As of 01 December 2020, there will be two key types of sponsor licences that employers can apply for. The first will be Worker (previously known as Tier 2) and the second will be a Temporary Worker (previously known as Tier 5 (Temporary Worker).
The Worker route is for skilled and long-term workers and covers five categories. The first of these categories and the focus of this article will be the Skilled Worker route which allows employers to recruit workers in the UK to perform a specific job.
Skilled Worker
In order to meet the requirements, a Skilled Worker must be skilled to level 3 on the Regulated Qualifications Framework.
In order to sponsor a Skilled Worker, the candidate must score 50 mandatory/non-tradeable points as follows:
(a) 20 points for being awarded a valid Certificate of Sponsorship.
(b) 20 points for obtaining and being able to perform a job at an appropriate skill level. Only workers applying for a job listed in Tables 1 and 2 of Appendix Skilled Occupations can be sponsored.
(c) 10 points for the English language at level B1 or higher.
In addition to this, a Skilled Worker must also score 20 tradeable points based on their salary or other applicable criteria. The worker’s salary must be equivalent to or exceed both £25,600 per year and the applicable rate for the occupation code. Only guaranteed basic gross pay will be considered towards the salary requirement and does not include allowances, pay or benefits.
Additional financial requirements will need to be considered for any overseas applicant.
Employing EEA nationals
Any employer wishing to employ an EEA national after 31 December 2020 must sponsor the individual, where the EEA national is not already in the UK by that date and does not have alternative permission to work in the UK. In order to do this, employers will need to apply for a sponsor licence if they do not already have one.
Employers can continue to employ EEA nationals without the need for obtaining a licence subject to the EEA national:
(a) Being present and employed before 31 December 2020; and
(b) Applying for leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain under the EU settlement scheme by 30 June 2021.
The application under the EU settlement scheme must be granted for this to apply as individuals with settled or pre-settled status under the EU settlement scheme do not need to be sponsored.
Irish citizens
Irish citizens do not need permission to live and work in the UK. Any employer employing an Irish citizen, therefore, does not need to sponsor them even after they arrive in the UK after 31 December 2020.
Sponsors with an existing sponsor licence
An employer already holding a sponsor licence under the Tier 2 and tier 5 route does not need to apply for a new licence. The existing licence and any Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) allocation will be transferred to the new system from 01 December 2020. However, an employer whose licence is due to expire within the next 90 days should apply to renew it.
Applying for a Skilled Worker Licence
Any employer wishing to apply for a licence to sponsor Workers must:
(a) submit the appropriate application form;
(b) submit the appropriate documents;
(c) pay the relevant fee which will depend on the type of licence sought and size of the company;
(d) decide which type of licence will be required;
(e) decide how many workers need to be sponsored in the first year; and
(f) appoint an authorising officer (most senior member of the organisation responsible for recruitment and compliance with sponsor duties;
(g) appoint a Key contact (person who maintains contact with UKVI and may be same as the authorising officer);
(h) appoint Level 1 user (responsible for carrying out day-to-day sponsorship activities using the SMS)
(i) appoint Level 2 user (can also access the SMS but with fewer permissions compared to the Level 1 user and can be an employee)
Duration of a licence
Any licence granted will generally be valid for 4-years, starting from the date of the grant. A licence must be renewed before this 4-year period is over.
Multiple branches and Franchises
If an employer has multiple branches it can:
(a) apply for a single licence for the head office and all branches; or
(b) apply for an individual licence for each branch; or
(c) group a number of branches under a single licence.
The same applies to franchises.
Disclaimer:
The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Connaught Law and authors accept no responsibility for loss which may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please don’t hesitate to contact Connaught Law. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Connaught Law.
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