Other professionals to benefit from the ruling on doctors

Professionals in the UK such as accountants, bankers and marketing executives are also expected to benefit from last Friday’s court ruling on treating doctors from non-European Union countries on par with British and EU candidates for employment purposes. The appeal was lodged by the British Association of Physicians of Indian origin (BAPIO).

The rule is likely to improve the employment prospects of thousands of other professionals currently in Britain under the Highly Skilled Migrants Programme (HSMP). The ruling held that non-EU doctors under the HSMP need to be considered at par with British and EU doctors for employment.

Accountants, Techies, Engineers, Marketers should benefit from such a ruling, as employers will have to stop unlawfully applying such discriminatory rules of restricting HSMP holders from applying for permanent positions due to their limited leave to remain and also because of the draconian extension rules introduced by the Home Office.

Professionals under the HSMP who have a limited period of stay in Britain find it difficult to gain employment because employers prefer to recruit candidates who have no restrictions on their stay here.

Under the HSMP category, overseas professionals are first given two years leave to remain in Britain. If they show that they are economically active during this period, they are given further extension of three years.

After the Friday ruling, it will be illegal for employers to deny employment to HSMP professionals on the ground of their HSMP status.

The legal challenge brought by HSMP Forum against retrospective change to HSMP criteria introduced in November 2006 is scheduled to be heard on November 30. Another immigration-related case affecting thousands of professionals under the Work Permit scheme is scheduled for hearing on December 17 and 18. This case relates to raising of the qualifying period for permanent stay in the UK from four to five years.

The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights has criticised the changes to HSMP rules and raising the qualifying period for permanent settlement from four to five years. The committee, in its report in August, has called for urgent amendment of immigration rules to remove the retrospective aspect of the rules.