Latest news with #EUSettlementScheme
NDTV
21-05-2025
- NDTV
Planning To Study In UK? Here's How To Apply For Right Visa
Students planning to move to the UK must check their visa eligibility before applying. A visa is generally required to enter the UK for studying, working, visiting, or joining family-depending on the applicant's nationality, reason for travel, duration of stay, and personal circumstances. Types of UK Visas and Their Uses: For Study: Standard Visitor visa: For courses up to 6 months. Short-term Study visa: For English language courses lasting 6 to 11 months. Student visa: For long-term academic programs at licensed institutions; allows limited work rights. Child Student visa: For students aged 4-17 attending independent schools. Those aged 16 and above may be allowed to work part-time. For Working: Several work visas are available depending on one's qualifications, job offer, sponsorship, and job type. Options include short- and long-term work permits and the Innovator Founder visa for entrepreneurs. For Joining Family: Individuals can apply for a family visa to join relatives with British citizenship or UK settlement status. Applicants may later qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR). Those with relatives in the UK on a visa may also be eligible, provided they are a spouse, partner, or minor child. Family Reunion For Refugees: Partners or children separated due to conflict may apply to join a relative in the UK who has been granted asylum or humanitarian protection. For Visiting: A Standard Visitor visa allows entry for up to six months-for tourism, short business trips, or short courses. Those visiting to get married must apply for a Marriage Visitor visa. Visitors are not permitted to take up employment. For Transit: Travellers with layovers in the UK en route to another country may need a transit visa. EU, EEA, and Swiss Citizens: Eligible individuals with a close family member living in the UK before 31 December 2020 can apply for a free EU Settlement Scheme family permit. This permit allows a 6-month stay with rights to live, work, and study, after which individuals can apply to remain under the EU Settlement Scheme. Commonwealth Citizens: Those with a UK-born grandparent can apply for an Ancestry visa to work in the UK. Some may also have the right of abode. Individuals unsure of their status can check eligibility under the Windrush scheme. Returning Residents: A Returning Resident visa is required for those who previously held Indefinite Leave to Remain but have lived outside the UK beyond the permitted period-over 5 years (or 4 for Swiss citizens) for EU Settlement holders, and over 2 years for others. Before making any travel plans, applicants must ensure their visa application is approved.
Telegraph
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Covid made me commit crime, claims drug dealer spared deportation
A convicted cannabis dealer has been spared deportation after claiming that he only committed the crime because he ran out of money during the Covid pandemic. Greek migrant Sali Dragodi, 26, has been allowed to stay in the country after a 'generous' judge ruled that his removal would breach his human rights despite objections from the Home Office. The Home Office sought to return him to his native Greece after he was jailed for more than a year for possessing cannabis with intent to supply. But first-tier tribunal Judge Mary Mulready believed he was at a 'very low risk of reoffending'. His lawyer argued he was 'someone who had done something stupid once and was unlikely to commit an offence again'. After she allowed his human rights claim, the Government appealed the decision, arguing that 'due weight' had not been given to the public interest in deporting foreign national offenders. But this has now been rejected after another judge found no 'error of law' in the original decision. The case, disclosed in court papers, is the latest example exposed by The Telegraph where failed asylum seekers or convicted foreign criminals have attempted to halt their deportations, often by claiming breaches of their human rights. There are a record 41,987 outstanding immigration appeals, largely on human rights grounds, which threaten to hamper Labour's efforts to fast-track removal of illegal migrants. Dragodi was granted limited leave to remain in accordance with the EU Settlement Scheme in August 2020, a tribunal was told. He was later convicted of possessing cannabis with intent to supply, for which he was sentenced to one year, one month and 21 days imprisonment. The tribunal heard: '[Dragodi]'s evidence before the [first tier tribunal] and accepted by it was that the circumstances of the offence were exceptional, coming in the context of financial difficulties arising out of the circumstances of the pandemic. '[Dragodi] was at that time living in a single room paid for by the man he committed the offence with, who was more seriously involved.' Judge Mulready ruled in his favour in June 2023, meaning he was allowed to stay in Britain. However, the Home Office questioned why the drug dealer had been assessed as at a 'very low' risk of reoffending. The Home Office said there had been no 'proper recognition' by the judge of the 'nature of the offence, or expression of public revulsion or deterrence'. Dragodi had not 'provided any evidence of rehabilitation' with no 'guarantee' he might not reoffend. There was no reason he could not return to Greece 'given his youth, his health and his skills'. However, Dragodi's representative told the tribunal: 'This was not a career criminal but someone who had done something stupid once and was unlikely to commit an offence again.' Deputy tribunal Judge Greg Ó Ceallaigh – who sat with upper tribunal Judge Daniel Sheridan – found that Judge Mulready was entitled to come to the conclusion that she did. 'In our view the grounds of appeal do not identify any error of law,' he said. 'The tribunal quite clearly took account of all relevant matters.' The judge added: 'While the [first-tier tribunal]'s assessment may have been at the more generous end of the spectrum, it is one that she was entitled to reach.'
