Work Rules for PGT students Sharon Bolton, Head of International Student Support, Imperial College London

Points Based System Tier 1: Graduate Entrepreneur, Entrepreneur, Investor, Exceptional Talent, Highly Skilled / Post Study Work Tier 2: skilled workers with a job offer, to fill gaps in the UK labour force Tier 3:low skilled workers to fill specific temporary labour shortages: (dormant) Tier 4:students, doctorate extension Tier 5:youth mobility, temporary workers, sponsored researchers

Post 2012 – some statistics 2012:34,895 PSW visas issued in-country 2013:4174 students into Tier 2 visas 209 Tier Tier 1 GE 2014: 5639 students into Tier 2 visas 379 Tier Tier 1 GE

Rules on Working while on a Tier 4 visa UG students: up to 20 hours per week in term time, unlimited hours during official vacations MSc students: up to 20 hours per week until official course end date PhD students: up to 20 hours per week until viva & final corrections done Tier 2 (G)/Tier 1(GE)/Tier 4 (DE) application submitted but not decided: full-time work

Tier 4 visa holders cannot … be self-employed be employed as a professional sportsperson (including coach) be employed as an entertainer take a permanent full-time job work as a doctor or dentist in training, unless on the relevant medical foundation programme

Internships / Work Placements? If full-time, and before official course end date, must be an integral and assessed part of the course Cannot be more than 50% of the course Tier 4 sponsor (university) remains responsible for attendance monitoring etc Agreement (letter) between university and employer Payment is permitted

Volunteering / voluntary work? Permission to work = permission to do voluntary work Voluntary workers usually have contractual obligations and some form of remuneration (unpaid worker) Students who are volunteering do not have a contract and may only get travel expenses / payment in kind. Helping a charity / voluntary / public sector organisation Useful examples: work-experience-and-internshipshttps:// work-experience-and-internships

2015 Tier 4 changes Students sponsored by publicly-funded FE Colleges: No permission to work during studies (except work placement) from 3 August – new students Cannot switch into a work visa in the UK from 12 November Cannot apply for a new Tier 4 visa in the UK to progress from College to University from 12 Nov

Work After Study: Tier 2 UG and PGT students on student/Tier 4 visa who have been awarded their degree (or PhD students who have completed at least 12 months) with a Graduate Level job offer (specific salary requirements – minimum £20,800): practice-for-skilled-workers practice-for-skilled-workers Employer must be on list of registered sponsors: sponsors-workers sponsors-workers No Resident Labour Market Test (RLMT) if switching within UK Not part of the 20,700 cap if switching within UK

Important documents for a Tier 2 application Degree Certificate OR Tier 2 Reference Letter confirming that degree has been awarded / 12 months of PhD completed: Original letter on headed paper Signed & stamped Student’s name Course title (BSc, MEng, Msc, PhD) Course start date Course end date (unless studying for a PhD) Date of award (unless mid-PhD) Written consent from sponsor to remain in UK (if fully sponsored by government or international scholarship agency)

Tier 2 timeline: Masters students October 2015 Course starts Graduate programmes start recruiting August/Sept 2016 Graduate Programmes start but MSc not finished October 2016 Graduate programmes start recruiting November 2016 Written confirmation of successful degree completion January/February 2017 Last date to start position Tier 4 visa expires Apply to immediate graduate vacancies with tier 2 employers

Tier 5 : Temporary Worker Youth Mobility Scheme Nationals/passport holders of: Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, New Zealand, Hong Kong SAR, South Korea, Taiwan on day of application 2 years visa, apply outside UK, annual allocations Government Authorised Exchange Sponsor is an overarching body: often additional fees 1-2 years visa: work experience or professional training (eg internship) UK degree + maintenance requirement Schemes of interest: Tier 5 Intern Scheme, International Student Internship Scheme

Tier 1 Graduate Entrepreneur Home Office: “For MBA and other UK graduates who have been identified by Higher Education Institutions as having developed genuine and credible business ideas and entrepreneurial skills to extend their stay in the UK after graduation to establish one or more businesses in the UK” UUK: “an extremely limited route which is of little interest to most”

Tier 1 Graduate Entrepreneur: what kind of business? The Home Office defines a business as a sole trader, partnership or a company registered in the UK. At Imperial a ‘genuine and credible’ business should be able to demonstrate a sound financial plan, a clear business development strategy and evidence of who will support the development of the business. Business may not involve property development or property management Business must not be a routine business that merely competes with local traders eg clothing shop

Tier 1 Graduate Entrepreneur Step 1: Apply for endorsement – check with university for local arrangements. Possible to endorse graduates of other universities, but most choose not to do this. Step 2: Apply for visa: degree must be awarded before endorsement is issued, demonstrate savings of £945 (£1890 if applying overseas) for 90 days Visa granted? Valid for 1 year, university monitoring

Useful Sources of Information UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) UK Visas and Immigration Tier 5 list of GAE schemes: authorised-exchange-schemes