UK Immigration News

UK immigration policies are to get an overhaul to deal with false asylum seekers and terror suspects, the BBC reports.

In an interview with The Times newspaper, Britain's Home Secretary Charles Clarke outlined a five year program on asylum seekers and said he would look at all of the ways that people could get into the country. Particular attention would be paid to what sorts of dependants are allowed to come to the UK with people on work permits.

While other European countries struggle with high unemployment, the UK is facing a labour shortage that could be eased through higher immigration, the Financial Times newspaper reports.

Processing times for work permits have not changed much over the last month. A work permit application in the UK takes up to 5 working days.

Applicants under the Highly Skilled Migrant Program (HSMP) can expect to wait the longest, maybe even as long as 26 weeks.

If you are in the UK already on a work permit or under HSMP, you will probably also have to submit a Leave to Remain application which could take up to 13 more weeks to process.

Spouses of British Citizens and of permanent residents from outside the European Union who wish to remain in the UK on the basis of marriage will face more rigorous requirements to show that their relationship is genuine as of February 1 due to new Home Office immigration rules.

The UK Department for Education and Skills (DfES) has published a list of educational establishments where nationals from countries outside of the European Economic Area (EEA) must study.

The UK Home Office warns that persons planning to study at establishments not on the list will not be issued with visas or be granted leave to enter or remain in the UK as students. The new regulations will not affect students already studying in the UK unless they want an extension of their stay or want leave to reenter.

Visa services at United Kingdom Consulates in a number of Asian cities have been disrupted in the wake of the tsunami tragedy.

According to a statement issued on December 30 by the U.K. Foreign Office, the British Visa Section in Bangkok, Thailand has been closed until further notice, while the Colombo office in Sri Lanka will be offering a restricted service until further notice. There may also be disruption at Chennai in India, Jakarta in Indonesia and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.