Proposed immigration system to benefit Indians

BRITAIN’S proposed new post-brexit skills-based immigration system aimed at removing the cap on skilled-worker visas would benefit Indians, a team of British government officials emphasised during discussions with officials of the Indian government this week.

The discussions signalled a new phase of co-operation and acted as a forum to discuss opportunities to strengthen the bilateral relationship, according to a statement from the British High Commission in New Delhi.

“The migration dialogue allowed UK government officials to engage directly with their Indian counterparts on the UK’S plans for a new single, skills-based immigration system after Brexit,” the statement said.

“In addition, the UK government held round-table events with key figures from the corporate, business and education sectors in India to gather insight and highlight how the new system will benefit them.”

In the talks with the Indian officials, the British team emphasised that the new skills-based immigration system offered significant opportunity to Indian nationals, particularly skilled workers and students.

It was also pointed out that the current British visa system already provided a good service for India, with almost one in five of all British visas granted to Indian nationals.

The British officials said that their government continued to work towards more modern and efficient returns arrangements with India, which would support an enhanced migration partnership more broadly.

“These proposals mean that there would be no limit on the number of skilled people, such as engineers, doctors and IT professionals, who can come to live and work in the UK,” the High Commission statement said

Stating that the migration partnership between Britain and India was a priority for the UK, British High Commissioner to India Dominic Asquith said that India was the first country, outside of the EU, that London was consulting on its new migration policy.

The British government had released a white paper on the proposed new policy at the end of last year. Key announcements included removing the cap on numbers for skilled workers; removing the Resident Labour Market Test for highly-skilled workers; allowing students – whether undergraduate or postgraduate – to stay in Britain for an extended period of six months after graduation; and making it easier for students to switch to a skilled work visa at the end of their course. | IANS