Immigration Insights

March 2, 2022

In a statement to Parliament this week, Home Secretary Priti Patel has confirmed that the UK government has created a "generous" and "unprecedented" package of measures to help Ukrainians and their family members enter the UK.

February 28, 2022

As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continued over the weekend, there were many changes from a visa and immigration perspective for both Ukrainian citizens and residents fleeing the country and Russian citizens seeking to apply for visas from certain countries.

February 25, 2022

As anticipated, several European countries announced travel and immigration concessions today for individuals fleeing Ukraine due to the ongoing military invasion from Russia. In addition, the Ukrainian authorities also announced specific exit and border protocols, most of which specifically affect Ukrainian citizens.

February 25, 2022

Further to the news of a visa concession for family members of British citizens in Ukraine, UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) have announced visa concessions for Ukrainians who are already in the UK.

February 24, 2022

Adjustments to Right to Work (RTW) checks made due to COVID-19 have been extended by the Home Office until 30 September 2022 (inclusive).

February 23, 2022

Non-British family members of British nationals who usually live in Ukraine can now apply for a visa in any of the family settlement migration routes for free. The concession is available to persons of all nationalities (except British) whose British family member usually lives in Ukraine and is their spouse or civil partner; their unmarried partner (living together in a relationship akin to marriage for at least 2 years); their parent if under the age of 18; their child under the age of 18; or their adult dependent relative.

February 18, 2022

The Home Office has announced minor but important changes to its “View and Prove” share code system. Share codes are currently used by individuals who have an online immigration status to prove their right to work and live in the UK, for example, employers or landlords.

February 18, 2022

Recent changes to how the Immigration Health Surcharge is calculated have meant that individuals applying from outside the UK now have to pay for the time granted before the visa – essentially from their declared expected date of arrival in the UK.

February 18, 2022

The Home Secretary has taken decisive action to close the Tier 1 Investor visa route to all new applicants from all nationalities with immediate effect.

February 15, 2022

More than a dozen countries, including the U.S., the UK and Australia, have strongly urged their citizens residing in Ukraine to depart the country immediately due to the rising political and military tension with Russia.

February 14, 2022

The United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently announced that Brazil has been fully added to the U.S. Global Entry program. Designed to provide expedited entry clearance for “pre-approved, low-risk travelers” upon arrival in the United States, the Global Entry program allows pre-screen travelers to skip long processing lines and paperwork at most major international airports.

February 9, 2022

In February 2022, the Minister for Safe and Legal Migration introduced a concession to the Immigration Rules, benefiting the fisheries sector, which allows foreign national workers employed by approved companies owning or operating well boat vessels in UK territorial seas to be considered for a grant of leave to enter for a period not extending beyond 8 February 2023 and for a period up to six months at a time.

February 4, 2022

On 21 January, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated its policy guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual to address national interest waivers for advanced degree professionals or persons of exceptional ability. This update clarifies how the national interest waiver can be used by science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) graduates and entrepreneurs.

January 26, 2022

On 21 January 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated the USCIS Policy Manual with additional guidance on how USCIS evaluates eligibility for the O-1A “extraordinary ability” visa category. O-1A visas are reserved for individuals with an extraordinary ability in the sciences, education, business, or athletics.

January 25, 2022

On 24 January 2022, the UK Home Office released an update to the UK immigration rules to add care workers to the Shortage Occupation List and make the role eligible for the Skilled Worker route. These changes are aimed at helping to alleviate current pressures on the health and social care system as a result of COVID-19.

January 25, 2022

Effective 21 January 2022, Venezuelan citizens were removed from Mexico’s visa waiver regime and now require a visa to enter Mexico. As such, Venezuelan nationals traveling to Mexico for business or tourism will require a Visitor Visa prior to entering the country.

January 11, 2022

On 7 October 2021, the European Council adopted the Revised EU Blue Card Directive with the intent to streamline and harmonize the current EU Blue Card infrastructure throughout the region. Although long heralded as a premier immigration option for the European Union to attract highly-skilled non-EU nationals, the program has faced frequent criticism for being overly complicated, having inconsistent regulations in different member states, and, in some cases, providing only limited advantages compared to national work and residence authorization schemes.

January 10, 2022

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, China has required visa applicants to possess a Foreign Affairs Office Invitation, sometimes known as the ‘PU’ letter. Companies seeking these letters are encountering extended delays, high-rejections, and difficulties with dependents. Newland Chase, through our sister company CIBTvisas, offers a simpler, faster solution. If your organization qualifies, we can secure your PU letter in as few as 10-12 business days.

January 6, 2022

The Home Office has updated its Youth Mobility Scheme guidance to reflect that Iceland and India have the joined the scheme as of 1 January 2022.  Iceland will have an allocation of 1,000 places in 2022 and India will be allocated 3,000 places.

January 6, 2022

As of 30 December 2021, Appendix D to the full policy guidance on sponsoring a Worker or Temporary Worker, or sponsoring a Student, has been updated to reflect the introduction of eVisas (a digital version of a visa containing immigration status information) and the associated changes to the right to work check documentary retention requirements.