UK Tier 2 Work Visa FAQs

Tier 2 work visa

There are several types of UK work visa Tier 2, intra-company transfer from within China; general work visas applied for in the UK; and work visas for some rare people, such as sports people Sports persons, religious people Minor of Religion, etc. This article focuses on the most common general work visa, Tier 2 General.

The general work visa is granted for a maximum of 3 years at a time, after which it can be renewed for a maximum of 3 years at a time, for a total of no more than 6 years. When returning to China after the end of the work visa, you must go through a 12-month freezing period abroad before you can apply for a work visa again. After a 5-year work visa meet certain requirements, you can apply for permanent residence in the UK. Requirements for a general work permit: The applicant first needs to find a full-time job; the employer has a Sponsor License for the employment of foreign workers, if not, the company license needs to apply to the Immigration Department, which generally takes 2-4 months.

T2工签Q&A

1. What is the quota for COS?

Applying for a T2 visa requires the employer to apply for a certificate of Sponsorship for the applicant. There is an annual quota for T2 (20,700) and in a full year, the maximum amount of COS issued by the government is 20,700.

This restriction is limited to foreign applicants and domestic Tier 4 companion visa holders. Every month, the government will count how many places will be used, so as to control that the number of places in a year does not exceed the upper limit of the threshold.

For the COS of the work permit, there are two types in total: restricted and non-restricted.

All applicants outside the UK will need to be assigned a restricted COS before they can apply for a visa. The applicant's sponsor needs to first secure one of the month's limit places in order to determine the COS for the applicant. If the month's quota is filled, sponsor needs to try to secure a place for the next month.

If you apply for a work permit within the UK (except for a Tier 4 companion visa holder), your COS will automatically be classified as unrestricted. Your sponsor can allocate the COS you need when applying for a visa directly in the system.

2. Is it okay to work in any type of work?

No.

For tier 2 skilled immigrant visas, most of the types of work performed are required to meet established technical standards.

Tier 2 General's type of work is subject to national NQF level 6 or higher, and applicants or employers can specifically find the type of work required to be met in UKVI's 'Code of Practice'.

3. Does the applicant need relevant work experience or academic qualification requirements?

Not needed.

What is restricted in the policy is that the type of work offered is at a given level (usually level 6), but there is no specific requirement for the applicant himself.

However, some types of work, such as Doctor, require the applicant to have the relevant qualifications, but these are not the content that the visa officer needs to consider and identify, but the sponsor or the employer internal screening.

4. What is the minimum wage?

The Tier 2 General Work Permit sets the minimum wage at £20,800 for the work performed by the applicant. At the same time, the applicant's salary must also meet the minimum wage standard of the type of work engaged. £20,800 is considered "gross income".

Salaries vary by occupation, with hourly and annual salaries. If the applicant's salary type is the former, the annual salary threshold will generally be converted according to the usual standard of 39 hours a week when calculating the minimum annual salary threshold.

5. When applying for permanent residence, the annual salary needs to meet the standard of 35,000 gross salary?

Yes, this policy was added from April 6, 2016. If a Tier 2 General visa holder wishes to apply for permanent residence through a 5-year application, the applicant's annual salary after the start of the Date of Application must meet the minimum £35,000 requirement.

And this annual salary threshold will also increase slightly as the number of years increases, for example:

Apply for permanent residence after 6 April 2016, with an annual salary threshold of £35,000;

Apply for permanent residence after 6 April 2018, with an annual salary threshold of £35,500;

Apply for permanent residence after 6 April 2019, with an annual salary threshold of £35,800;

Apply for permanent residence after 6 April 2020, with an annual salary threshold of £36,200;

Apply for permanent residence after 6 April 2021, with an annual salary threshold of £36,900.

Since April 2017, the salary requirement for work visas has been raised to £30,000 for those with work experience, while the salary requirements for graduates for work visas remain unchanged at £20,800. The employment of the majority of graduate students is undoubtedly a major positive. The new policy also mentions allowing graduates to switch positions and functions after graduation training, and will introduce corresponding provisions to facilitate this transformation in the future. With such a great opportunity in front of you, what are you waiting for?