A Guide for UK Employers on the Scale-up Visa

Posted onApril 30, 2024

Sponsor licence holders are looking at alternatives to the Skilled Worker Visa when recruiting overseas workers to fill vacancies.

In this blog, our Immigration Solicitors look in detail at the requirements to obtain a sponsor licence to sponsor Scale-up Visa applicants and the visa eligibility criteria.

UK Online and London-Based Immigration Solicitors and Sponsorship Licence Lawyers

For immigration advice call OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.

The advantages of the Scale-up Visa from an employer’s perspective

The Scale-up Visa has a few advantages over the Skilled Worker Visa:

The sponsored employee only needs to be sponsored for 6 months – they can then move to be unsponsored
The minimum salary threshold for the Scale-up Visa is £36,300 or the going rate for the job, whichever is higher. In contrast, the minimum salary threshold for the Skilled Worker Visa is now £38,700
A sponsoring employer does not need to pay the immigration skills charge when recruiting using a Scale-up Visa
The Scale-up Visa is attractive to overseas job applicants as they can bring family members with them on Dependant Visas and the Scale-up Visa is a route to UK settlement and an Indefinite Leave to Remain application

A UK business needs a sponsor licence to sponsor Scale-up Visa applicants unless the job applicant has previously had permission on a Scale-up Visa and is now entitled to work for a company that does not hold a sponsor licence.

Our Sponsorship Licence lawyers can help you apply for a Scale-up sponsor licence application. Call us on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.

The Scale-up sponsor licence

To employ a first-time Scale-up Visa applicant your business needs a sponsor licence so you can allocate the recruit a certificate of sponsorship.

If you already have a sponsor licence to sponsor Skilled Worker Visa applicants you will be familiar with the sponsor licence application process but to qualify for a Scale-up licence you can either get approval from the Home Office by supplying them with your application and supporting paperwork or you can get endorsement first.

The endorsement route is intended for relatively new companies who do not have a paperwork history with HMRC to prove that they meet the Scale-up sponsor licence criteria.

The sponsor licence Scale-up criteria are that your business has had growth of at least 20% for the previous 3-year period in either turnover or employees. However, you need to have had a minimum of 10 employees at the start of the 3-year period.

In addition to the growth criteria, your business will also need to meet the general eligibility criteria for a sponsor licence. For example, the business is trading, has genuine vacancies and will be able to meet sponsor licence reporting and recording duties.

Once the Scale-up sponsor licence is issued the business can allocate a certificate of sponsorship to a Scale-up Visa applicant provided the job role has a standard occupational classification code and you are paying the recruit the minimum salary threshold for the job.

The certificate of sponsorship must be issued not more than 3 months before the date of the Scale-up Visa application and must say that the applicant is:

Expected to work for your business for at least 6 months
Has a start date which is no more than 3 months after the date of the Scale-up Visa application

The Scale-up Visa eligibility criteria

To qualify for a Scale-up Visa and sponsored employment a recruit must:

Be aged 18 or over
Have an offer of employment and certificate of sponsorship for a genuine job and one that has a standard occupational classification code and pays the higher of either the going rate for the job or £36,300 gross per year
Meet the English language requirement
Meet the maintenance requirement – the worker must have cash funds of at least £1,270 and the cash must have been available for at least 28 consecutive days ending not more than 31 days before the date of the Work Visa application. A visa applicant is exempt from the financial requirement if your business meets the maintenance costs up to the end of the first month of employment, if necessary. This must be confirmed on the certificate of sponsorship
Have a valid TB certificate if necessary

If your company is continuing to employ an overseas worker after the 6-month sponsor period or is employing someone who previously had permission as a Scale-up worker then the applicant will need to apply to the Home Office for an unsponsored Scale-up Visa and they will need to prove that they:

Are aged 18 or over;
Previous Scale-up Visa because they had previously been granted permission as a Scale-up worker
Had monthly PAYE earnings in the UK equivalent to at least £36,300 gross per year during at least 50% of their most recent grant of permission as a Scale-up worker (the figure is lower if the certificate of sponsorship was allocated between dates in April 2023 and April 2024)
Meet the English language requirement
Meet the maintenance requirement- this is unnecessary if the visa applicant has been in the UK for 12 months or longer

The Scale-up Visa salary

To employ a sponsored worker on a Scale-up Visa their salary must be the higher figure of £36,300 gross per year or the going rate for the job’s standard occupational classification code.

Salary is based on the employee receiving basic gross pay for up to 48 hours per week. The salary cannot include non-guaranteed bonuses or perks.

Sponsorship Licence lawyers

If your business has questions about the Scale-up Visa and whether your company could sponsor Scale-up Visa applicants then our Sponsorship Licence lawyers can answer all your sponsor licence questions and help you with your application and the management of your sponsor licence.

UK Online and London-Based Immigration Solicitors and Sponsorship Licence Lawyers

For immigration advice call OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.

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