The Independent
28-02-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Number of UK visas issued for work, study, family or resettlement falls by third
Nearly 935,000 visas were issued in 2024 to people coming to the UK for work, study or family reasons, or through one of the Government's settlement schemes, according to new Home Office data. The figure, which covers main applicants and dependants, is down by a third (33%) from just under 1.4 million in 2023. The fall has been driven by a steep drop in the number of people issued with work-related visas, which was down 40% from 613,627 in 2023 to 369,419 last year. The number of study visas fell year-on-year by 31% from 604,253 to 419,312. By contrast, there was a small rise in family visas, up 7% from 80,083 to 86,049. Among the resettlement categories, 19,346 visas were issued under the Ukraine schemes (down 52% year-on-year), 19,273 were granted to British National Overseas status holders from Hong Kong (down 32%), and 13,869 were under the EU Settlement Scheme (down 20%). In addition, 3,864 were for dependants joining or accompanying others and 3,426 were under other settlement schemes. The total number of visas issued across all these categories last year, 934,558, is down sharply from 1,393,079 in 2023. It is also the lowest total for any 12-month period since the year to December 2021, when the figure stood at 858,766. The drop is likely to reflect changes in legal migration rules introduced since January 2024 by the previous Conservative government, including a ban on overseas care workers and students bringing family dependants, and a steep rise in the salary threshold for skilled workers to £38,700. Visas issued for health and care workers and their families have tumbled from 348,157 in 2023 to 110,833 last year – a fall of 68% – while the number of student dependants saw an even larger percentage drop, down 85% year-on-year from 143,267 to 21,976. Dr Ben Brindle, researcher at the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said: 'The past few years have seen a 'boom and bust' in some visa categories, particularly students' family members and health and care visas. 'The large declines in visa grants have been possible primarily because the number of visas previously being issued in the post-Brexit immigration system was so high. 'Despite the declines, overall visa grants to non-EU citizens remain well above pre-Brexit levels.' Christina McAnea, general secretary of the public service union Unison, described the drop in health and care worker visas as 'worrying', adding: 'Without the support of workers from overseas, the social care sector would have collapsed long ago. 'Pay rates remain low so care employers are struggling to fill many thousands of vacancies. 'Hostile words and actions from the previous government, notably the ban on dependants, undoubtedly put off many overseas care staff from coming to work in the UK. 'Other care workers will have been deterred by the many horror stories of the abuse and exploitation of migrants at the hands of cowboy care operators.' Meanwhile, the director of think tank British Future, Sunder Katwala, said the politics of immigration have yet to 'catch up' with the new reality of falling numbers coming to the UK, particularly in health and social care. 'Keir Starmer's government should not compete in a public auction with the Conservatives or Reform on who can call for the lowest number,' Mr Katwala said. 'He is constrained by the fact that the Government has to deliver, not just make promises.' Mr Katwala called for the Government's upcoming Immigration White Paper to clarify Labour's aims, and include a yearly plan 'which reflects voters' desire for control of immigration with public recognition of the contribution it can make to much-needed economic growth'. Home Office minister Dame Angela Eagle said the Government is ensuring legal migration 'continues to come down' and that action has been taken to reverse some 'loosening' of visa requirements previously introduced, where 'evidence of abuse' was found. 'Under the Plan for Change our Immigration White Paper will set out a comprehensive plan to restore order to our broken immigration system,' the minister added.
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
What changes are being made to the EU Settlement Scheme?
