters reported that UK universities had seen a 13.7% increase in applications from overseas candidates from non-EU countries, despite changes to Tier 4 student visa rules and the abolition of PSW this April.

Overseas students are worth billions of pounds to the UK economy

See also:

UK University applicants drops 8.7% but non-EU students increase, UCAS figures reveal

New Tier 4 student visa rules now in force

Student visa crackdown damaging our reputation abroad, Universities UK warns

MORE CHALLENGES FOR TIER 4 STUDENTS AS ‘3-YEAR RULE’ APPLIED

HIGHLY TRUSTED PRIVATE COLLEGE STUDENTS DO NOT HAVE THE SAME RIGHT TO WORK AS GOVERNMENT SPONSORED INSTITUTIONS

Important UK Border Agency update for Tier 4 sponsors – educational oversight and other changes

New Tier 4 sponsor guidance published for Highly Trusted Sponsorship – will your private college qualify?

Post Study Work Visa to be abolished April 2012 as part of student visa clampdown

Free service launched to help overseas students study at UK Universities

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: 

info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

Looking for a Tier 4 college or University or need advice?

UKUS is a free University and College Admissions and advice service based in London, UK. Students interested in studying abroad can complete the Online UKUS Registration Form for more details.

Mr Green also announced that he wanted to break the link between temporary and permanent migration and look at the way courts interpret the human right to family life, which he said has led to a “ridiculous and damaging situation” and risks a “dangerous” stand off between parliament and judges.

The government is also proposing to set a minimum income level for any sponsor seeking to bring in a foreign spouse – and said the recommended level was between £18,600 and £25,700.

The news will be of grave concern to the thousands of skilled workers on Work Permits and Tier 2 Working Visas who are earning less than £31,000.

Whilst the UK has never guaranteed working migrants permanent residency under the terms of their work permits, most were expecting to one day qualify for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) after working in Britain for 5 years.

The Minister has not announced any transitional arrangements for those already here. But if the new rules are applied to all existing migrants, the minimum threshold would not be reached by most nurses, senior carers, chefs, care managers and many other occupations where the basic pay rate is less than £31,000.

Some of the questions being asked are:

• Will the new earnings test apply to all existing work permit holders or new entrants after a certain point?
• Does my dependant husband’s income count towards the minimum salary requirement?
• How long do I have to be earning £31,000 for or is it my current salary level that counts?
• If I cannot qualify for ILR will I be able to extend my work permit after 5 years?
• If I have children born in the UK do I have a right to stay under Article 8?

The answer to most of these questions are only known to ministers and Home Office officials at this stage because full details of the reforms have not yet been revealed.

The government is committed to reducing net migration to the ‘tens of thousands’ by 2015 and major reforms to the immigration points based system will be needed to reach these targets.

The changes do not affect EU migrants from Eastern European countries such as Poland and Slovakia, or Bulgarians and Romanians exercising Treaty Rights to obtain Yellow Cards.

See also:

Settlement in UK to be linked to a minimum salary of £31,000 says Immigration Minister

Human rights decisions led to ‘ridiculous and damaging’ situation, says UK Immigration Minister

Romanian workers offered UK jobs while 2.7 million claim benefits

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

They also reveal a sharper drop among more affluent candidates than among those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The decision to let UK universities raise undergraduate fees to a maximum of £9,000 a year for resident students provoked widespread public anger and battered the credibility of the Liberal Democrats.

However, figures from the Universities and Colleges Admission Service (Ucas) published on Monday show that the number of 18-year-old UK applicants – the largest single group of candidates – has decreased by 3.6%, representing a drop of just under 8,500 people. The number of 18-year-olds in the population has declined by 11,000 this year, to 772,000, according to the Office for National Statistics, a fall of 1.4%.

But total applicant numbers, including overseas and mature candidates, are 7.4% lower than at the same point in 2011, Ucas says. The number of applicants from the UK has decreased by 8.7%.

