By Abiola Olawale
The United Kingdom government has announced the suspension of a policy seeking an increment of the Family visa threshold from £29,000 to £38,700 [approximately N80 million].
This disclosure was made by the Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, on Friday.
Cooper revealed that the policy, initially set to take effect in 2025, was delayed until a comprehensive review of the family visa policy was conducted by the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC).
It would be recalled that the policy was introduced earlier this year by former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as part of efforts to address record immigration figures.
Meanwhile, Cooper, on Friday confirmed that the current threshold of £29,000 will remain in place until the independent review is completed.
He explained that the government, through the independent review, will evaluate the impact of restricting migrant workers from bringing family members to the UK and the implications of increasing wage thresholds.
“This is why we are setting out a different approach – one that links migration policy and visa controls to skills and labour market policies – so immigration is not used as an alternative to training or tackling workforce problems here at home,” Cooper stated
