Changes to Tiers 2 and 5 of the pointsbased immigration system

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1 Changes to Tiers 2 and 5 of the pointsbased immigration system Document purpose This document sets out the changes that the UK Border Agency (UKBA) is making to Tiers 2 and 5 of the points-based immigration system. These changes come into force on 6 April. The UKBA has released a number of details about the changes, although they have not yet released final new sponsor guidance. Final details may not be released until much closer to the date of the change, and we wanted to inform Faculties and Departments as soon as possible; we are as confident as we can be that the information below will not change. SOC Codes The 2000 SOC system is changing to the 2010 system, which means that some codes are changing. The following codes are frequently used in the University. Changed codes are in bold type: Old code and description New code and description 2111 Chemists 2111 Chemical scientists 2112 Biological Scientists and research 2112 Biological scientists and biochemists chemists 2113 Physicists, geologists and 2113 Physical scientists meteorologists 2311 Higher education teaching 2311 Higher education teaching professionals professionals 2321 Scientific researchers 2119 National and social science professionals not 2322 Social science researchers 2114 Social and humanities scientists 2329 Researchers not elsewhere classified 2119 National and social science professionals not Implications for the University New Certificates of Sponsorship New Certificates of Sponsorship for assignment after 6 April will need to use the new SOC codes. Extending Certificates of Sponsorship For an extension application, a new SOC 2010 code which is the equivalent to the SOC code used in the original application will need to be used (see the table above). Otherwise, a new Resident Labour Market Test will need to be conducted. The UKBA will be providing a full mapping table from SOC 2000 to SOC 2010.

2 Pay thresholds Various pay thresholds are changing. The ones relevant to the University for CoS application purposes are as follows: Description Old threshold New threshold Minimum salary to qualify for Tier 2 (General) 20,000 20,300 Jobs exempt from advertising with Universal Jobmatch* 70,000 71,000 Jobs exempt from Resident Labour Market Test 150, ,100 * PhD level jobs remain exempt from advertising with Universal Jobmatch, no matter the salary. Other exemptions, such as students switching from Tier 4, still apply. Resident Labour Market Test Advertising media The UKBA has increased the number of different media that PhD-level jobs must be advertised in from one to two. It remains that case that PhD-level jobs need not be advertised in Universal Jobmatch. The guidance that the UKBA has released so far is not clear about whether Universal Jobmatch will count under these circumstances as one of the two media for PhD-level jobs (although we expect it will not, given that it is not currently acceptable for use on its own for PhD-level Resident Labour Market Tests). It would therefore be advisable to use two other media for advertising PhD-level jobs. The UKBA has improved the guidance on what media can be used. This information will no longer be found in individual Codes of Practice. Instead, the UKBA has introduced generic guidance. The following criteria can be used: Type of medium Newspaper Professional journal Website Criteria for suitable media Must be: marketed throughout the UK, and published at least once a week Must be: available nationally throughout retail outlets or through subscription, published at least once a month, and related to the nature of the job i.e. a relevant trade journal, official journal of a professional occupational body, or subject-specific publication. Must be one of the following: an online version of a newspaper or professional journal which would satisfy the criteria above, the website of a prominent professional or recruitment organisation, which does not charge a fee to jobseekers to view job advertisements or to apply for jobs via those advertisements (e.g. jobs.ac.uk), or the University s Job Opportunities web pages

3 Named researchers The Immigration Rules will be amended to clarify the rules on named researchers, so that if a job offer meets the following criteria, it will be exempt from the Resident Labour Market Test: The job offer must be in a supernumerary research position where the applicant has been issued a scientific research Award or Fellowship, meaning that the role is over and above the Sponsor s normal requirements and if the applicant was not there, the role would not be filled by anyone else. Although this replaces the existing wording on named researchers in the Codes of Practice, we do not believe that this amounts to a substantial practical change. It should not cause difficulty for the University in most cases. Salaries for new entrants and experienced workers The changes distinguish new entrants from experienced workers for the purpose of determining the minimum salary which can be paid to them. The actual amounts of money depend on the SOC code. Definitions A new entrant employee is one who is: A graduate switching from Tier 4 to Tier 2 under the UKBA post-study route Anyone aged 25 or under on the date of their initial Tier 2 application An experienced worker is: Anyone not meeting the definition of a new entrant above or Anyone applying to extend their stay in the UK under Tier 2 beyond 3 years and 1 month will be treated as an experienced worker. The UKBA has indicated that they will not make individual exceptions to this rule. The new entrant and experienced worker salaries for SOC codes commonly used by the University are as follows: Old code New code and description New entrant Experienced worker Chemical scientists 20,300 26, Biological scientists and biochemists 20,300 26, Physical scientists 20,300 26, Higher education teaching professionals 23,800 30, National and social science professionals not 20,300 26, Social and humanities scientists 20,300 26,000 Implications for the University These changes will not affect appointments to academic positions, nor appointments as Research Associates or higher grades of researchers. There are issues for appointing Research Assistants who

4 are classed as experienced workers. This is because only the top two points of Grade 5 exceed the experienced worker rate for the relevant SOC codes. For Research Assistants who: fall into the experienced worker category we intend to sponsor under Tier 2, have completed their PhD and are simply awaiting formal confirmation that they have passed, and who will be promoted to Research Associate backdated to their start date, the HR Division expect to be able to approve HR4 applications to appoint them to the penultimate point of Tier 5. This is because, upon promotion, any salary differential between different individuals in this position will be eliminated by the backdating of the Research Associate salary. It will not be possible to appoint an individual in need of sponsorship to a substantive position of Research Assistant unless a case can be made (using the normal HR4 process) to appoint them at the top or penultimate point on scale. Restricted CoS application deadlines UKBA deadlines The UKBA is changing the Restricted CoS application deadline for April. Normally, applications must be made between 6 March and 5 April for decision on 11 April. Instead, the UKBA will accept applications made between 6 April and 17 April for decision on 19 April. Applications made for restricted CoSs made between 18 April and 5 May will be decided on 11 May. Internal deadlines This means that to allow for processing time for the Compliance Team the internal deadlines for restricted Certificates of Sponsorship for April and May will be as follows: Friday 5 April Friday 26 April Transitional arrangements If the University assigns a CoS before 6 April, the old Codes of Practice, salary thresholds and advertising criteria will apply. It is the date of assignment that matters, not the date that the individual applies for their visa. Adverts placed before 6 April will need to comply with the old rules: for example, PhD-level jobs only need to have been placed in one medium, and the old salary thresholds for advertising will apply. Administrative Arrangements The Tier 2 and 5 CoS application forms have been revised to take into account the new requirements. They have been circulated with this note, and the versions on the HR website will be

5 replaced. Please use the new forms for cases where the CoS will be assigned on or after 6 April. Please contact the Compliance Team with any comments.