Tier 2 Visa (General) route is for migrants who have been offered a place to work in the UK and are sponsored by UKVI authorised employers. It is the leading immigration route by which skilled workers may be employed in the UK.

An Overview 

You can apply for a Tier 2 Visa (General) if you are outside of the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland and have been offered a skilled job in the UK from a UK employer with a valid Tier 2 sponsorship licence.

Your proposed employer must be a UK based entity holding a UKVI sponsorship license. A list of all sponsor license holders can be found on www.gov.uk. If your prospective employer does not have a sponsor license, it may still be possible to apply for one. Please refer to our sponsor licence section in services for businesses for more information.

The applicant must be issued with a certificate of sponsorship (CoS) by his employer. CoS holds information on the migrant and proposed job. The visa or Leave to Remain (LTR) is issued for the period stated in the CoS. The CoS must also confirm that the applicant is to be paid an appropriate salary and that the job passes the Residence Labour Market Test (RLMT) unless the applicant is switching inside the UK from Tier 4 (General) student visa and meets additional requirements. The CoS is then used to make an application for a Tier 2 (General) visa or LTR.

There is an English language requirement of B1 CEFR, and the applicant must show sufficient maintenance of £945 (unless the sponsor is “A-rated” and certified maintenance for the applicant). It is also possible to bring dependants for Tier 2 (General) visa holders.