David Cameron expected to relax UK Visa cap

The current UK Visa cap of 2,600 non-EU migrants a month is expected to be increased to allow more than 4,000 workers a month to enter Britain next year.

The levels of the permanent cap is still being discussed by the Government but is expected to be unveiled later this month.

The Migration Advisory Committee will issue its recommendations on the level at which the cap should be set later this week,  and the committee is also expected to offer a range of scenarios.

Senior business leaders have lobbied the Government over the past few months, warning of the economic damage caused by applying too stringent a cap on skilled immigration.

Political leaders have also objected to the cap.  Business Secretary, Vince Cable, has been an outspoken critic of the Government’s previous plan who has called for more flexibility to reflect wider economic conditions. Mr Cable has also said that he was being warned by senior business leaders that companies were relocating abroad because of the constraints. London Mayor, Boris Johnson, has also warned of the dangers of the cap.

The Coalition has pledged to dramatically reduce immigration to the UK by 2015 – largely by restricting the number of skilled workers from beyond the EU. In July, the Home Office introduced a temporary limit of 24,100 workers to enter the country before April 2011, when the temporary cap will be replaced by a permanent cap.

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The UK Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people with their  UK Immigration applications to the British High Commission.