This is a 2-day weekend course at our office in the City of London. Multi Travel Visas Ltd and a sister company, 1st 4Immigration Ltd, are both accredited by The OISC, ref F201100418 and F200800152 respectively. After many years of experience – and hundreds of successful cases – we are offering to share our experience with you to help you prepare for your OISC Level 1 assessment and accreditation. You can read Testimonials on our immigration cases here.

Our tutors are our very own OISC-accredited practicing immigration advisers who handle the real cases during the week and teach on weekends. You can read about them on the Tutors page.

Unlike most traditional courses, ours is conducted using plain language and does not simply contain quotes from the Immigration Rules. We include cases studies from our practice, answers to most common questions, a Questions&Answers session and a mock Level 1 assessment, which is given to the candidates at the end to complete in their own time and send to us. Generally, we try to keep it as entertaining as possible. We will also provide a printed version of the course (150 pages) for you to take home, which is very detailed, contains more cases studies and you can take it with you to the 'real' OISC exam.

For dates and fees click here: http://www.mtv-training.co.uk/

Course Agenda

PART 1: CRUCIAL TO GET THE BASICS!

‘Settlement’ and 2 confusing meanings of this word | Common question: Passport has expired, do I have to transfer my visa to a new passport | What is Switching? | Common examples when switching is not allowed even though the migrants are desperate to do so | What is the Date of Application and why it is so important? | When is the Date of Application? | In-time and Out-of-time applications

PART 2: IMMIGRATION RULES AND HOW TO USE THEM

PART 3: VISITING THE UK

Visitors can stay for maximum 6 months in each 12 months | How to count ‘6 months in 12 months’? | Visitor rules are the same for all. Visitor visa rules aren’t | A visa stamp itself does not guarantee entry to the UK | Main categories of visitors (and visitor visas) | Visitor visas can be from 6 months to 10 years | Can a visitor apply for a visa to work, study or reside as a Spouse of a UK citizen? | Most common reason for a refusal

PART 4: POINTS-BASED SYSTEM - ABOUT THE TIERS

As ‘Points-Based’ as it sounds? | PBS Tiers

PART 5: POINTS-BASED SYSTEM - WORKING IN THE UK

TIER 1 - HIGH-VALUE MIGRANTS:

TIER 1 (GENERAL)

Why was this visa so popular? | New applicants cannot join it but existing applicants can ‘carry on’ until permanent residency... | ...But last extensions will be in April 2015 | ... And last ILR in April 2018

SCORING THE POINTS

HSMP JUDICIAL REVIEW

TIER 1 (POST-STUDY WORK) - now closed.

TIER 1 (ENTREPRENEUR)

Tier 1 Entrepreneur summary in Questions and Answers

TIER 1 (GRADUATE ENTREPRENEUR)

Annual limit | Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) in Questions and Answers

TIER 1 (INVESTOR)

Tier 1 (Investor) in Questions and Answers

TIER 1 (EXCEPTIONAL TALENT)

Annual limit | Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) in questions and answers

TIER 2 – SKILLED WORKERS:

STEP 1: SPONSOR LICENCE

STEP 2: CERTIFICATE OF SPONSORSHIP (COS)

If Tier 2 application was refused, does the applicant need a new COS or can he/she use the same one?

STEP 3: TIER 2 VISA APPLICATION

Main requirements for a visa application

TIER 2 (GENERAL) CATEGORY – SPECIFIC GUIDANCE

Restricted/Unrestricted certificates and Annual limit | Type of job offered | Does applicant need to have experience or qualification for job sponsored under Tier 2? | Does an applicant need to work for this employer before he/she can be sponsored for Tier 2? If yes, how long for? | Salary offered | New Entrant salary category | Experienced salary category | What if employer cannot offer minimum £20,500? | Advertising the job – Resident Labour Market Test | Examples of exception (when employers don’t need to advertise the job) | Resident Labour Market Test and annual limit are not the same thing and not connected | Special arrangements for Post-Study Work visa holders switching to Tier 2 General inside the UK | Special arrangements for Tier 4 Student visa holders switching to Tier 2 General inside the UK | What if a Student wants to apply before he/she has graduated? | Why is it different applying from outside the UK? | Tier 2 General in questions and answers | Commonly asked question: What’s the minimum salary for Tier 2 General visa? £20,000 or £20,500 or as on Code of Practice?

