In March 2014, the Home Office, Visas and Immigration introduced the statements of changes whereby certain changes have been introduced to the Immigration Rules. Various changes in the immigration rules introduced in the above given statements of changes have been briefly summarised below:

Tier 1 General Extension

An application for extension of stay as a Tier 1 General Migrant cannot be submitted to the Home Office, Visas and Immigration after 5 April 2015 and any such application for extension can only be made before 6 April 2015. However, it may be possible to switch into other visa categories from inside the UK if someone is not eligible to apply for extension of stay as a Tier 1 General Migrant before 6 April 2015.

ILR as Tier 1 General Migrant

An application for ILR as a Tier 1 General Migrant must be made before 6 April 2018 and it will no longer be possible to apply for ILR after 5 April 2018. However, it may be possible to switch into other visa categories from inside the UK if someone is not eligible to apply for ILR as a Tier 1 General Migrant before 6 April 2018.

Tier 2 General Migrant & Tier 2 ICT Migrant

The leave granted as a result of entry clearance or switching into Tier 2 General or ICT visa will now be granted for 5 years unless the applicant is sponsored by the Tier 2 sponsor for lesser period in which case it will be granted for the duration of prospective employment. This change will be effective from 6 April 2014.

Changes relating to Appendix KOLL – Knowledge of language and life

To ensure that family of members of HM forces are treated in the same way as family members of British citizens and people settled in the UK, the Home Office, UKVI are amending Appendix KoLL to clarify that partners and children of members of HM forces who, despite best efforts, prove unable to meet the knowledge of language and life requirement for settlement, may qualify for settlement with a lower level of speaking and listening skills after 15 years in the UK.

Changes to the Immigration Rules relating to family life

The following minor changes and clarifications are being made to the Immigration Rules relating to family life:

• To make clear that non-EEA national fiancé(e)s and proposed civil partners of EEA nationals who do not have a right of permanent residence in the UK cannot apply for entry clearance as a partner under Appendix FM to the Immigration Rules. Such persons cannot enter the UK under the EEA Regulations unless they have been in a durable relationship with the EEA national for at least 2 years, which is comparable to the requirement for entry clearance as an unmarried or same sex partner under Appendix FM;
• To clarify that an applicant for Indefinite Leave to Remain under paragraph 298 of the Immigration Rules can be granted a period of limited leave if they fail to qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain because they are unable to meet the Knowledge of Language and Life in the UK requirement or because of minor criminality;
• To clarify which children applying under the adoption rules in Part 8 of the Immigration Rules are subject to the minimum income threshold requirement;
• To make clear that an applicant applying for limited leave to remain under the 5-year partner or parent route in Appendix FM only needs to meet the English language requirement once and does not need to demonstrate they meet the requirement every time they apply for limited leave under those routes;
• In respect of the minimum income threshold requirement under Appendix FM  and Appendix FM-SE:
  
  • • To count maintenance payments from a former partner of the sponsor, as well as of the applicant;
    • To clarify the manner in which cash income can be counted;
    • To provide that tips and gratuities distributed by an employer via a tronc scheme can be counted as employment income;
    • To provide for overseas maternity pay, paternity pay and adoption pay to be counted;
    • To update references to the VAT registration threshold to reflect the current HMRC threshold of £79,000;
    • To provide for ongoing payments from insurance companies and legal settlements to be counted as non-employment income.
• To require that the specified medical evidence to be provided by an adult dependent relative applicant under Appendix FM come from an independent source;
• Other minor technical changes to Appendix FM and Appendix FM-SE.

Changes relating to Appendix Armed Forces

In order to comply with the Supreme Court‟s judgment in Munir, the Home Office, UKVI are incorporating into the Immigration Rules discretionary policies for civilian
employees of NATO and the Australian Department of Defence, and employees of firms under contract to NATO. The Home Office, UKVI are also making minor
clarifications to the cash savings provisions which apply to the financial requirement in Appendix Armed Forces.

Changes relating to general grounds for refusal

The changes to the curtailment rules support the wider immigration reforms set out in the Immigration Bill. Changes to the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 mean that cases that are currently subject to a removal decision under section 10(1)(b) and (c) of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 (which invalidates any extant leave) must have their leave curtailed to trigger removal. The changes also enable the Home Office to curtail leave where a Points Based System (PBS) sponsor notifies the Home Office that a migrant‟s period of study or work is due to end earlier than had been originally planned when leave to enter or remain was granted. The remaining changes ensure that the wording and the intentions of the rules are clear and consistent.

Funds for Maintenance for PBS Migrants and Their Dependants

The Home Office UKVI has increased the amount of funds for maintenance in all the PBS applications. The change will be effective from 1 July 2014. The new maintenance requirements are as follows: