The Boris Johnson government on Monday included web designers, architects and veterinarians in a list of professions that face a shortage in the United Kingdom and which involves easier visa norms to allow employers to recruit the required talent.
The three professions have been included in the ‘shortage occupation list’. It is easier obtain a Tier 2 visa for a profession/role mentioned in the list because employers do not need to complete a resident labour market test and is also exempt from minimum salary thresholds.
The Home Office said the changes mean that employers can advertise job vacancies for the occupations included to all nationalities, making it easier for them to access the international talent they need. Indian professionals are already given a majority of work visas issued: 52 per cent of all visas issued in 2018.
Immigration minister Seema Kennedy said: “Giving British based businesses the access to the brightest and best global talent is a key priority for this government. That is why we have made it easier for employers to hire the skilled workers, such as vets and web designers that this country needs to flourish”.
The Home Office has also streamlined English language testing to ensure that doctors, dentists, nurses and midwives who have already passed an English language test accepted by the relevant professional body, do not have to sit another test before entry to the UK on a Tier 2 visa.
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The change will ensure that hospitals and medical practices across the UK will be able to access the staff they need more quickly, the Home Office said.
The UK government is moving to a new skills-based visa system to be introduced after leaving the European Union, when EU citizens will not be able to move, live and work in the UK. They would be subject to similar visa norms applicable to Indian and other non-EU citizens.