Indian Doctors Hit Hard by UK Work Visa Restrictions

Indian doctors form a major part of UK’s state healthcare system (NHS). Hundreds of Indian doctors recruited by the NHS in the last few months are living in uncertainty as they have been denied Tier-2 as well as Tier-5 visa due to the annual visa limited recently adopted by the UK.

New Delhi (Sputnik) — The new visa rule adopted by the United Kingdom (UK) has triggered panic among Indian doctors who have been offered a role in UK's state-run National Health Service (NHS) but have been denied visas to travel to the country.

Under the new visa system, there is an annual limit of 20,000 Tier — 2 visas for non-EU professionals allocated by the UK. The monthly limit varies between 1000 and 2200.

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The British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO), a national voluntary organization of Indian doctors based in the UK has vociferously protested the new visa cap rule. 

"Indian migrants have a positive image in the UK and every year large number of doctors apply for the UK visa but due to the new visa rules, hundreds of doctors, mostly Indians, were denied visa despite being recruited by the NHS. It is disappointing not only for the Indians but will also affect the NHS," Dr. Ramesh Mehta, Founder and President of British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin told Sputnik.

 

A freedom of information request by the Campaign for Science and Engineering, one of UK's leading independent advocate for science and engineering, has revealed that 6080 Tier-2 visas — including for professionals from India — were denied due to the annual cap between December 2017 and March 2018. 

ICYMI: Over 6,000 visa applications refused under the current Gov't policy for recruiting skilled workers from outside the EU — why this is so damaging and what the solution could be: https://t.co/0NwJY29b22

— CaSE (@sciencecampaign) May 18, 2018

Campaign for Science and Engineering statics revealed that during that period, 1814 refusals for roles in professionals services were made, alongside 1226 for IT and tech roles, 1518 for doctors, as well as 392 for engineers.

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"These figures show the scale of the problem and the urgency to find a solution. Across the country, business and public services are being blocked at the last hurdle from recruiting the people they need, including in health, engineering, and tech, due to the visa cap. This leaves employers frustrated and the public policy poorly served," Executive Director of Campaign for Science and Engineering Dr. Sarah Main said issuing a press statement.

More than 1,600 IT specialists & engineers offered jobs in the UK denied visas between December and March. UK immigration rules not working @ProspectUnion will be submitting evidence to @CommonsSTC @normanlamb pic.twitter.com/NX81t55aoh

— Sue Ferns (@FernsSue) May 17, 2018

Nevertheless, the UK Home Office has said that the visa cap is mainly aimed at ensuring the employment of locals.

"It is important that our immigration system works in the national interest, ensuring that employees look first to the UK resident labor market before recruiting from overseas," the UK Home Office Spokesperson said