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Advice for International Students:

Advice for UK students:

Working in the UK after your studies

General

Can I stay in the UK to work after I have finished studying?

This depends on whether you meet the requirements for any of the schemes that the UK Government operates.

At the moment, the schemes that are most significant for students who have finished their studies are:

  • Tier 2 for jobs where no one in the resident labour market can be recruited, and occupations where there is a shortage of qualified workers. This replaced work permits and some other work routes from 27 November 2008. Please note that UKCISA cannot provide detailed information about Tier 2 and how to apply under it. If you have a prospective employer, you should ask them. If they cannot help, you should seek legal advice.
  • Tier 5 for a stay of up to 2 years in the UK for work. There are many different schemes within Tier 5, so you need to check if you meet all the requirements of one or more of them. In most cases, you cannot make a Tier 5 application in the UK if you have Tier 4 immigration permission, so you will have to return to the country where you usually live and make an entry clearance application there. However, it is possible for students to apply in the UK under Tier 5 (Government Authorised Exchange) if you need to stay for training in order to qualify in your profession after your studies here. If this is of relevance to you, you should check with your professional body if it is or intends to become a Tier 5 sponsor.
  • Tier 1 for investors, entrepreneurs, including recent graduates from selected UK institutions, and those who are internationally recognised or likely to become world leaders in the arts, humanities, science or engineering.

Working in the UK after your studies

Can I work full-time when I have completed my study?

If you have permission to work, you can work full-time when you have completed your course. The date on which you finish your studies is decided by your college or university. It is often the end of term or semester, even if you complete your exams or coursework before that date. You should not work full-time before then.

Remember that you must still comply with the student restrictions. This means that you must not:

  • be self-employed or work as a professional sportsperson or entertainer
  • take a permanent full-time job.
If you want or if your employer requires confirmation that you can work full-time when you have completed your studies, see page 71 of the UK Border Agency's guidance for employers:

Comprehensive Guidance for Employers on Preventing Illegal Working.

Can I work while I wait for a decision on my Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) or Tier 2 application?

If you applied under Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) before your immigration permission to be in the UK as a student expired, you can work full-time while you for the decision on your Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) application. You can carry on working full-time even after your student permission expires, if you are still waiting for the decision at that stage. But you must not:

  • engage in business, self-employment or provide services as a professional sportsperson or entertainer
  • pursue a career by filling a permanent full-time vacancy

Letter from the Home Office explaining the position.

If you have applied to stay under Tier 2, it can be possible to start the Tier 2 job for which your employer has assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship before the UK Border Agency has decided your Tier 2 immigration application, even if it is a permanent full-time job. This applies to you if you have completed a course of study at degree level and you were sponsored by a recognised body or by an institution that receives public funding as a higher education institution. Check with your university or college if it meets one of these requirements.

What changed on 6 April 2012?

The UK Government announced a number of changes it has made to the Tier 2 (General), Tier 2 (Sportsperson), Tier 2 (Minister of Religion), Tier 5, Overseas Domestic Worker and Visitor routes on 6 April. As well as closing Tier 1 (Post-Study Work), it has introduced the following provisions:

  • Time spent in Tier 2 will be limited to 6 years; if you are not granted settlement or permission to stay in the UK in some other category, you will have to leave the UK (this applies to you only if you apply or applied for Tier 2 leave on or after 6 April 2011)
  • You will be able to apply for settlement after 5 years with Tier 2 leave, but in most cases your pay must be £35,000 or the minimum in the relevant Code of Practice, whichever is higher; the minimum wage requirement will not apply to you if:
    • your job is or has been on the Shortage Occupation list
    • your job is a "PhD-level job" (this includes research and development managers, scientists, researchers and higher education teaching professionals)
    • you have Tier 2 (Minister of Religion) leave
  • If you apply for Tier 2 leave on or after 6 April 2012, and you are unable or do not want to apply for settlement before the end of your 6-year period, you will have to spend 12 months outside the UK or in a different immigration category before you can apply again under Tier 2; this is called a "cooling off period"
  • Time spent in work experience, internship and exchange schemes covered by Tier 5 (Government Authorised Exchange) is limited to 12 months (currently 24 months) if you apply on or after 6 April 2012; the full list of affected schemes is on pages 23 and 24 of the Statement of Intent
  • A new visitor route allows certain people, including examiners, lecturers, lawyers, professional artists, entertainers and sportspersons, to come to the UK for a maximum of one month to undertake paid engagements
  • You can no longer bring staff (Overseas Domestic Workers in private households) with you to the UK if you come as a student or worker; this route is now restricted to those coming as visitors.

