PBS
A points-based system (PBS) has been introduced for UK immigration. Points are awarded to reflect the applicant’s ability, experience, savings, age and other relevant factors. Employers or educational institutions will be given extra responsibility to ensure that their workers or students follow the rules of their visas, and will need to report to the Home Office the names of anyone who stops attending without permission or who is employed for more hours than are allowed.
The visa system has five sections, known as tiers:
- Tier 1 – for highly skilled people without a job offer (e.g. scientists or entrepreneurs, or post-study workers)
- Tier 2 – for skilled workers with a job offer (e.g. nurses, teachers, engineers) [this replaces the previous work permit schemes]
- Tier 3 – for low skilled workers filling specific temporary labour shortages (e.g. construction workers for a particular project) [this tier is not available at present]
- Tier 4 – for students
- Tier 5 – for “youth mobility” schemes (e.g. working holiday makers, au pairs) and temporary workers (e.g. musicians coming to play a concert)
