UK Employment Visas

Employment Visas

In respect of non-EU nationals, the UK operates a points-based system of work visas. Tier 1 relates to self-employed persons. Tier 2 covers the majority of work-related visas. There is a cap on Tier 2 general visas. They are subject to skills requirement and pay thresholds for the jobs concerned.

There two routes; the short occupation list and the labour market test. Under the latter route, the employer – needs to show there is no suitable resident worker available to fill the post, having advertised it for a certain period. Jobs offered through the resident labour market test must meet skills and salary thresholds; £30,000 as of April 2017 subject to occupations specific requirements.

Jobs under the shortage occupation list do not need to meet the resident market labour test and are subject to salary thresholds for each job ,which may be lower than the above level. Each year two shortage occupation lists are published, one for the UK as a whole and one for Scotland only.

There are six broad categories of employment visa described by reference to various tiers. Three are based on points namely those applicable

to certain skilled workers who have been offered employment sponsored by an employer,
high value migrants including investors, entrepreneurs and exceptionally talented persons who may enter without a job offer and
temporary workers with a UK sponsoring employer participating in a youth mobility scheme

Non-points based visas are potentially applicable to certain categories including

Commonwealth citizens with UK ancestry (at least one grandparent born in the UK),
employees and business owners from Turkey wishing to establish a business or already employed in the UK,
certain other categories including representatives of overseas firms and businesses, domestic workers and others

Sponsor Licence

An employer needs a sponsor licence to employ someone from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland to work for the applicant in the UK.Under the points-based system, an employer or education provider who wants to act as a sponsor needs a licence. When licensed, they are added to the register of sponsors. The register of sponsors lists the name, location and sponsor rating of every registered organisation.

Licensing depends on

whether the business is eligible.
the type of licence the applicant want to apply for – this will depend on what type of worker the applicant wants to sponsor.

The applicant is given a licence rating if his / her application is successful. He will be able to issue certificates of sponsorship if the applicant has jobs that are suitable for sponsorship. The licence will be valid for 4 years. The applicant may lose his / her license if the applicant doesn’t meet his / her responsibilities as a sponsor.

Licences can only be applied for if:

The potential sponsor is a legitimate organisation working within the law in the UK;
There are no reasons to believe that the potential sponsor is a threat to immigration control; and
the organisation will meet its sponsorship duties.

These criteria are to ensure that those working or studying in the UK do so legally. If the potential sponsor is awarded a sponsor licence, they will be given a sponsor rating – this will be an ‘A rating’ or a ‘B rating’, and will be listed on the register. Instead of an A or B rating, Tier 4 (General) sponsors could apply for a Highly Trusted sponsor licence.

Points are awarded under the points based system for the following:

Qualifications (this ranges from GCSE A-Level equivalents to PHD’s);
Future Expected Earnings (the salary that is received by the applicant);
Sponsorship (the type of sponsorship);
English language skills;
Available maintenance (funds used to support).

Tier 2 (General) visa

Conditions for visa:

offered a skilled job in the UK
from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland
employed by a licensed sponsor to apply to live in the UK.

His / her sponsor checks that the applicant can do the job they’re hiring the applicant for and if it qualifies the applicant for a visa. They’ll assign the applicant a certificate of sponsorship to prove this.

The applicant can come to the UK with a Tier 2 (General) visa for a maximum of 5 years and 14 days, or the time given on his / her certificate of sponsorship plus 1 month, whichever is shorter.

The applicant can start his / her stay up to 14 days before the start date on his / her certificate of sponsorship.

The applicant can:

work for his / her sponsor in the job described in his / her certificate of sponsorship
do a second job in certain circumstances
do voluntary work
study as long as it doesn’t interfere with the job sponsored for
travel abroad and return to the UK
bring family members

The applicant can’t:

own more than 10% of his / her sponsor’s shares (unless the applicant earns more than £159,600 a year)
get public funds
apply for a second job until started working for his / her sponsor

Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) visa:

Conditions for visa:

his / her overseas employer has offered the applicant a role in a UK branch of the organisation
from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland
the applicant meets the other eligibility requirements

The applicant needs to be employed by a licensed sponsor to apply to live in the UK. His / her sponsor checks that the applicant can do the job they’re hiring the applicant for and if it qualifies the applicant for a visa. They’ll assign the applicant a certificate of sponsorship to prove this.

They must also give the applicant other information the applicant need when the applicant applies, for example how much paid.

There are 2 types of Intra-company Transfer visa.

Long-term Staff -if transferring into a role that requires the applicant to have had previous experience working for the company.

Graduate Trainee This visa is for transfers into graduate trainee programmes for specialist roles. The applicant needs to be a recent graduate with at least 3 months’ experience with his / her employer overseas.

The applicant can come to the UK with a Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) visa for up to the maximum stay allowed for his / her visa type, or the time given on his / her certificate of sponsorship, whichever is shorter.

The maximum stay for each type of Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) visa is:

Long-term Staff (if the applicant earn more than £120,000 a year): 9 years
Long-term Staff (if the applicant earn less than £120,000 a year): 5 years, 1 month

Graduate Trainee: 12 months

The applicant can start his / her stay up to 14 days before the start date on his / her certificate of sponsorship.

The applicant can:

work for his / her sponsor in the job described in his / her certificate of sponsorship
do a second job in the same profession and at the same level as his / her main job for up to 20 hours per week
do voluntary work
study as long as it doesn’t interfere with the job sponsored for
travel abroad and return to the UK
bring family members

The applicant can’t:

get public funds
start working before the applicant get a visa

Tier 5 (Temporary Worker – Charity Worker) visa

the applicant wants to do unpaid voluntary work for a charity
from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland
the applicant meets the other eligibility requirements

The applicant must have a certificate of sponsorship from a licensed employer before the applicant can apply to come to the UK to work.

The work the applicant does in the UK must relate to the work of his / her sponsor organisation.

The applicant can stay for up to 12 months or the time given on his / her certificate of sponsorship plus 28 days, whichever is shorter.

The applicant can enter the UK up to 14 days before the start date of his / her job.

The applicant can:

study – for some courses need an Academic Technology Approval Scheme certificate)
work for his / her sponsor in the job described in his / her certificate of sponsorship
do a second job in the same sector at the same level as his / her main job for up to 20 hours per week
do a job on the Tier 2 shortage occupation list for up to 20 hours per week
bring family members w

The applicant can’t:

receive any payment for work
take a permanent job
get public funds

Tier 5 (Temporary Worker – Creative and sporting) visa

Conditions for visa:

offered work in the UK as a sports person or creative worker
from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland
the applicant meets the other eligibility requirements

A creative worker is someone who works in the creative industry, for example, an actor, dancer, musician or film crewmember.

The applicant needs to have a certificate of sponsorship from a licensed employer before the applicant can apply to come to the UK to work.

Th work the applicant do in the UK must relate to the work of his / her sponsor organisation.

The applicant can come to the UK for a maximum of up to 12 months or the time given in his / her certificate of sponsorship plus up to 28 days, whichever is shorter. The applicant may be able to extend his / her visa.

His / her stay must start no more than 14 days before the start date on his / her certificate of sponsorship.

The applicant can:

study (some courses need an Academic Technology Approval Scheme certificate)
work for his / her sponsor in the job described in his / her certificate of sponsorship
do a second job in the same sector and at the same level as his / her main job for up to 20 hours per week
do a job on the shortage occupation list for up to 20 hours per week
work as a sportsperson for his / her national team and as a sports broadcaster if in the UK under the sporting subcategory
bring his / her family

The applicant can’t:

get public funds
start his / her own business

Tier 5 Temporary Worker – Government Authorised Exchange visa

Conditions for visa:

come to the UK for a short time for work experience or to do training, an Overseas Government Language Programme, research or a fellowship through an approved government authorised exchange scheme
have a sponsor
are from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland
meet the other eligibility requirements

Sponsorship

The applicant needs to have a certificate of sponsorship from a licensed sponsor before the applicant can apply to come to the UK to work.

His / her work, training or research in the UK must relate to the work of his / her sponsor organisation.

His / her sponsor can be any of the following:

an organisation running an approved exchange scheme
a higher education institution (if the applicant is a sponsored researcher, visiting academic or examiner)
a government department or agency

The applicant can stay in the UK for up to 12 or 24 months (depending on the scheme applied for) or the time given on his / her certificate of sponsorship plus 28 days, whichever is shorter. The applicant can enter the UK up to 14 days before the start date of his / her job.

The applicant can:

study (for some courses need an Academic Technology Approval Scheme certificate)
work in the job described in his / her certificate of sponsorship
do a second job for up to 20 hours per week
do a job on the Tier 2 shortage occupation list for up to 20 hours per week as well as his / her main job
apply to change (‘switch’) into a Tier 1 Exceptional Talent visa if in the government authorised exchange scheme for sponsored researchers
bring family members

The applicant can’t:

take a permanent job
get public funds

Tier 5 (Temporary Worker – International Agreement) visa

Conditions for visa:

from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland
contracted to do work covered by international law while in the UK, for example working for a foreign government or as a private servant in a diplomatic household
the applicant meets the other eligibility requirements

The applicant needs to be sponsored (have a certificate of sponsorship from a licensed employer) before the applicant can apply to come to the UK.

The work the applicant does in the UK must relate to the work of his / her sponsor organisation.

In most cases, the applicant is able to stay for 2 years, or the time given on his / her certificate of sponsorship plus up to 28 days, whichever is shorter.

In certain cases, the applicant can only stay for 6 months in any 12-month period, or the time given on his / her certificate of sponsorship plus 14 days, whichever is shorter. This applies if providing a service:

under contract as set out in the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS)
under similar trade agreements, such as the EU-Chile free trade agreement

The applicant can:

the study – for some courses need an Academic Technology Approval Scheme certificate
work for his / her sponsor in the job described in his / her certificate of sponsorship
do a second job on the Tier 2 shortage occupation list or one in the same sector as his / her main job for up to 20 hours per week (unless the applicant is a private servant, a contractual service supplier or an independent professional)
study, as long as it doesn’t interfere with the job sponsored for
travel abroad and return to the UK
bring family members

The applicant can’t:

get public funds
start working before the applicant get his / her visa