Blog
Rayner my parade! The importance of specialist advice.
Jemma Brimblecombe
Background:
A company with its headquarters and main activities based in France won a contract to work on a large construction site in the UK. The company needed to send a significant number of its overseas staff to the UK to work on this project immediately.
Challenges and solutions:
- Interim immigration solution: The company needed to transfer some of its overseas staff straightaway to start the project but did not have a presence in the UK. Therefore, it was unable to sponsor its staff to work in the UK in the usual way – under the Skilled Worker visa route. Our immigration team assessed that the workers’ initial activities fell under a permitted activity for visitors under the immigration rules. Thanks to our support, the company’s staff were able to come to the UK temporarily as visitors – without the need for visas – to undertake the permitted activity for a few months while the company was working on establishing a presence in the UK
- Establishing a presence in the UK: To be able to sponsor its overseas staff to work in the UK on a longer-term basis, the company first needed to create either a UK branch or a UK subsidiary. We promptly directed the company to our corporate law department to obtain advice on the best structure to use and how to establish the UK entity rapidly.
- Identifying an Authorising Officer and obtaining a sponsor licence: The company needed to appoint a UK-based director or employee to be the Authorising Officer in charge of its sponsor duties. We advised on the requirements for the Authorising Officer as well as the sponsor duties. This prevented a refusal of the sponsor licence and ensured that the company was compliant with the immigration rules. Our immigration team prepared the sponsor licence application and supporting documents efficiently, explaining the contract won by the French company, in order to secure the sponsor licence quickly.
- Assessing eligibility for and obtaining visas for its overseas staff: Most of the French company’s staff did not have the requisite English language level needed to secure a Skilled Worker visa (the most popular type of work visa). We assessed and advised on their eligibility for a Senior or Specialist Worker visa, another type of work visa for which there is no English language requirement. However, this type of visa has stricter minimum skill level and salary requirements. Working with our client, we analysed the roles to ensure that they met the skill level requirement and advised on which allowances could be considered for the salary requirement. We also assisted with preparing and submitting the Senior or Specialist Worker visa applications, ensuring a smooth process, and we provided comprehensive advice on the rights and obligations associated with the visas.
- Advising on employment contracts: The company wanted to move some of its staff to UK employment contracts and required legal and practical advice on this. Our immigration team identified this promptly and put the company in touch with our employment law department who assisted with the drafting of the UK employment contracts.
Impact:
Without Kingsley Napley’s strategic approach and in-depth knowledge of the immigration rules, the company would have been unable to temporarily send its staff to the UK under the visitor category while preparing the sponsor licence and work visa applications. Moreover, the company would have struggled to secure a sponsor licence promptly while navigating the hundreds of pages of Home Office guidance. Lastly, the company would have faced important obstacles with the English language requirement without the knowledge and practical input of our team in relation to the roles and salaries.
Kingsley Napley’s cross-practice specialisms meant that we were able to support the company not only with its immigration matters but also in other areas, such as incorporating the UK entity and drafting the UK employment contracts, thereby providing a one-stop service to our client.