There has been a sharper drop among male applicants. The proportion of men is down 8.5% on last year, while female applicants are down 6.7%.

A 13.7% increase in overseas candidates from non-EU countries was also found, however this could change in the coming year due to changes to Tier 4 student visa rules and the abolition of PSW this April.

Mary Curnock Cook, the chief executive of Ucas, said: “Our analysis shows that decreases in demand are slightly larger in more advantaged groups than in the disadvantaged groups. Widely expressed concerns about recent changes in HE [higher education] funding arrangements having a disproportionate effect on more disadvantaged groups are not borne out by these data.”

The application rate from the most disadvantaged fifth of the population is down 0.2% in England, Ucas said. Among the wealthiest quintile, it is down 2.5%. This analysis is based on a ranking of neighbourhoods according to the participation of young people in higher education.

Demand will continue to outstrip the supply of university places this year. There are already 50,000 more applications this year than there were acceptances at universities in 2011. Competition will be more intense as the number of government-funded places at English universities will drop by 10,000.

David Willetts, universities minister, said: “The proportion of English school leavers applying to university today is greater than ever before, barring last year. It is encouraging that applications from people from some of the most disadvantaged backgrounds remain strong, with only a 0.2% decrease.

“Even with a small reduction in applications, this will still be a competitive year like any other as people continue to understand that university remains a good long-term investment in your future.”

Wendy Piatt, the director general of the Russell Group, which represents some of the most competitive universities, including Oxbridge, said: “Demand for higher education is not only strong – it’s actually rising over the long term. This year 540,073 prospective students have applied, which is 16% more than the 464,167 who applied just three years ago in 2009.

“More than half a million potential students have rightly recognised the benefits of going to university. Prospective students know a good degree remains a smart investment.

“It’s not surprising the number of applications is lower than last year, but there are a number of reasons for that. Demographic changes mean there are fewer 18-year-olds in 2012 than in 2011 and we also know there was a peak in applications last year as fewer people chose to take gap years.”

There are big falls in the number of mature students applying this year: nearly 2,400 fewer 30- to 39-year-olds, and more than 1,000 fewer students over the age of 40. Going back to study full-time is an expensive choice as the government does not provide fee or maintenance loans for second degrees. The proportion of the population that has never been to university is naturally dwindling.

The number of 19-year-olds applying is down 12.6%, from 137,531 to 120,151. Source: The Guardian.

The effects of fee hikes, albeit deferred, for UK students and the abolition of the Post Study Work Visa (PSW) will mean that lower ranked UK Universities will start to feel the cold wind of change.

Government owned colleges and universities have received a massive boost following the demise of the private sector. After 4 July Tier 4 Immigration Rule changes last year overseas students can only work and sponsor their dependants if they study at government owned institutions.

With student agents in Asia reporting that students are now more attracted to study in Australia, New Zealand, Canada or the US, UK Universities may have to do more to attract overseas non-EU students to fill places – or start closing campuses and making redundancies.

See also:

New Tier 4 student visa rules now in force

Student visa crackdown damaging our reputation abroad, Universities UK warns

MORE CHALLENGES FOR TIER 4 STUDENTS AS ‘3-YEAR RULE’ APPLIED

HIGHLY TRUSTED PRIVATE COLLEGE STUDENTS DO NOT HAVE THE SAME RIGHT TO WORK AS GOVERNMENT SPONSORED INSTITUTIONS

Important UK Border Agency update for Tier 4 sponsors – educational oversight and other changes

New Tier 4 sponsor guidance published for Highly Trusted Sponsorship – will your private college qualify?

Post Study Work Visa to be abolished April 2012 as part of student visa clampdown

Free service launched to help overseas students study at UK Universities

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: 

info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

Looking for a Tier 4 college or University or need advice?

UKUS is a free University and College Admissions and advice service based in London, UK. Students interested in studying abroad can complete the Online UKUS Registration Form for more details.

