Exceptions to the Immigration Skills Charge

The Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) is a government fee levied on an employer when they are assigning a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) to an employee they are planning on sponsoring. There are limited exceptions to this requirement, but generally, the ISC applies to all applications, whether made from inside or outside of the UK.

The ISC is not a fixed amount, it will depends on the size of the organisation and the length of the visa applied for. For example, should the individual be sponsored to come and work in the UK for 3 years for a large organisation, the employer will be required to pay the ISC at £1,000 per year of the visa, so £3,000.

Currently, those who will be sponsored as Skilled Workers who are switching from a Student visa, those within some of the PhD government job codes, those applying for entry clearance for less than 6 months, and applicants in some other limited visa categories do not attract the ISC. 

The Home Office recently announced some further exemptions within certain UK work visa categories, including individuals sponsored under the Global Business Mobility route as Senior or Specialist Workers planning on working in the UK for up to 3 years. They must be an EU national and already working for the sponsor employer’s company in the EU or a linked business in the EU.

Therefore, for employers planning to sponsor an individual from February 2023, it is important to check whether or not they are required to pay the ISC charge as being able to fit into one of the exemptions can represent a significant cost saving on a UK work visa application.

How Gherson can assist

Gherson’s Immigration Team are highly experienced in advising on UK visa matters. If you have any questions arising from this blog, please do not hesitate to contact us for advice, send us an e-mail, or, alternatively, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn to stay-up-to-date.

The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Gherson accepts no responsibility for loss which may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please do not hesitate to contact Gherson. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Gherson.

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