Non-profit organisation Coadec (Coalition for a Digital Economy) recently launched the #SaveSkilledMigration campaign to ensure UK tech firms are able to hire top tech talent from around the world.

This campaign comes after PM David Cameron announced a review into the Tier 2 visa system. This applies to skilled nationals from outside of Europe who need to have a degree and a definite job offer.

Paper Work

The company hiring them must first gain a license to sponsor work visas. They must make sure they have advertised any job in the UK for 28 days first, and the jobs must meet salary thresholds.

There’s a cap on how many people can come through this process. In June, the cap was reached for the first time and 1,300 applicants were turned down.

SPARKL has direct experience of this and holds a license to sponsor work visas. We know skilled migrants add value. They often hold advanced degrees and have relevant scientific, managerial and technical skills. They are able to share valuable expertise and knowledge with their company, driving innovation and pushing product development.

Talent Shortage

In some highly technical fields the UK talent just isn’t available, so startups and tech giants rely on this visa to look further afield. This is certainly true for software engineers and data scientists, who are very in demand right now.

Incessant articles on “benefits tourism” by certain publications (cough - the Daily Mail - cough) can be rather exasperating for those in the digital sector, who benefit greatly from hiring international talent.

Increasing Value

Turning down 1,300 sponsored applicants means the UK has lost out on 1,300 people each of whom is highly economically active.

Jobs are not a fixed commodity to be shared out. Jobs are the side-effect of economic activity.

When it comes to UK economic activity, we need people with skills and drive - not just a particular country on their birth certificate.

Photo courtesy of techworld.com.