UK scraps visa bond scheme ahead of Cameron’s visit to India
5 Nov 2013 5:36 AM IST
‘The government has been considering whether we pilot a bond scheme that would deter people from overstaying the visa. We have decided not to proceed,’ a spokesperson for the British Home Office said on Sunday.
The move comes ahead of prime minister David Cameron’s third visit to India in the last two years on 14 November. Cameron, who will make a day-long visit before heading to Sri Lanka to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) on 15-16 November, will hold talks with prime minister Manmohan Singh on key bilateral and regional issues.
India had expressed its concern to the UK government both at the ministerial and official levels. The visa bond scheme, announced by Home Secretary Theresa May in June, was to come into force in November.
The decision to scrap the scheme is thought to have been taken after deputy prime minister Nick Clegg threatened to block it.
The aim of the scheme was to reduce the number of people from some ‘high-risk’ countries - including India, Pakistan, and Nigeria - staying in the UK once their short-term
visas expired.
The move comes ahead of prime minister David Cameron’s third visit to India in the last two years on 14 November. Cameron, who will make a day-long visit before heading to Sri Lanka to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) on 15-16 November, will hold talks with prime minister Manmohan Singh on key bilateral and regional issues.
India had expressed its concern to the UK government both at the ministerial and official levels. The visa bond scheme, announced by Home Secretary Theresa May in June, was to come into force in November.
The decision to scrap the scheme is thought to have been taken after deputy prime minister Nick Clegg threatened to block it.
The aim of the scheme was to reduce the number of people from some ‘high-risk’ countries - including India, Pakistan, and Nigeria - staying in the UK once their short-term
visas expired.
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