Today the Immigration Health Surcharge increases from £624 per year to £1,035 per year. It’s more than a fivefold increase since 2015, when the surcharge was introduced at £200 per year.
For us in GMIAU’s Action Group, on the 10-year route to settlement, this will mean that applying for 2.5 years of Limited Leave to Remain will cost over £3600. Over the 10 years of the route we’ll spend nearly £20,000 in fees, not including legal fees and other associated costs, just to keep our legal status – which is based on our human rights. If we have a partner or child on the route the fees snowball even further.
The 10-year route is already unaffordable. We’ve spoken out about it before, bringing our concerns to Parliament, to local authorities and to the streets. We’ve explained, and research has shown, that visa fee levels lead to people struggling to pay for basic items and living in fear of losing status.
But our pleas haven’t been heard and once again the rug has been pulled from under us. We’re feeling disappointed and demoralised. None of us are living comfortably; we’re just trying to get by. We’re working hard to make ends meet to survive in this cost of living crisis and yet try to save enough money to pay for the visas to be renewed every 30 months. We’re scared – by the time our next renewal comes around, will things have changed again? We have to think twice about putting the heating on – can we save that money for our visa fees? Being at the mercy of the Home Office for ten years feels like a prison sentence.
The Immigration Health Surcharge is presented as our contribution to the NHS – which we are already paying for through our taxes, just like everyone else. The cost of living crisis and burden of fees means we don’t even always access the healthcare we need, like paying for prescriptions – the healthcare we’re paying twice for. It’s possible to get a fee waiver, but not all of us can access it. You have to prove you are on the verge of destitution; it can feel dehumanising.
We want to call out this policy for what it is: racist and hostile. We feel like the Home Office is not listening to us and people’s wellbeing is not being taken into account. We feel like they pick on migrants because no one is going to stand up and speak out about it. But we’re not going to sit back and keep quiet. In our group and others, we’re educating each other and the public, and people are calling out injustices and holding people in power to account.
Email fatou@gmiau.org to find out more about our action group.