Immigration news

The US has increased the fee for its Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) visa waiver. US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced that the fee for an ESTA US visa waiver has risen from $14 to $21, taking effect on May 26. The new fee will reportedly be in place until September 2027 and includes a $4 operational fee.

 

The number of foreign nationals granted a UK visa in the last 12 months has exceeded 1 million, representing the highest ever figure on record. According to official Home Office figures, 994,951 UK visas were issued in the 12 months to March, while 113,000 BNO visas were granted to Hong Kong nationals fleeing controversial security laws imposed by China.

 

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been instructed to suspend immigration enforcement on families affected by the recent Uvalde elementary school shooting, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced. The shooting at the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas has shocked and devastated the town.

 

The UK’s much anticipated High Potential Individual (HPI) visa, set to launch on 30 May, has sparked huge controversy after excluding African universities from a global universities list used to select those eligible for High Potential Individual visas. Critics have voiced their concerns that graduates of African universities will not be eligible for HPI visas.

 

Following a recent meeting between Romanian Interior Minister, Lucian Bode, and US Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, Romania has pledged to reduce its US visa rejection rate from 10% to 3% within ‘two to three years’. This would make Romania eligible for inclusion on the US visa waiver list.

 

The Home Office has been urged to do more to promote the UK graduate visa scheme after a recent APPG for International Students revealed that employers ‘don’t understand’ the immigration route. 

 

Speakers at the APPG event, held in London, agreed that the graduate visa route is an attractive proposition for international students, but had concerns over costs and employer awareness of the scheme.