Secondment Worker Visa UK

Part of the Global Business Mobility route, a UK Secondment Worker visa is a temporary work permit that allows you to live and work in the UK for a specified period.

To be eligible, your overseas employer must have a high-value contract with a licensed UK organisation that will act as your sponsor.

Your sponsor will need a valid sponsor licence to employ you in the UK, and your UK job role must be classed as eligible by the UK Home Office.

To obtain this visa, you will need to follow the legal immigration process. This includes meeting the eligibility requirements, completing an application, presenting supporting documents and paying visa fees.

It is important to present the correct information when you apply to help avoid refusal decisions or processing delays.

To be eligible to live and work in the UK via the Secondment Worker route, you, your overseas employer, your job role, and your UK sponsor must meet all of the strict eligibility criteria.

For example, your overseas employer must have a high-value contract with a licensed UK organisation, worth at least £10 million per year or £50 million in total.

They must also retain a direct link (either corporate or operational) to the UK organisation and to the output of the contracted services you will deliver within the UK during your secondment.

As the applicant, you must:

• be over 18 years of age
• have worked for your overseas employer for at least 6 months
• have the appropriate skill level or qualifications for your job role in the UK
• prove you can support yourself financially
• provide a valid tuberculosis test certificate if you’re from a listed country
• do a job in the UK that features on the UK’s ‘list of eligible occupations’
• have a certificate of sponsorship from your UK employer that details your job role and salary

As a sponsor, your UK employer will also need to meet certain conditions for you to remain in the UK legally. This includes issuing a certificate of sponsorship, keeping official records of your detailed personal information and your work contract, noting any absences from your employment, and reporting any significant information to the UK Home Office.

Your sponsor must pay you at least the UK national minimum wage and ensure they comply with UK employment laws.

You will need to present your certificate of sponsorship as part of your visa application. It is a digital document rather than a paper one, and the reference number must be submitted alongside your application form.

You can check whether your overseas employer has an eligible contract, can act as your UK sponsor, and if your job role features on the list of eligible occupations on the UK government’s official website.

You must apply for your visa within 3 months of receiving your Certificate of Sponsorship, and you can apply up to 3 months before your employment start date in the UK.

If granted, you may stay in the UK for up to 12 months from your employment start date or the time given on your certificate plus 14 days, whichever is sooner.

You can apply to extend your visa for up to another 12 months if you wish to stay in the UK longer, but you can only do this once. The maximum length of stay in the UK with a Secondment Worker visa is 2 years.

The Secondment Worker visa is a temporary pathway to living and working in the UK and is therefore not a route to permanent residency or ‘Further Leave to Remain’. It is not designed for people who want to settle in the UK permanently.

If you have spent time in the UK before, you can apply for a Secondment Worker visa; however, your chances of success depend on how much time you have already spent in the UK.

You cannot stay in the UK longer than 5 years in any 6 years if you have spent time in the UK on any of the following UK visas:

• Secondment Worker visa
• Senior or Specialist Worker visa
• Service Supplier visa
• UK Expansion Worker visa
• Graduate Trainee visa
• Intra-Company Transfer visa
• Intra-Company Graduate Trainee visa

For your Secondment Worker visa application, you will need to provide supporting documents to prove you meet the eligibility criteria. The documents needed can vary depending on your individual circumstances; however, perhaps most importantly, you will need to provide your certificate of sponsorship.

Your certificate must include the reference number, your employer’s name and sponsor licence number, and your job’s occupation code.

You will also need to provide your valid passport or ID document to prove your identity and nationality, and your employment contract detailing your job role and salary.

In addition, you may need to supply additional documents to further support your case, such as:

• Bank statements to prove you meet the financial requirements
• A tuberculosis test results letter (if you’re from a listed country)
• Proof of your relationship with any dependent family members who are applying with you

The Home Office may request further documents depending on your circumstances. For example, they may ask you to provide evidence that you have worked for your employer overseas for at least 12 months, or an ATAS certificate if required.

All supporting documents you submit with your application must be written in either English or Welsh. If they are written in another language, you must supply certified translations.

You are allowed to bring your partner and children with you to the UK as your dependents so long as they meet the eligibility requirements.

A dependent can be:

• your spouse, civil partner, or unmarried partner, so long as you have been living together in a relationship for at least 2 years
• a child under 18
• a child over 18 who meets the eligibility requirements

You will need to provide evidence of your relationship to any dependent who joins you in the UK and proof that you can financially support them.

You must apply for a UK Secondment Worker visa online via the UK government’s official website. Here, you will need to complete and submit the online application form, provide supporting documents and pay the relevant fees for your application.

However, the rules for the application process differ depending on whether you are applying from outside or inside the UK. For example, if you’re applying from outside the UK, you may have to arrange an appointment at your local Visa Application Centre.

Applying from Outside the UK

If you are applying for your first Secondment Worker visa from outside of the UK, you will need to fill out the online application form and prove your identity. There are two options when verifying your identity, depending on the type of passport you have.

If you have an eligible passport, you can scan your identity document (passport) using the ‘UK Immigration: Check ID’ app. When you do this, you will either need to create a UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account or sign in if you already have one.

Or, if you cannot verify your identity digitally, you must secure an appointment at your local Visa Application Centre. You will need to take your passport with you to your appointment and will be asked to provide your biometric information, such as your photograph and fingerprints.
It is worth noting that you will need to travel to your nearest Visa Application Centre, which, depending on where you are applying from, can be in another country.

Extending Your Visa from Inside the UK

Provided you meet all of the eligibility requirements to extend your stay, you can apply to extend your Secondment Worker visa from inside the UK. You must be in the UK to apply for this visa extension and cannot travel outside of the UK until you get a decision. If you do so, your application to extend your visa will be withdrawn.

Following the same initial procedure, you must apply online to extend your visa on the UK government’s official website, provide supporting documents with your application, and pay all relevant fees.

It is important to note that any family visa holders (such as your partner or children) will need to apply to extend their visa separately. It does not automatically renew when you apply to extend yours, and they will need to make their own application to remain in the UK legally. They can either apply at the same time as you, or before their current visa expires.

Switching Your Visa from Inside the UK

If you’re in the UK on a different visa, under certain circumstances, you may be able to apply to switch it to the Secondment Worker visa, so long as it is not any of the following:

• visit visa
• short-term student visa
• parent of a child student visa
• seasonal worker visa
• domestic worker in a private household visa

If you are on any of the above-mentioned visas, you will need to leave the UK and apply from overseas.

The criteria to switch your UK visa to the Secondment Worker visa are strict, and you must ensure you meet all of the eligibility requirements. For example, you cannot apply to switch to the Secondment Worker visa if you’re currently in the UK on immigration bail or have been granted permission to stay outside of the regular immigration rules, for example, on compassionate grounds.

If you’re in the UK on a Student visa, in addition to meeting the general eligibility criteria, one of the following must apply:

• You have completed the course you were sponsored to study in the UK
• Your employment start date is after your course in the UK has finished
• You have studied for a PhD for at least 2 years

Again, you must follow the same application procedure when applying to switch and must fill out and submit the online application form, provide supporting documents and pay all the relevant fees.

When you apply, you should ensure all the information, including your supporting documents, is error-free to avoid a refusal decision or delays when processing your application. Mistakes can be costly and time-consuming, so it is important to get it right.

If there is a delay in processing your application, this can directly affect your ability to start work in the UK. If your application is refused due to an error, you may have to reapply. If you have to reapply, you must submit a completely new application, which will include paying all the application fees again and waiting for a decision. The fees you paid on your original application will not be refunded.

There are costs to consider when applying for a Secondment Worker visa. Firstly, you must pay the Secondment Worker visa application fee, which is currently £340.

To enable you to access healthcare whilst resident in the UK, you will also need to pay the UK healthcare surcharge, which is currently £1035 per year of your stay.

You will also need to show that you have the money to support yourself for at least the first month of your stay in the UK. The current rules state that you must prove you have at least £1,270 in your bank account when you apply. It must have remained in your bank account for at least 28 consecutive days before your application date.

There are some exceptions to this rule, for example if you have been in the UK for 12 months or more or if your sponsor agrees to support you instead.

If your sponsor agrees to support you, they will need to fill out the required section on your certificate of sponsorship that you will submit online when you apply.

Any supporting documents you submit as part of your application must be written in either English or Welsh. If they are in another language, you will have to provide certified translations at your own expense.