A recruitment agency in Bucharest is advertising 2,434 vacancies for British jobs according to the report.

The Romanian agency ‘tjobs.ro’ revealed that many of the UK-based posts were for medical staff, tourism workers and skilled staff.

And 25% of the unfilled roles on offer were for labourers and unskilled workers. The news comes as the number of jobless Brits hit a record 17-year high of 2.68million.

And yesterday Sir Andrew Green, chairman of campaign group Migration Watch UK, said: “One has to ask why employers feel the need to go abroad to recruit for these jobs.”

Unemployment in Britain currently stands at 8.4%, the worst figure since 1994.

The Daily Star revealed this month how 23 British jobs were lost for every 100 migrants let in.

A hard-hitting report by the Migration Advisory Committee showed 160,000 UK-born workers had missed out on employment since 1995 as a result of immigration.

The study looked at the problems immigration was causing for Britain’s stretched public services.

Researchers found average earnings have remained the same, but wages at the bottom have fallen. Source: Daily Star.

The question we should be asking is why British firms are advertising jobs in another EU country when so many unemployed workers are supposedly available to work on their doorstep?

The newspaper article does not point out that there are hundreds of thousands of job vacancies in the UK being advertised on a regular basis, and not all of these jobs vacancies are filled by local workers.

For instance, despite high UK unemployment healthcare support workers or care assistants are still desperately needed by employers who cannot fill vacancies locally.

Even though millions of British people are unemployed and the country’s economy in the doldrums, the care industry still has massive problems in finding care or support workers for the 20,000 plus homes. 

A recent search on one Government Job Centre Plus website, Job Seekers Direct Find a Job Now, revealed over 300 job vacancies within a 75 mile radius of central London region alone. 

Some employers are offering as much as £10.50 per hour, £4.57 above the national minimum wage, for a Health Care Assistant for a dementia care unit in London. 

The website quoted in the article offers jobs all over Europe. They appears to be mainly advertising vacancies for Au Pair, baby sitting and care jobs in the UK, all of which are hard to fill locally.

The news that employers are recruiting in Romania will surprise many as, despite being members of the European Union, Romanians cannot work in the UK as employees without permission.

Employers wishing to hire a Romanian, or fellow EU2 member citizens from Bulgaria, need to apply for a work permit and low skilled jobs do not normally qualify.

However, in the case of temporary low skilled workers, such as seasonal agricultural workers where there are always shortages, employers or agencies can apply to the UK Border Agency for a six month SAWS (Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme) permit.

SAWS allow farmers and growers in the UK to recruit low-skilled overseas workers to do short-term agricultural work only. The scheme works on a quota basis. Farmers and growers who participate in the scheme can employ a fixed number of overseas workers though the scheme each year. In 2010 and 2011 the quota is 21,250 places.

To be able to apply to come to the UK under the SAWS, you must be a national of Bulgaria or Romania. Workers get a work card which gives them permission to work in the UK under the scheme for a maximum of 6 months.

There is also a scheme for Au Pairs coming from Romania and Bulgaria, but this type of work is low paid and traditionally taken by students wishing to learn English.

Bulgarians and Romanians coming to the UK on Yellow Card registration permits can study and work full time on vocational courses such as NVQ or QCF courses in Health and Social Care or customer service by exercising their Treaty Rights under Article 39.  They can also apply for a self employed yellow card, but the application must be supported by a genuine case for setting up a business.

UK work restrictions on Bulgarian and Romanian nationals were recently extended until the end of 2013 by Immigration Minister Damian Green.

See also:

Employment restrictions for Bulgarians and Romanians extended until end of 2013

7 tips for completing a Yellow Card BR1 application to work and study in the UK

Immigration Rules for Bulgarian and Romanian nationals

EU and non-EU workers take more UK jobs as number of Britons in work plunges

Health care workers needed in UK now

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk 

Majestic College offer special packages for EU students. They also have a number of employers looking for staff right now and are willing to employ Bulgarians and Romanians.

