Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what support her Department provides to former serving Afghan military personnel who are still in Afghanistan with resettlement in the UK.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
We recognise that the situation in Afghanistan is complex and presents significant challenges, including securing safe passage to another country for those who are eligible for resettlement in the UK.
The Government welcomes its responsibility to those who have worked for, and alongside, British forces in conflict zones. They worked in dangerous and challenging situations, and we would not have been able to carry out our work there without them.
Any current or former staff directly employed by, or for, the UK Government and assessed to be at serious risk of threat to life are eligible to apply for the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP). To support eligible people in Afghanistan in applying for the ARAP, we have made information available at:
The Government provides a safe and legal route to bring families together, through its family reunion policy. This allows a partner, or spouse, and children under 17 of refugees granted protection in the UK, to join them here, if they formed part of the family unit before the sponsor fled their country. To support people in Afghanistan, with family who have been granted protection in the UK, to understand their options, we have provided information on family reunion online, at:
Family reunion - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Those who are not eligible for protection under our resettlement schemes or family reunion policy, will need to apply to come to the UK under our existing economic or family migration rules, which can be viewed at:
https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration
To bolster the support we’ll offer to those eligible for relocation or family reunion in the UK, we intend to establish a diplomatic presence in Afghanistan as soon as the security and political situation in the country allows.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 8 June 2022 to Question 8024 on Visas: USA, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of fees charged by VFS to UK visa applicants in the US on people's ability to visit the UK.
Answered by Kevin Foster
US nationals are not required to apply for a visa before travelling to visit the UK.
US nationals applying in other visa routes do not need to pay to access a biometric appointment, instead they can use the free service run by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) which is available in 136 locations in the US.
If customers wish to opt for additional priority services, they can use one of the 10 Premium Application Centres (PAC) run by our commercial partner, VFS, in the US to provide an enhanced visa service which comes with an associated fee. The PAC service is entirely optional and a customer’s visa decision will not be impacted if they choose not to use this service.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 8 June 2022 to Question 8024 on Visas: USA, if her Department will amend its online application system to allow the family members of British citizens to access the VFS premium services in the USA.
Answered by Kevin Foster
Work is underway on the Home Office’s online application system, Access UK (AUK), to allow them to access the VFS premium services in the United States and we would expect this to be implemented by Autumn this year, subject to successful testing.
The PAC service in the United States is an entirely optional premium service and a customer’s visa decision will not be impacted if they do not use this service and apply at a United States Application Support Centre.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether premium application centres provide an accessible service for visa applicants in the US planning to visit the UK.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Home Office offers a non-premium visa application submission service for customers at 136 locations in the United States (US) run by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). These locations do not require customers to pay an additional fee to attend.
Customers also have the choice of attending one of our Premium Application Centres (PAC) run by our commercial partner, VFS, and paying an associated fee to do so.
Once customers have completed their online application they will be prompted to book a biometric enrolment appointment at the location of their choice.
Full details on the application process for visa applicants in the US can be found on GOV.UK Apply for a UK visa in the USA - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
It should be noted US citizens are non-visa nationals and do not need to apply for a visa to visit the UK for up to 180 days.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will provide a breakdown of her Department’s £915 million Official Development Assistance (ODA) spend in 2021.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to increase the number of safe and legal routes to the UK from Ukraine for children and families who have been displaced.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Government has created two saf e and legal routes for Ukrainians fleeing in fear of their lives clear.
the Home Office’s Ukraine Family Scheme announced on 4 March, and the Homes for Ukraine Scheme announced by the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities on 14 March. It is the first scheme of its kind to be operationalised anywhere in the world
The Ukraine Family Scheme is fee-free and allows British nationals and people settled in the UK to bring family members to the UK, covering immediate family members plus parents, grandparents, children over 18 and siblings, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, cousins and in-laws. Individuals will be granted leave for three years and will be able to work and access public services and benefits.
DLUHC’s Homes for Ukraine scheme allows individuals, charities, community groups and businesses in the UK to bring Ukrainians to safety – including those with no family ties to the UK. There will be no limit on the number of arrivals, and those who come to the UK on the scheme will have permission to live and work here for up to three years. They will also have access to public services and benefits. The Scheme launched on 18 March 2022.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department's target timeframe is for processing visa applications under the Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The scheme has only been running for a short period so far; details on the number of visas issued will be released in due course.
This is a government led scheme, administered by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), to whom further queries can be directed.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the risk of children displaced from Ukraine being targeted by smugglers and traffickers.
Answered by Baroness Maclean of Redditch
We stand with Ukraine and will always defend the Ukrainian people’s right to choose their own destiny. Thousands more Ukrainians will be welcomed to the UK as the Government continues its support for Ukraine in their fight against the Russian invasion.
The Government is committed to tackling the heinous crime of human trafficking. We will continue to clamp down on those who continue to exploit vulnerable people while providing tailored support for victims to help their recovery. We will continue to monitor the risk and threat of our Ukraine schemes being exploited by smugglers and traffickers.
The Government’s Ukraine Family Scheme and Homes for Ukraine Scheme have been designed to ensure we meet our safeguarding obligations, particularly for vulnerable children. For example, here caseworkers have concerns about the identity and relationship of an applicant to the Ukraine Family Scheme and their sponsor, they will undertake background checks on the sponsor.
In the Department’s operations, Border Force has a network of specially trained Safeguarding and Modern Slavery officers. Border Force has a key role in identifying victims and perpetrators of human trafficking as they cross the UK border to prevent modern slavery from happening, safeguard other vulnerable persons and help bring to justice those who commit crimes against them too.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 27 April 2021 to Question 185914 on British Nationality: Children, by what date she plans to have completed her review into fees for immigration and nationality applications in response to the recent Court of Appeal's ruling on citizenship application fees for children.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Home Office has acknowledged the Court of Appeal’s judgment and has committed to reviewing the child citizenship registration fee in line with its duties under Section 55.
This review is on-going and the results will be published in due course
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 13 April 2021 to Question 175906 on British Nationality: Children, what review of fees for immigration and nationality applications has the Department undertaken in response to the Court of Appeal's ruling on citizenship application fees for children.
Answered by Kevin Foster
As advised in the answer to PQ 175906, all fees for immigration and nationality applications are kept under regular review and we ensure they are within the parameters agreed with HM Treasury and Parliament, as set out in Section 68 (9) of the Immigration Act 2014.
The Home Office has acknowledged the recent judgement and is reviewing the fee in line with its duties under Section 55.