UK Govt to Increase Visa Fees and Immigration Health Surcharge

UK’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced that visa fees and the health surcharge paid by visa applicants, including Indians, will be significantly increased. The purpose of this fee hike is to meet the public sector wage increase in the UK, particularly for sectors such as teachers, police, and junior doctors.

Sunak clarified that the government will not borrow more money or raise taxes to fund these raises due to concerns about inflation.

Significant Increase in Visa Application Fees

Sunak announced that visa application fees would be raised across the board, resulting in a substantial increase. This measure is expected to generate over GBP 1 billion in revenue.

The specific details regarding the extent of the fee increase were not provided, but it is clear that applicants will face higher costs when applying for visas.

Apart from the visa fee the health surcharge paid by migrants applying for visas would also go up significantly.

Also Read: UK Residents Urge Govt to Seek Visa-Free Travel to Europe

Funding Public Sector Wage Increase

During a Downing Street press conference, Sunak explained the government’s approach to funding the public sector wage increase.

He stated, “If we’re going to prioritize paying public sector workers more, that money has to come from somewhere else because I’m not prepared to put up people’s taxes, and I don’t think it would be responsible or right to borrow more because that would just make inflation worse.”

As a result, the government has decided to increase the charges for migrants applying for visas and the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS), which provides access to the UK’s National Health Service (NHS).

Sunak’s Final Wage Offer

In response to the strikes and demands for higher pay, Sunak declared that his wage offer was final. He emphasized that further industrial action would not alter the government’s decision.

He stated, “There will be no more talks on pay. We will not negotiate again on this year’s settlements, and no amount of strikes will change our decision. Instead, the settlement we’ve reached today gives us a fair way to end the strikes. A fair deal for workers and a fair deal for the British taxpayer.”

Sunak’s decision to increase the visa fees and surcharge comes after junior doctors in the UK began a five-day strike, which is the biggest walkout the NHS or UK has ever seen after their demands for the 35 per cent hike were rejected.