Government ICT visa reforms ‘bring fairness’ to UK contractor market
Government makes it harder for outsourcing companies to undercut UK contractors with cheaper foreign staff
IPSE, the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self Employed, says it is pleased the government has acted on the recent Tier 2 visa recommendations from the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC).
The government has announced that from 2017, it will implement a higher minimum salary threshold of £41,500 for those recruited through intra company transfers (ICTs). “This should help address abuse of ICT rules by large outsourcing companies”, said IPSE.
“IPSE has strongly campaigned for many years on this issue, which has unfairly impacted UK contractors in the IT sector.”
IPSE deputy director of policy Andy Chamberlain, said: “It’s great to see the government adopt the Migration Advisory Committee’s recommendations and move forward with a sensible approach to fix a system which is simply not fit for purpose.
“For a long, long time we have been concerned that ICT permits are open to abuse from clients seeking to minimise their wage bill. Too often IT contractors find themselves unfairly displaced as large IT outsourcing firms exploit the rules to bring in workers from overseas.”
He said: “This new announcement should help to level the playing field for independent professionals running their own IT micro-businesses.
“It is essential now that the government ensures the new proposals are implemented effectively, with no loopholes which could allow the current unfair system to continue.”
@AntonySavvas