UK Law and Practice Contributed by: Phil Linnard, Philippa O’Malley, David Rintoul and Clare Fletcher, Slaughter and May
4.2 Registration Requirements for Foreign Workers The standard UK employment visa route into the UK is the “skilled worker” route. This visa can be granted for an initial five year period, and requires: • a job offer from an employer in the UK who is a Home Office-approved licensed sponsor; • the individual is skilled to at least A level or equiva - lent (proposed to change to degree level under the government’s White Paper); • the individual satisfies a minimum English language requirement; and • the standard minimum salary for the position exceeds a prescribed threshold. Another common immigration route for UK employ - ers to bring in foreign workers is the global business mobility (GBM) route. This allows the immigration of foreign workers from the same corporate group, who typically require at least 12 months overseas expe - rience within the same group as the UK employer (who must also hold a sponsorship licence). Unlike the skilled worker route, there is no English language requirement, and the visa can be granted for an initial nine year period. There are, however, higher qualifica - tion and salary requirements. Fast-growing UK businesses may be able to bring in workers from overseas using the “scale-up” route. The business must hold a sponsor licence, and the worker must have a confirmed job offer to work for an approved scale-up business for at least six months, to do a job that is on the list of eligible occupations, and meet the minimum English language and salary threshold for that job. Scale-up visas are granted for an initial period of two years, with the potential to extend for a further three years if the eligibility require - ments are still satisfied. The “global talent” immigration route is for exception - ally talented or promising individuals in certain fields (academia or research, arts and culture, or digital technology) who wish to come to the UK to work. Indi - viduals must be able to establish that they are a leader or potential leader in their field, usually by applying for a relevant endorsement. This route does not require the employer to hold a sponsor licence.
ICO guidance issued in 2024, the use of biometric data must be necessary and proportionate. Employ - ers must document their reasons for using it and if a reasonable alternative option to using biometric data is possible, employers should be able to justify why they do not use this method. Moreover, employers should provide an alternative for those who do not want to use biometric access controls (such as ID cards or pin numbers). AI in Recruitment Employers may wish to use AI in their recruitment process. The ICO has set out its AI and biometrics strategy to manage risks and public concerns with the use of AI. Among other things, the strategy sets out how the ICO will: • secure public confidence in generative AI founda - tion models by working with developers to ensure they use people’s information responsibly and law - fully in training these models; and • ensure that automated decision-making systems are governed and used in a way that is fair to peo - ple, focusing on how they are used in recruitment. Employers are required to check that their workers have the right to work in the UK, and to keep records of their eligibility to work here. Following Brexit, the free movement rights of Euro - pean Economic Area (EEA) and Swiss nationals ended on 1 January 2021. EEA and Swiss nationals (as well as qualifying family members) residing in the UK before 1 January 2021 may remain and work in the UK, if they have secured their immigration status under the EU Settlement Scheme. 4. Foreign Workers 4.1 Limitations on Foreign Workers A points-based immigration scheme was introduced in the UK on 1 December 2020, and has applied to EEA and Swiss nationals since 1 January 2021.
696 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook