Senior or Specialist Worker Visa

To be eligible for this global business mobility visa, you must meet the following criteria:

• Be an specialist employee of a Home Office approved sponsor – this does not need to be a UK business
• Have a valid Certificate of Sponsorship from your employer with information on the work you are to do in the UK and your appropriate occupation code
• Do a job on the list of eligible occupations
• Be paid at least £42,400 per year or the ‘going rate’ for your job (whichever is greater)
  • If you have been in the UK since before 6th April 2011 on Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) visa, you only need to be paid the going rate for your job, even if it’s lower than £42,400
• Worked for your employer for the minimum time outside of the UK
  • If you earn less than £73,900 per year, you must have worked for your employer for at least 12 months outside the UK.
  • If your salary is £73,900 or more per year, there is no minimum required time to meet the UK visa requirements

Your employer – also known as your sponsor – will provide you with a ‘Certificate of Sponsorship’. This electronic record will detail the work you will be employed to do in the UK and is a key to you being granted a specialist worker visa.

Specialist Worker Visa applicants will need the reference number from the certificate of sponsorship for their UK visa application. You must apply for your visa within 3 months of getting your certificate of sponsorship otherwise your application will be automatically refused.

Only employers with a Sponsor Licence are able to provide a certificate of sponsorship to senior or specialist workers and they must be approved by the Home Office.

Evidence of Working for Employer Outside of the UK

If you earn below £73,900 per annum then you may be asked to show that you have worked for your sponsoring employer for more than one year. This can be shown via submitting payslips with your visa application.

If you earn less than £73,900 a year you might be asked to show you’ve worked for your employer outside the UK for at least 12 months. If you earn more than £73,900 a year or more, there is no minimum time requirement.

To establish if you have an eligible job to apply for a senior or specialist worker visa you will need to know your four-digit occupation code. This can be found on your Certificate of Sponsorship or you can ask your employer.

You can then check your occupation code against an official list of qualifying senior or specialist worker roles produced by the Home Office.

If you’ve previously qualified for an Intra-company Transfer visa or a Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) Long-term Staff visa

Immigration rules have changed slightly and the following occupation codes have been removed from the list of qualifying job roles:

• 3411: Artists
• 3412: Authors, writers and translators
• 3413: Actors, entertainers and presenters
• 3414: Dancers and choreographers
• 3422: Product, clothing and related designers

However, if you are already in the UK being sponsored under these role then you can continue working until your visa expires. You may also be able to extend your visa under the global business mobility scheme.

If you change your job while in the UK then the new role must be on the list of eligible occupations and you will need to make an application to update or senior or specialist worker visa.

Your partner and children can apply to join you or to stay in the UK as your ‘dependants’ if they’re eligible. If their application is successful, their visa will end on the same date as yours.

A dependant partner or child is any of the following:

• your husband, wife, civil partner or unmarried partner
• your child under 18 – including if they were born in the UK during your stay
• your child over 18 if they’re currently in the UK as your dependant

You must be able to prove that you and are your partner are:

• in a civil partnership or marriage that’s recognised in the UK
• been living together in a relationship for at least 2 years when you apply

If your child is 16 or over they must:

• live with you (unless they’re in full-time education at boarding school, college or university)
• not be married, in a civil partnership or have any children
• be financially supported by you

There are a number of costs involved with applying for a Senior or Specialist Worker visa and in some cases these costs can be partially paid for by your overseas business employer but it is advisable to check before starting your visa application.

You will need to have enough funds to cover the following:

• the application fee – the standard fee ranges from £625 to £1,423 depending on individual circumstances
• the healthcare surcharge so you can access health services during your time in the UK- this is currently £624 per year
• be able to financially support yourself when you come to the UK – you’ll usually need to have at least £1,270 available

Specialist Worker visa application fee

If you’re applying from outside the UK, the fee depends on whether you’ll be in the UK for:

• up to 3 years – £625 per person
• more than 3 years – £1,235 per person

If you’re applying from inside the UK to extend, switch or update your visa, the fee depends on whether you’ll be in the UK for:

• up to 3 years – £719 per person
• more than 3 years – £1,423 per person

Financial requirement for senior or specialist worker visa

On arrival in the UK you must have at least £1,270 available to you and you must be able to prove you have access to the funds for a certain time period – usually via bank statements.

You may be exempt from this requirement if you have already been in the UK on a valid visa for more than year or your employer will be covering your initial costs. If this is the case, then your certificate of sponsorship will need to confirm this and your overseas employer will need to complete the sponsor certifies maintenance section.

When applying via the specialist worker route you’ll need to provide the following:

• your certificate of sponsorship reference number – your employer will provide this
• a valid passport or other document that shows your identity and nationality
• your job title and annual salary
• your job’s occupation code
• the name of your employer and their sponsor licence number – this will be on your certificate of sponsorship
• evidence that you have enough savings to support yourself – this can be in the form of a bank statement or a bank letter
• proof of your relationship with any dependents if they’re applying with you
• you may be asked to provide a negative tuberculosis test depending on your home country

You may also be required to provide the following documents to the immigration service to allow them to process you visa application successfully:

• evidence you’ve worked for your employer outside the UK
• a valid ATAS certification – this is required if your job involves researching a sensitive subject at PhD level or higher
• Provide your biometric information to a visa application centre

If any supporting documents you provide are not in English or Welsh then you will need to provide a certified translation.

How to apply for the UK Senior or Specialist Worker visa

You can apply for the UK senior or specialist worker visa online and you must complete your application within three months of getting your certificate of sponsorship from your employer. As well as providing a range of documents, you will need to prove your identify – this can be done in person at a visa application centre or using the UK Immigration: ID Check app.