At present if you wish to apply for work in the UK there are several options open. Which option you use to apply to work in the UK depends on your skills and qualifications. If you are highly skilled with a degree and UK work experience you may wish to apply via the Tier 1 of the Immigration Tier system This will enable successful applicant’s freedom to come to the UK and seek work wherever they choose. By applying via the Tier 1 of the Immigration Tier system you are granted access to the UK for two years but have the possibility of staying for longer if you can prove you are in full time employment when your two years come to an end.

If you are not able to apply to work within the UK under the Tier 1 of the Immigration Tier system there is another route open to you; a work permit. The way in which work permits are arranged for work within the UK is that your potential employer applies for the work permit on your behalf; the work permit is then granted for a particular employee.

You are not permitted to apply for a work permit yourself; it has to be done via your employer. It should also be noted that if you are granted a work permit it is not general permission to work anywhere in the UK; it is only specific to the employer who applied for it.

There are certain circumstances in which you don’t need to apply for a work permit, these circumstances include:

• Anyone who has been granted Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK
• People who are in the UK as the spouse of an EEA national
• People who are in the UK as a spouse of a work permit holder
• Commonwealth citizens with ancestry visas – available to commonwealth citizens with a grandparent born in the UK. These are usually issued for a period of four years and after the four years is up a UK candidate is generally eligible for permanent residence

If you don’t fall into one of the above categories it most likely means that in order for you to be able to come to the UK to work you need an employer to apply for a work visa. If you are unsure of whether you need a work permit contact Immigration consult today on 0161 968 3308 or email us at info@immigrationconsult.co.uk.

If you are hoping to work in the UK and need a work permit to do so it should be noted that you cant change jobs without changing your work permit. A work permit is specifically given to an employer for you to work in a certain job. If you wish to change jobs you must get a new work permit to do so and again the permit must be applied for by your new employer.