I got this email reply from HomeOffice, where I enquired about changing from HSMP to work permit and what if the applicant is in the job less than 8 months then what are the chances of work permit success...
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I understand that you are already in the UK under HSMP and yourcurrent leave is shortly due to expire. The concerns you have raised centre onthe changes to the HSMP regulations, announced on 7 November 2006. As you are aware, with reference to existing HSMP participants seeking to extendtheir leave in this category, the key changes introduced by 7 November's announcement have been to replace the previous, more general requirement that an
applicant should be able to establish they have taken all reasonable steps to become economically active in the UK during their preceding period of leave here, with a more specific Points Scoring Assessment and a separate, mandatory English Language Requirement.
I understand, from your correspondence, that you are already familiar with the fundamentals of the revised requirements and that, in light of these, you consider yourself unable either to satisfy the points scoring assessment associated with the revised arrangements, or to be eligible to access any of the transitional arrangements specifically provided to support those applicants who find themselves in such a position, but who are able to establish that they have been contributing to the UK economy during the preceding period.
Specific transitional arrangements have been put in place that are intended to support existing HSMP applications who do not meet the revised requirements for a grant of further leave to remain under HSMP, but who are currently in employment here. These transitional arrangements allow for the normal resident labour test requirements of the work permit arrangements to be waived where an HSMP participant has already been in post for a specified period of time, when a work permit application is made on their behalf. This specified period is, as mentioned in your correspondence, 8 months where a person has been granted previous leave under HSMP for a period of 12 months or less, and 12 months, where they have been granted previous leave under HSMP for a period of over 12 months.
You state that you have been in post for a period of around 6 months. As such, you will not be eligible to access this specific concession. It may be however that you could still access an alternative immigration category that would allow you to remain in the UK and in your current employment. The work permit arrangements themselves may, for example, still be one possible option. As outlined above, you have not been in your current post for a sufficient period to access the transitional arrangements for switching HSMP participants outlined above. However, the normal resident labour test associated with work permit applications requires the post to have been advertised through the most appropriate medium within the six month period prior to the application being submitted. It may therefore be that advertising undertaken in respect of the post which you now hold, if it was undertaken six months ago or less, would still satisfy the resident labour test requirements, were a work permit application to be submitted for you by your employer in respect of this post. It is not, of course, possible for me to confirm whether such an application would be successful, as the full requirements of the work permit arrangements would still need to be met. However, were your employer to make a successful work permit application on your behalf, you would need also to apply for further leave to remain in the UK as a
work permit holder. Provision does exist under the current Immigration Rules for HSMP participants to switch into the work permit arrangements within specified circumstances (Paragraph 131E of the current Immigration Rules refers). The Immigration Rules are available on the 'Law and Policy' section of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate website (
www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk). Finally, in view of the fact your leave is due shortly to expire, I should explain that, ordinarily, an individual seeking to switch into work permit employment would be advised to apply for leave to remain in this category once
the work permit has been obtained by their employer on their behalf. However, as you may be aware, individuals also need to ensure that any leave application they submit is made before their existing leave expires. It is possible for an individual to make an application for further leave to remain in the UK as a work permit holder before the permit has been obtained on their behalf. Where such a leave application is made, provided the work permit application has also already been submitted, the leave application will normally be held open until a decision on the work permit application has been made. In this way, an applicant whose leave is likely to expire before the work permit application made on their behalf has been decided, can ensure they make an in-time leave
application. However, it is worth pointing out that, in such circumstances, if the work permit application is refused, the leave application will also be
refused, and the fee associated with both applications will be retained. The decision to make an early leave application of the type mentioned above, is therefore taken very much at the applicant's own risk.
Further information on the work permit arrangements, and other work or business based immigration categories, can be found on the Work Permits (UK) website at:
www.workingintheuk.gov.uk
Yours sincerely
Catherine Roberts
Policy Team
Work Permits (UK
. 
), the application would've been refused. He said that we should have sent in docs as soon as we had them. At that point, we were having trouble getting a letter from HRMC showing our partnership status. For some reason, they couldn't locate it. The caseworker said to wait to send in all of the docs until we had that HMRC document.