TIER 2 INTRA-COMPANY TRANSFER – SPECIFIC GUIDANCE

Important date: 6 April 2010 | Tier 2 Intra-Company Transfer in questions and answers

TIER 2 MINISTER OF RELIGION – SPECIFIC GUIDANCE

Tier 2 Minister of Religion in questions and answers

TIER 2 (SPORTSPERSON) – SPECIFIC GUIDANCE

Tier 2 (Sportsperson) in questions and answers

TIER 5 - TEMPORARY WORKERS:

Tier 5 (Temporary worker - creative and sporting) | Tier 5 (Temporary worker - charity workers) | Tier 5 (Temporary worker - religious workers) | Tier 5 (Temporary worker - government authorised exchange) | Tier 5 (Temporary worker - international agreement) | Tier 5 (Youth mobility scheme)

PART 6: NOTES ON ENGLISH FOR ALL TIERS UNDER PBS

Meeting automatically: Based on the previous visa(s) | Tier 1 (Investor) applicants are exempt from this requirement | Nationals of majority English-speaking countries (and common countries which should be on the list but they aren’t)

Degree taught in English | English language test | Table: English language required in each category

PART 7: NOTES ON MAINTENANCE FOR ALL TIERS UNDER PBS

Meeting automatically | Certified by the Sponsor – Tier 2 | Savings: 90 days for Tiers 1, 2, 5 or 28 days for Tier 4

Table – summary of Maintenance requirement for each category

Funds held for 90 days (Tiers 1, 2 and 5): How to count 90 days and when should this period end, a day before applying or when? | What if the applicant does not have the funds ‘held for 90 days’? | Foreign currencies and foreign banks | Black list of foreign banks | Dependants and Funds | Whose name should be on the bank account?

PART 8: PBS – SPECIFIED EVIDENCE AND EVIDENTIAL FLEXIBILITY

It goes further: specified details on the documents, not just specified documents | Evidential (in)Flexibility | The Immigration Rules provide 4 examples when Evidential Flexibility applies

PART 9: DEPENDANTS of PBS MIGRANTS

Common question: child born in the UK, do we need to apply for a Dependant visa?

PART 10: WORKING OUTSIDE THE POINTS-BASED SYSTEM: UK ANCESTRY, DOMESTIC WORKERS, REPRESENTATIVE OF OVERSEAS BUSINESS

UK ANCESTRY | DOMESTIC WORKERS IN A PRIVATE HOUSEHOLD: Before 6 April 2012 | From 6 April 2012 | REPRESENTATIVE OF OVERSEAS BUSINESS

PART 11: INDEFINITE LEAVE TO REMAIN (PERMANENT RESIDENCY) IN PBS ROUTES AND OTHER WORK ROUTES

How to check whether a category leads to an ILR | Examples of categories which do not lead to an ILR

COMMON ROUTES TO AN ILR:

COMMON ILR REQUIREMENTS AND ISSUES:

Absences from the UK: From 13 December 2012 | Purposes of absences | Before 13 December 2012

Criminality: Before 13 December 2012 - Spent and Unspent criminal convictions | From 13 December 2012 – Sentence-based thresholds | Table of offences and impact on applications | Driving offences: drink-driving, driving without insurance, driving whilst using a mobile phone and similar | Fixed Penalty Notices | Fines

Life in the UK Test and changes from 28 Oct 2013: Life in the UK Test | Before 28 October 2013 | From 28 October 2013 | Examples of applicants who will be affected

PART 12: SPOUSES AND PARTNERS OF PBS MIGRANTS AND OTHER WORKERS

If the main applicant holds an Ancestral, Domestic Worker or a pre-PBS visa | If the main applicant holds a Tier 1 or a Tier 2 visa | What to do if the main Tier applicant qualifies for an ILR but his/her spouse/partner has not spent enough time in the UK? From PBS Dependant to an ILR? | All changed on 9 July 2012! | There is one exception | Absences for dependants | Criminal convictions for dependants | Life in the UK Test and English language

PART 13: CHILDREN OF PBS AND OTHER WORK MIGRANTS

If the main applicant holds an Ancestral, Domestic Worker or a pre-PBS visa | If the main applicant holds a Tier 1 or a Tier 2 visa | Child born in the UK, do the parents need to apply for a Dependant visa? | Children who turned 18 years old

PART 14: STUDYING IN THE UK – TIER 4

2 TYPES UNDER TIER 4: GENERAL AND CHILD STUDENTS

Is switching possible?

