EXPERT INSIGHT 42 WWW.LAWYER-MONTHLY.COM | MAR 2022 thus eliminating the need for many employees to visit physical offices to apply for visas. In addition, the process has been streamlined in a phased manner. For EU applicants, the ‘chip checker’ is used for certain categories. For nonEU citizens, the biometric provision has been added and increased. All graduate route applicants will also be required to file their application via the online system. If and when their applications are approved, they will receive a biometric residence permit that will authorise them to travel to the UK for the purpose of work (according to Richmond Chambers 2022). On top of the graduate route, the International Sportsperson routes are also improved and amended. For instance, the former route contained several questions to be answered on application forms. The number of questions is reduced in the current system in order to help applicants flexibly meet the requirements of the immigration department. This means that applicants with GCSE/A Level or Scottish Higher in English need only prove that their ability to speak and interact in English is not below the requirement to succeed. In some cases, the system also provides an opportunity to applicants to apply and upload their forms and documents from home. In family and private life routes, a similar approach will be used to streamline the process more easily. This means that significant changes to sponsorship schemes have also been introduced in the light of the new principles: • The end-to-end process has been accelerated. • The experience of the sponsor and the employee has been improved through the implementation of a convenient sponsor system. • The burden previously faced by sponsors and applicants will be reduced to help them maintain their licences, offering transparency in the whole process. • The system has been improved to prevent abuse to the applicants and their family members. This ensures that the risk management is conducted more effectively by the system without harming any applicants. • A service will be established to facilitate the interests and wellbeing of small businesses. • New checking tools for skilled workers have been introduced, such as the Skilled Worker Eligibility Checker. • A new Salary Check system has been introduced to ensure that the newly hired employees are paid on time and no worker is deprived of their current deserved earnings. This also checks the amount employers are paying to their workers. • A roadmap will be implemented in summer 2022 that will enable all applicants to make all visa applications through their personal computers or hand-held devices. A new HMRC system has been introduced to identify sponsors in order to provide a quick approval. • The plan also includes offering a new dashboard to sponsor organisations in the UK to successfully manage several sponsored workers. This will also ensure that feedback on their visa applications is also received appropriately. • Finally, in order to facilitate sponsors and applicants, trust ratings for sponsors have also been developed. These will be based on the track records of employers, allowing a differentiated approach to sponsorship. Electronic travel authorisation will also be made possible for Irish and non-British people, according to the white paper. These will be applicants who do not hold a visa prior to 2025. By summer 2021, the paper states that all Border Force staff can use the technology to check the names of the applicants who have applied through the system and are given a status under the EUSS. Major changes introduced in the sponsor licence procedure Although the new route of obtaining a sponsor licence is structurally similar to the old Tier 2 route, there are many differences that organisations should consider. In the MAC’s 2018 report, for instance, it was stated that the annual limit on certain sponsorship certificates had been suspended. Applicants were advised to make a request on the fifth day of each month and must wait until the next month to receive a response. The criteria of the system have now been strengthened as part of the new points-based immigration system to get the immigration of the country. Since many employers were not able to sponsor skilled professionals last year due to reaching the cap, many nurses and healthcare professionals struggled to enter the UK. Because there was a huge pressure on employers to tackle monthly
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