No more paper documents: UK gives new requirement for Nigerians,others to stay more than 6 months

• A significant revision to the immigration system may have an effect on Nigerians who plan to remain in the UK for an extended period of time
• The government is gradually replacing paper documents such as the Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) with an electronic immigration system
• Along with passport endorsements, the replacement documents also include vignette stickers for passports, such as entry clearance or visa vignettes

Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over 3-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.

Nigerians who intend to stay in the UK for more than six months may be impacted by a major overhaul of the immigration system. The Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) and other paper documents are being phased out by the government in favor of an electronic immigration system.

Nigerians who have been allowed to stay in the UK for more than six months will now need to register for an online account with UKVI in order to view their digital immigration status under the new system. Their visa type, expiration date, and terms of stay will all be listed on this web portal.

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The government wrote on its website,

“This means we are replacing physical documents with an online record of your immigration status.”

The replacement documents also include vignette stickers for passports, such as entry clearance or visa vignettes, and passport endorsements, such as perpetual permission to enter wet ink stamps.

The government claims that eVisas, which are also available under the EU Settlement Scheme, have helped millions of clients since 2018. Nigerians impacted by the changes need to make sure the UKVI system has the most recent version of their passport information.

“They are secure and cannot be lost, stolen or tampered with, unlike a physical document…You will not need to wait for, or collect, a physical document after your application is decided – you might still need to provide biometric information in person, and we will tell you if you need to do this. It will be quicker and easier to prove your status at the UK border, and share your status with third parties like employers and landlords,” the government said about the eVisa.

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The Nigerian diaspora, numbering over 200,000, is one of the largest African populations in the UK, thus the effects of this transformation are profound.

In order to prevent delays, the Home Office has recommended that individuals whose BRPs expire on December 31, 2024, give priority to opening an eVisa account.

UK releases names of companies to sponsor work visa

Legit.ng reported that bricklayers and other construction professionals are in short supply in the UK, causing delays for households needing building services.

The UK is expected to lose out on £98 billion in growth by 2030 due to the skills gap, meaning an extra 225,000 skilled workers would be required by 2027 to fulfil the growing demand.

A national building audit by Fix Radio found that, since 2021, an astounding 415,000 people had to wait more than a year to find a constructor.

Source: Legit.ng