Fast-track visa being designed to attract talent

The Home Office and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy will work with the research community on the new visa, which is expected to launch later this year.

“To ensure we continue to lead the way in the advancement of knowledge, we have to not only support the talent that we already have here, but also ensure our immigration system attracts the very best minds from around the world,” said prime minister Boris Johnson. “The fast-track immigration route will be designed to attract elite researchers and specialists in science, engineering and technology.”

Proposals to be discussed include abolishing the cap on numbers under the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent Visas, removing the need to have a job offer before arriving in the UK, and expanding the number of UK research institutes and universities able to endorse candidates.

The government said it will provide additional funding for scientists and researchers who have sought EU funding before the UK leaves the EU, including schemes delivered by the European Research Council.