swithing from T2 ICT to T2 General

[Rooney the saviour]

Dear All,

I need some direction from you guys please. Let me explain my situation first.

I am at present working for a software consulting firm in UK. I was initially offered T2 ICT EATABLISHED STAFF visa category in November 2010 and I moved to Uk on 20th November 2010. Since then, my visa got extended twice and my current visa is now valid till November 2017. My current visa category is T2 ICT LONG TERM LEAVE TO REMAIN.

I have been recently offered a permanent position by another software development company. They are ready to sponsor me (T2 General) and yesterday my Cos was generated, with Cos assigned date as 12th May 2016, expiry date august 2016. (Worth mentioning, this software development house is not an umbrella company and they have gone through a proper RLMT.)

My question is, what's the next step that I have to do now please ? I mean what forms I need to fill in, how to get a UKBA appointment and when to resign from my current company please?

My primary concerns are the dates i.e when should the T2G start and when should I resign as my current company has a month's notice period policy.

My new company is doing this for the first time, so they are also looking for information.

Any guidance from your side will be very helpful.

Best regards,
Rooney

[CR001]

Is your new sponsor only recently granted a sponsor licence?

Interesting that you mention they are not an umbrella company considering but will you be contracting?

https://www.gov.uk/tier-2-general/switch-to-this-visa

Don't forget to pay the immigration health surcharge (which you are exempt from now as ICT).

[manci]

Ask for a printout of the CoS and check it - especially the SOC code, salary and RLMT details. If it is OK apply online and use the priority or premium service.

What is the work start date given in the CoS?

It would be unwise (risky) to resign before your application is approved just in case it is refused for whatever reason.

If your application is successful the problem may l be the 1 month notice period as you would have to stop working for your present sponsor from the time your new leave starts or the work start date given in the CoS, whichever comes later. Check your employment contract for any provisions or sanctions for dispensing with the notice period.

[Rooney the saviour]

Dear CR001,

Yes, my sponsor was recently granted a sponsorship licence. They applied for the license to bring me onboard. They were looking for a suitable candidate and the job role was open since January 2016. I went for an interview in March and by God's grace they liked me and decided to sponsor me.

No, I will not be contracting, I will be working for them only.

Many thanks for the UKBA site, I will go through that and get back to you in case of doubts.

Best regards,
Rooney

[Rooney the saviour]

Dear Manci,

Many thanks for your reply. I will ask for a printout of the CoS and check the details as suggested by you.

I am having a conference call with them today at 11:30 and I will confirm the work start date.

That's a fantastic piece of advice from your side, I will resign once my visa application is through.

I will try to excavate more details regarding the notice period.

But thank you very much for this important piece of information.

Best regards,
Rooney

[Rooney the saviour]

Hello Manci,

I have got answers to all the questions you asked me to query.

My SOC code is 2136 and the offered salary is above the required minimum salary.

I am told RMLT was not required because 2136 Programmers and software development professionals is on the skills shortage list.

Work start date given in the COS is 21st June, 2016..

So I think I can now fill up the Tier 2 application form using these information and request a visa premium service.

Could you please let me know if it's like same day visa decision if I go for a premium service?

My plan is once my application is successful, I will hand in my resignation(as rightly suggested by you ) and I can easily serve a month's notice or at least 3 weeks(since my new job's start date is june 21st) and join the new organization.

Do you think it's a sound plan please? Any suggestions from your side will be extremely helpful.

Best regards,
Rooney

[rubyracer2]

I am told RMLT was not required because 2136 Programmers and software development professionals is on the skills shortage list.

Entire 2136 is not on shortage list, it's only 2-3 very specific subcategories. Please make sure your job description matches these sub categories

[noajthan]

I am told RMLT was not required because 2136 Programmers and software development professionals is on the skills shortage list.

...

Do you think it's a sound plan please? Any suggestions from your side will be extremely helpful.

Best regards,
Rooney

No need to rely on what 'someone' said. Too much at stake here to take it for granted and trust someone's word.

Very easy for a skilled developer to check on these matters - just google:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... r_2015.pdf

[Rooney the saviour]

Dear Rubyracer2,

Thank you very much for your reply. My job description says 'Senior Solution Developer with minimum 5 years of application development experience, proven experience of leading a team in a customer facing role'.

I hope this will be all right. Please let me know if you think otherwise, then I will discuss with the company HR.

