Skilled Migrant Cap
The Skilled Migrant Cap stands at 20,700 non-EU migrants a year.
That was over all categories of jobs until recently.
Now, the Government has decided to remove doctors and nurses from the skilled migrants cap.
However, they have not reduced the overall number.
More IT Workers Via Tier 2 Skills Programme
So, that means that there will be more room for IT workers and engineers especially in that 20,700.
This will have a knock on effect on IT Contractors as companies tend to go for them if they have skills shortage in their companies.
However, if IT workers get put back on the Skilled Migrants list then companies could simply source them all from abroad.
And that would decimate the IT Contractor market in the UK.
Tech Leaders Demand More IT Visas
Tech leaders in the UK are saying that the Government change does not go far enough.
They are saying that the Government should abolish the cap on tech workers too.
They reckon that he Government should put back IT skills on the list of skills in shortage as they reckon tech skills are now in shortage in the UK.
Taking doctors and nurses out of the skills cap list has now effectively freed up 8,000 more Tier 2 visas.
We know, from past experience that most of those will go to non-EU IT workers.
However, these extra visas are not enough for the UK’s tech leaders.
They want the Government to put IT skills on the skills shortage list so that any IT person anywhere in the world can come to he UK provided they have a job here.
Effect on UK IT Contractors
This would have a terrible effect on UK IT Contractors.
Currently, if a company has IT vacancies that they can’t fill they look to the contractor market at least on a temporary basis.
However, if tech skills were put on the skills shortage list they could simply hire someone from outside the EU.
That would have a major impact on UK IT contractors both in terms of contract opportunities and on rates.
And the lobbyists have already started demanding this.
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