As a working professional who wants to work in the UK, a question that intrigues us all is that “Will my employer pay for the UK work visa and other expenses?”
Well, it is unlikely that the employer will pay for your UK work visa. However, under certain circumstances, the employer may agree to pay for the work permit in the UK. There are some expenses that are handled by the employer, such as the cost of applying for a sponsorship licence, immigration skills charges, etc.
However, it is important that you have enough funds to sustain your stay in the UK. Apart from the visa, there are also some other expenses involved when applying for a UK work visa. Let us discuss that in detail.
Does the employer pays for your UK visa?
Some of the fees are assessed directly to the company, while others are assessed to the worker who is requesting the visa. Instead of requiring the employee to make significant out-of-pocket payments, many businesses pay for them completely.
Below we have mentioned a few of the expenses which a company might have to pay if they are hiring a foreign national to come to the UK and work.
Expenses incurred by the sponsor
1. Applying for a sponsorship licence
Before they can hire foreign nationals, enterprises in the UK, whether they are public or private organisations, must apply for and obtain a sponsor licence. The cost of a work visa and temporary worker visa for small or charitable sponsors is £536. The cost of temporary workers for medium or large sponsors is the same as that of small sponsors. However, for a worker visa, they might have to pay £1,476.
Now you may ask, what qualifies a company as a small, medium or large sponsor?
Well, if you have less than 50 employees in your company, then you fall into the category of a small sponsor. Additionally, your annual turnover must be less than £10.2 million.
Whereas, if your total assets are worth more than £ 5.1 million and your annual turnover is more than £ 10.2 million, you need to pay charges that are applicable for a medium or large sponsor.
Your sponsor licence will be valid for 4 years from the date of issue. The renewal charges are as same as a new application, provided you meet the eligibility criteria.
2. Sponsorship certificate
An employer needs to pay a charge each time they issue a sponsorship certificate. The cost for a skilled worker licence is £199, whereas it is as low as £ 21 for a temporary worker visa.
3. Immigration skills charges
Every time a company issues a sponsorship certificate, they need to pay immigration skills charges. These charges solely depend upon the size of the company and the tenure for which the worker will stay in the UK.
If the company falls under the category of a small sponsor, they need to pay £ 364 for a year and additional charges of £ 182 for the next 6 months. Similarly, if the company is a medium or big sponsor, the charges applicable are £ 1000 for the first 12 months and an extra £ 500 for the next 6 months.
4. Immigration healthcare surcharge
These charges are not required to be paid for all kinds of visas. It is paid while submitting the application form. It compensates for any National Health Service (NHS)-provided medical care received by the employee while they are in the UK.
It is £ 624 per person annually. However, in some cases, your employer might not pay for these charges, and you might have to pay for them on your own.
5. Premium customer service scheme
Premium customers receive a personal account manager who is solely responsible for meeting all of their immigration needs. This is an optional programme provided by the Home Office that offers first-rate customer support and increased levels of assistance for organisations hiring foreign workers. The charges for small sponsors are £ 8000 per year and £ 25,000 per annum for large sponsors.
Expenses incurred by the applicant
1. Applying for a work visa
An application fee must be paid each time a visa application is made for an overseas worker, whether that application is for a full-time skilled worker, a temporary short-term worker, or under the Intra-company transfer scheme.
The cost of applying for a work visa depends on a number of variables, including the kind of visa, the length of the visa, and whether the applicant is applying from the UK or elsewhere.
However, if you are applying for a UK visa from India, you will have to pay £ 610 and £ 464 if your job lies under the category of shortage occupation. This is for a skilled worker visa with a validity of 3 years.
2. Priority service fees
If you wish to receive your UK work visa faster than the standard duration, then you need to pay an additional fee of £ 500. Paying these additional charges will ensure that you get a decision on your application within 5 days. However, if you wish to receive a notification about your application’s status within 2 days, you must pay an additional fee of £ 800.
3. Charges for biometric
While applying for a UK work visa, you also need to pay biometric fees. It is £ 19.20 for a single application. It covers the cost of taking a photograph and scanning the fingers. It is mandatory for every skilled-worker visa applicant.
Contact Professionals today!
Since applying for a work visa in the UK is expensive, you must ensure that you submit your application properly. As if your application is not submitted properly, you might have to reapply.
To avoid the headache of reapplying and saving some cash, make sure that you get in touch with UK Work Permitz consultants in Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata.