Tier 1 (General): No longer welcome

[nanila]

This e-mail excerpt actually made me cry at work.

The UK government has closed the Tier 1 (General) route for applications made overseas as it expects the interim limit for Tier 1 (General) applications to be reached imminently. Since the Tier 1 (General) route will be closed permanently from April 2011, the overseas route will not reopen.

The UK Border Agency will stop accepting Tier 1 (General) applications made overseas from 00:01hrs (GMT) on 23 December 2010. Applications submitted and paid for overseas up until the end of 22 December 2010 will be processed as normal. Any applications received after this time will be rejected.

Please note that Tier 1 (General) applications made in the UK will remain open until 5 April 2011. Applications to extend existing Tier 1 (General) visas, applications to switch into Tier 1 (General) from a different immigration category, and applications from dependents can therefore be made as normal.

I realize people in the UK have a lot to worry about right now, from benefit cuts to the VAT increase to stagnant unemployment rates, and so probably no one cares but me.

It's hard to explain why, but this hurts. My Tier 1 (General) visa expires in 2012. After that, I have no choice but to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain if I want to stay. It so happens that I've been here, and employed continuously, for long enough that I should qualify. It also happens that I plan to settle here. Somehow, though, I find the closure of the scheme tantamount to being told I'm unwelcome. At least when the HSMP (Highly Skilled Migrant Programme) scheme was shut down, it was because it was replaced by the improved, streamlined Tier 1 scheme. This feels like having a door slammed in your face.

Comments

[miss_haitch]

Some days this country makes me rage.

*hug*

[nanila]

I can sympathize. So does mine!

*hugs back*

[sfred]

I can see why that would be upsetting.

I'm *very* glad you live this side of the ocean.

[nanila]

:) Oh, thank you. That's warmed my heart.

[ankaret]

Oh dear. I saw the news about this on someone else's LJ and it made me think of you. How infuriating and ridiculous.

[nanila]

I like how they did this right before Christmas as well. That was a nice touch.

[rmc28]

This policy makes me SO ANGRY. This country needs all the highly skilled migrants who are willing to come here, do useful things, maybe make lots of money and pay lots of tax, start businesses, contribute to our knowledge economy, build our soft power in the rest of the world. So because we can't stop most other immigration we're picking on people who we actually need (unless they work for large multinationals the govt doesn't want to offend)

And it turns out that even the "bad" unskilled immigration is not actually bad for the native population as a whole: http://stumblingandmumbling.typepad.com/stumbling_and_mumbling/2011/01/migration-wages-more-evidence.html

[nanila]

I still don't understand how there can be such a thing as "bad" immigration. Most of the people who migrate do so because they're looking for work and they want to work hard.

[happydork]

That's awful. Utterly appalling.

[nanila]

I just...don't understand. No matter how I try to look at it, it doesn't make sense to me.