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Preventing Illegal Working – Guidelines on tiers for skilled workers and youth mobility scheme
Monday, November 17th, 2008
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Applications from foreign (i.e. non-EEA or Swiss) skilled workers under Tier 2 of the new points-based system may be made from 27 November. Also from that date, applications may be made from young people from Australia, Canada, Japan and New Zealand under Tier 5, the Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS). Only employers that are licensed sponsors may recruit workers under Tiers 2 and 5. Only young people from participating sponsor countries may come to the UK to work under the YMS.
The existing Work Permit approach to the employment of foreign workers is being replaced during 2008 and 2009 by a new, points-based system involving five “tiers”, each of which has a number of categories of worker. The five tiers are:
Tier 1 highly skilled workers, to contribute to growth and productivity
Tier 2 skilled workers with a job offer, to fill gaps in UK labour force
Tier 3 low skilled workers filling specific temporary labour shortages
Tier 4 students, i.e. child students attending private schools, and general students for higher education
Tier 5 youth mobility and temporary workers, working primarily for non-economic objective.
The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has published policy guidance documents on both Tier 2 and Tier 5 requirements for both applicants and sponsors. These are complex, detailed documents and the notes below are only a summary of some of the key points for employers. The process for obtaining a sponsor license is explained first.
Sponsorship
Applications for employment under Tiers 2 and 5 must be sponsored by a licensed employer. Sponsorship by an educational institution is required under Tier 4 for students from abroad wishing to study in the UK, although applications for that Tier may not be made until March 2009. Sponsorship is not required at all for Tier 1, highly-skilled workers, applications for which began to be accepted from the end of June 2008. Tier 3, for low-skilled workers, is not currently open for either sponsorship or applications.
Before any non-EEA worker can apply for employment under Tiers 2 and 5, they must be sponsored by a licensed UK employer. The registration fee is between £400 and £1000. When an employer has been able to demonstrate compliance with the qualifying conditions for sponsorship, the employer’s name, location and rating is added to the register that is maintained on the UKBA website. When fully licensed, a sponsoring employer is able to issue a “certificate of sponsorship” (not a paper document) for each applicant, the cost of which is £170 per applicant for Tier 2 and £10 per applicant for Tier 5. The employer must be satisfied that the applicant has enough points to ensure acceptance of the application; otherwise the money paid for issuing the certificate is wasted.
The tier-specific requirements for sponsors are covered in the sections for Tiers 2 and 5 below. The general requirements, however, are that the employer must:
- be a genuine organisation or sole trader operating legally in the United Kingdom
- not be considered a threat to immigration control, (by examination of the history and background of the organisation and its key personnel)
- nominate a level 1 user, a key contact and an authorising officer
- must be able to comply with the defined sponsor duties
- provide all of the defined supporting documents when applying for sponsorship.
Five areas of an employer’s HR systems (procedural, not computer) are assessed, i.e.
Area 1: monitoring immigration status and preventing illegal employment
Area 2: maintaining migrant contact details
Area 3: record-keeping
Area 4: migrant tracking and monitoring
Area 5: recruitment practices and professional accreditations.
Assessment is carried out on-site, during a pre-licensing visit. In each of these five areas, the employer’s systems and compliance are rated 1 to 3, depending on whether the employer is fully compliant (1), partially compliant (2), or not compliant at all (3). A rating of A or B is then given, depending on
- whether these support systems will ensure that all of the employer’s sponsorship duties can be met, and
- whether the employer is complying with, or has previously complied with, the former work permit arrangements and other immigration law.
Employers with top ratings for both HR systems and compliance are given an “A” rating; if one or both are rated 2, a “B” rating is given. The rating is published in the register of licensed sponsors. Employers with a “B” rating are required to improve by complying with an action plan, at the risk of the license being withdrawn.