TIER 4 SPONSORS | CONFIRMATION OF ACCEPTANCE FOR STUDIES (CAS) | ACCEPTABLE TYPES OF COURSES

ACADEMIC PROGRESS | HOW MANY YEARS CAN ONE STUDY IN THE UK? Current limits | What’s not counted?

ENGLISH | MAINTENANCE (FUNDS): Low-risk nationals | How much money does a Student need? | Reduced maintenance levels for established students | How many days does the money need to be on account? | Whose name can be on account (and a common cause for refusal)? | If the money is on the parents’ accounts

HOW LONG IS A VISA VALID FOR? CAN STUDENTS WORK IN THE UK?

WHAT ABOUT CHANGES: change a course, change a sponsor, drop out of the course?

DEPENDANTS

DOCTORATE EXTENSION SCHEME

PART 15: SPOUSE, PARTNER AND FIANCEE VISAS

GENERAL: Which partners are covered? Or whose partners (of who) are covered? | ‘Present and Settled in the UK’ | What is the difference between civil partners, unmarried partners and same-sex partners? | Which partners aren’t covered?

TYPES OF VISAS (Fiancée, Spouse and Unmarried Partner): SPOUSE VISA | FIANCE(E) VISA | UNMARRIED PARTNER VISA

The main thing about Spouse/Partner visas is that there are Old Rules and New Rules, like 'before and after': All changed on 9 July 2012 | How to distinguish? | Transitional arrangements | Spouse/Partner KOL required - what do such visas mean?

SPECIFIED EVIDENCE – new from 9 July 2012 yet extremely important: It goes further: specified details on the documents, not just specified documents

FINANCIAL REQUIREMENT: Thresholds | Thresholds are reasonable, the catch is how to calculate them | Categories A and B – employment | Whose earnings can be counted?

CATEGORY A – with current employer for 6 months or more in the UK

CATEGORY A – with current employer for 6 months or more overseas – Sponsor returning to the UK

CATEGORY B – Less than 6 months with current employer or variable income in the UK CATEGORY B – Less than 6 months with current employer or variable income overseas – Sponsor returning to the UK | Can employment earnings be combined with other income?

CATEGORY C: specified non-employment income | Can ‘property’ be used? | Other sources of specified non-employment income

CATEGORY D: Savings

CATEGORY E: PENSION

CATEGORIES F and G: SELF-EMPLOYMENT: What’s meant by a ‘full financial year’? | Does one have to be self-employed for a ‘full’ financial year? | What is considered as income for self-employed people? | Sole traders | Directors of limited companies | A company director is not the same as a company owner | TIP – Deadline for submitting a tax return is the last day, not the only day! | TIP – Director’s Salary | TIP – Once and for all: what is a ‘contractor’?

And here is what CANNOT be used to meet the Financial Requirement

EXEMPTION AND EXCEPTION FROM THE FINANCIAL REQUIREMENT: Exemption | Exception (EX.1) – not covered in details as it should be at OISC Level 2

OLD MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENT - for Transitional arrangements and for those Exempt from the new Financial Requirement

ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT | EVIDENCE OF GENUINE RELATIONSHIP

PART 16: ILR FOR SPOUSES AND PARTNERS

BEFORE 9 JULY 2012 | FROM 9 JULY 2012 | TRANSITIONAL ARRANGEMENTS

ILR REQUIREMENTS: Finances | Evidence of living together | Criminality threshold | Knowledge of Life and English language

PART 17: VISAS FOR CHILDREN AND STEP-CHILDREN

SOLE RESPONSIBILITY RULE | What if the child turned 18 years old between visas?

PART 18: VISAS FOR OTHER DEPENDENT RELATIVES

Before 9 July 2012 | From 9 July 2012 | A word of warning!

PART 19: EU/EEA REGULATIONS (EUROPEAN LAW)

LEGISLATION AND TERMS: EU/EEA term | Who are EEA nationals? | TIP - EEA is not the same as Schengen area

EUROPEAN INSTITUTIONS: European Commission | European Parliament | European Council | European Court of Justice | European Ombudsman

PRINCIPLES OF EU/EEA CASEWORK:

1^ST PRINCIPLE: exercising EU Treaty rights: Examples of a qualified person (examples if exercising Treaty rights)

2^ND PRINCIPLE: ‘visa stamps’ are voluntary

3^RD PRINCIPLE: restrictions on some nationals

May 2004 - May 2011

1 January 2007 - 31 December 2013: Blue Registration Certificate | Purple Registration Certificate | Yellow Registration Certificate.

