Tier 2 Extension for a New Employer

[mejain]

Dear Immigration_Gurus

I got into Tier 2 general category for the first time in June 2012 for 3 years as a new entrant and got an extension for further 3 years starting from June 2015 as an experienced person within the same organisation.

Now I have found a new job with a new employer, under completely different SOC code, but the salary is being provided somewhere in between new entrant and experienced threshold. So not as high as the experienced pay rate. Hence the big questions come into the place:

1. Am I eligible for another extension?

2. Do I have to have an experienced person's pay threshold to apply for this new job? Even its completely new organisation and a new SOC?

3. Currently I am in my 4 years and 1 month of the time period within Tier 2 general. So the another extension will be for under 2 years.

4. Am I eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain in this country at any time? Based on the fact that my Tier 2 general started in June 2012 and these SOC I am working under are not into shortage occupation lists and not earning up to 35k yet.

5. In some blogs I read tier 2 extension applications always ask for the experienced pay threshold. Is that correct?

6. As this is Tier 2 extension and not an ILR application, will experienced pay threshold needs to be achieved?

Please help me find the right answers or the alternatives I can follow to get into this new job. All suggestions are welcome or if you guys can tell a best medium to get more accurate details?

Thank you guys.

Me

[moonlight55]

Dear Immigration_Gurus

I got into Tier 2 general category for the first time in June 2012 for 3 years as a new entrant and got an extension for further 3 years starting from June 2015 as an experienced person within the same organisation.

Now I have found a new job with a new employer, under completely different SOC code, but the salary is being provided somewhere in between new entrant and experienced threshold. So not as high as the experienced pay rate. Hence the big questions come into the place:

1. Am I eligible for another extension?
Yes, as long as your total duration in Tier 2 (G) visa is less than 6 years.

2. Do I have to have an experienced person's pay threshold to apply for this new job? Even its completely new organisation and a new SOC?
Yes

3. Currently I am in my 4 years and 1 month of the time period within Tier 2 general. So the another extension will be for under 2 years.
1 years 9 months (max)

4. Am I eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain in this country at any time? Based on the fact that my Tier 2 general started in June 2012 and these SOC I am working under are not into shortage occupation lists and not earning up to 35k yet.
You can apply anytime after you complete 5 years on T2 (G) visa provided your salary at that point is 35K (even if its not today)

5. In some blogs I read tier 2 extension applications always ask for the experienced pay threshold. Is that correct?
See (2) above

6. As this is Tier 2 extension and not an ILR application, will experienced pay threshold needs to be achieved?
Yes

Please help me find the right answers or the alternatives I can follow to get into this new job. All suggestions are welcome or if you guys can tell a best medium to get more accurate details?

Thank you guys.

Me

[mejain]

Thank you moonlight55 for answering my queries. Its a bit of a concern now as the new job is not offering me the salary of an experienced person but they are happy to sponsor. Salary gap is pretty high if I raise it with them.. and the job is a good move for my career but as per the immigration laws I cannot opt it?

[hassanh]

Hi,

The only thing you can do is to negotiate with the prospective employer to reduce number of working hours. The salary can then be lowered by pro-rating it according to number of hours you will work.

My only concern is this will void the current RLMT they have conducted and they will have to re-do RLMT. While carrying out RLMT again, if they find any suitable settle candidate, then you may loose the opportunity. Its worth talking to the employer again.

Thanks,
Hassan

[Frontier Mole]

Any attempt to reduce the hours to fit the experienced salary is doomed to failure.
The first question will be - why is everyone's contracted hours as an example 37 per week and the tier 2 is 30????

RLMT jerrymandering - good bye to the licence and the visa.

Anyone who considers hours reduction as a method to meet the experienced salary requirements is basically committing visa suicide.

[hassanh]

Agree with Frontier Mole. Reducing number of hours will definitely cause compliance issue for the sponsor.

[mejain]

In the job advert, the employer had mentioned there are part time or flexible working hours available if a suitable candidate wants to go for that. I am in talks with the new employer's HR but they dont seem to know much. I will ask if they have an immigration expert who I can talk to and explain the whole situation.

How will can everyone move forward in career if such rules bound them to get a tier 2 extension money may not be much but a job position might be great to consider as in this case..

[Frontier Mole]

Let's cut to the chase here. Flexible hours and part hours is still the same pro rata rate for the job.
So if you are paid more per hour than the pro rata rate then that is still a RLMT failure.

As for job movement and pay rates. Simply put it is to stop the importation of cheap labour displacing UK residents. So that is why the rates are as stated to ensure pay progression and stops the long term abuse of migrant workers as well.

[Djsuccess]

In the job advert, the employer had mentioned there are part time or flexible working hours available if a suitable candidate wants to go for that. I am in talks with the new employer's HR but they dont seem to know much. I will ask if they have an immigration expert who I can talk to and explain the whole situation.

How will can everyone move forward in career if such rules bound them to get a tier 2 extension money may not be much but a job position might be great to consider as in this case..

I have read your story and comments from the gurus in the forum. is your current job offering you up to 35k? If yes, then just hold on to your current job as you will be eligible for ILR in less than 1 year. After which you can freely change jobs.
If your current job is not offering 35K and you are not far from it, your best move will be to start negotiating your salary with your bosses.

Changing jobs when you are within 1 year to your ILR might not be a good idea particularly when there are many uncertainties about the new role and visa requirements.

[GMO]

Dear Immigration_Gurus

I got into Tier 2 general category for the first time in June 2012 for 3 years as a new entrant and got an extension for further 3 years starting from June 2015 as an experienced person within the same organisation.

Me

Hi mejain,

Can you please let me know when you extend your visa then what salary you had shown to the application?
i mean u showed new entrance or experienced person salary after three years on the time of extension I mean.
Please reply.

Thanks