More information about the new skilled worker visa was released in the October 2020 Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules. The old Tier 2 (General) visa will be known as the skilled worker visa.  The changes will affect non-EEA nationals from the 1 December 2020 and EU citizens from the 1 January 2021. In this blog we look at the key aspects of the skilled worker visa.

2020 has been a tough year for everyone but on the 30 September 2020 the lawyers at OTS Solicitors were delighted to receive some great news about rankings in the Legal 500 2021 law directory.

In any other year there would have been a massive amount of publicity and media comment about the planned skilled worker visa. Amidst a global pandemic, in many business quarters, the end of free movement and the introduction of the new skilled worker visa, hasn’t been high on the agenda. However immigration solicitors say, in just four months’ time, whether or not the UK leaves the EU with a Brexit deal in place, the government has said that it intends to overhaul the UK immigration system and introduce a new skilled worker visa.

It is always sad to hear that a law firm has closed and today we heard that national law firm, Kingly solicitors, who had sixteen offices across the UK, has been closed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The firm had offices in Berkley Square London, just a short distance from our own OTS Solicitors offices in London.

UK employers and their employees are having a torrid time with fears over the UK economy and the impact on business because of either Brexit or Covid-19 and the financial fall out. For employers who sponsor Tier 2 (General) visa workers it is best to keep on top of changing sponsor licence requirements and reporting duties.

In collaboration with leading set of London barrister’s chambers, The 36 Group, Teni Shahiean of OTS Solicitors is delighted to announce another free webinar for employers.

The drop-in client webinar on employment law will take place on Thursday the 11th June at 12:00.

To register please click the following link:

When it comes to immigration and the impact of Covid-19 there are daily developments. That isn’t surprising as in a global pandemic, with a UK government imposed lockdown and an economic recession, the pace and scale of changes affecting immigration are fast and furious. In this article we look at some of the recent Covid-19 immigration developments for individuals.

UK immigration solicitors

AVAILABLE TO WATCH NOW FOR FREE - COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions Employment Law Webinar on:

• Furlough and redundancy

• Preparing for post Covid-19

• Overview of the government initiative

• Handling staff issues following Covid-19

Many employees, employers and HR directors are overwhelmed by all the recent changes in employment law whilst also feeling isolated as they are unable to attend seminars and training events during the Covid-19 lock down.

Immigration solicitors know that many employers are exhausted with dealing with the impact of Covid-19 on their business, are weary of Brexit and wonder just how much more change their business can cope with. The reality is that more change is on the horizon. On the 9 April 2020, just before the Easter break and during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in London, the government released its promotional material entitled ‘’The UK’s points based immigration system: an introduction for employers’’.

Applying for a Home Office sponsor licence may be on your "to do" list but with Brexit, the end of free movement and the introduction of the new points based immigration system on the 1 January 2021, you may be thinking what is the rush? After all, why not see how things go and apply in January 2021? Sponsor licence solicitors say the best advice is to carry out a detailed strategic Brexit review now.

As London employment law solicitors we are in the fortunate position of being able to switch to remote working and client consultations, almost at the press of a button because we already had the infrastructure, processes and safeguards in place to enable our solicitors to work remotely. We’ve also offered a digital consultation option for several years via our online platform, skype or telephone conferencing.

We have written about Right to Work checks before, but as immigration solicitors in London with top employment solicitors making up part of our team, the importance of getting right to work checks right is something that we’re very much aware of.

By Teni Shahiean, CEO at OTS Solicitors 

From the news last week, London employment law solicitors learnt that last year the gender pay gap at Transport for London grew to 21.5 per cent. That is a reported increase of 1.8 per cent from the previous year. 

That is not great headline news for Sadiq Khan who chairs TFL.  Perhaps we should all look to Iceland for the answer on what to do about the gender pay gap. 

By Teni Shahiean, CEO at OTS Solicitors 

Most employers and employees struggle with what is meant by bullying in the workplace. After all it can be a fine dividing line between robust staff and performance management and perceptions of bullying or a team member’s jokes turning from good work camaraderie into one staff member feeling singled out and bullied.

By Teni Shahiean, CEO at OTS Solicitors 

With the #metoo movement it seems that every day there is someone making allegations of sexual harassment against a celebrity. 

These high profile cases generate publicity. However, what about the average employee? To whom do they turn to if they experiences sexual harassment in the workplace? 

By Teni Shahiean, solicitor and CEO at OTS Solicitors 

It is Christmas time! It is also the season for people to catch bugs and colds. Many employers think that if you book time off work and you are ill then it is just bad luck. Maybe some employers, who do not have the Christmas spirit, think it is better that an employee is sick in their own time, rather than at work.

After a very hectic couple of days at the London Business Show 2018 we are now back at the offices of OTS Solicitors looking back on a very busy few days.  We never realised that talking business could be such fun but with OTS Solicitors attending, exhibiting and speaking at the UK’s biggest business show with its 25,000 visitors we all thoroughly enjoyed the event. We will be booking our tickets and stand for the London Business Show 2019.