Government consider plans to halve visitor visa stay

 

Under new proposals being considered by the british government, visitors to the UK will have to leave the country after three months instead of the current six month entitlement. In addition, families will also have to ‘sponsor’ their overseas visitors by putting up to £1,000 bond for relatives and friends. The deposit is designed to ensure that visiting relatives from places outside the EU such as Africa and Asia do not overstay or remain in the UK with the intention to work. The government claim this move will help to tackle ‘illegal’ migration and "keep risky people out".

However the Office of National Statistics, who conducted an International Passenger Survey in 2005, revealed that only 1.1% of visitors to the UK stayed in the UK for three months or more. Many have criticised the proposal as unnecessary and ‘headline grabbing’.

Applicants from more than 120 countries are required to provide their fingerprints if they wish to visit the UK and the government have currently collated over one million fingerprints. Immigration minister, Liam Byrne confirmed that the government intended to check everyone’s fingerprints when they applied for a visa. The consultation for the visa scheme will run for 12 weeks until 10 March 2008. In 2000, Jack Straw, the then Home Secretary proposed a £3000 visitor bond which was swiftly abandoned when the Commission for Racial Equality branded the move discriminatory particularly for Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities.

Habib Rahman, chief executive of the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants highlighted that the proposals, should they become law, would disproportionately discriminate against poorer families who may struggle to find money for the bond. He said: "The government is trying to deter people to come for family visits. This is unfair. This means that only people with fat wallets will be able to bring their families."