TIER 2 VISA - SKILLED WORKER

Tier 2 - Skilled Worker is aimed at enabling United Kingdom employers to recruit individuals from outside the United Kingdom and European Economic Area (EEA) to fill a particular job that cannot be filled by a British or EEA worker.

The job must be at S/NVQ level 3 or above, and the migrant must earn the appropriate salary or other package of remuneration appropriate for the job in the United Kingdom.

Tier 2 - Skilled Worker will replace a number of existing immigration categories. If you would have come under the following routes you may now come under Tier 2 - Skilled Worker:

• work permit employment (excluding temporary assignments of sportspersons and entertainers);
• ministers of religion;
• airport-based operational ground staff;
• overseas qualified nurse or midwife;
• sabbatical posts;
• seafarers;
• named researchers;
• Training and Work Experience Scheme (TWES);
• Jewish agency employees;
• overseas representatives (news media).

For Employers

The Points Based System places greater emphasis on the accountability and responsibility of sponsors in selecting the non-EEA nationals they bring to the UK. Under the tier 2 immigration structure, employers are responsible for ensuring that candidates are eligible and suitable to fill the positions being offered and as an organisation, they may be subjected to immigration compliance checks with or without prior notice.

Employers will be awarded either an A or B level sponsorship licence according to the Border and Immigration Agency’s risk assessment. In most cases, successful candidates will be awarded an A rating, however, where employers do not sufficiently fulfil their responsibilities they may be downgraded to a B rating, or have their licence revoked altogether.

When issuing a certificate of sponsorship, employers must be able to show that the position is a genuine vacancy with remuneration equal to that which a UK national would receive were they to be employed in the same position. The role must also be at or above the National Vocation Qualification (NVQ) level 3. For shortage occupations, positions do not have to be advertised in the UK before a sponsor can employ a non-EEA national, however where positions do not appear on the list of shortage occupations, employers must show that they have attempted to fill the role within the UK.

In order to be able to sponsor Skilled Workers, employers must hold a licence do do so. Employers can now begin to apply for a licence and full details of how to do this can be found at: http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/employers/points/applying/getalicence/

Employees must register online and will need to send the BIA documentation to establish that they are a legitimate employer based in the UK and showing that they have a genuine vacancy.

For Employees

You can come to the United Kingdom under this category for the duration of your post. This can be for up to three years.

Candidates will be assessed on their qualifications and their prospective earnings.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to apply to come to the United Kingdom under Tier 2 - Skilled Worker you need to have:

• a job offer;
• certificate of sponsorship from one of our licensed sponsors; and
• scored enough points to apply.

Points assessment

You will need to score a pass mark of 70 points from the three sets of criteria. These are:

• attributes;
• English language skills; and
• maintenance.

Attributes

You must score at least 50 points in this category. You can score points under three criteria . These are:

• sponsorship;
• qualifications; and
• prospective earnings.

Resident labour market test

If your job is not on the shortage occupation list, your job offer will need to pass the resident labour market test. This test ensures that resident workers have had the opportunity to apply for the job before it is filled under Tier 2.

If you have a certificate of sponsorship for a job on a shortage occupation list you will be awarded 50 points.

If you have a certificate of sponsorship for a job not covered by the shortage occupation list, your job will have passed the resident labour market test and you will be awarded 30 points.

Qualifications

You can score up to 15 points for your qualifications. Points will be awarded in the following way:

You will only be awarded points for the highest level qualification you hold.

Prospective earnings

You can score up to 20 points for your prospective earnings. Points will be awarded in the following way:

Maintenance

You must score 10 points in this category by showing that you are able to support yourself while you are in the United Kingdom. To score these points you will need to show that you have £800 in savings that you will be able to use while in the United Kingdom. If you intend to bring dependants you will need to show you have a further £600 for each dependant.

English language skills

You must score 10 points in this category by showing that you are able to speak English to a basic standard. This is a mandatory requirement. This will include an ability to understand and use familiar everyday expressions, basic phrases and be able to introduce yourself and others, and be able to answer basic personal questions about yourself. Guidance on language tests that will be accepted as evidence will be available on the website at a later date.

You will need to show that you are competent in the English language by:

• passing a test in English equivalent to the appropriate level;
• coming from a majority English speaking country; or
• having taken a degree taught in English (verified using national academic recognition information centre data).

Other Information

You will only be able to switch into Tier 2 - Skilled Worker, if you meet the initial entry requirements for this category.

If you are in the United Kingdom you can switch from all Tier 1 (highly skilled) sub categories into Tier 2 - Skilled Worker and from Tier 2 - sports people into Tier 2 - Skilled Worker provided you meet the initial entry requirements for the new category.

As outlined above, a tier two immigration visa for the UK may lead to permanent settlement in the UK if the candidate continues living and working in the UK for five years. Since visas of this kind may lead to Indefinite Leave to Remain, tier two makes provision for the spouse, common law, civil or unmarried partner of the applicant and any dependent children to move to the UK at the same time. Any such dependents would be granted the same period of leave as the main tier 2 visa applicant; however, their UK immigration status would be that of a dependent and in order to work in the UK they would need to secure a work permit in their own right.

If you think we can help you with your immigration situation, contact us to make an appointment. Call 02080902408 (Office) / 07869286490 (Mobile) or email info@systimesolutions.com or fill in the enquiry form.