For more information call Joanna on 0208 207 1020 or email info@majesticcollege.org

The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has announced that from 6 April 2012 they will be removing the provision for applicants in the UK to apply for permission to stay here (leave to remain) before they have taken or received the results of an English language test. The revised policy applies to applicants applying under Tier 1 (General), Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) and Tier 2 (Working Visa) of the points-based system.

Illegal immigrant criminal returns home with £1500 from the British taxpayer and sets up a business selling UK passports

In a bizarre story, according to several overseas press reports, an illegal immigrant who was caught arranging a sham marriage in Britain was able to leave jail early with £1,500 of taxpayers’ money, which he used to set up a business in Pakistan offering UK passports.

‘Pagan’ woman wins immigration appeal after denying polygamy

A pagan woman who lives with her lover and his wife, but denies it is a polygamous arrangement, has won a ‘right to family life’ immigration case

Human Rights distorted, British PM warns the Council of Europe, as many in the UK call for withdrawal from ECHR

British Prime Minister David Cameron has warned that the concept of human rights was being “distorted” – and even “discredited” – by controversial decisions in Europe.

Changes to English language tests for applications under Tiers 1, 2 and 4 of the points-based system announced by UKBA today

The UK Border Agency has announced a number of amendments to the list of approved English language tests for applications made under Tier’s 1, 2 and 4 of the points-based system and for spouse or partner applications.

Change to postal biometric appointment procedure and residence permit help

The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has announced changes to their biometric appointment booking service removing telephone option and replacing it with an online system.

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

Looking for a Tier 4 college or University or need advice?

UKUS is a free University and College Admissions and advice service based in London, UK. Students interested in studying abroad can complete the Online UKUS Registration Form for more details.

371,000 migrants on benefits according to Government estimates. The UK Government has published its first ever estimates for the proportion of foreign-born people who are claiming working-age benefits in the UK.

Judge attacks immigration ‘merry-go-round’ after Pakistani man made 16 applications to remain in UK at a cost of £250,000 to taxpayer

A senior judge this week condemned the immigration ‘merry-go-round’ that allowed an asylum seeker to stay in Britain for a decade. The Pakistani national was allowed to make a staggering 16 appeals or new applications despite being rejected at every turn, at an estimated cost to taxpayers of at least £250,000.

Immigration critic calls Canada “Super Visa” a sham

There has been much discussion about the Canadian Conservative government’s new “Super Visa” in the community recently, but unfortunately it has turned out to be an insult to families desperate for their parents to visit or migrate to Canada.

Bulgarian and Romanian applications – UKBA issue new application form and guidance

The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has published revised guidance notes for Bulgarian and Romanian accession worker card applicants and employers, and a new version of Form BR3.

Pop star Adam Ant raided at dawn over ‘illegal immigrant’

1980’s pop legend Adam Ant was awoken by immigration border police yesterday when his London home was raided at dawn

Rapper Garry Sandhu deported to India after losing immigration appeal

Asian singing star Garry Sandhu has been deported back to India by the UK Border Agency after losing an appeal…

London to become major player in Yuan trading

The UK Treasury has announced plans to make London the leading international centre for trading China’s currency, the Yuan, also known as the Renminbi.

New procedure announced for Arts Council England endorsement under Tier 1 Exceptional talent applications

The UK Border Agency has announced that from this month applicants under Tier 1 (Exceptional talent) of the points-based system must follow a new procedure if they want Arts Council England (ACE) to endorse their application.

7 tips for completing a Yellow Card BR1 application to work and study in the UK

With Yellow Card student applications for Bulgarians and Romanians taking 3 to 6 months to process, getting it right first time is vital. Bulgarians and Romanians exercising treaty rights as students under Yellow Card registration certificates are reporting that their applications are taking between three and six months to be processed and approved by the UK Border Agency Full story…

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

Majestic College offer special packages for EU students. They also have a number of employers looking for staff right now and are willing to employ Bulgarians and Romanians.

