All Articles: Tier 1
Court of Appeal: visa conditions do not count unless notified in writing
Today's decision in Anwar v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWCA Civ 2134 confirms that if the Home Office wishes to impose visa conditions, it must give people written notice of those conditions. If the Home Office fails to do this ...
15th December 2017Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) visas doubled to 2,000 per year
The Home Secretary recently announced that the number of people who can be accepted under the Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) immigration route would double, from 1,000 to 2,000 each year. The exceptional talent visa regime does exactly what it says on . ...
22nd November 2017Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visas: is Britain open for business?
Businesses large and small are the backbone of our economies, and enterprise is the engine of our prosperity. That is why Britain is – and will always be – open for business: open to investment in our companies, infrastructure, universities and en ...
17th May 2017Evidential flexibility policy is additional to the provisions of the Immigration Rules
In yet another case highlighting the absurdly hostile, bureaucratic and inflexible nature of the UK's Points Based System the Court of Appeal has held that a Tier 1 Entrepreneur might benefit from a policy on evidential flexibility that was "much bro. ...
11th May 2016Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules HC535: analysis
Major changes to the Immigration Rules affecting refugees, Tiers 1, 2 and 5, EEA nationals sponsoring family members under the Immigration Rules, visitors, applications for Administrative Review and knowledge of language and life tests are being in... ...
11th November 2015New report suggests Tier 1 Investor route used for large scale money laundering
A new report by Transparency International, Gold rush: Investment visas and corrupt capital flows into the UK, suggests that substantial amounts of corrupt wealth stolen from China and Russia are "highly likely" to have been laundered into the UK th ...
22nd October 2015High Court finds Tier 1 Entrepreneur landline requirement irrational
The High Court has found part of the Tier 1 Entrepreneur rules to be irrational in the case of R (on the application of Sabir & Ors) & Anor v The Secretary of State for the Home Department [2015] EWHC 264 (Admin). Despite succeeding on part ...
23rd March 2015Genuineness test for entrepreneurs and new evidence on appeal
The case of Ahmed and Another (PBS: admissible evidence) [2014] UKUT 365 (IAC) concerns the 'genuineness' test that was introduced for entrepreneur applications as the final death knell for the original concept of the Points Based System as a tool ...
12th August 2014Shebl (Entrepreneur: proof of contracts) [2014] UKUT 216 (IAC)
Official headnote: The requirement to prove the existence of “contracts” in paragraph 41-SD of Appendix A to the immigration rules does not itself require the contracts in question to be contained in documents. There is, however, a need for such c ...
16th May 2014All change
Points mean prizes! A plethora of immigration tweaks were announced yesterday, mainly of a technical nature. There is still no sign of the introduction of a minimum income level nor the ending of Tier 2 settlement applications. It is beginning to ... ...
14th February 2012English language requirements tightening
In parallel announcements the UK Border Agency has said that language requirements for Tiers 1, 2 and 4 of the Points Based System (highly skilled, skilled and students) are being tightened up slightly. The concession that allowed Tier 1 and 2 app... ...
1st February 2012Exceptional Talent route finally opens
The Exceptional Talent route attracted a lot of attention and comment when it was announced way back in November 2010. Questions were starting to be asked about what had happened to it and whether arts and science organisations were really willing to. ...
21st July 2011