UK Skilled Worker Visa

UK SKILLED WORKER VISA

A Skilled Worker visa allows you to come to or stay in the UK to do an eligible job with an approved employer.This visa has replaced the Tier 2 (General) work visa.The UK Skilled Worker visa was introduced to bring in highly skilled overseas workers into the UK labor market and subsequently take up permanent residence in the UK.With this visa, skilled workers from other countries can be selected based on the shortage occupation list and they will be eligible to get an offer letter without the labor market test and stay in the UK for up to 5 years.

TOP FIVE REASONS TO MIGRATE TO UK

• Strongest economy in the world
• Top universities in the world with high QS rankings
• Free healthcare for permanent residents
• High quality of living
• 3 million job vacancies

BENEFITS OF getting this VISA:

• Visa holders can bring dependents on the visa
• Spouse is allowed to work on the visa
• No cap on the number of people who can move to the UK on the visa
• Minimum salary requirement has been reduced to £25600 from threshold of £30000
• Fast Track Visas will be provided for healthcare professionals like doctors and nurses

MOST POPULAR WAYS TO MIGRATE TO THE UK

• Migrate through Work Visa – UK skilled migration
• Migrate through Student Route
• Migrating through Family Visa
• Migrating through UK Business Visa
• Migrating through a UK Investor visa

NEW UK IMMIGRATION POINTS-BASED ASSESSMENT SYSTEM

The UK launched the new UK immigration points-based system in January 2021. The eligibility criteria for the UK skilled migration depend on the ‘new points-based UK Visa system.’ It measures eligibility by taking into consideration various factors to assess candidates’ skills for the UK work visa.

The points scored based on the UK New Points-based System decide the eligibility for the work visa.

To qualify for the UK work visa, the candidate should score a minimum of 70 points. If the candidate has an approved job offer for a skilled job and can speak fluent English, she/he will be awarded 50 points.

The candidate can gain the remaining 20 points if the salary being offered is at least £25,600 per year. The candidates can earn extra points if they have higher qualifications:

• 10 points for a relevant PhD
• 20 points for a PhD in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) disciplines
• 20 points for a job offer in the skill shortages stream
• Few jobs such as health or education will earn them 20 points even if their pay is less than £25,600

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENT:

• You must have a score of 70 points to qualify in the defined parameters like specific skills, qualifications, salaries and professions.
• You need to have a Minimum Bachelor’s degree or equivalent with 2 years of skilled work experience from the eligible occupations list
• You must have a job offer from a Home Office licensed sponsor
• The job offer must be at the required skill level – RQF 3 or above (A Level and equivalent)
• You must meet the English Language requirement at B1 level in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages
• You should also meet the general salary threshold of £25,600 or the specific salary requirement for the occupation or the ‘going rate’.

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED:

The following documents will be required at the time of applying for a UK Skilled Worker visa:

• The applicant’s Certificate of Sponsorship [CoS] reference number
• Proof of knowledge of the English language
• A valid passport [or other documents that establishes the applicant’s nationality and identity]
• Job title
• Annual salary
• Occupation code of the job
• Name of the employer
• The sponsor licence number of the employer

JOBS ON THE UK SHORTAGE OCCUPATION LIST [SOL]

If a candidate has their job on the SOL, they can be paid 80% of the “going rate” for their job in order to qualify for the UK Skilled Worker visa.

Healthcare and education occupations have a different shortage occupation list –

VISA FEE DETAILS

• Application Fees for stay up to 3 years – 610 pounds
• Application Fees for stay more than 3 years stay-1,220 pounds
• Application Fees if your job is in Shortage Occupation List for stay up to 3 years) – 464 pounds
• Application Fees (f job in Shortage Occupation List and you wish to stay for more than three years 928 pounds
• UK NARIC Fees 49.50 pounds

Apart from the application fees you will have to pay a health surcharge of 624 pounds when you apply which will be refunded in case your application is rejected.

MIGRATE THROUGH STUDENT ROUTE

The UK is next only to the US as the most favored destination for foreign students. The UK is home to the best-ranked universities in the world, some of which make it to the top of the world university rankings.

Many sectors of higher education in the United Kingdom, such as engineering, business, management, art, design, and law, are among the best in the world.

Every year, more than 600,000 international students arrive in the country to pursue various academic programs, beginning from bachelor’s degrees to PhDs. The degrees that the UK higher educational institutions offer are recognized worldwide. Students who study in UK universities get an opportunity to develop competent skills and earn valuable knowledge.

Students can pursue post-graduate studies in most of the universities in the UK as some of them even promise sponsorship of Tier 4 visas. Obtaining a UK Student Visa helps you put your best foot forward, in terms of a brilliant career post your UK study.

The academic year in the UK lasts from September to July. Generally, universities and colleges in the UK have three intakes. Some of them might also refer to intake as a term.

The three intakes in the UK are:

Intake 1: Term 1 – Commencing in September/October, it is the major intake

Intake 2: Term 2 – The intake commencing in January/February is also available

Intake 3: Term 3 – Commencing in May/June, it is available for select courses.

UK family visas are a type of UK entry and residence authorizations that are granted to those who want to settle with their family members permanently in the UK.

UK FAMILY VISA

There are a few ways in which you can get a UK family visa:

• As a spouse or partner of a UK resident.
• As a parent of a UK resident.
• As a child of a UK resident.
• As a sick, disabled, or aged relative in need of long-term care from a UK resident.
• On the basis of private life.
• As a widowed partner of a former UK resident.
• As a separated spouse or partner.

UK INVESTMENT VISA

The UK Investment Visa is a Tier 1 visa, part of the UK Points Based System, offered to wealthy individuals who are willing to invest a minimum of £2 million in the UK. The higher the amount of money invested, the quicker the individual can apply for settlement and eventually obtains British citizenship.

For high-net-worth individuals wanting to settle in the UK, the following are the most suitable alternatives:

• Innovator visa
• Global talent visa
• Scale Up visa

REQUIREMENTS FOR UK PR VISA

To get UK PR, one has to live in the UK for five years under one of the following categories:

• Tier 1
• Tier 2 of the points-based system: for the overseas skilled professionals who have valid job offers in the United Kingdom
• Businessperson
• Investor
• International students and Research fellows
• Representatives of a news agency, overseas newspaper, PR agency, or broadcasting organization
• The private servant in the household of a diplomat
• Domestic worker in a private household
• Overseas government employee
• The self-employed lawyer or solicitor
• UK ancestry
• Highly skilled migrants under the Highly Skilled Migrant Program (HSMP)
• Retired person of independent means
• The sole representative of an overseas firm
• One can also apply for UK PR if that individual has a family member or a partner who is a British citizen.

UK PR VISA FEE

It costs £2389 for an individual applicant by post. Application in person might cost slightly higher but the advantage of this method is that a decision is taken on the same day without a six-month wait.