The launch of Tiers 2 and 5 of the new points based system has been a hot topic over 2008 and was recently opposed by the Tories as it was thought many employers were not sufficiently prepared. However, last night the UK Government voted in favour of these changes, meaning the launch went ahead as planned yesterday.

Under Tier 2, employers will need to be registered as a sponsor to employ new non-EU nationals and to extend work permits of current employees. Employers will also have reporting duties, although the government has assured that minor breaches or honest mistakes shouldn’t be "immediately" punished.

Under Tier 5, the Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS) will replace the current Two Year Working Holiday Scheme. Nationals from Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Japan can take part. British overseas citizens, British overseas territories citizens and British nationals (overseas) also qualify. However, many employers may have to source their candidates from different countries. These Non-EU Migrants under the YMS can work unrestricted for two years.

We also see changes to the current visitors visa. There are now six different kinds of visitors visa, the business visitor being the most controversial at the moment.

Although there is bound to be some teething problems, by end of next year the new system should be in full swing and we'll see a more structured and transparent application process and an immigration system that can be adapted to meet the needs of the UK economy.

This week, the BBC reported the UK Government’s controversial ID card scheme is now live. The first people to receive the cards will be non-EU students and husbands, wives or partners of permanent residents who apply to extend their stay. Officials say these two categories are those who are most likely of abusing immigration rules. The cards will include the individual's name and picture, their nationality, immigration status and two fingerprints.

However, the new scheme has faced tough opposition with shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve who branded the ID cards “a gimmick with a price”. He has also been quoted saying the cards “won’t stop illegal immigration or terrorism but will land the tax payer with a multi-billion pound bill.”

It seems this may not be entirely true. Although the scheme is costly, extra charges will be incorporated in the already expensive visa application process meaning the scheme will actually be financed by foreigners not the taxpayer.

In addition to this, there are some very obvious benefits to employers. The new points based system places the responsibility of ensuring migrants are entitled to work on employers and hefty fines are imposed on those who employ illegal workers. The new ID cards will make it much easier as well as time and cost-efficient for employers to check work entitlement, as they clearly show the individual’s immigration status.

The week has also seen immigration minister, Phil Woolas resort to calling mayor of London, Borris Johnson, 'a nincompoop' over his decision to commission a study into the impact of an amnesty for illegal immigrants.

Mr Woolas may want to reconsider; Mr Johnson is proposing nothing more than a study into the impact of an amnesty. Such a study actually might have been a good idea before the current launch of the Tier 2 system for which many UK employers were not prepared.

Last week saw some interesting, useful and rather arrogant UK immigration stories emerge.

The first of these was reported on iol.co.za and looked at the efforts of the Home Affairs Department in South Africa to stop the UK Government imposing visa requirements on SA residents in the future.

Earlier this year, the UK Border Agency conducted a visa waiver test on all non-European countries to assess the threat they pose in terms of illegal immigration, crime, security etc. Along with eleven other countries, South Africa was identified as ‘high-risk’ and was given until the end of the year to prove they could take the necessary steps to lower their risk to the UK or face the prospect of strict visa regulations.   

Some of the steps being taken to avoid this include reducing the time frame of the late registration of birth process, introducing airport liaison officers to increase inspectorate at major airports and introducing new passports as well as the ID smart card. The authorities in South Africa are also doing their utmost to ensure their youngster don’t miss out on opportunities in the UK due to the new Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS) which is based on reciprocity of participating countries.

Negotiations are also being made with regard to the returns agreement linked to both the visa waiver test and the YMS.

The second story was published in the New Zealand Herald and focused on New Zealanders cutting short their traditionally popular ‘Overseas Experience’ due to the current economic downturn in the UK. In the story it was stated that Helen Clark, prime minister of New Zealand had secured an exclusive visa-free agreement with Gordon Brown that allows Kiwis to holiday in the UK for up to six months. Oh Please! What absolute rubbish! New Zealand is simply a non-visa national country. Residents of these countries, which also include South Africa and Australia among others, are not required to apply for visas before they travel to the UK, provided it’s not for more than 6 months, and receive their visas at the airport. This is not an exclusive agreement between New Zealand and the UK!

Finally, CPA Australia has reported an error on the UK Border Agency website. The points-based system (PBS) calculator allows users to check their eligibility using drop down menus but two menu errors have been made resulting in miscalculation. Members of CPA Australia have been told they need to inform caseworkers of their CPA designation as changes to the site cannot be made until the next scheduled update in March 2009!
 

The UK’s Border and Immigration Agency recently announced that the next step in their immigration overhaul is due to be implemented on the 27th November 2008. What this will mean is that the long awaited Tier 2 – the points based system’s ‘flag ship’ Tier – and the Tier 5 schemes will come into operation on this date.

The Tier 2 scheme will replace the current Work Permit scheme which is in place to enable employers to utilize foreign workers in positions which they struggle to fill with resident workers. The Tier 2 application will still require a UK based employer and the role and candidate will still need to pass a ‘resident labour’ test, amongst other things, in order to qualify for the scheme. A major difference between the Work Permit and the Tier 2 application is that the employer is expected to play a much more active role in the employment of their foreign nationals and ensuring that they abide by their visa regulations.

A company wishing to employ a foreign national must be in possession of a valid certificate which enables them to employ foreigners in the first place. Employers can obtain this certificate by meeting certain requirements and making an application to the Border and Immigration Agency.

The Tier 5 scheme is a scheme designated to attract low skilled temporary workers to the UK and will replace the current and vastly popular Working Holiday Visa (WHV) to the UK. The Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS) will now be available instead of the WHV, but the question still remains as to whether or not countries like South Africa will be afforded the opportunity to utilise the YMS scheme under the Tier 5 application.

The new Business Visitor visa will also be introduced on the 27th November 2008 to those wishing to travel to the UK for short business trips. Residents from non-visa national countries (of which South Africa is currently one) will not need to obtain this visa prior to entering UK as it will be issued on arrival by the customs official at the port of entry. This Business Visitor visa will enable business persons to enter the UK and undertake tasks such as conferences, securing deals, undertaking fact finding missions, conducting site visits, etc during their time in the UK on this visa.

The National Business Review is reporting a story about extending working holidays in the UK for Kiwis. 

From next month young New Zealanders heading to Britain will be able to work there for two years, Prime Minister Helen Clark announced today.

At present they can go to the United Kingdom for two years under a Working Holiday Visa which allows them to work for one year of their stay.

From November 27 there will be a new visa category under the Youth Mobility Scheme allowing them to work for the whole of the two-year period.