Tories promise more immigration reforms

LONDON: Indian citizens – students, family members, professionals – are set to face tougher visa rules in the UK if the Conservative Party wins the June 8 election, disappointing many stakeholders who were promised easier visas for India and the Commonwealth after Brexit.

Releasing the party’s manifesto on Thursday, Prime Minister Theresa May reiterated her position on Brexit and said the next government under her leadership will deliver a “mainstream Brexit” while forging a new relationship with Europe.

The manifesto reiterated her tough line on immigration, promising to “continue to bear down on immigration from outside the European Union”. It saw annual net immigration as “too high”, and retained the party’s objective to reduce it to the “tens of thousands”.

In cases of “Skype families”, in which one parent lives abroad because the British spouse does not earn enough to sponsor the other, the manifesto said: “We will increase the earnings thresholds for people wishing to sponsor migrants for family visas.”

The manifesto also promises more curbs on Indian and non-EU students: “We will toughen visa requirements for students, to make sure that we maintain high standards. We will expect students to leave the country at the end of their course, unless they meet new, higher requirements that allow them to work in Britain after their studies have concluded.”

Another area likely to affect Indians is the proposed increase in the Immigration Skills Charge that every British employer has to pay to hire a non-EU professional. Introduced in April, it is currently set at £1000 per worker per year.

The manifesto said: “(Skilled) immigration should not be a way for government or business to avoid their obligations to improve the skills of the British workforce.”