So Abramovich Can't Get His Visa Renewed

[DTCwordfan]

What's this all about? Putin linkages?

He's been out of the UK since April 1 apparently, not even a day back in his Kensington Kremlin.

Bet's he's *issed that he couldn't watch Chelsea Dynamo yesterday......

[ichkeria]

It may just be a bureaucratic holdup.
But I do hope not :-)

[andy-hughes]

The perceived wisdom is that because of the mutual diplomat expulsions, the visa process is running far slower than before, and there is nothing sinister in Mr Abramovich's delayed visa extension.

[ichkeria]

I actually doubt that very much: Abramovic is on the highly questionable ‘Tier 1’ visa programme where for a mere £1400 you can have border agency staff come to your house to do photos and paperwork. The idea that mere bureaucracy is holding that up seems unlikely. I’d say it’s ‘under review’. They have already clamped down on Tier 1s and this is probably part of it.

[ichkeria]

Needless to say to qualify for Tier 1 you have to be stonkingly rich to start with ...

[Hopkirk]

How about the Arsenal part owner, Usmanov?

How about George Osborne's employer, Lebedev?

Are they next?

[ichkeria]

Usmanov certainly.

[aelmpvw]

having seen how his chelsea play the game he probably couldn't be bothered to renew his visa

[Islay]

Is it anything to do with the dirty russian money being laundered in the UK perhaps?

[Hopkirk]

He'll have to sack Conte by email.

[ichkeria]

Previously, enormous wealth more or less guaranteed a foreigner a visa to the uk, no questions asked. Questions are now being asked. Quite how they’d judge it in the case of Russian oligarchs I’m not sure. There was nothing remotely legal in a British sense about any of their initially acquired wealth but I’d imagine they’d have to let that go. There’d have to be issues of money laundering; Organised mcmafia style crime etc ...