Waiting for a work permit

How long will it take to get an employee into the UK with a UK Work Permit?

Work permits can be issued in a matter of days. The time taken to process a work permit can vary depending on the work permit candidate, the employer of the work permit candidate and the employment details. Overall the time taken to process a work permit application hinges on the timeliness of the required work permit documentation being forwarded to us. One of our consultants can advise you of the latest work permit processing timeframe.

Because of Security clearance procedures, you can expect applications may take a little longer for Russian nationals, and in most cases it can take a lot longer for nationals of North Korea, Libya, Iraq, and China (PRC). Normally, entry clearance applications to the UK may take up to one or two weeks after the Work Permit is issued.

Do I need a job before I can apply for a work permit?

Yes, a job offer is required before you can apply for a work permit. Please note that it is the UK company that is offering the position that must apply for the work permit, not the individual being employed.

Illegal employment

If you are employing someone illegally in the UK you can be expected to be dealt with firmly. Up until 1997 If a person was employed illegally, then they could be deported and would suffer a 'black mark' on their immigration history, however the employer faced no legal action for having employed them in the first place.

But the law changed In 1997 and it then became a criminal offence for you to employ someone in breach of their visa conditions.

By 1999 the law changed yet again! If a candidate is employed and is in breach of their visa conditions they will not be subjected to deportation proceedings. But Instead, they will be treated as an illegal entrant. While deportation sounds inconsiderate, it is a procedure against which one can appeal. Illegal entrants can be simply walked off site and onto a plane. The business discontinuity costs of this could be very severe – particularly if you loose several employees at once.

Information for recruitment agencies

If you are an UK recruitment agency you are not able to apply for work permits for people who will be working at your clients' sites. When dealing with non-European staff you have three options.

Options for non-European staff

1. You must get your client to make the work permit application. This is the best way by far and need not involve much effort by your client (in most cases Coddan-visas-work-permits.co.uk can get almost all the data from you and from the candidate, so that your client need only talk to us for 10 minutes and then sign a completed application that we e-mail to them).

2. If the client’s requirement can be turned from an internal job into a defined outsourced project comprising of identified responsibilities that are then passed on to a recognized solutions provider, then that solutions provider will be able to employ the candidate. If you have an IT company in your corporate group this should not be difficult for you. If you do not, then it may well come down to finding a third party software house. As not all work is suitable for outsourcing in this way, and Coddan-visas-work-permits.co.uk will be happy to advice on the details in any situation you may wish to bring to our attention.

3. You can find another type of work visa that will be agreeable to the candidate in question to come to the UK. Whilst there are many options, few will be of practical use to you (we would expect that you’ll avoid such dubious practices as marriage brokering!). Please visit our section on alternatives to work permits. You should also view our information on the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme, which is often a good alternative to the work permit.