Senior or Specialist Worker Visa in UK | Application Guidance

Those who hold management positions or possess specialised talents and have the intention of finding temporary work in the United Kingdom are required to submit an application for either a Senior Worker Visa or a Specialist Worker Visa. The foreign worker must be assigned to work for a business that has links to their original employer in order for them to be eligible for employment in the United Kingdom (also known as an intra-company transfer).

After receiving a Senior or Specialist Worker Visa, there is no guarantee that one will be granted permission to permanently reside in the UK. In any event, you may be able to switch to a different category of immigration that does lead to permanent residence if you try hard enough. Applicants are allowed to include their wives and children who are financially dependent on them as part of their application.

A Senior or Specialist Worker visa allows you to come to or stay in the UK to do an eligible job at your employer’s UK branch.

This visa has replaced the Intra-company Transfer visa, previously the Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) Long-term Staff visa.

If you are on a graduate trainee programme, you’ll need to apply for a Graduate Trainee visa.

Eligibility

To qualify for a Senior or Specialist Worker visa, you must:

• be an existing employee of an organisation that’s been approved by the Home Office as a sponsor
• have a ‘certificate of sponsorship’ from your employer with information about the work you will do in the UK
• do a job that’s on the list of eligible occupations
• be paid at least £42,400 per year

How long you can stay

You can stay in the UK with a Senior or Specialist Worker visa for whichever is shorter of:

• the time given on your certificate of sponsorship plus 14 days
• 5 years

If you’re already in the UK with an Intra-company visa or a Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) Long-term Staff visa you can apply to extend your stay as a Senior or Specialist Worker.

The maximum total stay allowed for a Senior and Specialist Worker visa is:

• 5 years in any 6 year period if you’re paid less than £73,900 a year
• 9 years in any 10 year period if you’re paid £73,900 a year or more

Any time you spend in the UK on one of the following visas will be included in your maximum total stay:

• Intra-company Graduate Trainee visa
• Intra-company Transfer visa
• Graduate Trainee visa (Global Business Mobility)
• Secondment Worker visa (Global Business Mobility)
• Senior or Specialist Worker visa (Global Business Mobility)
• Service Supplier visa (Global Business Mobility)
• UK Expansion Worker visa (Global Business Mobility)

The maximum time you could now stay in the UK on a Global Business Mobility visa is 2 years. At the end of that time you would need to spend another 6 months outside the UK before you would be eligible for a Global Business Mobility visa.

If you had a Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) Long-term Staff visa before 6 April 2011

You can stay in the UK for as long as your employer is sponsoring you if you’ve been in the UK since 6 April 2011 on any of the following visas:

• Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) Long-term Staff visa
• Intra-company Transfer visa
• Senior or Specialist Worker visa (Global Business Mobility)

There is no maximum stay.

Family

You can include your partner and children in your application to stay in the UK if they are eligible.

How much it costs

You, your partner or children will each need to:

• pay the application fee
• pay the healthcare surcharge for each year of your stay
• prove you have enough personal savings

Check how much it costs.

How long it takes

You can apply for a visa up to 3 months before the day you are due to start work in the UK. This date is listed on your certificate of sponsorship.

Getting a decision

Once you’ve applied online, proved your identity and provided your documents, you’ll usually get a decision on your visa within:

• 3 weeks, if you’re outside the UK
• 8 weeks, if you’re inside the UK

What you can and cannot do

With a Senior or Specialist Worker visa you can:

• work for your sponsor in the job described in your certificate of sponsorship
• study
• bring your partner and children with you as your ‘dependants’, if they’re eligible
• do voluntary work
• travel abroad and return to the UK

You cannot:

• apply for most benefits, public funds, or the State Pension
• change jobs unless you are eligible and you update your visa
• have a second job – unless you’ve previously had an Intra-company Transfer visa or a Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) Long term Staff visa
• apply to settle permanently in the UK (also known as ‘indefinite leave to remain’)

If your application is successful, you’ll get a full list of what you can and cannot do with a Senior or Specialist Worker visa.