For months the phrase “Australian points-based immigration system” has been used as political shorthand for a more controlled immigration system, but beneath the headline there has been little understanding of what this might mean in the UK.
The home secretary asked the government’s official migration policy advisers to review the Australian immigration system to “advise on what best practice can be used to strengthen the UK labour market and attract the best and brightest from around the world”.
But in its 271-page report, the migration advisory committee (Mac) does not back an Australian-points based system. Rather, it recommends a mixed system, which would rely on a minimum salary threshold for those people coming to the UK with a job offer and a points-based system for skilled workers coming to the UK without an arranged job.
What is the Australian points-based immigration system?
Australia has what is known as a general skilled migration programme, where immigrants applying for a visa are typically selected based on “economically relevant characteristics” such as education, language skills and work experience. This does not apply for refugees and asylum seekers and there are other visas available with different requirements, such as travel or holiday visas.
The exact way points are allocated changes depending on policy and the labour market but typically an applicant picks a “skilled occupation” from a list and needs to score a minimum number of points. The visa application is submitted online after a series of checks and requires personal, financial and contact details, identity documents, and education, employment, health and travel history.
What has the Mac recommended?
If the government wants a points-based system it should only introduce it for skilled workers without a job offer, the committee concludes. Currently the main way in to the UK for non-EU migrants requires them to have a job.
What else has it recommended?
The Mac recommends cutting the salary threshold for skilled migrants from £30,000 to £25,600 for those coming to the UK with a job offer.
This could make it easier for teachers, NHS employees and people at the start of their careers to qualify. The committee recommends higher thresholds for more highly paid occupations.
What are the pros and cons?
The committee’s recommendations would reduce levels of immigration, the size of the UK population and total GDP, and increase pressure on social care, the Mac said. But they would probably reduce pressures on the NHS, schools and on social housing.
Will the report make any difference?
Probably not. After its publication, the home secretary, Priti Patel, dismissed the committee as “advisory”, setting the stage for the government to plough ahead with whatever plans it deems most effective.
Commenting on the report, a Home Office spokesperson said: “We will deliver on the people’s priorities by introducing a points-based immigration system from 2021 to attract the brightest and best talent from around the world, while reducing low-skilled migration and bringing overall numbers down.”
