Working for UK Employers

The UK parliament’s Committee looking at the proposal for new immigration and nationality laws in the UK, the UK Borders Bill has heard evidence from people including the Minister of State, Liam Byrne MP, representatives of National Car Parks and Jack Dromey of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) about how proposals in the UK Borders Bill might affect employers and people working in the UK.

The Home Office has issued new guidance on travel by work permit holders. This guidance only affects people:
- with a work-permit valid for six months or less
- Who are non-visa nationals

The UK parliament is examining new proposals for legislation on immigration and asylum: the UK Borders Bill.

A Committee in the House of Commons in the UK parliament starts to examine the proposed legislation on 27 February. The Committee has announced that it will hear evidence from the Home Office, from the Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association, the Immigration Advisory Service, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the Transport and General Workers’ Union and from National Car Parks.

Work Permits UK have revised their guidance on when employers or representatives can request a reprint of a work permit. The new guidance took effect on 8 February 2006.

The change affect cases where a work permit has been issued but the person to be employed is refused entry clearance (a visa). In such cases, where the person appeals the refusal and eventually wins and is granted entry clearance, the original work permit may be several months old and may have expired before the person is able to travel.

The new guidance states that employers will have six months from the date of the decision of the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal (AIT) to submit an application for a reprint of a work permit. Requests after six months will only be accepted where the employer can demonstrate a satisfactory reason for the delay. Even where the application is made within the six-month period, further checks may be carried out.

Other circumstances in which a reprint is requested: for example to correct mistakes or when a permit is lost, are not affected by the new guidance.

On 05 February 2007 the UK Borders Bill was debated in the UK parliament, in the House of Commons. The Bill is the latest proposal for immigration and asylum legislation in the UK. It addresses diverse matters, from deportation to the points-based system for economic migration.

The quota for the Sectors Based Scheme Food Manufacturing sector, has been set at 3,500 permits and is subdivided between the sectors as follows:
- 600 permits in Fish Processing
- 2,100 in Meat Processing

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:

The organisation that represents the UK's universities, Universities UK, has called for the Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland scheme, which allows foreign students who study in Scotland to remain in Scotland after their studies have been completed, to be extended to the rest of the UK.

Stop press May 2007 - for information on the Court of Appeal decision on Certificates of Approval click here.

A major trade union, Amicus, has written to the Home Office expressing its concerns that the work permit scheme is allowing foreign workers to gain UK based information technology (IT) jobs at the expense of UK IT professionals.