The UK scale-up visa route for talented foreign immigrants

The government of the United Kingdom unleashed a new visa route last week, known as the Scale-up Worker Visa Route. The Scale-Up worker visa permits talented and highly-qualified overseas workers to come to the United Kingdom to work in an eligible job recruited by a UK Scale-up Sponsor. Successful applicants can work for fast-growing UK businesses, called scale-up businesses.

The UK Home Office launched a new pathway to welcome skilled professionals across the globe, including India. The latest statistics by the British government also unveiled that Indians dominated the UK immigration under skilled visa streams with excellent numbers.

Launched recently from August 2022, the UK scale-up visa route is a way in which you can work in a qualified job for a swiftly growing business in the UK. This should happen for a minimum duration of 6 months and this route allows the UK businesses undergoing fast growth to recruit highly skilled overseas workers and they be the best ones. 

The holders of the UK scale-up visa route can leave their role of being sponsored after 6 months and move or transfer to an unsponsored role. In order to get UK scale-up visa you should have your occupation present on the list of qualified occupations which are in demand. 

In that case your employer should be able to provide 4-digit occupation code for your role. This can be used to check as in whether or not your selected job is qualified. This visa route is to attract top class talent. This in turn pumps up the innovation gene in to the UK business stream. Only the very highly skilled” and “academically elite” have the qualification for this visa.

The latest Scale-up Visa is directed at high-growth businesses to recruit the best and the brightest talent. The visa will benefit many Indians by allowing UK companies to leverage the vast pool of talented Indian professionals. The Scale-Up visa leads to settlement in the UK. Applicants can include their partner and dependent children in the application.

Potential applicants will need a sponsor to be eligible for the scale-up visa. Your employer must fulfill the basic eligibility before sponsoring you for the visa.

Requirements for a Scale-up Visa – Sponsored Application

• Have a confirmed job offer from the UK with a validity of at least six months.
• Have a valid Certificate of Sponsorship issued by the UK-based Sponsor for the job you intend to do. The certificate must also contain information regarding the job role you have been offered.
• Your salary must be equal to or exceed both £33,000 per year, £10.58 per hour, and the 'going rate for the job;
• Your Certificate of Sponsorship must have been issued no more than three months before your Scale-up Visa Sponsored Application date.
• Show English language proficiency of at least CEFR Level B1.
• Have sufficient funds to manage your expenses in the UK. 

Your certificate of sponsorship must contain the below information:

• Your name, job position, and salary;
• Confirmation that you will work for your Sponsor for at least six months;
• Confirmation that the Certificate of Sponsorship:
  •  Has not been used in a previous application that was either issued or refused;
  •  Has not been withdrawn either by the Sponsor or denied by the Home Office.

Eligibility requirements for approved UK employers 2022

Employers must meet the following eligibility requirements:

• To be called a Scale-up business, the company must demonstrate growth of 20% or more in either employment or turnover year-on-year for at least three years;
• Employed a minimum of 10 people at the start of the three years

Financial Funds for Scale-up Visa

The applicant must have £1,270 or more in their bank account and must have held these funds for at least 28 consecutive days before applying. Applicants already residing in the UK for one or more years are exempt from this requirement.

Scale Up Visa- Sponsored and Unsponsored Route

One thing that makes the Scale-Up a standout pathway is its ability to give flexibility to applicants to work under any employer after six months in the UK. The applicant is not obliged to work under the employer who sponsored them initially and can switch jobs after the initial six-month period. If you are wondering how to immigrate to UK, the scale-up visa is the pathway for you.

This kind of provision offers considerable flexibility to visa holders as most employers in the UK do not hold sponsor licenses. Thus, it opens a wide range of employment opportunities for the applicant. You can even become self-employed after a period of 6 months and those who change their job or employer post 6 months need not apply for a new visa. But despite this, you shall need to meet the requirements of salary when you think of applying for visa extension. 

Those who switch jobs after six months' completion need not apply for a new visa. However, they must satisfy the minimum wage requirement while applying for a visa extension. 

However, suppose you want to change your job within the first six months after the approval of your scale-up visa. In that case, you will need to inform the Home Office by submitting an online application regarding your scale-up visa status update. Please note that your new employer must be a scale-up employer.

How Can Abhinav Immigration Services Help?

Our team of talented and experienced immigration agents are expert at handling applications related to the new scale-up visa. Our range of services include:

• Evaluating the needs of your the new Scale-Up visa
• Advise suitable visa options as per your needs
• Checking whether your sponsor meets the scale-up business license criteria
• Applying for a Scale-Up visa
• Follow-ups     

Even if you seek more information about UK Scale Up Worker Visa you can write an email to [email protected] and one of the most experienced immigration consultants will get in touch with you to help you out with your questions and concerns or you can also choose to call us on +91-8595338595 or directly interact with the expert through our Live Chat window.