House of Commons - Managing Migration: The Points Based System

Managing Migration: The Points Based System - Home Affairs Committee Contents

2 International migration to the UK

Before considering the design and administration of the new system, in this chapter we briefly set out the context for managed migration, including: which persons are subject to immigration control, trends in migration to and from the UK, and trends in those coming from outside the European Economic Area to the UK to work.

Immigration control

6. Citizens of European Economic Area (EEA) countries and Switzerland, accompanied by their family members, can come to the UK for any purpose for up to three months, under European free movement rules. Having entered the UK they are free to take up employment or to set themselves up in business. To stay beyond three months they must be a worker, self-employed, a provider or recipient of services, self-sufficient, retired or a student. There are more restrictive arrangements for citizens of the two newest EU member states, Bulgaria and Romania, who must get specific permission to take up a job here. Citizens of the eight member states which joined in 2004 have to register with the Worker Registration Scheme if they wish to work in the UK, although there are no restrictions on them taking employment.

7. People from the rest of the world have to comply with the UK's immigration laws. They may obtain permission to enter or stay in the UK for a limited or indefinite period if they meet the conditions set out in the Immigration Rules or in published concessions outside the Immigration Rules, for asylum or human rights reasons or at the Home Secretary's discretion. The new Points Based System applies to most categories of immigrant from the rest of the world.

Immigration legislation

8. The foundation of the current legal framework for immigration is the Immigration Act 1971. Since 1971 ten major other Acts have been passed.[3] The Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill [HL] is currently under consideration in the House of Commons, with a further Immigration Simplification Bill expected in the autumn of 2009.

Reliability of statistics

9. There is no single source of information on migration data in the UK. The principal sources are the annual Home Office Command Paper, Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom, the annual Home Office Bulletin of the same name, the joint Foreign Office, Home Office and UK Visas annual bulletin, Entry Clearance Statistics, the annual Office for National Statistics publication, International Migration, the quarterly Home Office bulletin, Asylum statistics, and the annual Home Office statistical bulletin, Persons granted British Citizenship.

10. The accuracy of migration data collected in the UK has been widely criticised. For instance, the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee concluded, in its recent Report The Economic Impact of Immigration, that:

There are significant unknowns and uncertainties in the existing data on immigration and immigrants in the UK. There are insufficient data about people leaving the UK and about short-term immigration to the UK…The gaps in migration data create significant difficulties for the analysis and public debate of immigration.[4]

11. There are four main inadequacies with migration data. First, existing data do not allow for accurate measurement of numbers of immigrants at national, regional and local levels. Labour Force Survey (LFS) data, the main source for measuring the annual stock of immigrants in the UK, exclude people who have lived in the UK for less than six months and people who do not live in private households. Second, available data on gross and net immigration flows include only international long-term migrants (those who enter or leave the UK for a period of more than one year) and therefore exclude those who enter or leave the UK for less than one year. Third, there are insufficient data about people leaving the UK, since there are currently no border exit controls. Fourth, little is known about the scale of illegal immigration and illegal employment in the UK.[5]

12. The Government argues that the introduction of its e-Borders programme, due to be fully operational by March 2014, will significantly improve migration data, by allowing people to be counted (in and) out of the country. From August 2009 two of the main immigration statistics publications—Asylum Statistics United Kingdom and Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom—will be merged into one volume to provide a more comprehensive overview of immigration data. At the same time information relating to the Points Based System may be included in these publications.

Migration trends

13. In 2007 an estimated total of 340,000 people emigrated from the UK and an estimated 577,000 people arrived to live in the UK for at least a year, meaning that total net migration into the UK was 237,000.[6] This was an increase of 46,000 from 2006, but below the record estimate of 244,000 in 2004. 34 per cent of the total (197,000) were from the 27 EU member states.

