UK axes investor visa in crackdown on 'illicit' Russian money

A view of the skyline of the City of London, Britain, Feb. 17. Visas offering foreign investors fast-track residency in the UK are expected to be scrapped by the government, amid pressure over U.K. links to Russia. EPA-Yonhap

Britain said Thursday it will not accept new applicants for investor visas, with the government admitting "security concerns" about some past cases as it increasingly targets illicit Russian financing.

The so-called "golden visa" had allowed entry and residence in Britain if an applicant invested the equivalent of $2.7 million in active U.K. registered companies; but new applications will no longer be accepted.

A 2018 report by the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee accused ministers of risking national security by "turning a blind eye" to Russian "dirty money" flowing through London's financial center.

"It has been under constant review and some cases had given rise to security concerns, including people acquiring their wealth illegitimately and being associated with wider corruption," the interior ministry said in a statement Thursday.

The ministry, responsible for immigration policy, has said it is reviewing all approvals made under the plan between its launch in 2008 and revamp in April 2015, with the results yet to be disclosed.

Meanwhile Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, who is spearheading British diplomatic efforts to deter Russia's invasion of Ukraine, said last month that the government is also reviewing all investor visas already issued to Russians.

Last week, the government signed into law new legislation giving it powers to impose tougher and broader sanctions on Russia if Moscow steps up its aggression against Ukraine.

Truss hailed Thursday's move "to clamp down on illicit finance,” following consistent criticism that the Conservative government was not doing enough to stem the flow of dirty money into Britain from Russia and other hotspots.

"This kind of malign activity, including what we are seeing from Russia right now, has no place in the U.K.," Truss posted on Twitter.

The interior ministry said reforms were being made to the so-called "innovator" visa as a replacement route for potential applicants.

This is part of a new post-Brexit, points-based immigration system, which the ministry said will provide "an ambitious investment route which works more effectively in support of the U.K. economy.

Approvals will now be conditional on applicants executing an investment strategy that can show genuine job creation and other tangible economic impacts.

"Passively holding U.K. investments will no longer be enough to obtain settlement," the ministry added. (AFP)