Settlement should remain possible under other routes, including long residence.

Statement of Intent and related documents

What is Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur)?

This is a new immigration category, with rules that came into force on 6 April 2012. The UK Border Agency has invited education providers to register as sponsors under this scheme and will publish the list of participating sponsors on its website after 14 May 2012.

Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) is aimed at students who have completed a degree course in the UK and who wish to develop ideas or entrepreneurial skills by setting up a business in the UK. You need to be sponsored by the institution where you studied and there is a limit of 1000 places (maximum 10 per participating institution).

You will need to show when you apply that you have held the sum of £800 for a period of at least 90 days. On 14 June 2012, this sum increases to £900. If your application is successful, you will be granted leave for 1 year in order to develop your business plans with the support of your institution. During this time you will also be able to take employment for up to 20 hours a week. There is the possibility of extending this leave for a maximum of 1 additional year.

You can only apply for Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) in the UK by post. There are no provisions for applying from outside the UK, or in the UK via a premium (in person) application. You must also have, or have last been granted, leave as a student, including Tier 4 leave, or as a Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur). You must not have previously had leave under Tier 1 (Post-Study Work), the International Graduates Scheme, Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland or the Science and Engineering Graduates Scheme.

Note that the immigration rules do not allow you to start your business until you have been granted leave as a Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) migrant.

UK Border Agency information about Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur)

What is Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent)?

This is a work route that came into force on 9 August 2011. It is aimed at individuals who have already achieved international recognition in their field or who have the potential to be world leaders in their area of expertise. Four designated UK "competent bodies" decide whether this applies to you. The relevant areas of work are: the arts; engineering; natural and medical sciences; social sciences and the humanities. If you qualify, you must make your immigration application outside the UK.

UK Border Agency policy guidance and eligibility criteria

How can I find postdoctoral research work?

You can use websites, including www.jobs.ac.uk and The Times Higher Education.

The British Council also manages a service that can help you find work in the UK as a postdoctoral or other researcher. It provides contact points at several universities in England and Scotland, as well as information about current vacancies and funding opportunities. It is part of a larger scheme, the European Commission's EURAXESS services network, which you can use to obtain help in finding a research post in many other European countries.

EURAXESS research opportunities in the UK

EURAXESS research opportunities in other European countries

Can I include my family members in my work application?

You might be in the UK with immigration permission as a student and applying to change your immigration status to be here under one of the work categories, for example, under Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) or Tier 2. If your family members are currently in the UK with immigration permission as student dependants, they can apply at the same time as you to stay in the UK as your family members. If your family members are with you with some other form of immigration permission, for example, as a student, they cannot apply to stay as your family members. They will have to return to the country where they usually live and apply for entry clearance. Alternatively, check whether they can apply under any of the work categories in their own right. Children who are 18 or older can apply to stay with you as long as they already have permission to be here as your dependant.

Tier 1 (Post-Study Work)

What has happened to Tier 1 (Post-Study Work)?

This work route closed on 5 April 2012.

This means that it is no longer possible to apply under Tier 1 (Post-Study Work).

If you applied before 6 April 2012 and you want to see the policy guidance that is no longer on the UK Border Agency website, you can find it in the government archive.

