16.02.2010

The complete February issue of beststart's monthly HR Heads Up  is now available to download from our Downloads section, including Legal News and other instructive articles.

UK immigration system explained

There has been a great deal of publicity around the current UK immigration system or more precisely around those companies who have not complied with it. But how easy is it now to employ someone from outside the EU?

Since 2008, the Home Office has used a tiered, point-based system which assesses the individual's value to the UK economy. There are 5 tiers of work permit:

Tier 1: Highly-skilled individuals and entrepreneurs. This has replaced the old Highly Skilled Migrant Programme, designed to enable individuals with high level skills, qualifications and earning capacity to obtain permission to work in the UK without having a specific job offer. There are 4 categories of Tier1 also covering investors and those post-study.

Tier 2: Skilled individuals with a job offer. This can only be used by individuals who have a job offer from a company who has a sponsor's licence. Tier 2's will only be issued for jobs that are either a shortage occupation (as defined by Government criteria) or where it can be proved that an employer cannot find a suitably skilled worker in the UK or EU, having undertaken a UK labour market search in a prescribed form. Additionally a Tier 2 Certificate of Sponsorship requires the person to remain with the original UK employer and cannot be transferred to a new employer if they decide to leave.

Tier 3: Limited numbers of low-skilled workers. This has been suspended since 2008, as the Government decided that the ready supply of low-skilled labour from the EU was sufficient to meet demand.

Tier 4: Students. Educational institutions in the UK wishing to accept non-EU students are required to issue Certificates of Sponsorship under Tier 4. These are specifically for students and although there is limited scope for an individual to work part-time under this certificate whilst studying, it is limited.

Tier 5: Youth Mobility and Temporary Workers. There are a number of categories in this Tier but it is generally used for Commonwealth citizens aged between 18 and 30 to travel to the UK for mainly non-economic rather than work-based reasons. The intention is that any work done by the individual should be of a temporary nature in order to fund the experience.

In all Tiers, individuals are awarded points for a variety of criteria and only those who reach a specified threshold will be issued with a certificate.

Employers wishing to hire Non-EU staff must either:

 - hire someone who has independently secured a Tier1 Certificate;

 - hire someone who has a Tier 4 or 5 certificate and abide by the restrictions; or

 - apply to the Home Office to be licensed to issue Tier 2 'Certificates of Sponsorship'. There is a cost associated with the licence and each certificate that is issued. Additionally, the employer will have to prove that they have basic HR systems in place to ensure that immigration rules are followed.

As with many specialist areas, if a company is considering hiring an individual with a work permit, it is advisable to get specialised help to ensure that the company does not unintentionally fall foul of the system.

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