Brexit and impact on UK Immigration

Travel and movement rights between the UK and EU countries will remain unaffected between 31st January and 31st December 2020. British citizens will not need a visa to travel to EU countries (or vice versa) but according to the European Commission, from 2021, UK travellers will need to apply for an European Travel Information and Authorisation System visa waiver. Similar to an American ESTA, this is expected to cost around £6 and will be valid for several years.

By January 2021, however, EU free movement is set to end, border checks and controls are to be introduced in the UK and a new immigration system implemented that covers all non-UK nationals supported by a reformed infrastructure to enable and enforce the new rules and regulations.

The Government’s vision is to build a points-based immigration system, modelled on that of Australia. The system is to be centred on migrants’ skills over any nationality-based preference. EU citizens looking to come to the UK after Brexit to work must apply for and meet the same requirements as non-EEA nationals.

Expect changes to immigration rules at break-neck pace as the Government moves to have the necessary rules and systems in place for January 2021, which will also coincide with the deadline for the end of the transition period.

EU citizens in the UK 

EU citizen rights will remain as they are for the duration of the transition period. EU citizens will continue to be able to come to the UK to work during the transition period, free from travel or work restriction.

For employers, the risk during the transition period is not gaining access to EU workers. It is the declining retention and availability of such workers that is impacting businesses across sectors. EU net migration continues to decline rapidly since the referendum result in 2016, at 48,000 in the year ending June 2019, compared with over 200,000 in 2015 and early 2016.

Employers are being urged to ensure their EU workers are aware of the changes affecting EU free movement and to encourage them to register under the EU Settlement Scheme to safeguard their future status. The deadline for the EU settled status registration is 30th June 2021 if a deal is agreed with the EU.

The Government has made assurances that those EU citizens in the UK who are without EU settled status by the required deadline will not be automatically deported. However, it is expected that EU citizens in the UK who have not registered for settled status may face practical difficulties when proving their right to work and to rent property in the UK after Brexit.

With a surge in registrations expected in advance of the final confirmed deadline, it is advised to apply as soon as possible.

A new points-based immigration system

On 28th January 2020, the MAC published an extensive report on a new points-based immigration system for the UK.

Headline findings from the 270-page document include:

• Retaining the existing Tier 2 framework for workers with a job offer, and expanding the skill requirement to medium as well as highly skilled workers.
• Retaining the minimum salary threshold but lowering the current £30,000 threshold to around £25,600, and £17,600 for new entrants (currently £20,800) based on specific calculations, unless the relevant SOC code stipulated a higher minimum.
• Amending or replacing the current Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) visa to provide a more adequate route for skilled workers without a job offer. The new route would adopt an expression of interest system in which those who want to come to the UK can register that interest and a monthly invitation to apply drawn from that pool, though subject to a cap.
• No guidance could be provided as to changes in the UK settlement system due in large part to a lack of data, although a review was deemed necessary of settlement requirements. The MAC also recommended pausing proposals to increase the settlement salary threshold.
• Ruling out adopting any form of regionalised system or regional salary variations and has instead recommended a separate pilot visa for ‘remote’ areas of the UK. This also comes after Nicola Sturgeon this week called for a Scottish visa system that would allow for a different and more relaxed set of immigration rules designed to attract migrants to Scotland.

While the report is not binding on the Government, recommendations in previous MAC reports have been largely adopted, which is expected to be the case for this latest report.