For more information call Joanna on 0208 207 1020 or email info@majesticcollege.org

It found that 371,000 migrants made claims last year, the vast majority of which were legitimate.

The research suggests workers born abroad may be less likely to claim benefits than UK nationals.

A sampling exercise found 2% may not have rights to benefits – but the government could not say for certain.

Before the coalition government came to power the nationality of benefit claimants was not recorded.

The government has now tried to link records on benefits, border control and tax for those who came to work, study or visit.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) research found:

As of February 2011, there were 5.5m people receiving working-age benefits. Some 371,000 of those were foreign nationals when they first came to the UK, representing 6.4% of the claimants.

Almost 17% of all British nationals receive these benefits compared with almost 7% of all those classed as non-UK nationals when they first arrived in the UK.

More than half of those receiving a benefit had in fact at some point become British citizens, meaning they had the same rights as people born British.

Working-age benefits include income support, job seeker’s allowance, carer’s allowance and disability living allowance.

Employment Minister Chris Grayling denied that the report was scaremongering and said the full picture was not clear. He said the study showed the vast majority of foreign-born nationals who claimed benefits were entitled to them.

“I think it’s really important for the credibility of our benefits system… that we should understand the mix of people who come from other countries who are claiming benefits,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“We are now going to go through all the people who we’ve not being able to identify and we’re going to repeat that exercise across the full 250,000 to have a system in which people can have confidence.”

The employment minister said he wanted to reduce net migration and ensure the UK system did not attract “benefit tourists”.

But Scott Blinder of Oxford University’s Migration Observatory, an expert study group, said: “It’s perfectly reasonable for the government to want to understand the interaction between immigration and the benefits system, but the way this has been reported has been problematic and significantly misleading for two reasons.

“Firstly, it has been publicised in manner that has created the impression that migrants are particularly likely to claim benefits, when even the report itself clearly identifies that migrants are substantially less likely to claim benefits that the UK-born population.

“Secondly, the report lumps together all ‘migrants’ including British citizens who were born abroad – and who clearly have the same rights to benefits as all other British citizens – and migrants who have no legal claim to be in the UK at all.”

Benefit rules are complex but in general foreign-born nationals in the UK must pass various tests to show they are eligible to claim working-age benefits.

A follow-up sample by the DWP looked at 9,000 people who had come to the UK from outside of Europe. In a quarter of cases, it did not have enough information to assess whether claims were legitimate. Of those that remained, 98% were found to be valid.

The remaining 2% of claimants – 125 people – appeared to have no right to claim benefits. The DWP said it would need to investigate further because some of these could have made valid claims before later losing their entitlement to the benefit.

The government does not produce comparable figures for British-born benefit fraudsters – but estimates that 2% of all payments are down to fraud or error.

The opposition Labour party launched a furious attack on ‘nasty’ Conservative ministers for publishing statistics.

Shadow Immigration Minister Chris Bryant told the BBC Mr Grayling’s figures were not helpful.

“More than half the people that he’s talking about are British citizens – we have no idea when they came to this country,” he said.

“These could be people who came in the late 1930s or 1940s as children, then got British citizenship, worked all their lives, paid National Insurance, paid tax and are now in receipt of benefits.”

He added: “What the figures do show is that migrants into this country are more likely to be in work than British people. 6.6 per cent of working-age non-UK nationals were claiming benefits, compared with 16.6 per cent of  working-age UK nationals.”

He suggested the real intention was to “divert attention” from the fact the government was struggling to meet its pledge to cut net migration to below 100,000 by the end of this Parliament.

MigrationWatch UK, which campaigns for tougher controls on immigration, said the evidence was unclear but something was “clearly not right”.

Chairman Sir Andrew Green told Today: “I’m very glad that ministers now responsible are saying in turns that the immigration system is in a serious mess.”

