UK cap on migrant workers entering the UK

The number of workers entering the UK from outside Europe is to be controlled by a new statutory limit the Home Secretary, Theresa May, announced on 28 of June 2010.

Net migration will be scaled back to the levels of the 1990s – to tens of thousands rather than hundreds of thousands. Details of the final limit will be announced following a 12-week consultation with the business community.

An interim cap has also been announced to prevent a flood of applications before the new permanent arrangements are brought in by 1 April 2011.

In addition, The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has today launched a consultation on the annual limit of the number of non-EU migrants admitted to work in the UK through Tiers 1 and 2 of the points based system.

The Government has asked the MAC, as an independent expert body on migration, to provide advice on the level of the permanent economic migration for its first full year of operation.

Wragge & Co's immigration experts provide further information.