Closed petition Discriminatory indirect taxation on immigrant taxpayers through excessive visa fees should be stopped

Closed on 13 May 2014

Certain types of visas are charged obscene levels of processing fees that are set several times above the actual cost of processing them. The affected visa holders are mostly higher rate and additional rate taxpayers (economic migrants) who already make significant income tax contributions.

1. Migrant taxpayers do not benefit any more from the immigration system than UK nationals.
2. Visa fees cannot be determined subjectively as is the case.
3. A discriminatory disguised supplementary tax on migrants cannot be imposed in the form of excessive visa fees.
4. Fees charged above cost are a secondary & invisible form of immigration control which is unethical.
5. "Taxpaying" migrants should not be penalized through above-cost fees, for choosing to make the UK their home under an existing government policy.

Charge all visas no more than actual cost. If certain visas should be charged below cost as a result of government policy, the rest should only be made up by general taxation.