How to Spot a Visa Panic in the Wild
A guide to Mode 4 mobility, misplaced outrage, and why nobody’s stealing your GP.
As you may be aware, the UK has this week signed a trade deal with India.
It’s been years in the making and, unlike many post-Brexit announcements padded with patriotic fluff and very little policy, this one actually includes things like tariffs, mutual recognition, and the temporary movement of skilled professionals.
Naturally, the internet has responded with a collective meltdown - because why wouldn’t it?
So let’s go through what’s real, what’s not, and what’s just nationalist fan fiction in all-caps.
Q: Is this a mass migration route for Indian nationals to flood the UK?
A: No.
This trade deal allows for a specific, capped cohort of highly skilled Indian nationals to come to the UK for short-term work placements, under what’s called a Mode 4 commitment. That includes intra-company transfers, independent professionals, and contractual service suppliers. These are not open recruitment visas. You can’t just show up with a CV and hopes. You have to already work for an Indian company sending you over for a fixed, pre-approved purpose.
Q: Will they be using the NHS for free?
A: Not even remotely.
They’ll be paying the Immigration Health Surcharge, currently set at £1,035 per year, in full and in advance, just for access to the NHS. That’s on top of their income tax.
And no, emergency care at A&E isn’t chargeable - but it’s also not free because they’ve paid for it upfront. If someone without NHS access needs scheduled, non-urgent care (like a scan or surgery), they’re charged 150% of the NHS tariff*. So no one’s freeloading. In fact, these workers are helping to subsidise the system.
Q: But they don’t pay National Insurance – isn’t that unfair?
A: It's a reciprocal exemption, not a loophole.
This is standard international practice designed to avoid people being taxed twice for social insurance - once in the UK and again in India. The UK has similar reciprocal agreements with multiple other countries, including the US, Canada, Japan, Switzerland, and the entire EU. Under this deal, Indian workers on qualifying visas will be exempt from NI only for up to 3 years - and UK workers posted to India will get the same exemption in return.
Q: Can they vote in UK elections?
A: No.
While Commonwealth citizens can vote if they’re ordinarily resident in the UK, these visa holders don’t qualify. They’re not here on settlement pathways, they’re not permanent residents, and they’re not eligible to register to vote in general or local elections in England. There’s no backdoor here. Just bureaucracy.
Q: Won’t this put pressure on housing?
A: No more than any other international business travel would.
These professionals are typically housed privately or through their employer, just like consultants and executives from any other country. They’re not eligible for social housing or housing benefits. If our housing system collapses because a few thousand Indian professionals are temporarily in the UK, then perhaps the problem isn’t immigration - it’s that no one’s built a functioning housing strategy since 2010.
Q: What about their families? Do they just bring everyone over for free?
A: No.
Dependants can accompany them, but it’s not automatic. They require separate visa applications, must meet strict eligibility criteria, and pay their own Immigration Health Surcharge. They can’t access public funds. If the primary visa holder leaves, their dependants leave too. That’s how non-settlement visas work.
Q: How many people are expected to come over under this route?
A: Low thousands - not tens or hundreds of thousands.
Initial estimates put this at around 3,000–4,000 workers per year, a drop in the ocean compared to overall migration. These aren’t generic applicants; they’re employees of Indian firms doing business with UK branches or clients. And no, they can’t switch visas easily or stay forever - there are very clear limits in place.
Q: What does the UK actually get out of this?
A: A measurable boost to trade, GDP, and wages.
The government’s projections estimate the deal will increase bilateral trade by £25.5 billion, raise UK GDP by £4.8 billion annually, and generate around £2.2 billion in additional wages. That’s more than any other post-Brexit trade deal to date - and a far cry from the meaningless “sovereignty wins” like pint sized champagne bottles and being allowed to legally measure sheep in furlongs (or something, I really don’t know) we were previously sold.
Even Daniel Hannan, one of Brexit’s most vocal architects, has written favourably about the agreement - which makes it all the more amusing to watch Reform UK MPs and right-wing pundits now go full pantomime rage over something they used to campaign for.
Q: But aren’t people already abusing the system?
A: There is zero evidence of that in this deal.
The route has salary thresholds (often over £41,500), role limitations, visa caps, and requires employer sponsorship. These are not casual or easily faked visas. If you think people are “flooding in” via this system, you’re probably confusing it with your Facebook feed.
Q: Can they switch onto other visa routes and stay permanently?
A: Not automatically, and not easily.
Switching visa types mid-stay means meeting all the new route’s requirements: sponsorship, salary thresholds, residency rules, and NHS surcharge. Most will need to leave the UK and apply from abroad. There is no shortcut to settlement from these Mode 4 visas.
Q: Couldn’t companies just game the system by setting up Indian subsidiaries to funnel workers in?
A: No.
The UK government maintains strict oversight through sponsorship licences, compliance audits, and a very unfriendly attitude to immigration fraud. You’d need to set up a functioning Indian business, get it certified, and then still pass UKVI scrutiny. It’s an administrative nightmare, not a golden loophole.
Q: Does this affect British workers or wages?
A: No, and there’s no evidence that it does.
These are not roles British applicants are competing for - they’re intra-company, project-based, and usually specialised. Most require sector-specific qualifications, experience, and are tied to fixed-term contracts. You’re not losing your job in Lincoln because someone in Mumbai was seconded to a UK tech firm for 18 months.
Q: Aren’t we being undercut by these workers not paying National Insurance?
A: Again, no.
They’re paying the Immigration Health Surcharge and full UK income tax. The NI exemption is temporary and reciprocal - and they’re still contributing more than many UK citizens receive in services during that time. It’s not a loss - it’s an international standard practice.
Q: Why is everyone so angry about this deal in particular?
A: Because it involves Indian nationals.
We’ve had these exact same arrangements with the US, Canada, Australia, and 20+ EU countries for decades - and no one said a word. The fact that people are only outraged now suggests it’s less about immigration policy and more about who is doing the immigrating.
In summary, this is a very narrow, reciprocal agreement that allows a small number of highly skilled professionals to work in the UK temporarily. They pay their way. They don’t get access to public funds. They don’t vote. They don’t settle.
The only thing being flooded here is the comments section - with misinformation.
*If you want to see me shouting about another political myth - that the NHS backlog is caused by “health tourism” - please read my latest column for
which you can find below:
A masterly piece of debunking, thank you!
As usual, an honest and common sense opinion on the subject. Love reading the posts.