Archived UK Border Agency information about Tier 1 (Post-Study Work)

If I apply for Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) before 6 April and the application is unsuccessful, can I apply again?

The application is rejected because it was not valid

If your application is rejected as invalid before 6 April 2012 and you meet the requirements to apply again, this is possible. If your application is rejected as invalid on or after 6 April 2012, you will not be able to apply again because the scheme will no longer exist.

The application is refused

If your application is refused before 6 April 2012 and you have the right of appeal, you can appeal against the refusal if you feel the decision was not in accordance with the law. If you do not want to appeal, you can apply again in the UK only after the deadline for appealing has passed. A fresh application in the UK will be possible only if that deadline is before 6 April 2012. You can apply from outside the UK as soon as you are in the country in which you usually live, but you must apply from there before 6 April (an application outside the UK requires higher levels of funds). If your application is refused on or after 6 April, you will be able to appeal against the refusal if you have the right of appeal and the decision was not in accordance with the law, but you will not be to able to make a fresh application under Tier 1 (Post-Study Work).

The date of application in the UK is the date on which you post it or the date on which you attend an appointment at a Public Enquiry Office.

Are there restrictions on the work I can do?

If you have Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) immigration permission, you can be employed or self-employed.

You can undertake any type of work or self-employment with one exception; employment as a doctor or dentist in training if your evidence of leave (biometric residence permit or sticker in your passport) states that employment as a doctor or dentist in training is not allowed. If your evidence of leave does not mention employment as a doctor or dentist in training, you are allowed to undertake such work. This should be the case if you submitted documents showing that you studied your primary degree in medicine or dentistry in the UK or that you were employed in the UK as a doctor or dentist in training.

You can find information about this in the Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) policy guidance that is now stored in the government archive. Select the date closest to when you made your immigration application and then follow the links in the working section of the website to find the policy guidance in force on that date.

UK Government Web Archive – UK Border Agency website

Can I study with Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) leave?

Yes. There is nothing to prevent you from studying when you have Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) immigration permission (leave). You should, however, be aware that border force officers might consider that your circumstances have changed since you applied for your leave if you are not working or looking for work and your only reason for being in the UK is to study. In theory, they could decide to cancel your Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) leave and advise you to apply for Tier 4 leave instead.

If you have applied for Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) leave and not yet received a decision on your application, you will not be able to change college or university to start your course. This is because you remain subject to your original Tier 4 conditions, including study with your previous Tier 4 sponsor, until the UK Border Agency grants you Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) leave. An institution cannot enrol you until you are no longer "tied" to a different Tier 4 sponsor.

If I have Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) leave, can my family apply as my dependants after 5 April 2012?

It will be possible for family to join you or apply as your dependants in the UK after Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) has been abolished on 5 April 2012. The application fees from 6 April 2012 are £483 for entry clearance (a visa), £303 for a postal application in the UK and £468 for an application at a public enquiry office.

I have Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) leave. Is there a limit on the length of time I can spend outside the UK?

No. Paragraph 20 of the Immigration Rules says that your immigration permission "lapses" (is considered cancelled) if you remain "outside the United Kingdom for a continuous period of more than two years". This could not happen to you if you are a Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) migrant because your leave would never be longer than two years and would have expired anyway. If you have been out of the UK for some time, a border force officer might want to check that you are still working or looking for work and you should be ready to provide evidence if possible that this is the case.

Will my time under Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) count towards the 10 years for settlement?

If you stay lawfully and continuously in the UK for 10 years and you meet a number of other requirements, you might be able to apply for settlement (indefinite leave). This includes time spent in categories which do not usually lead to settlement, for example, periods of immigration permission as a student, International Graduates Scheme or Fresh Talent participant or as a Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) Migrant. This can be a complicated route to settlement and you should find out more from the UK Border Agency website and perhaps seek legal advice before applying. UKCISA cannot provide detailed information about this provision.

   

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