UK Immigration: Changes to Visitor Rules, Youth Mobility Scheme Beginning 31 January 2024

The UK government ended 2023 by announcing further immigration updates effective 31 January 2024, including changes to the Visitor Rules and an expansion of the Youth Mobility Scheme.

CHANGES TO THE VISITOR RULES

Visitors travelling to the United Kingdom are permitted to undertake certain activities which are set out in the Visitor Rules. From 31 January 2024, the Visitor Rules will be amended to incorporate the following changes:

• Intra-corporate activities: Individuals employed abroad and who visit a group business in the UK will be able to carry out work directly with clients, providing the client facing activity is incidental to the visitor’s overseas employment. This cannot amount to the offshoring of a project or service to their overseas employer.
• Remote working: The law has been updated for clarity to confirm that visitors can work remotely while in the UK; however, this must not be the main purpose of their visit.
• Research and legal services: There will be an expansion of the permitted activities for scientists, researchers, and academics who will be allowed to carry out research in the UK as a visitor if it relates to a specific project directly regarding their overseas employment. There will also be an expansion of the activities permitted for those in legal professions. This will allow certain legal services to be carried out, including advocacy, providing arbitration/mediation services, litigation, or transactional legal services (such as drafting contracts).

Permitted Paid Engagements

The list of Permitted Paid Engagements (PPE) will be amended to allow speakers at conferences to be paid for this activity.

The route is also being absorbed into the standard visitor route, meaning that a specific PPE visa will no longer be required. Individuals are still required to arrange their engagement before entry and complete it within 30 days of their arrival in the UK.

EXPANSION OF THE YOUTH MOBILITY SCHEME

The Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS) is available for young people of certain nationalities to live and work in the UK for up to two or three years. This route does not require sponsorship from an employer.

From 31 January 2024, the YMS will be expanded. Nationals of Uruguay will now be able to apply. In addition, the eligible applicant age range for Australian, Canadian, and South Korean nationals will be expanded from 18–30 to 18–35. Australian and Canadian nationals will also be able to extend the visa by up to one year, allowing them to stay in the UK for up to three years. This comes after previous announcements for similar changes that were implemented for New Zealand nationals.

The number of available visas for nationals of Japan and South Korea will also be increased. Further, the requirement to obtain an invitation to apply for Japanese and South Korean citizens is being removed.

LOOKING AHEAD

Employers should ensure that visitors to their UK organisation are only undertaking permitted activities during their trips. Employers may wish to consider upcoming business travel needs and intended activities in the UK. Identifying business needs and the appropriate visa will allow for visa applications to be made in a timely manner to meet business needs.