UK jobs market attracts global interest after visa offer to Hong Kong
Interest in the UK jobs market from non-EU workers has jumped 20 per cent, driven by a surge in job seekers from Hong Kong, according to a new survey.
Interest in the London jobs market from non-EU workers has overtaken that from EU ones for the first time in seven years, according to data released today by jobs website Indeed.
The surge in interest from non-EU countries has been partially driven by the UK government’s offer of a path to citizenship to three million people from Hong Kong, following Beijing’s imposition of a National Security Law in Hong Kong.
Additionally, the Covid-19 pandemic caused a large drop in foreign citizens registering for a National Insurance number.
There has been a steady decline in EU interest since the 2016 Brexit referendum as EU citizens will face visa restrictions for the first time.
The new points-based immigration system will put EU and non-EU workers on an equal footing.
Jack Kennedy, UK Economist at Indeed said: “As the free movement to the UK for EU citizens ends, interest is increasingly coming from further afield.”
High-paying jobs, in sectors such as tech, engineering and finance, are the most attractive to foreign workers.
According to Indeed, nearly a fifth of all clicks on UK-based software development jobs came from job-seekers overseas.
In contrast, the least popular roles include jobs in construction, customer services and social care.
Social care is facing a recruitment crisis. There were an estimated 122,000 vacancies at the start of the year according to a House of Commons report.
The situation could be set to worsen after Brexit as EU nationals fill 17.8 per cent of nursing roles.