London: The proposal to collect hefty visa cash bonds from Indians has not been considered by the British government,sources said. This was conveyed to Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma by Vince Cable, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills during a meeting in London.
According to an official release in New Delhi, “Cable informed the Indian minister that he had discussed the issue with the British Home Secretary who had assured that there was proposal mooted for a pilot which has not been considered by the British government”.
This came after Sharma expressed serious concerns during his meetings with Cable as well as Oliver Letwin, Minister for Government policy in Cabinet office over the news reports referring to a proposal to categorise India as high risk country entailing cash bonds from visa applicants.
Sharma also suggested that given the strategic India UK partnership a formal clarification to this effect would be in order to dispel any apprehension and avoid confusion.
India has been put on a list of high-risk Asian and African countries whose citizens would be required to deposit £3,000 cash bond when they apply for a British visa.The money would be forfeited if they overstay. Controversially, the move is targeted only at people from non-white Commonwealth countries as part of the Tory-led governments resolve to drastically cut down on immigration levels.
In a recent developments on this issue it is said that All Indians applying for visa to UK will not have to pay a £3000 cash bond from November this year. This comes following an uproar over Britains plans to introduce a hefty cash bond for visitors from six nations including India in a fresh crackdown on immigration abuse.
