Apr. 23 2024
Source Page: Ukrainian community supported with homes, visas, sponsorship in Scotland: FOI releaseFound: Ukrainian community supported with homes, visas, sponsorship in Scotland: FOI release
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether it remains their policy to increase the minimum income for spouse/partner visas to £38,700 by 2025.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Secretary has commissioned the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to review the financial requirements in the Family Immigration Rules. Conducting a review of the financial requirements across the family routes will ensure we have a clear and consistent system.
There will be no changes to the current threshold of £29,000, or the ways in which the Minimum Income Requirement can be met, until the MAC review is complete.
Mentions:
1: John Cryer (Lab - Leyton and Wanstead) On family visa schemes, when I wrote to the Minister asking if there was a possibility of family visas - Speech Link
2: Olivia Blake (Lab - Sheffield, Hallam) worker dependent visas, but to make those applications is nearly impossible. - Speech Link
3: Stephen Kinnock (Lab - Aberavon) For example, we have heard reports of long delays in getting decisions or visas issued, and families - Speech Link
4: James Murray (LAB - Ealing North) He is a British citizen and his parents had visas to visit the UK last autumn. - Speech Link
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy to seek negotiations with the EU on extending the duration of Schengen Area visas for UK citizens travelling to the EU for longer than 90 days.
Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Both the UK and the EU allow for visa-free short-term travel in line with their arrangements for Third Country Nationals. The UK allows EU citizens short-term visa-free travel for up to six months. Meanwhile, the Schengen Borders Code allows for Third Country Nationals to travel within the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; this is standard for third countries travelling to the EU. The UK Government will continue to listen to and advocate for UK nationals.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to UK Visas and Immigration guidance entitled Register of licensed sponsors: workers, updated on 2 October 2024, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of provision in place to support workers where scheme operator licences are revoked; and whether there are mechanisms in place to inspect the accommodation to which seasonal workers are transferred when the licence of their original sponsor is revoked.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Processes have been put in place to ensure individuals impacted by sponsor licence revocation are not detrimentally impacted. The Home Office has helped facilitate continuity of work with alternative sponsors for those who were originally attached to such companies.
The Home Office is not responsible for setting or enforcing UK accommodation standards. Should any concerns be raised with the Home Office or identified during compliance activities, these will be passed to the relevant authorities.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Independent - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether all workers already in the UK on the Seasonal Worker visa whose visas were sponsored by Ethero have been placed with a different Scheme Operator.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Provisions have been put in place to make certain that there is no detriment to individuals who were sponsored by Ethero. However, it is not within the remit of the Home Office to support workers in pursuing compensation claims.
The Home Office has also ensured that there is continuity of work with alternative sponsors for those who were originally attached to Ethero’s sponsor licence.
Organisations seeking to become scheme operators pass through a multifaceted selection process. This includes assessment and endorsement by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs as well as holding licencing from the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority. They must also successfully apply for a sponsor licence from the Home Office.
We will continually work to ensure strong due diligence and safeguards in the sponsor licensing process.
Give Ukrainians on humanitarian visas the right to apply for ILR
- Final Signatures: 5,087
We would like the Government to grant all Ukrainians that came to the UK on humanitarian visas the right to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), if they'd like it.
Found: Give Ukrainians on humanitarian visas the right to apply for ILR
Asked by: Deidre Brock (Scottish National Party - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 30 April 2024 to Question 23225 on Visas: Families, how many staff have been (a) recruited and (b) re-deployed to his Department's Family and Human Rights Unit.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
Whilst this information is recorded on our systems, it is not in a reportable format.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to reform visa fees, and tax and pension contributions for those on Seasonal Worker visas (Temporary Work) to reduce the financial burden on such workers.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
A key objective of the route is to ensure that overseas workers are protected against modern slavery and other labour abuses. The sponsor licence regime places a broad range of responsibilities on Scheme Operators to ensure that the rights of migrant workers are protected.
The Government is carefully considering the Migration Advisory Committee’s review of the Seasonal Worker route and will announce a detailed response in due course. We will consider all these points in the round. Any question regarding tax and pension contributions will, however, need to be directed to the relevant Government departments.
Should the Seasonal Worker Interest Group wish to request a meeting with the Home Office Ministers, I would ask that they write to the department and any such request will be given appropriate consideration.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people in Gaza are awaiting results of applications for family visas as a (a) spouse, (b) partner, (c) fiancé, (d) child, (e) parent, (f) relative providing care of a British citizen, (g) settled resident and (h) person with protection status who applied (i) on or (ii) before 7 October 2023.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
The number of people in Gaza who are awaiting results of applications for family visas does not form part of any current transparency data or migration statistics and is not published.
Transparency data is however published quarterly on Gov.uk and includes data on the outcomes of visas issued on family routes, although this does not necessarily equate to entering the UK once granted leave.
The latest transparency data can be found at: Migration transparency data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) and Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).