LONDON, March 14 (KUNA) -- Immigration rules were loosened Thursday as the UK Government moved to address concerns that it was closing the door on talented overseas students and businesses, it was announced here.
A clampdown on bogus students and dodgy businesses entering the UK has drawn criticism from politicians and the higher education sector for threatening to damage the economy.
The Home Office said new changes to immigration rules will give additional flexibility to businesses and allow top international students to pursue careers in the UK.
A net flow of 163,000 migrants came to the UK in the year to June 2012, down from 247,000 in the previous year, according to the most recent official figures.
In a statement, Immigration minister Mark Harper said: "The latest net migration statistics show numbers are now coming under control and our radical changes are having the desired effect - abuse has been stamped out and net migration is down, while the number of skilled workers and university students coming to the UK is up. "Today's changes will help ensure this pattern continues.
We are lowering administrative burdens on employers and giving greater flexibility to those senior executives and elite graduates who want to work and study here." Among the changes, the UK Border Agency's graduate entrepreneur scheme is to allow up to 1,000 international MBA graduates to stay in the UK for a year after graduation. The graduates will be free to develop their own business ideas, or work in start-ups, after which they will have the option to stay on in the UK as skilled workers.
In addition, PhD students will be able to stay on after their studies for up to a year and work without having to switch immigration routes.
New measures aimed at tackling bogus students have been unveiled by the Government, including plans for 100,000 interviews to be conducted with student visa applicants from "high-risk" countries.
The Business, Innovation and Skills Committee recently hit out at the Government for rejecting calls to take international students out of its target to reduce non-EU migration to the tens of thousands by 2015.
The committee said the inclusion of international students in net migration figures risks undermining a world-class export market.
Universities have also condemned the stricter stance, claiming it has driven large numbers of genuine overseas applicants to competitor countries.
Meanwhile, overseas employees who have been transferred to the UK branch of their companies and who are paid more than 152,100 pounds, will no longer have to take an English test if they want to extend their stay in the country.
The Government is to cut the number of documents such employees have to provide to prove they have worked for their companies for more than a year.
Further changes will see skilled workers who are paid more than 152,100 pounds and have worked here previously able to take up other roles in the UK without having to wait 12 months between postings.
Minor changes will also be made to the general visitor rules to guard against abuse by those whose repeat visits amount to "de facto residence", the Home Office said.
Immigration is one of the major thorny problems facing the government as it tries to curb the influx of economic immigrants into the country, who are seeking better life here, commentators said. (end) he.sd KUNA 141721 Mar 13NNNN