He said the sheer scale of immigration put “huge pressure” on public services and there had been no link until now between the immigration and benefit systems. Source: BBC

Last week ago anti-immigration groups were complaining that migrants were taking too many jobs away from British workers. Now they are implying that migrants are all on benefits.

A recent Office for National Statistics report looked at trends in Eastern European migration and it said that just over 300,000 workers arrived in the UK during the recession. It said there was a “growing body of evidence” that A8 workers were taking jobs that local employers find hard to fill with domestic workers.

The Home Office said it was working to reduce net migration.

“Controlled migration can bring benefits to the UK economy, but uncontrolled immigration can put pressure on public services, infrastructure and community relations,” a spokesman said.

“That is why we are ensuring graduates and the workforce get the opportunities and skills they need so that they can find work, and why we have maintained restrictions on workers from Romania and Bulgaria, and made it clear we will always introduce transitional controls on new European Union member states to stop unregulated access to British jobs.”

Even though they are EU members, when it comes to employment Bulgarian and Romanian citizens do not have the same rights as other Europeans, for instance from Poland, Slovakia or other A8 Accession countries. See: Free Movement of EU nationals explained.

Bulgarians and Romanians coming to the UK on Yellow Card registration permits can work and study full time on vocational courses such as NVQ or QCF courses in Health and Social Care.  

See also:

7 tips for completing a Yellow Card BR1 application to work and study in the UK

Immigration Rules for Bulgarian and Romanian nationals 

Bulgarian and Romanian applications – UKBA issue new application form and guidance

British youth unemployment link to immigration rise pressure group claims

HOW TO FIND APPLICATION FORMS FOR A ‘YELLOW’ OR ‘BLUE’ CARD REGISTRATION CERTIFICATE ON THE UK BORDER AGENCY WEBSITE

Free Movement of EU nationals explained

Health care workers needed in UK now

Employment restrictions for Bulgarians and Romanians extended until end of 2013

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: 

info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

Majestic College offer special packages for EU students. They also have a number of employers looking for staff right now and are willing to employ Bulgarians and Romanians.

For more information call Joanna on 0208 207 1020 or email info@majesticcollege.org

Accession worker card applicants from Bulgaria and Romania should now use the new ‘01/2012’ versions of the BR3 form and ‘guidance notes for Bulgarians and Romanians who want to work in the UK‘ when applying for an accession worker card.

The UKBA said the ‘amended versions have been published to make changes to the BR3 application form to allow for a Bulgarian or Romanian work permit application and the BR3 application to be caseworked simultaneously to avoid delays’.

You can download the form and notes from the ‘Work permits and accession worker cards‘ page on the UK Border Agency website. Source: UK Border Agency.

Bulgarian and Romanian yellow card applicants for student or self employment should continue to use Form BR1.

Unlike other EU members, Bulgarian and Romanian citizens will not have unrestricted ‘free movement’ rights to work in the UK until at least the end of 2013. 

See also:

7 tips for completing a Yellow Card BR1 application to work and study in the UK

Immigration Rules for Bulgarian and Romanian nationals

HOW TO FIND APPLICATION FORMS FOR A ‘YELLOW’ OR ‘BLUE’ CARD REGISTRATION CERTIFICATE ON THE UK BORDER AGENCY WEBSITE

Free Movement of EU nationals explained

Health care workers needed in UK now

Employment restrictions for Bulgarians and Romanians extended until end of 2013

If you need any immigration advice or help with Sponsorship or Work Permits, Visa, ILR/Settlement, Citizenship, dependant visa or an appeal against a refusal please email: 

info@immigrationmatters.co.uk or visit www.immigrationmatters.co.uk

Majestic College offer special packages for EU students. They also have a number of employers looking for staff right now and are willing to employ Bulgarians and Romanians.

For more information call Joanna on 0208 207 1020 or email info@majesticcollege.org