Figure 1: Total international migration to and from the UK[7]

14. The 2007 International Passenger Survey[8] shows that, of the reasons for migration, having a definite job was the most cited (with approximately 30 per cent of inflow reporting this), followed by formal study (26 per cent), accompanying or joining a relative (15 per cent) and looking for work (12 per cent).[9]

EEA nationals

15. The number of A8 nationals (nationals of the 2004 EU accession states) approved on the Worker Registration Scheme totalled 227,875 in 2006, three quarters of whom (162,495) were Polish.[10] Since 2006 the number of A8 nationals on the Scheme has fallen. The latest Home Office Control of Immigration quarterly statistical summary shows that the number of approved applicants making initial applications in Q1 2009 (21,000) was less than half that of Q1 2008 (47,000). This compares to 50,000 in Q1 2007. It states that "the decrease is mainly explained by the fall in approved Polish national applicants, which fell to 12,000 in Q1 2009 from 32,000 in Q1 2008 and 36,000 in Q1 2007".[11] However, an estimate from the UK Statistics Authority, using data from the Labour Force Survey, suggests that the number of EU nationals working in the UK was at or near its highest level in the first quarter of 2009.[12] The number of such workers has risen significantly since the accession of the A8 countries in 2004.

16. Approved applications for accession worker cards from Bulgarian and Romanian nationals wishing to take up employment in the UK fell by 33 per cent in the last year, from 645 in Q1 2008 to 435 in Q1 2009. This compares to the higher number of 840 in Q1 2007.[13] Operators of the Seasonal Agricultural Workers' Scheme (SAWS)—restricted to Bulgarian and Romanian nationals—issued a total of 6,770 SAWS work cards in Q1 2009, slightly down on the 6,865 issued in Q1 2008.[14]

17. Non-EEA migration

18. Nationals of every non-EEA country wishing to come to the UK for over 6 months or to work require a visa. The latest available figures show that, in 2007/08, the UK received 1.27 million visit applications, 459,000 family visit applications, 344,000 student applications, and 89,000 work permit applications (not including working holidaymakers). The main categories in which applications decreased in 2007/08 were settlement and working holidaymakers (both down 16 per cent). Applications increased for work permits (up 12 per cent) and students (up 9 per cent). The overall refusal rate was 18 per cent, down 1 per cent on 2006/07.[15] The Labour Force Survey estimates that the number of non-EU nationals in employment in the UK has more than doubled since 1997, and in the first quarter of 2009 stood at approximately 1.2 million workers out of a total workforce in the UK[16] of 27.8 million.[17]

Figure 2: Global visa demand by endorsement category, 2007/08[18]

PREVIOUS WORK ENTRY ROUTES

19. Prior to the Points Based System (PBS) a number of different schemes allowed non-EEA nationals to work in the UK. The work permits scheme allowed work permits to be issued for up to five years and those admitted could qualify for settlement after five years. The criteria included a skills requirement and a requirement that the employer had made a genuine attempt to fill the vacancy from the resident workforce. Separate provisions existed for sportspeople and entertainers, intra-corporate transfers and those coming for training and work experience. Tier 2 (General) of the PBS replaces the work permits scheme, and sub-categories under Tiers 2 and 5 replace these other separate provisions.

20. The Highly Skilled Migrant Programme, introduced in 2002, was designed to allow highly-skilled people to migrate to the UK to look for work or be self-employed. Unlike the work permits scheme, applicants did not require a specific job offer in the UK. HSMP gave credit for educational qualifications, work experience and past earnings. As with the work permits scheme, migrants could apply for settlement after five years. Tier 1 (Highly Skilled Migrants) of the Points Based System replaces the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme.

21. Low-skilled permit routes included the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme (SAWS), which allowed workers to come to the UK for up to six months on a quota basis to do seasonal agricultural work for farmers and growers, and the Sectors Based Schemes, which allowed people to enter the UK to take up short-term or casual jobs, again on a quota scheme. Since the introduction of the Points Based System the SAWS remains in operation, but has been restricted to Romanian and Bulgarian nationals only, and the Government has announced its intention to phase out the scheme altogether by the end of 2010.[19] The Sectors Based Schemes have been stopped. Tier 3 (low-skilled) of the Points Based System replaces these previous schemes—however, this tier is indefinitely suspended, and the Government has no current plans to implement it since it considers that it can recruit all low-skilled labour required by the UK from within the EEA labour force.

22. In addition to these routes separate provisions existed for business people, investors and innovators. There were also around 40 permit-free routes—such as the 'UK ancestry' route, the International Graduates Scheme and the Working Holidaymakers Scheme—and a number of specialist routes—such as academic visitors, au pairs and business visitors. All these previous entry routes have been replaced under the various Tiers of the Points Based System.