1 July 2013 - for up to 7 years: Blue Registration Certificate | Purple Registration Certificate | Yellow Registration Certificate.

Post-restrictions rules

4^TH PRINCIPLE: direct and extended family members and a very important difference:

Direct family members | The crucial difference - automatic rights from the law and not from a ‘visa stamp’ | Practical reasons for decision to make an application | Extended family members

TYPES OF APPLICATIONS:

If coming from outside the UK: EEA Family Permit | If applying inside the UK: EEA Residence Card | Family members of Bulgarian/Romanian (EU2) nationals | Family members of Croatian nationals

5^th PRINCIPLE: family members of British citizens, why they are excluded and a Surinder Singh route

6th PRINCIPLE: Permanent residency (not based just on living in the UK): Same rules for all EEA nationals | Absences from the UK | Knowledge of Life and English

7^th PRINCIPLE: dual nationals: Dual EEA and non-EEA nationals | Dual British and EEA nationals

PART 20: BRITISH CITIZENSHIP

Nationality: citizenship, naturalisation, what does it all mean and what are the differences? | British nationality | British Citizenship | Naturalisation | Registration

CITIZENSHIP – NATURALISATION: 4 SETS OF NATURALISATION RULES (spouses and civil partners of UK citizens, EEA nationals, family members of EEA nationals and 'everybody else')

THE MOST COMMON GROUP - ‘EVERYBODY ELSE’

Condition 1: No ILR – No Citizenship! | Condition 2: Having an ILR for at least 12 months | Condition 3: Five years of residency in the UK and being present in the UK on a day 5 years before receipt of application by the UKBA | Condition 4: Good character (criminal history) | Before and after 13 December 2012 | Table of offences and impact on applications | Condition 5: English language and Knowledge of Life in the UK and changes from 28 Oct 2013 | Condition 6: Absences from the UK (not the same as for an ILR!) | Unique ‘Date of Application’ meaning | Basic rules on absences

‘BRITISH BY DESCENT’ AND ‘BRITISH OTHERWISE THAN BY DESCENT’ – the difference

British ‘otherwise than by descent’ | ‘British by descent’ | Example of a British by descent

SPOUSES AND CIVIL PARTNERS OF BRITISH CITIZENS:

Conditions, which are the same as 'everybody else' generally but some details are different

Conditions, which are unique to spouses and civil partners of British citizens: Condition 4: Three years of residency in the UK | Anomaly in this requirement | Condition 5: waiting 12 months after an ILR (not actually applicable) | Condition 6: Absences from the UK

EUROPEAN (EEA) NATIONALS:

Rules are the same as for ‘everybody else’ but applied differently | EEA nationals who are married/civil partners of British citizens | CASE STUDY – dual Dutch/Brazilian national who is a civil partner of a UK national

FAMILY MEMBERS OF EUROPEAN (EEA) NATIONALS:

European family members of European nationals, such as ‘Polish married Polish’ | Non-EEA family members of EEA nationals, such as ‘American married to German’ | Direct family members | CASE STUDY – Russian national married to a Belgian | Extended non-EEA family members

CITIZENSHIP - REGISTRATION OF CHILDREN UNDER 18 y.o

IMPORTANT DATES AND ACTS TO REMEMBER: British Nationality Act 1981 | From 1 July 2006

CHILDREN BORN IN THE UK:

If child's mother is British | If child’s father is British | If child's parent (one or both) is not British but has permanent residency in the UK | If the child's parents hold a limited leave to remain. | If the child's parents are European citizens | Children who spent the first 10 years of their life in the UK | Difference between 'British by birth' and 'not British but can be registered as British'?

CHILD BORN OUTSIDE THE UK WHOSE PARENTS IMMIGRATED TO THE UK

Example 1: Indian family who came to the UK together | Example 2: Indian national came to work while his family joined much later | Example 3: Russian step-child of a UK citizen

CASE STUDIES FROM OUR PRACTICE

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

We also offer to take a mock Level 1 assessment (designed by us) and email it to us later to mark

To book visit: www.mtv-training

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UK Visas and British Citizenship

Classroom OISC Level 1 course on weekends from a practicing OISC-accredited immigration company in the City

Course Agenda

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