Home Office Makes Positive Changes to Visit Visas for Chinese Nationals

The UK government is considering major changes to the UK Visitor Visa route for Chinese visitors. Recently, David Cameron announced ‘significant changes to the Visitor Visa route for Chinese tourists’ which have been welcomed. The proposed changes by the UK government may be in force as early as January 2016. The change is to pave the way for Chinese tourists to enable them to make applications for a 2 year visit visa. This is a far more flexible visa route for Chinese visitors as it is four times the usual limit of the standard UK visitor visas.

UK Government Proposals for Chinese Applicants

The UK government’s support for this new visa route was clear when David Cameron stated ‘nothing is off the table‘ referring to a visit by the Chinese President Xi Jinping to the UK which initiated the proposals for policy changes to the UK Visitor Visa route and the UK’s Immigration Rules. David Cameron’s approval and support for the new Visa proposals were clearly highlighted when he proposed the possibility of a new 10 year multi-entry UK Visitor Visa. Going as far as to propose that the nominal £85 fee of the current UK Visitor Visa should remain the same. This means Chinese Applicants will not be required to pay any extra fees and would be able to visit the UK throughout the 10 year period without having to make a Visitor Application on each occasion. The nominal fee along with the simplification of the visitation process means that the number of Chinese UK Visitor Visas is likely to be on the increase.

The UK government also proposes an 82% increase to the number of UK mobile fingerprinting services which will be required to obtain the UK Visitor Visa applicants’ biometric information in Chinese cities. This is an additional 41 centres.  There are also talks of an increase in the number of UK Visa Application Centres, although the UK already holds the largest number of Visa Application Centres in the EEA.

This is good news for Chinese Visitors as they will now have an even better route than the Schengen visa which limits a visitor to 90 days of stay. The system which also allowed passport-free movement across Europe is now feared to be on the brink of collapse as nations tighten their border controls this may be scrapped all together.

Visitor Visas boost British Economy

The UK government proposals will have a significant beneficial impact on the UK economy and create business opportunities for the UK. The Chinese Visitor Applicants who currently visit the UK are providing the UK economy with around £500 million this is one of the largest contributions to the UK economy when compared to statistics of other nations visiting the UK.

The extension and accommodation of the Chinese Visitor Visas are therefore welcomed by the UK Government in the hope that each time a visitor attends the UK they will bring with them a huge contribution to the UK economy. The Home Office statistics suggests that with each additional 22 Chinese Visitors to the UK this will create one additional job in the UK tourism sector.

Successful UK Visitor Visa Applications

Our team of experienced and professionally qualified solicitors and barristers welcome the proposed changes to the UK Visitor Visa applications and are pleased to the see direction and scope of the proposals by the Home Office. It is particularly pleasing to see that the Home Office is considering the benefits of Visitors to boost the UK economy and support UK businesses and entrepreneurs to grow in the UK.  We are regularly instructed to complete Visitor Visas applications and undertake a detailed review for Applicants and will be able to guide you through the process of making a Visitor Visa application step by step and limit the possibility of failure by complying with the strict letter of the law.

We also undertake a great deal of appeal work before the Immigration and Asylum Tribunal and have a successful track record of successful results for our clients. We have the experience and the knowledge required to take your case forward successfully. If you have had a Visitor Visa refused, contact us to discuss your case so that we can provide you with a case assessment.

Call Now Button search previous next tag category expand menu location phone mail time cart zoom edit close