Tier 2 – Skilled workers
Applicants
Before applying, applicants must have both a sponsor and a current “certificate of sponsorship” issued by that sponsor. There are four categories of worker:
- General – for people coming to the UK who already have a job offer to fill a gap that cannot be filled by a settled worker. This category is also for applicants coming to fill shortage occupations.
- Intra-company Transfers – for employees of multi-national companies who are being transferred by an overseas employer to a skilled job in a UK-based branch of the organisation.
- Sportsperson - for elite sportspeople and coaches whose employment will make a significant contribution to the development of their sport at the highest level.
- Ministers of Religion – for people coming to fill a vacancy as a Minister of Religion, Missionary, or Member of a Religious Order.
Applicants for work in the “general” category must score:
- at least 50 points for attributes, i.e. sponsorship, qualifications and prospective earnings, and
- 10 points for English language, and
- 10 points for maintenance (i.e. funds).
The requirements are similar for the other Tier 2 categories.
An interactive points-based calculator is available on the UKBA website so that prospective applicants can find out if they will have enough points to make an application that is likely to be successful.
Sponsors
The duties of a sponsor with reference to applicants and those actually engaged include:
- record keeping duties include keeping copies of the applicant’s passport or UK immigration status document, and contact details
- informing UKBA if
- a sponsored migrant does not turn up for the first day of work
- a sponsored migrant is absent from work for more than 10 working days, without the sponsor’s reasonably granted permission
- a sponsored migrant’s period of engagement (including where the migrant resigns or is dismissed) or if any registration needed to work in the UK (such as with a governing body) is ended
- the sponsor stops sponsoring the migrant for any other reason (e.g. the migrant moves into an immigration route that does not require a sponsor)
- there are any significant changes in the migrant’s circumstances, e.g. a change of job or salary (but not job title or annual pay rise)
- the sponsor has any information that suggests that a migrant is breaching the conditions of working in the UK
- informing the police if the sponsor has any information that suggests that the migrant may be engaging in terrorism or other criminal activity.
Tier 5 – Youth mobility and temporary workers
Before applying, applicants must have both a sponsor and a current “certificate of sponsorship” issued by that sponsor. Tier 5 covers young migrants coming from sponsoring countries for work experience and, in addition, five categories of temporary worker:
- Creative and sporting: for creative artists, sports persons and entertainers working on short term contracts/engagements in the UK
- Religious workers: for visiting religious workers with a non-pastoral role to take up temporary service in their faith community in the UK
- Charity workers: for workers undertaking unpaid work for a charitable sponsor in the UK
- Government authorised exchange: for migrants on short-term exchange to gain knowledge and best practice in the UK
- International agreement: for migrants who are legally entitled under international law to work in the UK for a limited period of time.
Applicants for work in the “youth mobility” category must score:
- 30 points for being a citizen of a participating country
- 10 points for being between 18 and 31
- 10 points for maintenance (i.e. funds).
Applicants for work in the “creative and sporting” category must score:
- 30 points for sponsorship by a sporting body, sports club etc, and
- 10 points for maintenance (i.e. funds).
The requirements are similar for the other Tier 5 temporary worker categories.
An interactive points-based calculator is available on the UKBA website so that prospective applicants can find out if they will have enough points to make an application that is likely to be successful.
Tier 4 – Students
Applications under Tier 4 will be accepted from students from March 2009 onwards. Applications for sponsor licenses from colleges and universities may be made already.
There are two categories of student:
- Child student: for children between the ages of and 16 to attend an independent school
- General student: for young people attending college or university from age 16.
Further information:
Tier 2 of the Points Based System – Policy Guidance
Tier 5 (Youth Mobility Scheme) of the Points Based System Policy Guidance
Guidance for sponsor applications – Tiers 2, 4 and 5
Points-based calculator
Sponsorship under the points-based system
How do I sponsor a migrant?
Register of sponsors
Roll-out of new rules for foreign students
The UK Payroll News is sponsored by HRD & Payroll Solutions
