MAC Reviews UK Visa Salary Threshold as the Government Works to Develop a New Immigration System

The salary requirement remains a contentious topic among UK employers who may want to hire an employee from outside the UK to fill a position at their company. To get the employee inside the UK, they must offer them a minimum salary of £30,000 if hiring for an experienced role, otherwise £20,800 for an opening role.

For many employers, these thresholds are simply way too much and beyond what they can afford to offer.

The result?

Many industries in the UK are suffering from employee shortage. Consequently, the country’s economy is suffering too.

In its 2018 report, the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) recommended more jobs to be added to the UK’s Shortage Occupation List (SOL), taking the number of roles added from 1% to 9%.

This is a startling figure, and one that needs addressing if the UK really wants to prosper post-Brexit. It can’t just let its local industries die like that, especially when it will need all hands on deck to establish stability after the move.

Concerns have also been raised that the existing minimum visa salary threshold does not weigh in regional differences in average salaries. An employer in London is likely to meet the minimum salary requirements more easily as compared to an employer operating in the North East where salaries are usually lower. This could end up creating a talent sink which again the government needs to look at.

Thankfully, though, the people in power are beginning to realize this, and they’ve instructed the MAC to review the visa salary threshold rules and propose improvements. The committee will present its findings to the government in January 2020.

The new immigration system is expected to go into effect starting from 2021, and we can hope that it will have much relaxed salary requirements.

As always, Wembley Solicitors will keep you updated of any developments that take place in this regard.

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