HOME Office plans could see citizens from European countries lose discounts on UK visa fees.
The European Social Charter - distinct from the EU and including non-EU countries like Turkey - gives citizens of the 26 member nations a £55 discount on application fees for most worker visas.
Workers who benefit from the discount include those in the healthcare and charity sectors, seasonal workers like fruit pickers and entrepreneurs. Employers are also exempt from a £199 fee usually paid when sponsoring foreign workers.
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The charter was created in 1961 by The Council of Europe and one part of it mandates that member countries make it cheaper for foreign workers to move amongst them.
Home Secretary Priti Patel now wants to withdraw the UK from part of the charter and establish one fee for all visa applicants, it is understood.
There are reservations about Patel's plans from other parts of the UK Government, with the Treasury understood to be worried about how ending the discount would affect the ability of businesses to attract top European talent.
A Home Office spokesman said: “All visa fees are kept under review. Now free movement has ended, our ambition is to ensure consistency and fairness across the immigration system, including across EU Member states.”
The proposals come after warnings that Brits living and working in the EU now have less than a month to secure post-Brexit residence rights, but large numbers have yet to apply.
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After the UK left the EU last year, there were two different groups established regarding residence rights.
Fourteen countries, including Italy, Spain and Portugal, put in systems granting automatic residence rights to Brits already living there legally.
The remaining 13 require people from the UK to apply for residence after Brexit, which affects about 298,000 Brits but only 190,000 have actually done so.
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