UK Points System

Yes, it is still possible. The Skills Shortage list is a part of Tier 2 of the new UK Points based system. If your job is not on the list, your prospective employer may still be able to sponsor you. They must be approved by the government to sponsor people under the Tier 2 program. Then they have to prove that there are no suitable UK or EU candidates that can fill the job.

This past week was an exciting week for news relating to Migrating to the UK. On top of finalizing the plans for the new Points Based System, the UK government released new plans to govern paths to citizenship.

Basically, the plans call for the process to become a British Citizen to become even more complicated assuring that you would probably need a UK Immigration Lawyer.

Essentially the new plans call for prospective UK citizens to 'earn' their citizenship. What will this entail?

According to the BBC:

• Charging migrants additional fees when they apply for visas to offset their costs to local services
• Require more English Language Testing before citizenship
• Must prove their integration into communities through community service and people vouching for their character
• Increasing the time it takes to become a citizen
• Replacing UK permanent settlement (also known as indefinate leave to remain) with citizenship, if you stay long enough you must apply for nationality

The plans will also have more zero tolerance towards illegal migrants and migrants who break the law. If you commit a crime, you will denied citizenship and may be deported.

All of this may seem slightly horrifying to prospective immigrants to UK or people currently in the UK awaiting their chance to apply for UK citizenship.

We don't think it's worth worrying too much at this stage. The proposals were part of a government green paper, which is just a lengthy proposal. It will take years to implement this plan, even if it is quickly passed by the Parliament.

We will keep you up to date on all the latest happenings on this as well as any changes that may occur. The upcoming UK Points Based Immigration System eBook will have a whole chapter on "The Path to UK Citizenship."

This scary plan also taps into something else that is worrying a lot of potential UK migrants: will you be welcome in the UK? This is a topic we are investigating and check back soon for a detailed article on this very topic.