Rural visa pilot proposal: September 2022

8. Conclusion

Both this proposal and baseline ask have been designed to enable the current immigration system to better work for communities, meet their localised needs, and allow them in turn to flourish. It illustrates why a bespoke intervention for smaller communities is necessary, along with a series of operational suggestions for how it could be achieved. Throughout the development of this proposal, these practical suggestions have been discussed with, and met with positive feedback from, stakeholders. Therefore, the Scottish Government makes the following asks of the UK Government:

• To commit to implementing a Scottish Rural Community Immigration Pilot, in collaboration with Scottish Government and partners, with a view to launching the pilot in 2023
• To create a joint UK Government-Scottish Government forum (with representation from both the Migration Advisory Committee, the Expert Advisory Group on Migration and Population, and local delivery partners), to support the design, implementation, and oversight of the SRCIP

In addition, we ask the UK Government to:

• To commit to the baseline ask to consider an adjustment to the existing Scottish Shortage Occupation List to better represent the needs of remote and rural areas in Scotland
• To commit to establish an agreed mechanism involving the MAC, Scottish Government and local delivery partners to effectively and efficiently incorporate the needs and requirements of remote and rural areas into the shortage occupation list, and to monitor and evaluate changes to ensure desired impact for communities is realised.