The Graduate Visa Route Opens for Applications

The new UK graduate visa opened up for applications on the 1 July 2021. For international students the graduate visa provides a new immigration route to stay in the UK after completion of studies.

UK Online and London Based Immigration Solicitors 

For advice on the new graduate visa or help with your immigration application call the immigration law team at OTS Solicitorson 0203 959 9123 or contact us online. Appointments are available by phone or video call.

The new graduate visas

The graduate visa is part of the UK’s new points-based immigration system. You may question what the graduate visa offers graduates in comparison to business visas, work visas or family visas. Immigration solicitors say that the graduate visa is a real opportunity for graduates from overseas looking to stay in the UK after completion of their studies. If you fall into that category, it is worth checking out the graduate visa.

In summary, the graduate visa is a post-study immigration route that enables overseas graduates and international students to live and work in the UK for up to three years after completion of their educational course. Crucially, unlike the skilled worker visa, the visa applicant doesn’t need a sponsoring employer with a Home Office issued sponsor licence and there is no minimum skill threshold. That means all job opportunities are open to you.

Why are international students being treated differently to skilled migrant workers?

If you are looking for opportunities to work in the UK , whilst subject to UK immigration controls, you may think that the graduate visa is too good to be true. After all, why should graduates be treated differently to any other EU or non-EEA citizen who wants to come to the UK on a work visa?

The answer lies in the government ‘s agenda; to promote the UK as a great country to decide to come to study in as an international student. The rationale behind that policy is that international students contribute millions to the UK economy. Savvy parents of students and students themselves don’t just want an excellent university education. They also want the opportunity to stay in the UK for work purposes after they complete their studies. As many countries offer a form of graduate visa to compete for the wealthy international student market, the UK government would be missing a trick if it didn’t offer a graduate visa.

If you are a student, it is essential to check and see whether you meet the eligibility criteria for either a graduate visa or, as a skilled migrant worker, for the skilled worker visa. If you meet the criteria for both visas then, in almost all cases, the graduate visa will be the best option for you. If you are a UK employer who has offered a job to an international student then normally it is preferable to proceed with the recruitment on a graduate visa as opposed to a skilled worker visa. That’s because a graduate visa is a lot more flexible for both the employer and the employee.

Who can apply for the graduate visa?

Firstly, to apply for a graduate visa you must be the holder of a Tier 4 or student visa. That’s because the graduate visa is designed to encourage students to study in the UK rather than encourage all graduates to apply to work in the UK, circumventing the skilled worker visa route.

The graduate visa is available if an international student has completed a UK degree at undergraduate level or above with a higher education institute. The provider must have a track record of compliance. This requirement is to stop colleges springing up everywhere as a route to an easy work visa.

Another requirement is for the graduate visa applicant to have completed all their course in the UK, apart from any permitted study abroad programmes. Again, the intention is to catch out those colleges that say they are technically based in the UK whilst their students are studying remotely and the UK isn’t actually getting the benefit of the students being international students in the UK.

The maintenance requirement and the English language requirement and the graduate visa

Unlike the skilled worker visa, if you meet the graduate visa eligibility criteria you won't need to meet either a maintenance requirement or the English language requirement when applying for the graduate visa. Whilst most international students would easily meet both the maintenance requirement and the English language requirement the fact that you don’t need to prove your funds or your English language abilities makes the graduate visa application more straight forward.

The job requirement and the graduate visa

Unlike the skilled worker visa, you don’t need a job offer before you can apply for the graduate visa. That means you don’t need to find a sponsoring employer. What’s more you can take up any type of employment. For example, you could choose to work as a labourer or barista or in the hospitality industry whilst trying to find the right graduate level job.

With the graduate visa the employment pressure is off as you don’t need to have a job with a minimum skill level or meet the minimum salary threshold.

Your future in the UK on a graduate visa   

If you secure leave to remain on a graduate visa it won't lead to settlement in the UK. That means ‘time served’ on the visa won't count towards you meeting the residence requirement for an indefinite leave to remain application.

If you secure a graduate visa then you can stay in the UK for either two or three years. Undergraduates and master’s degree students will be granted two years’ leave to remain. PhD students will be allowed to stay in the UK for three years. You can't apply to extend the graduate visa.

Although staying in the UK on a long-term basis isn’t an option on a graduate visa you can apply to switch from a graduate visa to a skilled worker visa. To apply for your skilled worker visa, you will need to meet the standard eligibility criteria for the skilled worker visa; there are no concessions for graduates. That means you will need a sponsoring employer who has offered you a suitably skilled job that meets the minimum salary threshold. Whilst there are far more immigration controls and restrictions on the skilled worker visa in comparison to the graduate visa, the distinct advantage of the skilled worker visa is that it can lead to settlement in the UK.

Apply for a graduate visa

To apply for a graduate visa, you need to be in the UK. At OTS Solicitors we can help you work out if the graduate visa is your best visa option. For example, if settlement in the UK is your primary goal, then maybe the skilled worker visa is your best and quickest visa route to indefinite leave to remain. Alternatively, if  you are a student with an entrepreneurial spirit who wants to start their own business in the UK then the start-up visa may be your best visa. Although the start-up visa isn’t a direct route to settlement in the UK you can apply to switch from the start-up visa to the innovator visa once your business has grown sufficiently for you to meet the innovator visa eligibility criteria.

The graduate visa – next steps

The graduate visa could be a great opportunity for you to extend your stay in the UK whilst looking for work as you don’t need a job or a job offer to apply for the visa. Not only does the graduate visa offer you this flexibility but it also allows you to switch to the skilled worker visa once you have found a job with a sponsoring employer who is happy to sponsor you on the skilled worker visa.

For advice on whether the graduate visa best meets your plans to stay in the UK after graduation  contact OTS Solicitors.

UK Online and London Based Immigration Solicitors 

For expert advice on the graduate visa and other work visa solutions call the immigration law team at OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online. Appointments are available by phone or video call.