As companies look to employ foreign workers to address the post-Brexit skills shortage, one Chester law firm has seen a “huge” rise in immigration enquiries.
Employment lawyers at legal firm Aaron & Partners have seen a significant increase in immigration work from businesses, with skills gaps across industries such as manufacturing, pharmacy and healthcare the most prevalent.
Adam Haines, a Business Immigration and Employment Law Partner, noted that while the rise in work began in the wake of the UK leaving the European Union in 2016, it has become particularly acute over the past 12 months.
He said: “There’s a growing skills shortage in the UK and with historically low levels of unemployment, many companies are turning to other countries to address these issues.
“We’ve seen a huge increase in demand from companies that need help to fill vacancies. Our team is working hard to help local companies bring in engineers, scientists, care workers, and pharmacists across a range of sectors. However, manufacturing, pharmacy and healthcare are the most prevalent. Although there has been a recent increase in enquiries from food processing and farming businesses.”
Freedom of movement between the UK and EU was ended in 2020, following Brexit. Now, regardless of their country of origin, foreign nationals looking for employment in the UK must gain a valid visa route, for which there are various requirements. For business to hire foreign nationals they must have a sponsor licence. Businesses are now contacting the Chester firm for help in processing these applications as quickly as possible.
Adam Haines, said that he hoped that the pending trade agreements (particularly the imminent Australian trade agreement) due to come into force later this year, would incorporate a mobility deal to simplify the process of hiring expertise and personnel from Australia.
He added: “We know this is a massive concern for many businesses right now.
“Brexit may have been voted for over six years ago, but much of its impact is really being felt now due to the restraints it placed on immigration, which has contributed to the current skills shortage here.
“This is an ongoing issue that isn’t going away – and we think it will run throughout 2023 and beyond. Currently there is a major lack of understanding and awareness as to first, what recruiting foreign nationals entails; second, businesses compliance obligations are; and third, whether workers based in other countries can work temporarily in the UK as a visitor.”
For more information, tips and advice on immigration queries, visit Aaron & Partners’ specialist Business Immigration page here.
