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Fri, 22/8/2008

Tier 1 (General) Highly Skilled Workers

Tier 1 (General) for highly skilled migrants is one of the most popular ways to settle in the UK and is designed to allow highly skilled people to come to the United Kingdom to look for work or self-employment opportunities. With this programme, the British Government hopes to continue to attract the most talented people with the skills the UK needs to remain a global leader in the fields of finance, business, and technological innovation.  

People often believe that they are not ‘highly skilled’ enough for the programme. Qualifying for this programme is however not as difficult as most people perceived it to be and people are often surprised to see that they do qualify!

One of the main reasons for the popularity of this permit lies in the fact that it leads to permanent residence in the UK. The permit is granted for an initial period of three years, after which the holder has to apply for an extension of the permit, a process which effectively involves re-passing the points test. If successful, the permit is granted for another two years and at the end of this period, the holder will be able to qualify for permanent residence in the UK. After one year as a permanent resident, the holder may qualify for British citizenship.

The other main advantage of this permit is the fact that a person on a Tier 1 (General) permit has no work restrictions imposed on him/her. With this permit, you can start your own business, change employment without any administrative hassle and even combine employment with self-employment.

Unlike other work permits or business people schemes, you do not need a job offer or detailed business plan to apply for Tier 1 (General) - highly skilled worker. When you apply you are awarded points based on your qualifications, previous earnings, United Kingdom experience, age, English language, and available maintenance (funds). 

Tier 1(General) of the new points based immigration system has come into effect on 30 June 2008, and replaced the previous form of this permit - the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme in its totality.

How do I qualify for this permit? 

To qualify to apply under the points-based system under the Highly Skilled Tier 1 (General) scheme, you must score the following points:

  • At least 75 points for your attributes (age, qualifications, previous earned income and experience in the UK)
  • 10 points for English Language
  • 10 points for available maintenance (funds)

Points can be scored as follows: 

Tier 1 (General) - Attributes

 
 
 

PLEASE NOTE: You have to score at least 75 points for your attributes

AGE

 

 

27 or under

20

28 or 29

10

30 or 31

5

32 and over

0

 

 

 

ACADEMIC and PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

 

 

Bachelor degree

30

Masters degree

35

PhD

50

 

 

Points can be claimed for an equivalent professional qualification, e.g. Chartered Accountant

PAST EARNINGS

Points available for earnings claimed

£40,000 + 

45

£35,000 - £39,999

40

£32,000 - £34,999

35

£29,000 - £31,999

30

£26,000 - £29,999

25

£23,000 - £25,999

20

£20,000 - £22,999

15

£18,000 - £19,999

10

£16,000

5

Please note: If some or all of your income has been earned abroad, you should convert your earnings to Pound Sterling, and adjust your total income earned abroad by using the following uplift ratios.

Conversion Rate – 1.0

Andorra, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bermuda, Canada, Cayman Islands, Channel Islands, Denmark, Finland, France, French Polynesia, Germany, Gibraltar, Guam, Hong Kong, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, San Marino, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE, United Kingdom, United States of America, Vatican

Conversion Rate – 2.3

American Samoa, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Botswana, Brunei, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Faeroe Islands, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Hungary, Israel, Korea, Rep. of (South Korea), Latvia, Lebanon, Libya, Macao(China), Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Netherlands Antilles, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Northern Mariana Islands, Oman, Palau, Panama, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Taiwan  (Territory of),Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela, Virgin Islands

Conversion Rate – 3.2

Albania, Algeria, Belarus, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cape Verde, China  (excluding Hong Kong), Colombia, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Fiji, Gabon, Guatemala, Honduras, Iran, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Macedonia, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Morocco, Namibia, Nauru, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Romania, Russian Federation, Samoa, South Africa, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Swaziland, Syrian Arab Republic,  Thailand, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Vanuatu, West Bank and Gaza, Yugoslavia

Conversion Rate – 5.3

Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Cameroon, Comoros, Congo, Republic of the, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Djibouti, Equatorial  Guinea, Gambia, Georgia, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Mauritania, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Senegal, Serbia, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Timor L’Este, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Conversion Rate – 11.4

Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Central African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of the, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Korea (N), Kyrgyz Republic, Lao PDR, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mayotte, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda

UK EXPERIENCE

You can claim five points if you have previous experience of living in the UK if either:

You have successfully scored points under the previous earnings category and your earnings were in the UK.

