So has anyone seen this policy in practice yet? I have, and unsurprisingly, it's a fucking joke.
A girl I work with, who has been working in this country for nearly three years, has had her application to renew her visa declined. She is an Australian citizen, educated in this country to a very high standard (including a First Class degree in English and History and experience as a research student at Oxford University), and has been promoted twice in her two and a half years at the company.
The company I work for publishes educational products for children, ranging from the ages of 3 to 16. For those who are not aware, publishing, on the whole, is not a lucrative profession. It therefore lends itself to passionate, dedicated workers, because there are people in this company whose intelligence and expertise would see them double their wages in another profession. The girl in question is a Managing Editor, working on anything up to 100 books in a calendar year. As you can imagine, her application to remain in the country is a very strong one. However, that is irrelevant because they won't even look at her application due to her salary being under £36k. That's right, £36k! They are ruling out applications based on salary alone.
The entire application process has been deliberately prohibitive. It is designed so that there is little, to no time to address problems. You cannot apply to extend your visa until there are just 60 days remaining, despite the fact that she's had the application ready for nearly a year. The company has sought to rescue the situation by applying for a certificate of sponsorship for her, but has seen two applications rejected, again, based on the fairly arbitrary factor of her salary. Applications are only being issued based on how many the company applied for the previous year. We didn't apply for one last year, because the girl in question had a valid visa. Why should that make our application this year any less valid this year? It's a royal stitch up, really. We have sought legal advice, and been told that the government is acting outside the law. In fact, a similar case in December was upheld in court (with regards to the issuing of company sponsorships), but is being ignored by the home office. They are breaking the law, but who will hold them accountable?
We all made the mistake of presuming that in a modern society, common sense would prevail. How wrong we were. Now we are just beginning to come to terms with the prospect of her leaving. She is absolutely devastated, as she feel that this country is her home. Our considerable efforts to fight the case appear to have come to nothing. We're all incensed, and will be incredibly sad to see her go. She has been made to feel like a criminal throughout the whole process. Her visa is due to expire on the 18th, by which time she'll have 28 days to pack up her things and leave the country. A country that I'm beginning to lose faith in.
So, does anyone else know someone in a similar position? I'm sure there will be many cases like her. So what did they do? What advice could you offer? We feel like we've exhausted all avenues now but are still reluctant to accept the decision.
A girl I work with, who has been working in this country for nearly three years, has had her application to renew her visa declined. She is an Australian citizen, educated in this country to a very high standard (including a First Class degree in English and History and experience as a research student at Oxford University), and has been promoted twice in her two and a half years at the company.
The company I work for publishes educational products for children, ranging from the ages of 3 to 16. For those who are not aware, publishing, on the whole, is not a lucrative profession. It therefore lends itself to passionate, dedicated workers, because there are people in this company whose intelligence and expertise would see them double their wages in another profession. The girl in question is a Managing Editor, working on anything up to 100 books in a calendar year. As you can imagine, her application to remain in the country is a very strong one. However, that is irrelevant because they won't even look at her application due to her salary being under £36k. That's right, £36k! They are ruling out applications based on salary alone.
The entire application process has been deliberately prohibitive. It is designed so that there is little, to no time to address problems. You cannot apply to extend your visa until there are just 60 days remaining, despite the fact that she's had the application ready for nearly a year. The company has sought to rescue the situation by applying for a certificate of sponsorship for her, but has seen two applications rejected, again, based on the fairly arbitrary factor of her salary. Applications are only being issued based on how many the company applied for the previous year. We didn't apply for one last year, because the girl in question had a valid visa. Why should that make our application this year any less valid this year? It's a royal stitch up, really. We have sought legal advice, and been told that the government is acting outside the law. In fact, a similar case in December was upheld in court (with regards to the issuing of company sponsorships), but is being ignored by the home office. They are breaking the law, but who will hold them accountable?
We all made the mistake of presuming that in a modern society, common sense would prevail. How wrong we were. Now we are just beginning to come to terms with the prospect of her leaving. She is absolutely devastated, as she feel that this country is her home. Our considerable efforts to fight the case appear to have come to nothing. We're all incensed, and will be incredibly sad to see her go. She has been made to feel like a criminal throughout the whole process. Her visa is due to expire on the 18th, by which time she'll have 28 days to pack up her things and leave the country. A country that I'm beginning to lose faith in.
So, does anyone else know someone in a similar position? I'm sure there will be many cases like her. So what did they do? What advice could you offer? We feel like we've exhausted all avenues now but are still reluctant to accept the decision.
