Immigration news

Amid the Ukraine-Russia crisis, UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) has suspended priority and super-priority UK visa processing services for all applications being made outside Britain. A UKVI announcement stated that ‘priority and super-priority applications for family, study and work visas have bene suspended’.

 

The Biden administration has extended US immigration relief to Afghans in America. The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that Afghans currently living in America will be protected from deportation under the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) scheme. 

 

UK Health Secretary, Sajid Javid, has been branded ‘shameful’ after falsely claiming that Ukrainian NHS staff on a UK work visa are eligible for the Home Office’s Ukraine refugee scheme. Javid claimed that Ukrainians with a UK skilled worker visa and employed by the NHS could bring family to Britain.

 

According to a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) annual report, immigration arrests and deportations plummeted to record low levels in 2021, despite record-high border crossings. During the 2021 fiscal year (FY), which ended on September 30, 2021, ICE recorded 59,011 deportations, down from 185,884 in 2020.

 

According to new data released by the Home Office, the number of UK skilled worker visas issued to overseas nationals since 2020 has risen by a staggering 110%. The data shows that Indians and Nigerians have benefitted most from being granted skilled worker visas. There were 239,987 work-related UK visas granted in 2021, including visas for dependents.

 

Serbian tennis star, Novak Djokovic has been denied a US visa, ruling him out of tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami. Djokovic, who is unvaccinated against COVID-19, was told that he would need to be vaccinated in order to enter the US. The world number 2 was recently forced to miss the Australian open after his visa was revoked and he was deported.

 

Djokovic had admitted that it was ‘unlikely’ he would be able to compete in the two US tournaments, despite being included on entry lists as he sought answers about requirements for entering the US.