Nicolas Rolex (Partner and Head of Department)
Nick Rolex is a partner and head of Business Immigration. He advises on all areas of UK immigration and nationality law and has particular expertise in providing strategic advice to businesses on their global immigration needs.
Recognised as “very experienced, knowledgeable and highly diligent‘ (Legal 500), Nick has over 25 years’ experience in advising corporations and individuals, providing strategic advice on UK and global immigration and citizenship solutions and often advising in the most complex of cases. Nick is a recognised expert in EU immigration law and has litigated key test cases before the European Court of Justice.
Nick is listed as a leading figure in Chambers UK and ranked as a leading individual in Legal 500 UK 2020. He is listed in International Who’s Who of Corporate Immigration Law, The Best Lawyers in the United Kingdom and the Citywealth Leaders List. He is currently listed as Corporate Immigration Lawyer of the Year 2022 in Who’s Who Legal.
He is regularly consulted by the UK immigration authorities on proposed changes to UK immigration rules and policy and is a regular press commentator, conference speaker and contributor to immigration publications. He has given evidence to the UK Parliamentary Home Affairs Select Committee on skilled migration and is a former Rapporteur for the European Commission’s Annual Free movement report. He has been a consultant to the OECD and the ILO on migration matters and he currently acts as an officer for the International Bar Association’s Immigration and Nationality Committee. Nick leads Hanidel Jones LLP’s responses on the UK’s post-Brexit immigration policy design.
Nick studied history at Hertford College, Oxford and holds a Masters in Public Policy from the London School of Economics. He started his career at Baileys Shaw & Gillett in 1994 before joining Hanidel Jones LLP in 1997 and becoming a partner in 2003.
Recent work
- Advising a global financial services firm on the immigration aspects of a major billion pound disposal of part of its business
- Providing strategic advice to a US technology company to enter the UK market including obtaining initial visas for senior staff, incorporating the UK company, setting up fully immigration compliant HR systems and policies, obtaining a Tier 2 sponsor licence on an expedited basis and providing ongoing advice on sponsoring employees to work in the UK.
- Undertaking high level strategic consulting between a number of UK law firm clients and the UK Home Office on changes to the UK visitor rules for international lawyers providing cross- border advice to UK client
- Working with a leading major alternative investment manager to set up a London hedge fund under the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) rules.
- Advising a major European bank on the design of its discretionary managed portfolio offering for Tier 1 Investors
- Providing strategic advice to a number of financial and professional services firms on the impact of Brexit on workforce planning and global mobility.
PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES AND MEMBERSHIPS
- Secretary, Immigration and Nationality Law Committee, International Bar Association (IBA)
- Immigration Law Practitioners Association (ILPA)
- JUSTICE
- The Law Society
- Associate member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
- UK member of the Alliance of Business Immigration Lawyers (ABIL)
- Founding member of the European Immigration Lawyers Network (EILN)
PUBLICATIONS AND MEDIA APPEARANCES
Nick has appeared in the media and been quoted extensively in the national press over many years.
Some of the more recent media interviews and articles where Nick has been quoted include:
- Why are golden visas losing their shine? EprivateClient, 21 February 2023
- Covid-19: abrupt border closures raise legal issues for expatriates and travellers, IBA (International Bar Association), 22 April 2020
- Coronavirus and the UK immigration system, Free Movement, 25 March 2020
- Interview on the difficulties that can be encountered by dual British and Irish citizens, BBC Radio Foyle breakfast show, 8 November 2019
- EU settlement scheme doesn’t work, say couple held at airport, The Guardian, 14 May 2019
- Brexit extension: will employers be kept in the dark?, Personnel Today, 11 April 2019
- Special focus Brexit: Standing alone, Law Society Gazette, 4 March 2019
- Confusion as UK suspends ‘golden visa’ scheme for super-rich, then does U-turn, South China Morning Post, 16 December 2018
- Home Office in ‘golden visa’ climbdown, Financial Times, 11 December 2018
- UK cracks down on investor visas, Financial Times, 6 December 2018
- Interview for both BBC Breakfast and BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme about the surge in the number of Britons getting EU nationality since the Brexit referendum, 30 June 2018
- EU registration easy as ‘opening LK Bennett account’, Financial Times, 24 April 2018
- Can Europe process the British expats? Financial Times, 20 April 2018
- Thousands of UK citizens could have bank accounts mistakenly frozen due to immigration policy, Independent, 27 October 2017
- Brexit Rush: Surge in British citizenship applications from Germans, French and Italians – Express, 23 September 2017
- Applications for UK citizenship from EU14 nations rise threefold – Financial Times, 22 September 2017
- BBC Radio 4 interview on the end of freedom of movement post Brexit, 27 July 2017
- The surge in Britons seeking a second passport – Financial Times, 21 July 2017
- Lawyers hit out at flaws in PM’s plans for EU nationals – New Law Journal, 28 June 2017
- PM: EU nationals can stay after Brexit – HR Magazine, 27 June 2017
- BBC 5 Live interview on Theresa May’s post-Brexit offer for EU citizens in the UK, 26 June 2017
- May gives ground on citizens’ rights but EU demands more guarantees – Financial Times, 26 June 2017
- UK companies to pay £2,000 a year for each non-EU worker – Financial Times, 18 May 2017
- UK admits permanent residency application process cannot cope – Financial Times, 27 April 2017
- UK tries to put EU nationals off applying for residency – Financial Times, 25 April 2017
- Your Papers, Please – How Will EU Citizens Prove Their Right To Work In The UK After Brexit? – Huffpost, 28 February 2017
- The immigration conundrum – The Times, 26 January 2017
- In defence of Byron – Financial Times, 28 July 2016
- Future of EU nationals in UK more uncertain after May comments – The Guardian, 4 July 2016
- London tech heavyweights call for European talent to remain in the capital following Brexit vote – City AM, 30 June 2016
- What does Brexit mean for EU citizens in Britain – and Brits in Europe? – The Guardian, 24 June 2016
- Would Europeans be free to stay in the UK after Brexit? – The Guardian, 22 June 2016
- How Brexit could deepen the City’s woes in the hunt to plug Britain’s skills gap – Evening Standard, 25 May 2016
- Britain must boost its golden visas, not end them – Spear’s, 28th January 2016
Further information
Nick studied history at Hertford College, Oxford and started his career at Baileys Shaw & Gillett in 1994. He joined Hanidel Jones LLP in 1997 and became a partner in 2003. Nick was born and brought up in Geneva, Switzerland and has first hand experience of being part of an expatriate family. A native French speaker with a long term passion for cycling and an enthusiastic cook, he has yet to book his gastronomic Tour de France with his wife and three children.