All fee payments must be made online digitally through the official application portal, and cannot be paid in cash.

The time it takes to receive a decision on your Secondment Worker visa application can vary depending on factors related to your individual circumstances. For example, processing times vary by the country you’re applying from and may be delayed if your case is complex.

Generally, however, if you’re applying from outside of the UK, you should expect to receive a decision within 3 weeks. If you’re applying from inside the UK, the average processing time is 8 weeks.

You may be able to get a faster decision (between 5 and 30 days) by paying for the priority service offered by the UK immigration system, or you can pay for the ‘super priority service’ to get a decision by the end of the next working day.

However, even if you pay for the priority service, some applications may still take longer than expected to process. For example, if the Home Office requires more information from you to process your application or needs to run checks with other government departments, you could experience a delay.

If this happens, any funds paid for priority service are usually not refunded. The processing time finishes when you receive confirmation that a decision has been made.

You will receive a decision on your visa application via email. If your application is approved, you will be issued an eVisa confirming you have entry clearance to the UK. You can access your eVisa and check your digital immigration status via the UKVI account that you created at the beginning of the application process.

If your application is refused, you will receive the decision in an email or letter along with a detailed explanation of the reasons why. It will also detail whether or not you have the legal right to appeal the refusal decision or request an administrative review.

If you choose to appeal your decision, your case will go to a First-tier Tribunal. It will be examined in depth, and the information from both sides will be presented before a judge. The tribunal is independent of the government and should investigate your case without prejudice against the current UK immigration law.

If you do not have the right to appeal your refusal decision, you may be able to ask for an administrative review. This is where the Home Office take a second look at your application. There is a fee to do so, and you must make your request within 28 days of receiving your refusal decision.

A review can take 12 months or longer to finalise, and you cannot apply for another visa or any make any other immigration applications during this time. If you do so, your administrative review will be cancelled and withdrawn.

You can also withdraw from an administrative review yourself; however, if you choose to do so, you will not receive any refund of the administration fees you paid to start the process. You cannot usually apply for a second review.

If your visa application is approved, your decision letter should detail your rights and responsibilities as a Secondment Worker visa holder.

Visa holders in the UK have certain rights and responsibilities when resident in the UK. There are different rules for different visas and visa categories. As one of the Global Business Mobility Routes, UK Secondment Worker visa holders can:

• work for their sponsor as described in the certificate of sponsorship
• undertake voluntary work
• study
• bring eligible dependent family members to the UK (such as a partner or children)
• travel abroad and return to the UK

There are also some restrictions. For example, UK Secondment Worker visa holders cannot:

• apply for most benefits (public funds), or the State pension
• apply for permanent settlement in the UK
• do a second job (unless it is an eligible voluntary position)
• change jobs without updating their visa

It is essential to abide by visa rules to remain legal in the UK. Those who violate UK immigration laws can face severe consequences, including large fines or prosecution. You can also be stripped of your visa, deported, and in some extreme cases, be barred from applying for a UK visa in the future.

You must apply to update your Secondment Worker visa if your occupation code changes; however, you must still have the same sponsor. If you do switch job roles, any dependents must also apply to update their visa.

They will need to apply separately and can do so at the same time as you or before their current visa expires.

You can apply to update your visa up to 3 months before the start date of your new job role and can continue working in your current job whilst your application is processing.

You should not start working in your new job role until you have permission from the UK Home Office to do so, and you cannot leave the UK during the processing stages. If you do, your application to update your visa will be withdrawn.

Visa applications can be complex, time-consuming, costly, and stressful. Immigration law can be difficult to navigate, especially internal secondment rules, and many people may find it easier to seek advice.

At Manchester Immigration Lawyers, we provide a bespoke service to each of our customers. We assess each case individually and tailor our services to meet your immigration needs.

We can explore your circumstances in detail and help with any aspect of the application process. We can help you fill in forms, gather supporting documents, and understand all fees that you are responsible for.

We will guide you through the entire process quickly and accurately. We offer a complete range of services and can help you apply to extend or switch your visa; we can even prepare you for an interview if applicable.

We can also help if your visa application has been refused. We can help you request an administrative review or represent you in court should you wish to appeal.

Our team is made up of experienced and qualified professionals ready to take your call. Contact us on 0161 826 9783 or reach out online.