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Home Office reconfirms Ukraine Schemes do not lead to settlement
27 February 2024New Immigration Rules laid on 19 February 2024 have made immediate changes to the Ukraine Schemes, including closing the Ukraine Family Scheme. A separate announcement reconfirms that the Ukraine Schemes do not lead to settlement, but that an 18-month extension will be available for scheme participants from early 2025. Participants wishing to settle in the UK should urgently review their options ahead of restrictions to work and partner routes being implemented in March and April 2024.
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New Immigration Rules place greater restrictions on care workers
22 February 2024From 11 March 2024 care providers in England cannot sponsor new care workers under the Skilled Worker route unless they are registered with the Care Quality Commission. From the same date, newly sponsored carers can no longer bring their family members to the UK.
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Changes to right to work compliance: key takeaways for employers
16 February 2024The Home Office recently updated the Employer’s guide to right to work checks. The guide contains references to the increased £60,000 civil penalty for illegal working, along with some small but significant changes that impact how employers complete compliant right to work checks. In this article, we highlight the key changes to help employers stay on top of right to work compliance.
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New visitor rules benefit business visitors to the UK
15 February 2024Since 31 January 2024, the Immigration Rules for visitors have been liberalised to allow a wider range of activities for business visitors, including in the areas of intra-corporate activities, remote working, providing legal services and carrying out research. The Permitted Paid Engagement visitor route has been expanded and incorporated into the standard visitor route, meaning these visitors can stay for up to six months.
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Employers race to comply with new rules for non-EU work permits – Declan Groarke comments for the Irish Examiner
Press
08 February 2024The article discusses the new rules for non-EU worker permits and includes comments from Declan Groarke on Ireland's new General Employment Permit (GEP) and related work permit changes.
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UK Migration Advisory Committee to advise on new Immigration Salary List
01 February 2024The Home Office has asked the Migration Advisory Committee to conduct a ‘rapid review’ of which occupations should be initially included on the Immigration Salary List (ISL). This list will replace the Shortage Occupation List (SOL) for the Skilled Worker route from April 2024. Employers experiencing skills shortages should consider submitting evidence to the full ISL review, which is expected to be commissioned shortly.
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Home Office announces timeline for immigration reforms
30 January 2024The Home Office has issued a new statement outlining the launch dates for major reforms to the Skilled Worker and Partner routes. This, along with other recent announcements confirms a packed timeline of immigration reforms due to be made over the next year.
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Processing delays as changes loom
29 January 2024The Home Office is struggling to cope with a surge of demand for immigration application-related services ahead of an increase in the Immigration Health Surcharge and upcoming changes to the Skilled Worker and Partner routes.
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Illegal working civil penalties due to triple from 13 February 2024
25 January 2024The civil penalty an employer may receive for employing an illegal worker will rise from £20,000 to £60,000. This significantly increases the financial risk to employers of failing to carry out rigorous and compliant right to work checks.
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Redundancy
Inbrief
19 January 2024This Inbrief looks at how employers can minimise the risk of legal claims when dismissing employees by reason of redundancy. The starting point is making sure that there is a genuine redundancy situation. The crucial thing then is to follow a reasonable procedure, including consulting the affected employees, applying a fair selection process and considering alternative employment. Finally, those dismissed should be given their correct redundancy pay.
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Immigration Health Surcharge due to rise imminently
18 January 2024Substantial rises to the Immigration Health Surcharge have now been approved by Parliament to come into effect on 6 February 2024. Individuals hoping to avoid these should submit their UK immigration application by 5 February 2024 to be sure they are not impacted.
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Immigration law in Ireland - a roundup of 2023 and looking ahead to 2024
11 January 20242023 ended with a significant announcement on the largest expansion and shakeup to the employment permit system since its inception. In 2024, we expect to see further changes to the employment permit system and the possibility of the enactment of the Employment Permits Bill. However, we also expect to see further changes adopted as part of the Department of Justice’s modernisation programme, like those we have seen with the naturalisation process and the possibility of proposals on the adoption of a single application procedure.
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What's happening in UK immigration law in 2024?
10 January 2024This year we expect to see a host of restrictions aimed at bringing down net migration and stamping out abuse of the immigration system, alongside a liberalisation of short-term immigration routes and the introduction of technology-based innovations. Increases in the Immigration Health Surcharge and maximum civil penalty for employing an illegal worker were anticipated for January 2024 but now will be deferred into February 2024 or later, depending on when implementing regulations are finalised by Parliament.
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UK government issues further details on net migration reduction policy
02 January 2024The main new detail for employers to note is that occupation-related going rates of pay will be increased alongside the general salary thresholds. There will be transitional arrangements for Skilled Workers, however users of the system will be required to pay more in salaries and other immigration-related costs throughout the period of sponsorship. Senior carers and carers will be prohibited from bringing dependants from the new year, and the increased minimum income requirement under the five-year Partner route will be raised initially to £29,000 instead of £38,700.
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A big shakeup to Ireland's employment permit system
22 December 2023In a surprise pre-Christmas announcement, the Irish Government significantly expanded Ireland’s employment permit system but also increased the salary requirements for most employment permit types. While this is welcome news, it also means that some employers may need to review and reforecast their budgets for employment costs to ensure any employment permit holders they employ can continue to work in Ireland.
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Q&A from What’s happening in immigration law webinar – 7 December 2023
20 December 2023This Q&A covers questions raised in our webinar. This session discussed:
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New Immigration Rules expand activities allowed for visitors
12 December 2023On 7 December 2023 the Home Office published new Immigration Rules. These expand the range of activities visitors are allowed to do in the UK from 31 January 2024, including remote work, research, provision of legal services and paid engagements. The Youth Mobility Scheme is also amended to include citizens of Uruguay and to restructure the arrangements for Japanese and South Korean citizens.
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UK immigration policies announced to lower net migration
05 December 2023On 4 December 2023 the UK Government announced a ‘five point plan’ to lower net migration, following on from recent high net migration figures. These include raising the general threshold for Skilled Worker visas, abolishing the salary discount for shortage occupation roles and prohibiting care workers from bringing dependants.
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How to avoid a right to work check headache when BRPs are phased out
27 November 2023The Home Office intends to phase out biometric residence permits and other physical immigration documents from 1 January 2025. Although details of the process are still awaited, employers should take the opportunity now to review the volume of repeat right to work checks are due on 31 December 2024 and aim to minimise bottlenecks with processing these.
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The role of immigration law in advancing DE&I initiatives in global mobility
17 November 2023Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) initiatives are no longer just buzzwords but are becoming essential elements of success for companies in all industries. Companies are recognising the value of diverse talent and the need to promote equitable opportunities in their global operations. Immigration law is a cornerstone of the legal framework and can play a pivotal role in shaping the demographic composition of a company.