We have a sponsor licence, and we are looking at whether we can sponsor a skilled worker currently in our employment whose graduate visa expires shortly. We're not sure we can sponsor him in the role he is in.
It is possible for graduate visa holders to switch to a skilled worker visa. This switching application can be prepared and submitted in the UK.
Before confirming that you can support the sponsorship of this proposed skilled worker visa, you will need to consider whether the role is eligible for sponsorship.
In very general terms, this requires that a skill and a salary level is met. To meet the skill level, the job must be at or above RQF Level 3, which is equivalent to A-levels. The Home Office provide tables within the Immigration Rules which list the occupations which are sufficiently skilled to qualify for a skilled worker visa.
The salary requirement varies depending on the job role and the specific circumstances of the applicant. There are two salary thresholds, the general threshold and the going rate for the role. The general threshold is £38,700, however people who are switching from a graduate visa to a skilled worker visa benefit from a lower general threshold of £30,960 gross per annum.
The going rate is defined by the Home Office for each role. People switching from a graduate visa to a skilled worker only need to be paid at 70% of the going rate.
These lower thresholds apply for a maximum period of four years, including the period with a graduate visa. This means that they usually only apply for the first two years of a skilled worker visa.
You will need to look carefully at the role and the salary before considering sponsorship for this graduate visa holder.
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