23. The following table shows the numbers of work permits and first permissions granted by industry in 1995[20] and 2007. In 1995 a total of 24,161 permits were issued, and in 2007 a total of 83,968: over three times as many. In 1995 the greatest proportion of permits was issued for administration, business and management services, whereas in 2007 it was for computer services.

Industry 1995 2007

Number (nearest 100) % Number (nearest 100) %

Computer services 1,800 7.6 23,700 26.9

Administration, business and management services 4,000 16.7 11,300 12.8

Financial services 3,200 13.2 9,700 11.0

Health and medical services 1,800 7.3 7,500 8.6

Education and cultural activities 1,900 7.9 7,100 8.1

Hospitality, hotels, catering and other services 300 1.3 4,800 5.5

Entertainment and leisure services 2,900 12.1 4,600 5.3

Telecommunications 500 1.9 3,700 4.2

Manufacturing 2,000 8.2 3,000 3.4

Construction and land services 200 0.8 3,000 3.4

Sporting activities 500 2.3 2,400 2.7

Retail and related services 2,800 11.7 1,500 1.7

Extraction industries 400 1.8 1,400 1.6

Law-related services 300 1.1 1,200 1.4

Transport 300 1.4 800 0.9

Unconfirmed - - 800 0.9

Government <100 0.2 500 0.6

Agriculture activities 1000 3.9 400 0.5

Real estate and property services <100 0 300 0.4

Utilities: gas, electricity, water 200 0.7 200 0.2

Security and protective services <100 0 100 0.2

Total 24,161 100 87,968 100

Figure 3: Work permits and first permissions granted by industry, 1995 and 2007[21]

24. The following graph shows the number of approved applications by type under the previous work permit system between 1995 and 2008.[22] In 2008 overall there was a decrease in the number of work permits issued.

Figure 4: Approved applications under the work permit system, 1995 to 2008[23]

25. Applications for work permits in the last year for which figures are available (2007/08) were highest from South Asia (35,685), followed by the Americas (17,095). A total of 89,450 were applied for worldwide. 34,420 (96 per cent) were actually issued for South Asia, 16,790 (98 per cent) for the Americas, and 86,000 issued worldwide.

Figure 5: Volume of work permit applications and issues by region, 2007/08[24]

26. Equivalent information on applications and visas issued under the Points Based System are not yet available because the system has only been in operation for a matter of months. The Migration Advisory Committee does, however, expect this data to be available in time for its next report, in September 2009.[25]

3 These are: Immigration (Carrier's Liability) Act 1987; Immigration Act 1988; Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act 1993; Asylum and Immigration Act 1996; Special Immigration Appeals Commission Act 1997; Immigration and Asylum Act 1999; Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002; Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants, etc) Act 2004; Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006; and UK Borders Act 2007. Back

4 House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee, First Report of Session 2007-08, The Economic Impact of Migration, HL Paper 82-I, p.6 (Abstract) Back

5 Adapted from: House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee, The Economic Impact of Migration, paras 9-12 Back

6 Office for National Statistics, Total International Migration (TIM) tables, International Passenger Survey (IPS), published 19 November 2008: Accessed at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/CCI/nugget.asp?ID=260&Pos=4&ColRank=2&Rank=224 on 15 July 2009. Back

7 Source: Migration Advisory Committee, Skilled, Shortage, Sensible: First review of the recommended shortage occupation lists for the UK and Scotland: Spring 2009, April 2009, p.32 (using data from the International Passenger Survey 2007). EU15 refers to the 15 member states of the EU prior to enlargement in 2004; A8 refers to the 8 new member states after 2004 enlargement. Back

8 Office for National Statistics, Total International Migration (TIM) tables, published 19 November 2008: Accessed at www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=15053 on 15 July 2009. Back

9 Migration Advisory Committee, Skilled, Shortage, Sensible: First review of the recommended shortage occupation lists for the UK and Scotland: Spring 2009, April 2009, p.32 (using data from the International Passenger Survey 2007). Back

10 Home Office, Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom, January--March 2009, p.40 (Table 13) Back

11 Home Office, Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom, January-March 2009, p.2 Back

12 HC Deb, 23 June 2009, col 798W-800W [Written Answer] Back

13 Home Office, Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom, January-March 2009, p.41 (Table 14) Back

14 Home Office, Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom, January-March 2009, p.20 Back