On 22 August, the British Home Office announced a new scale-up visa to attract foreign workers with sought-after skills. This visa, which is different from the existing Skilled Worker Visa, allows approved “scale-up businesses” to recruit professionals from anywhere around the world. These professionals will get a 6-month job offer. At the end of this period, they can switch to another job without any sponsorship.
What is a scale-up business?
The website of the UK Government defines a “scale-up business” as a fast-growing business. In the three years before it applies to hire scale-up workers, it must have grown at a minimum of 20% each year in terms of either total sales or workforce. It must also have had at least 10 employees at the start of that 3-year period. The London-based immigration law firm Reiss Edwards estimates that there are currently about 34,000 businesses in the UK that meet these requirements.
The jobs eligible for scale-up sponsorship are limited. They concern specialized skills which are in high demand, some of which are facing a shortage in the UK. The full list of eligible occupations is available on the website of the UK Government. Each occupation has a 4-digit code, which, as Reiss Edwards legal firm clarifies, a prospective employer can provide a prospective employee for them to check if it's eligible for the visa.
What are the eligible occupations?
The eligible occupations, even if limited, cover a variety of fields. This includes: engineers (civil, flight, mechanical, electrical, etc.,); health professionals (radiographers, parademics, nurses, pharmacists, care workers, etc.); IT professionals (systems architects, programmers, web designers, project managers, etc.); finance and banking professionals (brokers, accountants, tax experts, accounts managers, investment analysts, etc.); education professionals (nursery teachers, primary and secondary school teachers, higher education faculty, special needs educators, etc.); legal professionals (judges, barristers, solicitors, legal consultants, etc.); arts professionals (musicians, studio managers, theater agents, etc.); PR and communication professionals (journalists, creative directors, marketing directors, etc.); scientists (environmentalists, biochemists, meteorologists, research fellows, etc.); professionals in the social sciences (political scientists, librarians, archaeologists, social workers, etc.)
How is the Scale-up Visa different from other visas?
The Skilled Worker Visa was previously the main channel to work in the UK as a foreigner. The new Scale-up Visa differs in various ways. First, the Skilled Worker Visa requires sponsorship from a UK-based employer for the entirety of its 5 years. In comparison, after the first 6 months with a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), a scale-up worker can shift to another employer without any sponsorship. They can also become self-employed in the UK.
Secondly, the salary requirement to get a job with the Start-up visa is higher than that of the Skilled Worker Visa. While it is £25,600 for the foreigners categorized as skilled workers, it's £33,000 for those under the category of scale-up workers. Prospective scale-up workers must either make £33,000 or the British ‘going rate' (average salary) of their profession – whichever of the two is higher.
Applicants are advised to consult the going rates for different professions on the website of the UK Government. Jobs in healthcare, for example, have a national pay scale established by the NHS. The salary bands of jobs in education – ranging from Band 1 to Band 9, according to education and experience – are also defined by state authorities.
The going rate also depends on the region – in a big city or in the countryside, in Scotland, England, Wales or Northern Ireland. For example, an applicant for the position of community dentist in Wales should be offered at least £43,021/year to get the scale-up visa, while the same position in Scotland should offer at least £44,315/year under this visa program. A foreign dentist applying for a scale-up visa must hence be offered much more than the general £33,000 threshold.
How is the Scale-up Visa similar to other visas?
Two similarities between the Skilled Worker Visa and Scale-up Visa are that they both have a points-based immigration system and have an English-language requirement.
The Point Based System (PBS) is a test that applicants take to see if they meet at least 70 points of the requirements. The immigration law firm DavidsonMorris clarifies that 50 points are for sponsorship (for a job at their appropriate skill and wage level), 10 points are for the English language level, and 10 points are for proof of funds. The applicant needs to have at least £1,270 (cost of living for 1 month) in their bank account at the time of application. This can be waived if they have already been in the UK for 12 months or if their sponsor certifies that they will pay for the cost of living of the employee during their first month in the UK.
The English language requirement for the Scale-up Visa is of lower-intermediate proficiency. It is a B1 on the scale of the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages). On the IELTS (International English Language Testing System), the test taken by most expats and students moving to the UK, it is an overall score of 4, as well as a 4 on each individual section – Listening, Writing, Reading, Speaking. On the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language), it is a total of at least 42.
The Scale-up Visa also has some similarities with other UK visas that aim to attract highly-skilled foreign workers. The Graduate Visa, for example, doesn't require sponsorship for a recent international graduate from a British university to work in the country for 2 or 3 years. Like scale-up workers after their first 6 months, they can also be self-employed in the UK. The High Potential Individual Visa, which was launched in May 2022, also allows high-value graduates from a list of the world's top universities to work in the UK for two years. It doesn't require sponsorship, either.
These new visas are part of the concerted effort to boost the UK's economy after the blows of Brexit and the pandemic. For instance, the UK's finance and banking sector saw an exodus of companies and professionals who left for the EU/EEA after Brexit, and it now needs more highly-qualified workers. Kevin Foster, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Safe and Legal Migration, has said that “rapidly growing businesses, like small enterprises, tech and financial services, need the right level of support to go to the next level.” This support includes “greater flexibility to hire” foreign talent.
