Financial Times highlights criticism of HSMP changes
The Financial Times newspaper reported criticisms of changes to the Highly Skilled Migrants Programme (HSMP). In its 18 December 2006 article entitled ‘Lawyers attack ‘unfair’ points system’, the newspaper quoted Roger Gherson, the principal of Gherson and Co, who said:
‘Under the new rules successful entrepreneurs, such as Steve Jobs, would have great difficulty in qualifying, yet a young catering graduate, who has sufficient earnings, which are not onerously high, would qualify’.
The Highly Skilled Migrants Programme has been modified so that points are given only for educational qualifications, earnings, time spent working in the UK, and age. Unlike the old version of the scheme, no points are given for work experience, or track record. Applicants must score a sufficient number of points to qualify. It is not possible to obtain enough points if you do not have a degree, however high your earnings and however successful you are in your field. Thus a person such as Steve Jobs, who set up the Apple Computer Company, or Bill Gates, who set up Microsoft, would not qualify as a highly skilled migrant under the scheme.
A letter from the government minister in charge of the scheme, responding to criticisms made by the Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association, of which Gherson and Co are members, is quoted in the Financial Times’ article. The minister, Liam Byrne MP, says that the changes have been made to the scheme to ensure that ‘people who succeed under the programme are those who will make the greatest contribution to the UK economy’ as well as to make the requirements clear and more objective and to ensure that the programme is not open to abuse. Yet, when the Home Office consulted about employers requirements, the majority of employers said that work experience, for which no points are given in the scheme, was most relevant to their decisions on recruitment.
Gherson and Co are concerned that while the scheme may be simpler for the Home Office, it is being made more bureaucratic for applicants and others working with them. The new scheme is very specific not only about the criteria to be met, but also about the evidence that will be accepted to show that applicants have met the criteria. One example of this is that the Home Office confirmed in response to our enquiries that people who studied at a UK university still have to produce a letter from the university saying that the degree was taught in English. This creates extra work not only for the applicants, but also for the universities. Getting such letters for people who have spoken English from birth, went to school in England did their degrees at leading English universities, may have contributed to our success in applications under the new rules, but we do not enjoy advising our clients that this will be required.
For more information on HSMP, click here.