WHAT IS THE PROCESS & HOW WILL WE HELP ?
Skilled Worker Sponsorship is a 4-stage process.
STAGE 1: ESTABLISH A UK COMPANY
To qualify for a Skilled Worker visa through self- sponsorship, you will first need to either register a new company in the UK or have already registered a company in the UK.
Our associate Business Start Up Firm will assist you in establishing your limited company in the UK.
We will also assist you in appointing a local UK director who is a settled person in the UK or a British Citizen. Although, there is no requirement for a director of a UK company to be a UK resident or British citizen. For practical purposes and for ease of opening a bank account and requirement of the Home Office for granting sponsor license, we will appoint a director who is either a settled person in the UK or a British Citizen
We will refer you to a specialised business consulting company who will assist you with company formation and guide you with the entire process
STAGE 2: APPLY FOR A SPONSOR LICENSE
Once you have registered a UK company, the next step towards obtaining a Skilled Worker visa via self-sponsorship is for your UK business to apply for and be granted a Skilled Worker sponsor licence.
To be granted a sponsor licence, the Home Office will require that :
• Your UK business is a genuine business operating lawfully in the UK; and
• Your UK business is capable of carrying out its sponsor duties effectively; • Your UK business is offering genuine employment that meets the salary and skill level requirements of the Skilled Worker route.
Your UK Business Need to Be :
• Be Registered with Companies House,
• Have a UK business bank account,
• Be registered for PAYE/NI and VAT
• Have a settled person or British citizen as Authorizing Officer
We also recommend that
• You business has a detailed business plan with financial forecast
• An active website, telephone line and trading address
• A Human Resource Hierarchy Chart defining designation and roles.
Where a business has been trading in the UK for less than 18 months (a start-up business), a Skilled Worker sponsor licence application will typically need to include the following documents:
STAGE 3: ASSIGN A CERTIFICATE OF SPONSORSHIP
Once your company’s sponsor licence application has been approved, your business will be able to apply for and then assign a Defined or Undefined Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS).
Certificates of Sponsorship are electronic records that must be assigned to each migrant worker you wish to employ. Each CoS will have a unique reference number that enables an applicant worker to apply for a Skilled Worker visa.
Your Certificate of Sponsorship must have been issued not more than 3 months before the date of your Skilled Worker application.
STAGE 4: AFTER CERTIFICATE OF SPONSORSHIP
Once a Certificate of Sponsorship has been assigned, you will be able to apply for a Skilled Worker visa.
In order to sponsor yourself for a Skilled Worker visa, your visa application will need to demonstrate that:
Your Certificate of Sponsorship is valid;
Your job offer is a genuine vacancy;
Your job is at an appropriate skill level;
You will be paid a salary which equals or exceeds a general salary threshold, the ‘going rate’ for the occupation and a minimum hourly rate (if applicable);
Your sponsor has paid any required Immigration Skills Charge;
You are competent in the English language to at least CEFR Level B1 (equivalent to IELTS 4.0);
You have enough money to support yourself without relying on public funds;
You have provided a criminal record certificate, if required; and
You have provided a valid TB certificate, if required.
You can apply for a Skilled Worker visa up to 3 months before the day you are due to start work in the UK.
If applying from overseas, you should normally receive a decision on your self-sponsored Skilled Worker visa application within 3 weeks. The standard processing time for an application to switch into or extend a stay in the UK as a Skilled Worker is 8 weeks. Priority services may also be available.