Their presence makes our country a richer, more inspiring place to live and encourages more tourists to visit. Minister for Sport Gerry Sutcliffe

Professional sports people and entertainers will find it less cumbersome to obtain a visa to travel to the UK under new rules introduced by the Home Office.

The new regulation is intended to cut down on bureaucracy ahead of the 2012 Olympics but also recognises the valuable contribution to British cultural life made by people from overseas. Under the new rules, the following types of sportspersons and entertainers will be able to enter the UK for up to six months:-

*sportspeople and support staff coming for specific events;
* amateur sportspeople joining UK amateur teams;
* professional entertainers coming to the UK to take part in music competitions;
* amateur entertainers travelling to the UK for a specific engagement;
* professional entertainers coming to take part in a charity show or where they will receive no fee; and
* professional and amateur entertainers taking part in a 'permit-free festival'.

Commenting on the changes, Minister for Sport Gerry Sutcliffe said: "If we are going to make the UK the world's best cultural and sporting nation by 2012 then we need to make sure that talented sportspeople and entertainers from all over the world, come here to take part in the many sporting events, festivals, and shows we have on offer."

But while sportspeople and entertainers are being welcomed to the UK with open arms, tough new measures are being imposed for people who want to sponsor family members to come to the UK. Under the new rules, individuals will have to be licensed to sponsor family members to visit the UK from abroad, and will have duty to ensure that they leave when their visa runs out. If they sponsor a family member who overstays their visa, they may face a ban on sponsoring anyone else to come to the UK, a £5000 fine, or even a jail sentence.

The new rules are based on the Australian points based system and are part of tough measures being introduced this year. Further proposals include an appeal system for those coming in under the family route and a special visa for people coming over for one off cultural events such as the Edinburgh Festival.