Uncategorised

Last Summer, the Home Secretary announced plans to introduce a new UK Start Up Visa route from Spring 2019 for foreign nationals looking to start a business in the UK. This was welcome news for the UK economy and for industry sectors such as technology, where current immigration rules make it difficult for foreign investors to bring their wealth and talent to this country.

Spring 2019 is almost upon us and we are yet see further detail on the Start up Visa route, so what are the options for foreign investors today?

 Tier 1 Visa route, whilst heavily debated, is still available and we have a recent interesting case study where MLC Immigration Lawyers assisted a Tier 1 Entrepreneur applicant.

About our client

Our client is a national of India and is settled there, with ambitions to be a successful business person in the UK. Many people dream of having the UK as their home with a successful business to run and manage however, immigration rules are notoriously stringent, with a key requirement being that the applicant has £200,000 available to invest in their new business in the UK.

Understandably, not everyone has this kind of money, however our client was willing and able to meet all the requirements of the visa. During the preparation of our client’s application for a Tier 1 Entrepreneur Visa, we discovered that they had spent some time in the US within the last ten years. This had the potential to be problematic. 

Understanding the rules

As part of the Tier 1 Entrepreneur application, like anyother application, all immigration history must be disclosed to the Home Office. In this instance, a further requirement for this application is to present police clearance certificates for any country the applicant had lived in for 12 months or more. So we had to demonstrate that our client had a certficate from his stay in the United States. Our client was able to provide a certificate for India but believed that non-settled residents were unable to obtain certificates from the US; thereby meaning he had no certificate.

At MLC Immigration Lawyers we understand how stringent the Home Office can be in their checks and how easily applications can be refused for failing to provide small pieces of information. Upon an analysis of policyguidance and immigration rules, we soon realised that our client was able toobtain a US police clearance certificate and not only that, that the processwas far from easy.

We knew that the absence of a certificate from the US was going to be problem so we took action by contacting the FBI in the United States.

Hannah Wilkinson, Immigration Caseworker

We contacted the FBI who are responsible for issuing the required certificates in the US and attempted to secure our client’s fingerprints in India to be sent to the FBI. But we had another problem as our client was unable to obtain their fingerprints from India in the format required by the FBI.

MLC finds the solution

We know that a guidance note issued by the Home Office states that if evidence is provided to demonstrate a sufficient attempt to obtain a police clearance certificate and subsequent failure to do so is a result of factors beyond their control, then the application would not be refused for failure to provide one.

MLC thus argued that not only had our client made a sufficient attempt, they had gone through the required steps to get a certificate, from contacting the FBI to attending their local police station to obtain the exact fingerprint copy.

Success for our client

As a direct result of our successful argument and our client’s efforts to procure the certificate, our client’s Entrepreneur application was successful and he has been granted leave to enter the UK and begin a business.

If you are thinking of making an application to come to the UK as an entrepreneur, it is always best to have a specialised immigration adviser who is experienced and knowledgeable in this area to present your argument in the best way possible.

Contact us today at MLC on 0161 224 4224 to inquire about entrepreneur visas or any other type of visa

Hannah Wilkinson

Immigration Caseworker

The Home Office’s Immigration Health Surcharge, which applies to temporary migrants (students, Tier 2 workers), is doubling from January 2019.

For students, the fee is expected to increase from £150 to £300 and for workers and visitors, £200 to £400. This means that, as an example, a five-year Tier 2 Visa entails that the surcharge increases from £1,000 to £2,000. According to the government, the scheme has brought in over £660m to the NHS since its launch in 2015. By increasing it, the Home Office expects to bring in a further £220m to be pumped into the NHS. This is certainly good for the NHS but it does increase the burden on those making applications to the Home Office.

Here at MLC Immigration Lawyers, we are fully committed to supporting our clients whichever way we can. So, the great news is that we have taken the easy decision to freeze our fees in the hope that this will provide a little financial assistance to clients. 

We know that the vast majority of our clients are hard working people who don’t necessarily have the funds to pay for these increases. It’s really going to make things difficult so we’re doing what we can by keeping our prices the same as 2018.

Annik Chaudery, MLC’s Managing Director

For more information on our services and fees, please contact us.

MLC Immigration Lawyers can assist you with your Personal or Business related application to the Home Office. We are one of the most highly rated immigration law firms in the UK with over 100 Five Star reviews Google and Facebook.

Email: info@mlcimmigration.com

Telephone: 0161 224 4224

Website: www.mlcimmigration.com

Absolutely amazing service. Very professional and friendly team.

I personally would rate 10 stars for my lawyer Annik, he is honest, efficient and straight to the point. His knowledge is expert and no flaw could be picked. I (and my eldest daughter) have been granted indefinite leave to remain this summer (2018), and my case isn’t straight forward like black and white, this shows how outstanding he (and the team) is. I will be visiting him again soon to help me with the application for continue my journey to became a British citizen, and my family as well.

Dr. Julie hsu