Can you Employ an Overseas Worker on Less Than £38,700 a Year?
After the increase in the minimum salary threshold for Skilled Worker Visa holders UK employers are beginning to fully understand the wide-ranging implications for their businesses of only being able to employ skilled workers if the overseas recruit’s job warrants a salary of £38,700 gross a year or the going rate for the job, whichever is the higher figure.
In this blog, our Immigration Solicitors look at some of the currently available sponsored and non-sponsored Work Visa routes.
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 Skilled Worker Visa salary leap
First, there was Brexit and the end of free movement of EU nationals and the ready supply of cheap young labour. The hospitality, care, retail and construction sectors were all particularly hit hard by this.
Since Brexit things have not got any easier for UK employers, with increasing numbers of businesses having to apply for sponsor licences to sponsor overseas workers but they are still unable to fill lower-skilled roles because there is no ‘’Lower Skilled Worker Visa’’ just a Skilled Worker Visa.
If recruitment was hard before April 2024, then things have got a lot tougher now. It is not surprising as issues with the ability of UK school leavers and graduates to meet the UK skills shortage will not sort themselves out quickly, especially as schools and colleges are still dealing with the aftermath of lockdowns and school and university closures and switch to online learning.
For UK employers who want answers now, it is worth asking Business Immigration Solicitors to look at all the sponsored and non-sponsored Work Visa options if the leap in the minimum salary threshold from £26,200 to £38,700 is too hard for the business to justify recruiting from overseas but they are still unable to recruit the staff they need from within the UK.
Sponsored Work Visa routes
There are 5 main sponsored Work Visa routes:
- The Skilled Worker Visa
- The Health and Care Worker Visa – part of the Skilled Worker Visa route but with a lower minimum salary threshold
- The Senior or Specialist Worker Visa
- The Expansion Worker Visa
- The Scale-up Worker Visa
The issue for UK business owners is that these Work Visas are all very niche. For example:
- With the Skilled Worker Visa your recruit must be employed in a job with a standard occupational classification code and paid the minimum salary of £38,700 or the going rate for the job, whichever is the higher salary. There are some concessions available, for example, if the recruit qualifies as a ‘’new entrant’’
- With the Health and Care Worker Visa, the visa is only suitable for the health care sector. Whilst the minimum salary threshold is significantly lower than the Skilled Worker Visa the role must be a qualifying healthcare job. Furthermore, carers and senior carers are no longer able to bring family members with them to the UK on Dependant Visas
- The Senior or Specialist Worker Visa has a minimum salary threshold of £48,500, or the going rate for the job, whichever is higher. The Work Visa is only suitable if you have an overseas branch and you are transferring employees to work in the UK
- The Expansion Worker Visa also has a minimum salary threshold of £48,500, or the going rate for the job, whichever is higher. The Work Visa is only suitable if you are setting up a new business or a branch of an overseas company in the UK
- The Scale-up Visa is only suitable if your business qualifies as a fast-growing enterprise
The Scale-up Visa
Our Sponsorship Licence lawyers are getting inquiries about the Scale-up Visa because:
- Sponsorship is only needed for the first 6 months of employment
- The minimum sponsored salary threshold is £36,300 or the going rate of the job, whichever is higher
Your business is considered fast-growing if for 3 years before the sponsor licence application:
- It has grown by 20% each year – this can be in turnover or employment
- The business employed at least 10 employees at the start of the 3-year period
If you have not previously considered the option of recruiting through the Scale-up Visa and want more detailed information about the sponsor licence application process and the business eligibility criteria our Sponsorship Licence lawyers can help. Call us on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
The non-sponsored Work Visa routes
There are 4 main non-sponsored Work Visa routes:
- The Graduate Visa – but the Home Office has said it is going to change the immigration rules and eligibility criteria for this route
- The High Potential Individual Visa – limited to recent overseas graduates from top universities
- The Youth Mobility Scheme
- The Global Talent Visa – the applicant must be a leader in their field or show promise. The applicant will also need an endorsement from an endorsing body unless they are a prize winner of one of the prizes on a Home Office published list
In addition to these non-sponsored Work Visas, other visas allow visa holders to work while in the UK. Examples include:
- The Spouse Visa
- The Unmarried Partner Visa
- The Student Visa – only part-time work is allowed by an international student
- The Hong Kong Visa or British national (overseas) Visa
- The Ancestry Visa
- The Business Visitor Visa – provided the work is temporary and falls within permissible business or work activities whilst in the UK on a Business Visitor Visa
Our Business Immigration Solicitors can help your business work out if the sponsored Work Visa route is the only one suitable for your business needs and look at the alternatives with you, such as the use of the Graduate Visa before it is radically changed. If the Skilled Worker Visa route is the only one of use to you then we can advise on the recruitment of recruits qualifying as new entrants and the impact of that type of recruitment on your overhead costs.
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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