How do migrants survive under tough visa rules in the UK

Darren D'Souza, 25, is a software developer in Peterborough, eastern England.

D'Souza is originally from India and obtained his Master's degree in London before moving to Peterborough for his job. His graduate visa allows him to stay in the UK for another two years.

He said: “I’m one of the lucky ones, I got a job offer within two weeks after giving my dissertation.

“I sent 100-200 CVs online every day for 2 months until I found a software developer job in Peterborough.

“I’ve been trying multiple sites, attending multiple events and talking with different people to get recommendations.

“For the first month, I applied for London-based jobs. After that, I began approaching companies outside London, I was open to working wherever my job took me.”

D'Souza’s other classmates are also international students in the UK, they are currently facing difficulties in finding jobs.

He said: “From what I know only a couple of them have received job offers. The others have been consistently applying for jobs and updating their CVs, but no luck.

“They were firstly only applying for job opportunities in London. Now they would take offers from anywhere  in the UK.”

“From what I've heard, both parties don't seem to want us to be here .”

The 25-year-old software developer does not expect significant changes to immigration policy following the upcoming UK General Election.

“From what I've heard, both parties don't seem to want us to be here.

“I think one of the reasons for the immigration cut is the demand for jobs, especially after the years of COVID when all job opportunities took a hit in the market.”

As a software developer, D'Souza mentioned there has been a decrease in demand for software since many people work from home and may not need it. However, the demand for software is gradually picking up again.

D'Souza said: “More job opportunities in the technology field should be coming back.”

“Leaving all your friends in London for good wasn’t a fun experience.”

D'Souza moved to Peterborough within one week, while he had to maintain his temporary job in London.

He said: “I barely have time to look for a new place, and you know how difficult it is to find a place.

“I work from 9am to 5pm, so I only have a few hours every day to search for a place, finalise the housing contract, and move my belongings from London to Peterborough.

“It's hard because I'm losing all my contacts in London and I  had to make new friends, this is not fun.”

However, he considered all the hardships he experienced in order to stay in the UK worthwhile.

D'Souza demonstrated: “This is 100% worthwhile.

“After working for a few months, I will have gained work experience in the UK, which will make my future job search much easier.

“My next employer will think, 'Okay, he survived working in the UK under visa rules'. ”

D'Souza is currently having a simple life in Peterborough.

“I live in a small town and don't have many friends here, except for my colleagues at work.

“My daily routine is pretty simple: I cycle to work, and then go back home after work.

“During the weekend, I sometimes go to the local pub to watch football, and other times I go back to London to attend events like friends' birthday celebrations.”

The new immigration rule requires graduates to have a job offer of at least £38,700 per year to remain in the country.

D'Souza prefers to remain positive about where to go after his two-year graduate visa expires.

He said: “Two years is a long time, anything could happen, so there's no point in worrying about it now.”

“I would prefer not to return to India. The culture there is too judgmental, controlling, and nosy. Unlike here, I’m free to do whatever I like.”

He stated: “Back home, people are too controlling, they judge you for everything you do, and they are nosy.

“Unlike here, you can do whatever you like and be free.”

Another reason D'Souza enjoyed his life in the UK was the quality of life he desired.

He mentioned: “The British pound is the strongest currency in the world. For example, if I send £200-£300 back home, that would be someone’s monthly salary in my hometown.”

D'Souza was born in Mangalore. He aimed to ensure that his future generations would not struggle in India.  

He said: “My parents are very proud of me especially when I got a job here.”

Jo Li, a 29-year-old entrepreneur from Shanghai, China, holds two Masters Degrees from the UK and owns a tech start-up company in London.

She has been living in London for four years and has an Innovator Founder Visa, which allows her to start and run an innovative business in the UK for three years.

Li liked London because the city was tolerant and diverse enough for her. She stated: “The way I dress is very different from others.

“Even when I was in Shanghai, a very modern city in China, some elderly people still looked at me differently sometimes.

“But in London, I felt more secure due to the city's diverse nature.”

Li added: “Another reason I enjoyed staying in London was the social culture, people were friendly but also respected each other's boundaries.

“When I returned to China, I didn't feel people had boundaries with each other.”

Although London felt like home, the strict immigration rules only allowed her to stay in the UK as an entrepreneur for another three years. If she wanted to remain, she would need to meet several criteria.

According to UK government regulations, in order to obtain settlement as an entrepreneur, Li is required to have doubled the number of customers over the last 3 years, generated £1 million in revenue in the last full year covered by accounts, and created the equivalent of 10 full-time jobs that have existed for 12 months. (Reference: Indefinite leave to remain if you have an Innovator Founder or Innovator visa)

In response to the strict regulations of the UK Home Office, Li stated: “Even though I would like to stay, I feel that the immigration rules in the UK are almost hostile to people like me.

“My friends and I feel that the unwelcoming and hostile attitudes towards us in this country are increasingly intense, and this has left me feeling very disappointed.

“There are many countries in the world that welcome immigration and recognise the value that foreigners can bring, I don’t have to stay in the UK.”

She mentioned that if, three years from now, her Innovator Founder Visa couldn't lead her to gain settlement in this country, she would leave the UK with no regrets. This was also due to the cost of living crisis in London.