5

OR

You have studied and graduated at Bachelors degree level or higher in full time higher education in the UK, or at a UK-based overseas educational institution, for at least one full academic year.

5

You can only score a total of five points in this category. You can not score five points for UK earnings and five points for UK qualifications.

Tier 1 (General) – English Language

 
 
 

You can claim 10 points under this category, as follows

You are a national of a majority English speaking country (Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, New Zealand, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, The United States of America

10

OR

You have an English Language test certificate from one of the providers that have been assessed as meeting the Agency’s requirements (list available on request)

10

OR

You hold a degree which is equivalent to UK Bachelor degree level or higher, which was taught or researched in English to a particular level.

10

Tier 1 (General) – Maintenance

You can claim 10 points under this category as follows

For in-country applications - You have sufficient funds of at least £800 personal savings (maintained for at least the last three months)

For out-of-country applications - you have sufficient funds of at least £2,800 personal savings (maintained for at least three months)

10

AND, if any dependants are included with your application:

You (or your dependant) have sufficient funds of at least £533 personal savings for each dependant (maintained for at least the last three months), if the main applicant has been in the UK for at least the last twelve months, or personal savings of at least £1,600 for each dependant if the main applicant has been in the UK for less than twelve months

10

You can only score a total of ten points in this category.

Do I need to apply for entry clearance?

In-country applications - If you are currently in the UK in an immigration category which allows you to change your immigration status to a Tier 1 (General) permit holder, you will not be required to return to your home country in order to apply for entry clearance at the British High Commission.

Out-of-country applications - If you are currently in the UK in an immigration category which does not allow you to change your immigration status to a Tier 1 (General) permit holder from within the UK, or if you are not currently in the UK, you will be required to return to your home country in order to lodge the full Tier 1 (General) permit application to the British High Commission. You will not be required to apply for entry clearance, separately from your Tier 1 (General) permit.

Some Rules and Restrictions on the Tier 1 (General) permit holder:

  • You have no work restrictions imposed on your stay in the UK.
  • You do not have recourse to public funds.
  • You will at first obtain permission to stay in the UK for three years to seek work or self-employment opportunities. After three years you can apply for an extension which will be granted if the UK Home Office is satisfied that you meet the requirements for the Tier 1 (General) extension application.
  • You are allowed to apply to bring your dependants to the UK on this programme.
  • You cannot work as a Doctor in training – i.e. take a training post within the NHS

What happens at the end of the initial three year period:

A Tier 1 (General) permit holder will be able to apply for an extension at the end of his/her initial three year period as a Tier 1 (General) permit holder. You will be required to claim at least 75 points for your attributes, 10 points under the English Language requirement, and 10 points under the maintenance requirement (as above) in order to qualify for the extension.

The criteria for points for your attributes will remain the same as for the initial Tier 1 application, with the exception of the points awarded under the age criteria, which will be as follows:

AGE (Applicants already in the UK as a Tier 1 (General) Migrant)

 

 

30 or under

20

31 or 32

10

33 or 34

5

35 and over

0

 

 

 

AGE (Already in the UK as an HSMP holder)

 

 

29 or under

20

30 or 31

10

32 or 33

5

34 and over

0

 

 

 

 

Does the Tier 1 (General) permit lead to Indefinite Leave to Remain?

Yes, after five years as a Tier 1 (General) permit holder you should be able to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain. If a person decides to switch over from another permit that leads to Indefinite Leave to Remain, that time should not be lost, as it will normally be consolidated with the time spent on the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme. However there are exceptions and advice should be sought.

Thinking of applying for the Tier 1 - highly skilled worker? Click here to contact us!

 

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