The United Kingdom may ease work visa requirements for foreign professionals, including Nigerians, if the government adopts new recommendations from its independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC).

The proposals, which focus on salary thresholds across key immigration routes, are aimed at addressing labour shortages while maintaining competitive wage standards, according to Travel Biz.

If approved, the changes could expand access to employment opportunities in the UK for skilled workers from countries such as Nigeria and India.

A major recommendation by the MAC is the reduction of occupation-specific salary thresholds under the Skilled Worker visa route. The committee suggested that salary requirements for individual roles should be based on the 25th percentile of earnings rather than the current median benchmark, effectively lowering the minimum salary employers must offer for many positions.

However, the advisory body recommended retaining the general salary threshold of £41,700, while also presenting an alternative option of £48,400 for government consideration.

The proposed changes are expected to improve access to jobs in sectors facing labour shortages, including information technology, engineering, healthcare, construction, and education.

The MAC also proposed introducing a single salary threshold of £33,400 for new entrants under the Skilled Worker route. This, it noted, would make it easier for younger professionals and recent graduates to secure employment without requiring employers to meet salary levels typically reserved for experienced workers.

In another recommendation, the committee suggested scrapping salary discounts currently available to applicants with PhD qualifications. Where postdoctoral concessions remain necessary, it proposed replacing them with a single threshold of £41,700 applicable for up to four years.

The proposed reforms also affect Global Business Mobility routes used by multinational firms to transfer staff to the UK. For Senior or Specialist Workers and UK Expansion Workers, the MAC recommended aligning salary requirements with median earnings for each occupation.

Graduate Trainees, under the proposal, would be subject to a single salary threshold of £33,400, with occupation-specific requirements removed.

Additionally, the committee proposed a minimum salary threshold of £30,900 for roles on the Temporary Shortage List, while maintaining the requirement for employers to meet prevailing market pay rates.

The development comes amid recent increases in UK visa application fees across multiple categories. Short-term visit visas of up to six months rose from £127 to £135, while two-year visas increased from £475 to £506. Five-year and ten-year visas now cost £903 and £1,128 respectively.

The revised fees also apply to transit, study, and family visa categories as part of broader changes to the UK’s immigration cost structure. (The Nation)

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