News

The recently introduced £200 premium request service for CoS is set to continue. Back in November last year the Home Office introduced a Tier 2 and 5 priority change of circumstance service which allows A rated sponsors to get their CoS allocated within five working days. This same service also applies to sponsors wishing to […]

The Home Office has just announced, at 11.13 on Tuesday 4th April new increased charges for 2017/18. Usually the Home Office provide a month or so’s notice of any intended visa fee increases to enable feedback prior to Parliamentary approval. But not this year! Nearly all increases are small – see the link below for […]

A raft of changes has been made to the ICT category over the past 12 months. The idea that the Tier 2 Intra-Company Transfer category enables international companies to transfer staff into the UK easily and inexpensively – on the basis that their stay here will be temporary – has changed somewhat and is certainly now a […]

It’s all change here at UK Visas this month as we move in to our new offices close to Horsham station and welcome Garima Arora who joins us as a senior caseworker on 2nd January 2018. UK Visas new address is as follows: Alphacom House 8A Oakhill Road Horsham RH13 5SB Our telephone number remains […]

A number of small changes to Tier 2 will be introduced in the Autumn as part of the UKVI’s response to the MAC Report late last year. Here is a brief summary of the main points likely to affect our clients: • The minimum salary threshold for Tier 2 (General) “experienced workers” goes up to £25,000 in […]

No such luck with the proposed Immigration Skills Charge we suspect, as the government continues to press ahead with plans to introduce a new skills charge, with effect from 6 April 2017. The Immigration Skills Charge will be levied on employers that employ migrants in skilled areas. Set at £1,000 per year for each Tier […]

It is essential that sponsors advise us if their circumstances change. I know I sound like a broken recording, but it is incredible to me that some 20% of sponsors needing to renew their licence in the past six months have had major changes that the UKVI have not been informed about. Some companies have been acquired, […]

Out-of-time applicants can no longer apply up to 28 days after the expiry date on their visa. Under current rules applicants who, for whatever reason such as an innocent mistake, find themselves applying after their current leave has expired, have had their cases considered as long as their applications were submitted within 28 days of […]

The UKVI have been taking an increasing length of time to allocate unrestricted CoS over the past few months – here’s why! Since April 2016 getting an unrestricted CoS allocated to sponsors has become increasingly difficult, requiring a comprehensive representation as to why the CoS is required, but at least they were allocated within a few days. […]

On 24 November 2016 the following changes will come into effect. • The salary threshold for Tier 2 (ICT) short-term applicants has been increased to £30,000 p.a. Please note that this sub-category will close in April 2017. • The salary threshold for Tier 2 (ICT) Graduate Trainee goes down to £23,000 p.a. • The Tier […]