In 2008 issuance of biometric cards replaced the old style visa vignette.
The biometric card with personal biometric data (fingerprints and digital photo) have been issued to everyone, under any category applying and being issued a visa from within the UK.
As of 2015, anyone applying from outside of the UK to enter for stays over six months in length will also be issued with a biometric residence card, otherwise also known and referred to as Biometric Immigration Document (BID).
The aim of the scheme is great security of UK borders, and prevention of access to the labour market and public services. The new scheme will also impose a number of new regulations and compliance obligations to foreign nationals and visitors. These include that foreign nationals must:
- Apply for the biometric document when required;
- Ensure the Home Office is kept informed of any changes to their circumstances;
- Collect their biometric document in person from a specified UK Post Office within a specified number of days of arrival within the UK
Author
Founder and Managing Director Anne Morris is a fully qualified solicitor and trusted adviser to large corporates through to SMEs, providing strategic immigration and global mobility advice to support employers with UK operations to meet their workforce needs through corporate immigration.
She is a recognised by Legal 500 and Chambers as a legal expert and delivers Board-level advice on business migration and compliance risk management as well as overseeing the firm’s development of new client propositions and delivery of cost and time efficient processing of applications.
Anne is an active public speaker, immigration commentator, and immigration policy contributor and regularly hosts training sessions for employers and HR professionals
