Home Secretary caps number of skilled movers to UK at 21,700Post by Cameron Davidson on 24th November 2010 in Industry news, Immigration The UK government is to restrict the number of skilled international
movers coming to Britain from outside the European Union from April 2011 to
21,700.
Taking into account the number of internal company transfers
which are excluded from this total – and which in 2009 accounted for 22,000
people who were given permission for moving to the UK – it means that the total
number of incomers should be at the upper limit of 43,700, recommended last week
by the government’s Immigration Advisory Committee.
Announcing the limit to MPs in the House of Commons, Home
Secretary Theresa May revealed that the toughest limit would be imposed on
so-called ‘Tier 1’ migrants. This covers highly skilled workers, but under the
new rules will also be extended to include investors and entrepreneurs. In the
current year, the number of Tier 1 applications which can be accepted is
13,000, but for 2011 this figure is cut to just 1,000.
Intra-company transfers for those earning more than £40,000
will not be included in the cap, and there will be a further exemption allowing
ICT workers who earn more than £24,000 to undergo temporary international
moving for up to a year.
Experts said the cap would have a limited effect on net immigration.
Sarah Mulley, associate director at the Institute for Public
Policy Research, said: “The government will have to go much further than the
cap announced today if it is to meet its overall target.”
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