It is also possible to reduce fees for work and tourist visas. (File)
London:
The UK is planning to relax immigration rules by making visas cheaper and easier for Indian tourists, students and professionals, in a bid to strike a trade deal with India. India, a media reports said on Saturday.
UK International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan is expected to visit New Delhi this month, as formal talks on an India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) are expected. start.
Trevelyan is expected to use the visit to open up the prospect of easing immigration rules for Indian nationals, a key demand from New Delhi, The Times reported.
While she has the backing of Foreign Minister Liz Truss, who has placed securing closer ties with India at the top of the government agenda to counter growing Chinese influence. Nationally, Interior Minister Priti Patel opposed the move, the report said.
In May last year, Ms. Patel signed the ‘Migration and Reciprocal Mobility Partnership’ (MMP) with Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar to give about 3,000 students and professionals access to the benefits each year. beneficial work experience in both countries.
According to the MMP, both sides have agreed to work towards a timeline of April 2022 for the introduction of the new system, with work underway at the High Commission in London and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in New Delhi.
However, under further immigration plans reportedly in progress, one option being considered is one similar to that agreed as part of the UK’s FTA with the UK. Australia, will allow young Indians the opportunity to come and work in the UK for up to three people. many years.
Another option would be to cut visa fees for students, thus allowing them to stay in the UK for a period of time after graduation, which can be built on top of the visa Graduation pathway under the Current points-based immigration rules, the report said.
It is also possible to reduce fees for work and tourist visas.
Currently, an Indian citizen can expect to pay up to 1,400 GBP for a work visa, while students have to pay 348 GBP and tourists 95 GBP respectively.
These stand in sharp contrast to visa fees for countries like China, which pay significantly less.
His Indian counterpart, Lord Karan Bilimoria, president of the Confederation of British Industry, is one of the strongest advocates for reducing visa fees for Indians.
“I hope that FTA will be beneficial in increasing bilateral and inclusive trade as much as possible. Movement of people; reduction of taxes and tariffs – the tax on Scotch whiskey is 150%, that’s it. must be drastically reduced; academic collaboration and he said: “Transboundary research will be huge between our countries and collaborating in a Green industrial revolution.
A senior government source told ‘The Times’ that ministers had accepted that the price of a trade deal with India would be to make a “generous” offer of visas.
“The tech and digital space in India is still extremely protectionist and if we can open even a little bit of access it will put us ahead of the game,” said a senior official. government said.
The British government has repeatedly said it wants an agreement that cuts barriers to doing business with India.
According to the Department of International Trade, preparations for the launch of negotiations on the Anglo-India FTA Agreement are ‘still underway’ since the end of the bilateral working groups.
Trevelyan and his Indian counterpart, Trade and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, also held talks during the G-20 trade ministers meeting in Sorrento, Italy, last October to discuss ” final preparations” for the launch of FTA negotiations between India and the UK this year.
“We look forward to kicking off negotiations early this year. India is projected to become the world’s third largest economy by 2050 and a trade deal will open up huge opportunities for businesses. British industry trades with India’s 2 trillion GBP economy,” said a UK government spokesman.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from an aggregated feed.)
