What is the Points-Based Immigration System?

If an overseas national would like to work or study in the UK, they may be required to submit a visa application under the UK’s Points-Based System (PBS). 

The PBS is the framework used in the UK for several work and student immigration applications. The applicant will need to meet a specific set of requirements (that will vary depending on the application) for which they will score points. If the applicant scores the required number of points, and there are no issues such as genuineness, criminality etc., the application should be approved. 

There are two groups of PBS visas. Some visas will be personal to the applicant, where they need to possess specific qualifications and experience (amongst other things) to reach the required number of points. Other visas will require the sponsorship of a UK business with the appropriate sponsor licence. In this group, obtaining a so-called Certificate of Sponsorship from an employer makes up a part of the points threshold that needs to be reached. The rest is also made up of qualifications and experience of the applicant.

Points-Based Immigration System

The main personal Points-Based Immigration visas are the Global Talent and Graduate visas, Start-up and Innovator visas. The main sponsored PBS visas are Skilled Worker visas, temporary work visas such as the Intra-company Transfer visa and student visas.

Depending on the visa category, the achievement of some points is mandatory, whereas other points can be traded. For a sponsored Skilled Worker visa, for example, a firm job offer at the correct skill level and the ability of the applicant to speak English are mandatory categories. Points for salary and qualification levels, as well as whether there is a shortage of qualified candidates for the particular job in the UK, are tradeable. So a higher salary can compensate for a lower qualification level, for example.

How can we help?

Gherson has extensive experience advising on all applications made under the PBS, as well as assisting businesses to obtain the correct sponsor licence for their purposes. If you have any queries relating to the blogs published or are interested in talking to us about your specific circumstances, 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 don’t 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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