Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential costs and benefits for (a) her Department and (b) the tech sector of high tech visas.

The Tech Nation Visa within the Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) route, re-launched by Tech City UK in October 2015, is an important part of our offer for attracting digital talent, and is working well. The route allows leading digital technology talent endorsed by Tech City UK to enter the UK without needing a job offer from a sponsoring employer.

The Tech Nation Visa forms only a part of our comprehensive offer for migrants and businesses in the tech sector. In the year ending June 2017, around 30,000 skilled non-EEA workers were sponsored under Tier 2, our main immigration work route, to work in the UK in the Information and Communication industry, more than twice the number in any other industry. A number of digital technology jobs are included on our Shortage Occupation List.

We also have dedicated routes for entrepreneurs and graduate entrepreneurs wishing to establish a tech sector business in the UK, and an excellent offer for international students wishing to take up a job in the tech sector after their studies.