British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has given the nod to a scheme offering 3,000 visas for young professionals from India to work in the UK each year. According to 10 Downing Street, the scheme will provide Indian nationals aged 18-30 with a one-off opportunity to take part in professional and cultural exchange. The reciprocal route will open in early 2023.
“India is the first visa country to benefit from such a system, underlining the strength of the UK-India partnership on migration and mobility agreed last year,” the UK Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.
The confirmation came hours after a brief meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his British counterpart on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali. It was their first meeting since Sunak took office last month.
“Prime Ministers @narendramodi and @RishiSunak in conversation during the first day of the @g20org summit in Bali,” PM Modi’s office said in a tweet.
Sunak said in a statement that “the Indo-Pacific is increasingly important to our security and prosperity. It is teeming with dynamic and fast-growing economies, and the next decade will be defined by what happens in the region.”
“I know firsthand the incredible value of the deep cultural and historical ties we have with India. I am delighted that even more of India’s brightest young people will now have the opportunity to experience all that life in the UK has to offer – and vice versa – making our economies and societies richer.”
The Indian diaspora makes up a large part of the UK’s immigrant population and almost a quarter of all international students in the UK are from India.
The UK is currently negotiating a trade deal with India – if agreed, it will be the first deal of its kind that India has concluded with a European country. The trade deal would build on the UK-India trade relationship, already worth £24bn, and allow the UK to take advantage of the opportunities offered by India’s growing economy.
