For foreign workers who are performing temporary tasks in the UK, there is a Global Business Mobility: Secondment Worker visa path. The employee must be sent on secondment to the UK as a result of a significant investment or contract from their business abroad.
Launched on April 11th, 2022, the Global Business Mobility umbrella consists of five immigration channels. Some of these are brand-new routes, while others are new iterations of already existing routes. One of the new routes is the Global Business Mobility Secondment Worker visa. It is not particularly well-liked and is viewed as a “last resort visa,” as shown by the number of requests made by companies seeking sponsor licences in order to sponsor employees via the route. Only four sponsors now have a permit through the Secondment Worker route out of the approximately 81,000 sponsor licence holders listed on the Register of Worker and Temporary Workers.
This path allows dependent family members to apply to immigrate to the UK, but it does not result in settlement.
Why Is The Path For Seconded Workers Through Global Business Mobility Beneficial?
The nicest part of the method for the sponsor is that there is no immigration skills charge (which is now £1000 per worker each year), general salary requirement, or going rate requirement. Of course, the worker must be paid in accordance with UK National Minimum Wage Law.
The applicant’s proficiency in English is not necessary. As we shall see, the candidate must, however, be qualified to graduate level (RQF Level 6) or above and must have worked for a related company overseas for a minimum period of time prior to becoming eligible.
What Are The Requirements For A Global Business Mobility Seconded Worker Visa?
The applicant must receive 40 points in accordance with the following table:
[wpdatatable id=4]
Under “requirements for the UK sponsor,” points for sponsorship are described in more detail, while under “requirements for the applicant,” points for skill level are described.
Requirements For The UK Sponsor
Having A Licence
An A-rated Global Business Mobility: Secondment Worker sponsor permit is required for the UK sponsor. Although applying for a sponsor licence is outside the purview of this article, the Home Office website provides comprehensive instructions.
Having A Qualifying Overseas Business Link & An Eligible Contract Approved By The Home Office
The sponsor must have an acceptable contract for goods or investment worth at least £10 million annually (and at least £50 million overall) with a foreign company. In the sponsor guidelines, this is defined. In other words, a contract must be worth at least £50 million if it is less than five years long. The contract must be worth at least £10 million annually if it lasts for five years or longer. The deal must be worth at least £50 million over the first five years if it has no set expiry date.
The sponsor must include documentation of the contract with the licence application when applying for a sponsor licence. Once the licence has been granted, the sponsor is only permitted to give Certificates of Sponsorship (often abbreviated as “CoS”) to employees who are engaged in that particular contract. This implies that a sponsor must submit a new contract to the Home Office and wait for approval if they want to assign successive certificates of sponsorship to employees of another foreign company. Prior to assigning a sponsorship certificate, each contract must be approved. If the sponsor does to abide by this condition, the Home Office will cancel the sponsor licence.
Sponsors must use the ‘Request change of circumstances tool’ in their SMS account to submit a new contract and ask for a larger allotment of certificates of sponsorship. Before the sponsor can issue a certificate of sponsorship, the contract and the allocation must be approved by the Home Office.
This need is one that the Home Office takes very seriously. If the sponsor issues a certificate of sponsorship in connection with a contract that hasn’t been submitted, has been submitted but hasn’t yet been accepted, or has been rejected by the Home Office, they will cancel the sponsor’s licence.
Assigning A Valid Certificate Of Sponsorship
A denial is quite possible if the certificate of sponsorship is not adequately drafted and assigned. As contrasted to a Skilled Worker and Senior or Specialist Worker certificate of sponsorship, there are a few significant distinctions that are described below.
- For applications for entry clearance, a certificate of sponsorship with no specifics is needed.
- It should be made clear in the function summary that they are being sponsored under the Secondment Worker approach.
- Choose a SOC Code that is appropriate.
- If the salary is not being paid by the UK sponsor, it must be entered as £0.01 and the payment terms must be described in the free text box located beneath the salary entry.
- The specifics of the contract, including its name and term, must be provided.
- The certificate of sponsorship typically includes a certification of maintenance, primarily to reduce the number of supporting documents needed.
Requirements For The Seconded Worker
The employee must satisfy the conditions for eligibility, suitability, and validity. Before focusing on the specifics of the qualifying standards, we’ll quickly go over the validity and appropriateness requirements.
