UK Immigration – Statement Of Changes

A Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules was presented to Parliament yesterday. Those that are most relevant to business immigration are summarised below.

Electronic Entry Clearance

This change gives some hope that the end-to-end UK visa process, including submission of passports and supporting documents, will be fully digitised in the near future. This would mean applicants would no longer suffer the inconvenience of having to be without their passport for days, weeks or sometimes months. Submission of original passports with Entry Clearance applications has long been a big frustration for individuals who have busy travel schedules and cannot afford to be without their passport for the (often lengthy) period of time it takes to process their application.