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Sanwar Ali workpermit.com comment:
It may be a long time before we see major changes to the UK visa system. It seems that a no deal Brexit is increasingly unlikely. MPs will probably prefer to delay Brexit. Even a number of pro Brexit MPs are in favour of delaying Brexit. There is also likely to be a lengthy transition period. So the Tier 2 Sponsor Licence and Tier 2 visa system could be with us for some time.
Following the latest Tier 2 visa allocation of restricted certificates of sponsorship meeting, the number of Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) available for March 2019 stands at 1,921, according to UK Visas and Immigration data. The department published its December report, citing that its figures were correct as of 20 February, 2019. It seems that it continues to be the case that as long as UK employers meet the other requirements they are likely to be able to obtain restricted CoSs to employ overseas nationals resident outside the UK.
An employer with a Tier 2 Sponsor Licence needs to apply for Certificates of Sponsorship for immigrants they wish to employ. Under the current UK immigration system, unused Tier 2 restricted CoS to employ people who are currently based outside the UK, can be reclaimed after three months. This increases the availability of restricted CoS.
The number of certificates reclaimed as not used within three months for the month of February totalled 200.
The February, Tier 2 Certificate of Sponsorship allocation meeting took place on 11 February, 2019. All valid applications lodged by 5 February were successful, provided they scored the minimum 21 points needed for an application to be approved.
The breakdown of Tier 2 CoS for the month of February looks like this:
Number of Tier 2 Certificates of Sponsorship from annual limit set aside for allocation meeting in February. | 1,500 |
Balance of Certificates of Sponsorship carried over from previous month (January). | 817 |
Number of certificates returned during previous month (January). | 0 |
Number of certificates reclaimed as not used within three months. | 200 |
Number of certificates granted by exceptional consideration outside of monthly allocation during previous month (January). | 16 |
Total number of Certificates of Sponsorship available for allocation in February. | 2,501 |
Minimum point score for successful applications in February. | 21 |
Total number of Certificates of Sponsorship granted in February. | 1,580 |
Tier 2 (General – New hires under £159,600). | 1,575 |
Tier 2 (General – Tier 4 dependant switching to Tier 2). | 5 |
Balance of certificates of sponsorship carried over to March 2019. | 921 |
Number of certificates of sponsorship available for allocation in March 2019. | 1,921 |
The next UK Visas and Immigration allocation meeting will take place on 11 March and will indicate the number of Tier 2 CoS that will be available for the month of April, 2019.
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Workpermit.com has been in the visa business for more than 30 years, helping thousands of people to study, work, invest and live in the UK. We represent clients under Section 84 of the 1999 Immigration Act, and we can advise and assist with your UK visa application.
