UK to exempt high earners from immigration cap

High-earning non-European professionals, including Indians, will be exempted from an annual UK immigration cap, which will come into effect in April.

The government yesterday announced that employers filling a vacancy that attracts a salary of £150,000 pounds or more will not be subject to the limit.

The Home Office Minister, Mr Damian Green, made it clear that the decision to exempt those earning more than £150,000 pounds a year from the annual limit was intended to make it as business-friendly as possible and to dispel claims that Britain was not open for business.

“This shake up is part of the government’s new annual limit on non-EU workers, which will take effect on April 6,” the British Home Ministry said.

The David Cameron government last year had announced a permanent immigration quota intended to slash the number of non-EU nationals permitted to work in the country to around 20,700.

Under the new system, employers will have to apply for a Certificate of Sponsorship from the UK Border Agency for a specific post if they wish to bring someone to the UK.

Mr Green said: “Britain needs to attract the brightest and the best to fill jobs gaps but this should never be at the expense of workers already here.

“We have worked closely with businesses while designing this system, and made it clear employers should look first to people who are out of work and who are already in this country.

“And those that do come here to work must know that we intend to make the route to settlement tougher. It can not be right that people coming to fill temporary skills gaps have open access to permanent settlement.”

Workers from outside the EU who want to come to Britain will need to have a graduate level job, speak an intermediate level of English, and meet specific salary and employment requirements.