Campaigners have welcomed new changes to the EU Settlement Scheme that would make it easier for people to obtain settled status to live in the UK. The new system will see those with "pre-settled status" automatically granted settled status if eligible, rather than having to go through the application process all over again. It follows a High Court judgement that ruled it was unlawful to take away the rights of people with pre-settled status just because they hadn't made a second application before the expiry of their status. While some 1.7 million EU citizens with pre-settled status stand to benefit from this change, campaigners warn some of those with "complex life circumstances" will "fall through the net of this policy" and risk losing their right to live in the UK, or being "pushed into exploitation". Here, Yahoo News explains the changes and why campaign groups still have concerns. Settled status is an immigration status given to people under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) introduced in 2019 after Brexit. It allows citizens from the European Union, European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland who were living continuously in the UK for at least five years before 31 December 2020 to live and work in the UK permanently. Those who didn't meet these criteria could apply for pre-settled status, a temporary immigration status, granted for a period of five years, initially requiring people to then apply for settled status once eligible. The deadline for most people to apply for the EU Settlement Scheme was 30 June 2021, but the Home Office did make exceptions for those with "reasonable grounds" for a late application. The EU Settlement Scheme has provided 5.7 million EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members with the status they need to continue living and working in the UK since Brexit, according to the Home Office. In a bid to make things more straightforward, the Home Office is introducing a new process to automatically convert eligible pre-settled status holders to settled status. Pre-settled status holders approaching the expiry of their status will receive an email telling them they "may soon be considered" for an automated conversion. The Home Office says it expects to issue the first grants of settled status under this new process from late January, before expanding the process to benefit more people later this year. It says it will automatically check pre-settled status holder records against government-held records, for example, for evidence of criminal conduct and to ensure they have been living in the UK – the same checks used when people first applied for the EUSS. "We are also considering the appropriate next steps for cases where a pre-settled status holder no longer meets the conditions," the Home Office adds. Pre-settled status holders won't need to do anything and will be informed if they cannot be granted settled status, although people are still free to apply online themselves if they prefer. The changes follow a ruling by the High Court in 2022 that certain aspects of the EUSS were unlawful. Judge Mr Justice Lane concluded that the Home Office had wrongfully interpreted the withdrawal agreement between the UK and EU by allowing people with pre-settled status to lose their rights purely because they had failed to make a second application. The legal challenge was brought by the Independent Monitoring Authority (IMA) – the watchdog set up by the government to look after EU citizens' rights in Britain after its exit from the union. At the time, more than two-and-a-half million people faced having their residency rights taken away for failing to make a second application. The Home Office initially indicated it intended to challenge the ruling, but confirmed in February 2023 that it would not do so. It is now extending pre-settled status by five years for people approaching the expiry of their status to ensure nobody loses their residency rights because they didn't make a further application. While EU citizen campaign groups have welcomed the Home Office's changes, they still warn that some people could still face a bureaucratic maze in trying to prove how long they have been living in the UK. Grassroots movement the 3 Million suggested the way the government has chosen to implement the High Court's judgement "still puts at risk people whose residence history is not straightforward". "If someone hasn't either had a continuous job or claimed welfare benefits during their five years of continuously living in the UK, then they are not likely to benefit from this automatic grant of settled status," a spokesperson said. "Instead, the Home Office will put the burden of proof on EU citizens - to show they've lived here continuously and they qualify for settled status. "We've seen many people who are unable to meet the high threshold of bureaucratic evidence the Home Office requires: from stay-at-home mums being refused settled status because their names are not on any household bills, to people who lost their job and lived with friends for a while, and the most vulnerable of whom were pushed into destitution and homelessness. "We are concerned that EU citizens and family members with complex life circumstances will fall through the net of this policy, have their immigration status curtailed and be pushed into exploitation." Many of you have reported receiving an email about #eVisas from the Home Office which is very granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme should already have a UKVI account and be able to see their digital status - which is now referred to as an eVisa. — the3million (@the3million) December 11, 2024 As an alternative, the 3 Million proposes granting indefinite leave to remain to all EU citizens with pre-settled status after five years of being granted that status, provided there are no other suitability issues. Kate Smart, CEO of Settled, a charity set up in 2019 to help EU citizens living in the UK after Brexit, acknowledged that the automated process "will give a lot of people peace of mind about their future". However, she said the charity already has concerns that "Home Office letters being sent to EU citizens about such changes are too long and complex and causing unnecessary confusion and anxiety". "In some cases, EU citizens who want to comply with the rules are taking the wrong steps because they don't understand," Smart added. "Secondly we have concerns for those people whose cases are not automatically updated and will still need to present evidence, perhaps going back years, to prove their right to remain. "Finally, even with Settled Status, we know many people find the digital system hard to use and believe a paper document is needed." In guidance published earlier this month, the Home Office said there is "no change to our digital approach", adding that "physical documents can be lost, stolen, damaged or tampered with". The department says evidence of residence "can be as little as a utility bill, bank statements or a letter from a GP or charity". What are the ETIAS travel rules for Brits travelling to Europe? 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