Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of removing No Recourse to Public Funds visa stipulations for people applying to courses in the health and social care sectors during the covid-19 outbreak.

The Government does not believe it is necessary to suspend the No Recourse to Public Funds condition. We have acted decisively to ensure we support people through this crisis and are confident we have measures in place to support those who have no recourse to public funds at this difficult time.

Many of the wide-ranging Covid-19 measures the government has put in place are not public funds and therefore are available to migrants with no re-course to public funds (NRPF). The Coronavirus job retention scheme, self-employment income support and statutory sick pay are not classed as public funds for immigration purposes. Contribution-based benefits are also not classed as public funds for immigration purposes. Similarly, the support the Government is providing to the rented sector and in respect of mortgages is available to all regardless of their immigration status.

The Government has temporarily lifted restrictions in the hours that Tier 4 students or Tier 2 workers in the NHS can work or volunteer. It has also extended the deadline for pre-registration nurses to sit the Occupational Structured Clinical Examination to 31 December 2020. Tier 4, Tier 2 and Tier 5 visa holders are also being allowed to start courses or employment before their visa applications have been determined.

The Government has published guidance on the support available for migrants living in the UK, including those with NRPF on Gov.uk.