Since 1st Dec 2020 and as a direct result of BREXIT, several businesses have been facing challenges with workforce shortages.
In September 2021, the United Kingdom's immigration system underwent significant changes with the introduction of the points-based immigration system. This system applies to skilled workers from both EU and non-EU countries.
The UK Government has introduced the new Skilled Worker Visa, which allows skilled to come to or stay in the UK to do an eligible job with an approved employer, replacing Tier 2 (General) work visa.
Previously only highly skilled Chefs with a salary of £30,000 or above were allowed, for example Executive Chefs, Head Chefs, Sous Chefs or Speciality chefs, however, the salary threshold has been lowered to £26,200/£10.75 per hour/"the going rate" (whichever is greater) for the type of work the applicant will be doing.
I have the sponsorship licence, but how do I find the chefs?
Not only have we seen an increasing number of businesses looking into sponsorship, but we still have a high demand from our candidates to relocate to the UK.
COREcruitment and The Cavalry have hubs in North America, South Africa, The Netherlands, France, the Middle East, and Australia, and have access to highly skilled, experienced and pre-qualified chefs looking for a challenge in the UK.
I don't have the sponsorship licence, how will this work?
The partnership between COREcruitment and The Cavalry, with the support of immigration experts, will guide you through the process of setting up your business as an “approved sponsor or employer” and will be able to ensure your business remains compliant throughout so you don't have to. We will do the hard work for you.
As an employer, what are the main benefits of sponsoring skilled employees like kitchen staff?
For nearly 20 years, we have been working in the international recruitment market, helping people relocate and businesses hire international talent.
We have found that there are several benefits of sponsorship visas:
How much does this cost?
Not as much you may think!
For a small business the UKVI cost of a sponsorship licence is £536 and £1,476 for medium to large organisations and usually takes around 8 weeks to process a licence application. (Migration advisor cost extra)
You will then need a Certificate of sponsorship per person - £199 and then an Immigration Skills Charge of £364 per sponsored person per year or £1,000 per year depending on the size of your organisation. (Migration advisor cost extra if required)
The cost for the candidate starts between £610 and £1,220 if applying from overseas or between £704 and £1,408 if applying with in the UK.
Every sponsored employee will need to show they have sufficient funds (£1,270) available to support themselves (if the employer does cover this cost) and pay the Immigration Health Surcharge per year.
Agency fee applies to overseas recruitment activity. % based on volume.
If you are interested in finding out more about how COREcruitment and The Cavalry can help you with the recruitment of overseas staff and would like to talk to our partners about your eligibility to apply for a sponsorship licence, please get in touch with: