working holiday maker- eslf employment

[Alice Rickards]

Under what circumstances are you allowed to be self employed as a working holiday maker in the UK?
I am slightly concerned as I am self employed as a musician and don't really consider what I do as a business, but there is no other option in this industry unless you have a hard to come by job but to be self employed. However I noted that Working Holiday makers can't create a business. So does being self employed mean you are a business?

[VictoriaS]

It does.

What many working holidaymakers do is work through umbrella companies so that they are technically employed by these. You may want to look into this - although most will deal with IT professionals, no musicians.

Victoria

[Administrator]

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Consider the possibility of making friends at a pub or some similar such venue.

I believe the WHM doesn't restrict the work you do, only the number of months (max 12 out of 24 stay).

With a friend in a friendly place, they can probably pay you once per month for a weeks worth of work ... so long as your work agreement doesn't stipulate the exact location you perform your work duties.

This might allow you to work for two different pubs (for an example), each of which pays you for one weeks' worth of work once per month, thus you are never working for more than 50% of the duration of your stay, and you get 'paid' once every two weeks ... nudgenudge-winkwink.

As a musician by trade, I hope you have made a few contacts in the community by now and you should be able to use the concept outlined here and apply some creative thinking toward it to develop the best solution for you. Art galleries, cafe's, etc. come to mind as other venue's that might be interested in having a musician pick up a bit of piecemeal work.

the Admin

[VictoriaS]

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I believe the WHM doesn't restrict the work you do, only the number of months (max 12 out of 24 stay).

Not the case at all.

Victoria

[azimx]

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I believe the WHM doesn't restrict the work you do, only the number of months (max 12 out of 24 stay).

Not the case at all.

Victoria

in what way is it restricted victoria?

[VictoriaS]

You can see in the immigration rules and on www.ukvisas.gov.uk

Victoria

[PaperPusher]

This is to the Admin mainly

You can't work for the full 24 months on a WHM visa. See this on the BAILII website AK (WHM, maximum 12 months work) Bangladesh [2007] UKAIT 00064 (12 July 2007) and AG (Working holidaymaker: ‘incidental’) India [2007] UKAIT 00033 (27 March 2007).

The rules say that the person "is intending only to take employment incidental to a holiday, and not to engage in business, or to provide services as a professional sportsperson, and in any event not to work for more than 12 months during his stay"

You can't engage in business, as far as I am aware that means that you cannot be self employed. The work has to be incidental too, and no more than 12 months out of 24. It doesn't seem to matter if this is one hour a week for 12 months or full time for 12 months, both still count as 12 months. Working every month of the whole two years goes against the both the "incidental" and "12 months" requirements the way I have read everything.

It may be worth pointing out too, if Alice Rickards wants to use work experience gained in the UK to help get a work permit, they do not take into account experience gained through working illegally in the UK.