United Kingdom | Immigration | UK Treasury announces fee increases for visas and premium services to fund pay rise for public sector workers

17 July 2023

Immigration

United Kingdom | UK Treasury announces fee increases for visas and premium services to fund pay rise for public sector workers

Impact: High

Summary

The Chief Secretary to Treasury, John Glen MP, announced that fees for most visas and settlement applications, and other services, will see increases to help fund the pay rise for Police Officers and Doctors in the United Kingdom.

The Detail

Glen announced that work visas, which could include all visas in the work category of the Points Based System, along with other visas such as Ancestry and Government Authorised Exchange, could see increases of 15% in fees. Visit visas will also be increased by 15%. The Government is yet to announce when these changes will come into effect.

Other immigration categories will see an even higher increase of ‘at least’ 20%, meaning that at the point the Home Office introduces the new fees, it may be higher than the proposed base rate of 20%. These categories will include study visas and entry clearance applications as well as settlement (Indefinite Leave to Remain/Enter) and citizenship applications. Glen also announced that Certificate of Sponsorships, currently GBP 199 per application, will increase by 20% and services to expedite applications, such as the Priority Service, will also be increased by the same amount.

The Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) will see the largest increase – the Treasury announced that under the Government’s plans ‘the main rate will increase to GBP 1,035 [from GBP 624], and the discounted rate for students and under-18s will increase to GBP 776. That increase to the surcharge will help to fund the pay rise for doctors.’ IHS payments are submitted with the visa application form and those applying for visas from outside of the UK that are 6 months or less are not required to pay it.

We have provided a provisional table of what some current fees of main immigration categories look like, and what they may look like once the changes come in.

Category	Current UKVI Fees (July 2023)	Potential New UKVI Fees
Visit visa (up to 2 years)	GBP 376	GBP 432
Skilled Worker or Global Business Mobility visa (in-country, 3 years or less)	GBP 719	GBP 827
Student – main applicant and dependants (in-country)	GBP 490	GBP 588
Immigration Health Surcharge (work)	GBP 624	GBP 1,035
Immigration Health Surcharge (study)	GBP 470	GBP 776
Indefinite Leave to Remain	GBP 2,404	GBP 2,885
Naturalisation (Citizenship)	GBP 1,250	GBP 1,500 (ceremony fees will also be included in the final fee)
Super Priority Service (in-country)	GBP 800	GBP 960
Certificate of Sponsorship*	GBP 199	GBP 239
Immigration Skills Charge*	GBP 1,000	No change

* Unlike other costs, the Certificate of Sponsorship and Immigration Skills Charge must be paid by an employer.

Scenario 1:

An employer looking to sponsor an applicant in the United Kingdom for 3 years on a skilled worker visa is currently incurring GBP 5,790 in Home Office fees. Under the proposed new fees, employers and employees will be subject to the following costs:

Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS): GBP 239, Immigration Skills Charge: GBP 3,000, Visa Application: GBP 827, Immigration Health Surcharge: GBP 3,105. The total fees will be GBP 7,171

Scenario 2:

An applicant with a spouse/partner and 2 children below the age of 18, will be subject to the following fees: Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS):

GBP 239, Immigration Skills Charge: GBP 3,000, Visa Application: GBP 3,308 Immigration Health Surcharge: GBP 12,420. The total fees will be GBP 18,967

Recommended Action

The implications and necessary actions will differ depending on the size of your population and cost sensitivities.  Actions are likely to include, but unlikely to be limited to, the following:

• Speak to the business or senior leadership, explaining that detail is still limited.
• Assess costs of: 1) your current population and likely extensions; 2) future moves.
• Update or create your ready reckoner for understanding costs, where you use one.
• Consider policies for the fees you pay on behalf of employees and claw back arrangements.
• If you use Skilled Worker as standard, consider how other visa categories or shorter assignments could save money.
• Consider who pays immigration costs within the business and where the budget is held – central pots may be more sensible.

Your message to the business could read:

• Rishi Sunak has announced that all UK immigration fees will increase by at least 15%, with most increases substantially higher.
• The UK is already one of the most expensive immigration systems in the world, so we already think carefully about whether to hire or assign overseas workers in the UK – we will think even more carefully about whether and when to sponsor in the future.
• We do not yet know what the precise costs will be across the board and we do not know when the change will happen, although we expect to have at least three weeks notice.
• We do know the minimum increase we can expect:
  • A single skilled worker entering for three years would cost GBP 7,171 in government fees, up from GBP 5,790 today
  • If they were married with two children it would cost GBP 18,967
• We will look at cheaper ways to move people to the UK but options are limited to savings for Europeans on assignment, some 18 to 30 or 35 year olds and people with family ties to the UK.
• We may choose to look at which government fees we pay and which are left to employees, balancing cost against the imperative to recruit and retain staff.

How we can help

Please reach out to your Vialto Partners contact, or our team below, to discuss further these proposed changes. We would be pleased to assist with any budget and scenario planning, and advise on how this could impact your recruitment strategy.

Contact us

For a deeper discussion on the above, please reach out to your Vialto Partners point of contact, or alternatively:

•  Andrea Als, UK immigration Director and Solicitor | andrea.als@vialto.com

•  Awale Olad, UK Advisory and Manager | awale.olad@vialto.com

•  Ian Robinson, UK Partner | ian.j.robinson@vialto.com

•  Lucy Vaux, UK Senior Manager and Solicitor | lucinda.vaux@vialto.com

•  Lyudmyla Davies, UK Partner and Solicitor | lyudmyla.davies@vialto.com

Further information on Vialto Partners can be found here: www.vialtopartners.com

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