Validity Requirement
The standards for validity under the new immigration system are comparable to those for the majority of points-based pathways. The applicant must submit a complete visa application, pay the requisite application fee and any applicable Immigration Health Surcharge, enrol their biometrics, provide their supporting documentation, and obtain an assigned certificate of sponsorship no later than three months before to the date of application. The UK Immigration: ID check app can be used to submit an application by those who qualify.
If you weren’t previously in the country on a short-term visa, such as a guest, seasonal worker, or short-term student, you can convert to this method.
Suitability Requirement
The applicant must not be rejected based on one of the reasons listed in Part 9 of the Immigration Rules. They must not be in violation of immigration laws, with the usual exception of paragraph 39E (which contains exceptions for overstayers), and they must not be under immigration bond if they are requesting permission to stay.
Overseas Work Requirement
The applicant must have been employed by the foreign company outside of the UK for a total of at least 12 months in order to be eligible for entry-clearance applications.
Anyone making an application for permission to stay who is extending their visa along the path and continues to work for the same employer as their previous authorization is exempt from this requirement.
Although it is not needed, the Home Office has the right to request supporting documentation from applicants. You might want to submit the proof nonetheless since these applications frequently have strict deadlines in order to prevent any delays. Paystubs and, if issued electronically, a payslip authentication letter on letterhead paper, are acceptable forms of evidence.
Skill Level Requirement
The candidate must be approved for the Global Business Mobility routes and must be sponsored in a graduate-level position (at RQF Level 6) from one of the Appendix Skilled Occupations. The far-right column of Table 1 indicates whether or not eligibility is confirmed.
The sponsor is cautioned to choose a suitable code and not to use a less appropriate code just because it is eligible for the route in the Immigration Rules at paragraphs SEC 6.1 to SEC 6.6. The decision-maker may scrutinise the sponsor and may take into account both the applicant’s abilities, credentials, and experience as well as whether there is a real need for the position. They might also look through the sponsor’s history of compliance.
Genuineness Requirement
The candidate must also really want to fill the position for which they are being sponsored.
The last thing you need is an authenticity criterion when the goal of this way is to guarantee the delivery of work to the UK sponsor. The Home Office has the right to subjectively review the entire application, demand more paperwork, pose inquiries, and impose delays.
As a result, it is advisable to start gathering all the necessary evidence months in advance (while obviously observing the time-sensitive documentary requirements).
How Much Does A Global Business Mobility Secondment Worker Visa Cost?
Sponsors can breathe easier because there is no immigration skills charge. The Immigration Health Surcharge will not apply if the worker is requesting entrance clearance for a time frame of less than six months.
Fees are presently as follows for an application for entry-clearance lasting less than six months:
- Application fee: £259
- Certificate of Sponsorship: £21
- Any priority processing fees: Approx. £250
Note that a recent announcement stating a rise in immigration fees was made.
What Do Successful Global Business Mobility Secondment Worker Visa Applicants Get?
Those who request entry-clearance will receive a 90-day visa sticker and an email confirming their approval. The worker must depart for the UK before that time period is up, and they will probably depart in accordance with the start date listed on their CoS and the UK sponsor’s schedule for finishing the task.
If the worker stays longer than six months after arriving, a biometric residence permit will be given to them. Instead of a physical permit, everybody who submits an application using the UK Immigration app will be given a digital immigration status. When requesting permission to stay, the outcome mainly depends on the applicant’s nationality and previous BRP status.
Prior to the employee’s first day of employment, the UK sponsor must carry out the right-to-work verification that is specified on their Certificate of Sponsorship.
How Long Is A Global Business Mobility Secondment Worker Visa?
A visa will be granted to the applicant for either one year or, if the secondment is for a shorter period of time, for the job’s stated duration on the certificate of sponsorship plus 14 days. Only extensions lasting a total of two years are permitted. On the Global Business Mobility visa routes, a candidate cannot receive cumulative durations of permission totalling more than five years in any six-year term.
It is crucial to ascertain whether the employee has prior authorization under any of the Global Business Mobility visa routes because this will affect the duration of their authorization.
Workers on all Global Business Mobility visa pathways should be reminded that, until they switch into a route that does provide settlement, they will only ever have temporary authorization to be in the UK.
Need Help? Book Your Appointment with our Immigration Barrister or Immigration Team
For expert advice and assistance in relation to a UK visa application or immigration appeal, contact our immigration barrister on 07970286466 or call the office at 02078704870. You can also book the appointment online here.
Written by:
Ghulam Mustafa
Director, Barrister