The prevailing global economic uncertainty of the past few years has ignited significant debate across the world’s media and political classes on the desirability of bringing foreign nationals into local jurisdictions to participate in local labour markets.  Immigration remains at the forefront of political debate across the globe.

The prevailing global economic uncertainty of the past few years has ignited significant debate across the world’s media and political classes on the desirability of bringing foreign nationals into local jurisdictions to participate in local labour markets.  Immigration remains at the forefront of political debate across the globe. Political campaigns in numerous countries have been dominated by immigration policy. It is therefore imperative that business professionals seek the right advice from the right people in order to remain informed and updated with current procedures and processes. Roger Gherson, from Gherson comments on corporate immigration in the UK:

“With immigration being a hot political debate the workforces in the UK are largely affected by the policies implemented by the UK Border Agency (“UKBA”). As specialists in corporate immigration to companies within the FTSE100 index our day-to-day procedures and instructions to our clients have been tailored to ease the affects of the changes in order to ensure a continued fluidity of recruitment.
 
“Changes have meant that all jobs offered to non-EEA nationals must be of a Graduate Skill Level, as per the Code of Practice published by the UKBA. Intra-Company Transferees of multi-national companies required for employment beyond 12-months are to earn a salary of at least GBP 40,000 per annum. Skilled jobs that are filled outside the resident workforce have been annually capped at a current limit of 20,700.

Organisations are required to make a request for a restricted Certificate of Sponsorship (“CoS”) to the Home Office, pending they have complied with the mandatory Resident Labour Market Test; forcing UK employers to advertise the position to the settled workforce for a minimum 28-day period and actively review the short-listings prior to requesting a restricted CoS. Allocation of such requests are assessed on a points based criteria. Exemptions are in-place for salaries of GBP 150,000 but caps remain.

Despite the caps and obstacles that have arisen – changes to other immigration categories have had an inevitable affect on the demand for visas under Tier 2. The closure of Tier 1 (General), plus impending closure of the Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) route has meant that more UK employers are seeking Sponsor Licenses from the UK Border Agency to enable them to sponsor a migrant from abroad. Demands remain high despite the economical climate therefore investment in the excellent remains priority for UK companies; success for the UKBA. Gherson advises on a wide range of immigration matters, including all points-based applications. 

The firm has significant expertise in obtaining investor visas and on choosing the most appropriate routes to residence and nationality.