Tuesday 23 March 2010

Tier 4 Highly Trusted Sponsor Scheme

The UKBA has begun the 'highly trusted sponsor scheme' for educational institutes under Tier 4 of the points based system.

Tier 4 sponsor register will go live on the 6 April 2010 and education providers can apply for the license from today (23.03.2010).

In order for an institute to qualify as a highly trusted sponsor under Tier 4 an education provider should have a proven track record in registering legitimate international students that comply with all immigration rules under their visa.

The main difference with other Tier 4 sponsors is that a trusted sponsor will have a wider range of courses for overseas students.

Tier 1 Changes starting 06 April 2010

The UKBA has announced that it will be using the recommendations made by the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) and applying some policy and rule changes to the Tier 1 and Tier 2 of the Points Based System in the United Kingdom.

Tier 1 General

The initial period on the Tier 1 visa will be reduced to 2 years and the extension applications will be approved provided sufficient evidence is submitted to verify the applicant is in Highly Skilled employment.

Transitional arrangements will be in place for individuals already n the UK or who have their visa approved before 6th April 2010

The Age section has been changed to allow applicants up to 39 years old to claim for points

Qualifications criteria have been changed to again allow for points for people with Bachelor Degrees (30 points) with reduced points for PhD Holders. (45 Points)

Previous Earnings section has an increase in the required earnings to allow for points for earnings of 25,000 GBP and above

An Additional salary band will be introduced with a threshold of 150,000 and above (75 points)

Tier 1 Post Study Work Visa (PSW)


Graduates of Medical Schools located in the UK, are now able to switch into Tier 1 Post Study within 12 months of completing their foundation programme

Sunday 7 March 2010

Visa Fees from 6 April 2010

From 6 April 2010 all those applying for visas for the UK will have to pay new immigration fees.

The new fees cover all types of visa study, work, visit or stay in the United Kingdom.

Also on the 6 April 2010 the UKBA will be revising a number of the application forms used with visa applications so I suggest paying close attention to the format of the form that you submit.

Ensure to double check that you are using the correct form and are paying the correct fee, if the wrong fee is sent the UKBA will not process the visa application and may adversely affect your application especially if you are required to show a certain level of funds in a certain time period porior to the application - MAINTENANCE.

Wednesday 3 March 2010

Updated Changes to Tier 4 -Student Visa application

03.03 2010 Today new changes to the Tier 4 Visa applications were introduced, the new requirements are:

English language course levels have been raised to Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) to level B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)

Tier 4 (General) applicants studying a course below degree level and any course that is not a foundation degree will now be able to work only for 10 hours per week during term.

Tier 4 applicants applying for a course which is 6 months or less are no longer able to bring family members

Dependents (family members) of Tier 4 applicants studying a course lower than degree level will no longer be allowed to work on the basis of being a dependent

All applications under Tier 4 submitted before 3 March 2010 will be considered in line with the rules that were in place at that time of application

More changes are scheduled to come in April 2010 and it I highly suggest to anyone considering studying in the UK to consider using an agent or at the very least to do as much research into the Tier 4 rules and recent changes before submitting so as to avoid any refusals or unnecessary delays.