Li said:“It's sad that despite calling the UK 'my home' for so many years, our sense of belonging in this country can only be conditional.”

Natasha Lam, originally from Malaysia, arrived in London in 2017 to attend a language course.

She completed her degree two years ago.

Lam’s UK visa will expire this summer, but she has no valid job offer.

“Just because others didn't get to stay here doesn't mean I can't.”

As Lam is determined not to give up, she still wants to prove that she can remain in the UK through other pathways.

For example, she is considering establishing her own company in London in order to obtain a "UK Innovator Founder Visa" and stay in the UK for another couple of years.

She said: “Just because others didn't get to stay here doesn't mean I can't.”

She went through some tough times when she was struggling to secure a future in London all by herself.

She explained: “I sank into a deep depression when all my friends had to return to their own countries because their UK visas expired, and I was in London on my own.

“To keep myself occupied, I registered on multiple social networking platforms to meet new people and build new networks.”

“To get my work permit, I must work for the sponsoring company for 3-4 years under potentially low-paying conditions, without the option to leave.”

According to Lam, a fashion accessories company in London offered to sponsor her work visa for the UK, but she declined the offer.

She stated: “I didn't want to be tied down to a place where I only planned to work temporarily and possibly receive lower salaries, in order to repay the sponsorship fee they paid for my Working Visa.”

Lam expressed her fondness for London and her hope to pursue better career prospects there, she enjoyed the cultural differences in London more than in Malaysia.

She said: “There is an openness to debate and exchange of thoughts in London, whereas in Malaysia, people tend to be more reserved, conservative, and less expressive of their opinions.”

Adamantia Theofanous is a 24-year-old sales assistant from Greece, who currently works for an Italian fashion house in London.

Her current Graduate Visa only allows her to work 20 hours a week.

She said: “In order to remain in the UK after my current visa expires, I will need to secure sponsorship from my next employer.”

That means if she wanted to stay in the UK, the immigration policy required Adamantia to not only persuade her employer to hire her but also to sponsor her visa.

She further explained: “Let’s be honest, most fashion houses don’t pay a lot to beginners, they are unwilling to sponsor students for a working visa to stay in the UK.”

However, she considered herself lucky because her company has verbally agreed to sponsor her work visa to stay in the UK when her graduate visa expires.

If she cannot stay in the UK due to visa reasons, her backup plan would be to either return to Greece or move to other EU countries freely, such as Paris, with her EU passport.

Theofanous aimed to further expand her career in the fashion industry.

She said: “Greece is not very developed in the fashion industry, and there are very few fashion houses.

“Fashion brands in Greece are small and family-owned, making it difficult to secure a job with these businesses.

“Staying in London or going to Paris would provide me with more opportunities in the fashion industry.”

The majority of her university classmates with international backgrounds have left the UK.

According to Theofanous, around two thirds of the graduates returned to their home countries and pursued different jobs, while the rest went to other countries for further education, such as the USA.

James Cleverly, the current Home Secretary, who showcased his achievement in reducing immigration on X in June.

As the UK general election approaches, The UK Conservative Manifesto of 2024 proposes reducing migration numbers by implementing a legal cap on work and family visas to protect public services and bring needed skills to businesses and the NHS.

The Tory's opposition leader, Keir Starmer of the Labour Party, also committed to reducing the need for international recruitment and prioritizing border security.

In the “Immigration system statistics, year ending March 2024 ” report, it was noted that the number of Worker Visa applications granted declined from 51,493 in the fourth quarter of 2023 to 32,703 in the first quarter of 2024, marking a decrease of 57%.

In the same period, the total number of entry clearance visas for workers dropped by 36% following Cleverly's announcement of the change in the minimum salary for overseas skilled workers in December 2023.

Furthermore, the total number of asylum settlements has exhibited the most significant decline compared to family reunion and other types of visa grants.

The number of asylum grants decreased from 42,084 in the year ending March 2023 to 32,800 in March 2024, marking a 22% drop.

Reference: Settlement summary tables, year ending March 2024

Natasha Lam, one of the interviewees, suggested that the Home Office create a 'filter system' to identify valuable overseas workers..

Lam said: “I understand that the Home Office wanted to cut immigration.

“I've heard of people obtaining UK citizenship through sham marriages, or others coming to this country from overseas to take advantage of social welfare benefits.

“I suggested to the Home Secretary that a 'filter system' be created to identify and retain well-educated, genuine, and hardworking overseas workers in order to create value for this country.”

Image Credits:

1, Flag on a pole, United Kingdom

Photo credit: Unsplash+ In collaboration with Planet Volumes

https://unsplash.com/photos/a-flag-on-a-pole-wBd5YW4jFsk

2, Visa stamp travel passport immigration macro emigration stock photo

Photo credit: ALFSnaiper, Stock photo ID:1050933730

https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/visa-stamp-travel-passport-immigration-macro-emigration-gm1050933730-281001597

3, London Oxford Street

Photo credit: Sabrina Mazzeo via Unsplash

https://unsplash.com/photos/photo-of-car-and-bus-near-castle-g-krQzQo9mI

4, Home Office, Lunar building image

Photo credit: Anna Yifeng Wang

5, Adamantia Theofanous portrait

Photo credit: Adamantia Theofanous

6, Home Office road sign image

Photo credit: Anna Yifeng Wang