Best regards,
Rooney

[Rooney the saviour]

Dear Noajthan,

Many thanks for sharing the UKBA document, I have gone through it and can confirm that my job description matches the 2136 skills shortage list.

I would like to apologise for creating this confusion, my reply should have said 'I was told by the company HR'. I had a conference call with the HR team yesterday and they confirmed me on RLMT. Since my reply was a continuation from my previous communication where I mentioned about the conference call, it got skipped.

You are absolutely correct, nothing should be taken for granted.

Best regards,
Rooney

[Rooney the saviour]

Dear all,

I have submitted my tier 2 general application form today and booked an appointment next week. However, I have same queries regarding the point based system and I need guidance please.

Can someone please tell me what's the minimum point criteria for a successful tier 2 general application?

While filling up the form, there was a question 'What will you use to prove your degree taught in English?' to which I replied as my Degree certificate. Now my bachelor's degree certificate was awarded from an Indian Technical University and the medium was English. Do I need to obtain a letter from UK NARIC which confirms that my qualification is equivalent to UK bachelor’s level or higher and taught in English?

Worth mentioning, in the policy guidelines, I have found the below:

156.You will be awarded 10 points for English language if you are applying for leave to remain
under Tier 2 (General) and you have previously been granted entry clearance, leave to
enter or leave to remain in any of the following categories:
 a Jewish Agency Employee,
 a Member of the Operational Ground Staff of an Overseas-owned Airline,
 a Minister of Religion, Missionary or Member of a Religious Order,
 a Qualifying Work Permit Holder,
 a Representative of an Overseas Newspaper, News Agency or Broadcasting Organisation
AND you have not been granted leave in any other category other than Tier 2 (General), Tier
2 (Intra- Company Transfer) and those listed above under the Rules in place since 28
November 2008.

Since I am already in Tier 2 ICT and working in Uk since November 2010, do I still need the letter from NARIC?

My last question is related to maintenance fund. Minimum of £945 should always be in my bank account for the last 90 days. The policy guidelines say below:

162.You will be awarded 10 points if:
 you currently have entry clearance, leave to enter, or leave to remain as a Tier 2 skilled
worker; work permit holder; Jewish Agency Employee; Member of the Operational
Ground Staff of an Overseas-owned Airline; Minister of Religion; Missionary; Member of
a Religious Order; or Representative of an Overseas Newspaper, News Agency or
Broadcasting Organisation; or
 your A-rated (Premium), A-rated Small or Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) or A-rated
sponsor certifies on the Certificate of Sponsorship that they will maintain and
accommodate you up to the end of your first month of employment in the UK if required.
Your sponsor may limit the amount of the undertaking, but any limit must be at least
£945;

Since I am already working in UK since 2010 as Tier 2 ICT establised staff and the extended as T2 ICT long term leave to remain, can I avail option 1 and avail 10 points for maintenance fund?

I will be speaking to the HR regarding the second bullet point and try to find out if that option can be availed as well.

Your feedback will be extremely helpful.

Best regards,
Rooney

[Rooney the saviour]

Can someone please enlighten me on this?

Many thanks,
Rooney

[gadag]

Can someone please enlighten me on this?

Many thanks,
Rooney

Hi Rooney,Is your application success with mentioned points ?

[noajthan]

Dear all,

...

Worth mentioning, in the policy guidelines, I have found the below:

156.You will be awarded 10 points for English language if you are applying for leave to remain
under Tier 2 (General) and you have previously been granted entry clearance, leave to
enter or leave to remain in any of the following categories:
 a Jewish Agency Employee,
 a Member of the Operational Ground Staff of an Overseas-owned Airline,
 a Minister of Religion, Missionary or Member of a Religious Order,
 a Qualifying Work Permit Holder,
 a Representative of an Overseas Newspaper, News Agency or Broadcasting Organisation
AND you have not been granted leave in any other category other than Tier 2 (General), Tier
2 (Intra- Company Transfer) and those listed above under the Rules in place since 28
November 2008.

Since I am already in Tier 2 ICT and working in Uk since November 2010, do I still need the letter from NARIC?

...

Your feedback will be extremely helpful.

Best regards,
Rooney

#156 only applies to the types of people in the list: Jewish Agency Employee etc etc.

[Rooney the saviour]

Dear all,

I am happy to let you all know that my application was successful and I was issued the T2G visa same day. I have already joined my new organization and working there since end of june.

Many thanks to all the kind hearts who shared their knowledge and guided me through this process.

Kind regards,
Rooney

[poper]

Congrats Rooney