Sector Based Scheme (SBS) Work Permits
On 7 February 2005, it was announced that the Sectors Based Scheme would gradually be phased out. It was agreed that the SBS arrangements would only operate until 31 December 2006. However, the SBS arrangement will continue to be applicable to Bulgarian and Romanian nationals now that those countries have joined the European Union on 1 January 2007. The Sectors Based Scheme for Bulgarian and Romanian nationals will continue to operate in the food manufacturing sector.
The scheme only covers jobs within a specific sector which have been recognised as difficult to fill within the UK. If you would like further information and personal advice on Sector Based Scheme (SBS) Work Permits, please complete the simple query form below.
When the SBS was introduced, it allowed employers in the UK to recruit people from outside the European Economic Area in order to fill positions that were unable to filled with resident workers. If these permit holders are still employed in the UK, they are still entitled to their rights to get an extension and change their employment within the original rules of the SBS.
Basic requirements
There are basic requirements that need to be fulfilled in order to qualify under the scheme. They are as follows:
- You must be between 18 and 30 years of age
- The initial application must be made out to Work Permits UK in the UK
- It is only a temporary work permit and can only be issued for a maximum period of 12 months
- The sector based scheme is currently only applicable to the food manufacturing industry
- The employer must be able to prove that there is a genuine shortage of people in the UK to take up these positions and will normally need to advertise to prove this
- You are entitled to change your employer as long as the new employer satisfies the criteria to get a new work permit
- You will not be permitted to bring a spouse or dependants with you to the UK
- If you would like to return to the UK under the same scheme after you have completed the 12 months, you will need to be outside the UK for two months before you reapply
- The amount of time you spend in the UK under this scheme will not be counted towards gaining permanent residence in the UK.
The type of work is low skilled and jobs are only offered in the food manufacturing industries (meat and fish processing and mushroom production only) The following jobs in food manufacturing can have a work permit issued for them:
- Fish filleters (preparing and cleaning fish)
- Fish packers (packing and labelling fish)
- Fish Process Operatives (operating, minding, cleaning machines that prepare fish)
- Animal gut remover
- Meat bone breaker
- Meat bone extractor
- Meat cold store operative
- Meat cutter
- Meat packer
- Meat process operatives
- Meat slaughter person
- Lairageman (pre-slaughter animal welfare attendant) Trimmer (trims fat from and shapes meat, after it has been boned and cut)
- Mushroom processor (tending, picking, grading and packing mushrooms)
Other work allowed
People who hold a work permit are only permitted to work for a specific employer is a specific position unless they have been given permission from the Home Office to change any aspect of it. It is possible for a work permit holder to take up part time employment provided it adheres to the following requirements:
- The work is outside their normal working hours
- The work does not exceed 20 hours a week
- The work must be within the same industrial sector for which the initial SBS permit was issued
- The work is not found through the offices of a recruitment agency or an employment agency
Work that is not allowed
If you hold a SBS work permit you are not permitted to be self-employed, set up a business or join another business as a director or partner without requesting permission from the Home Office.
What are the work conditions like?
Once you have been issued with a work permit, it will indicate the hours and wages that you have agreed upon with your employer when the job was offered to you. You are entitled to the same wages and conditions that your employer gives to other people who are employed in similar jobs. Your wage must not be lower than the National Minimum Wage. The law stipulates the amount of hours you are permitted to work and what holiday leave you are allowed to have.
What are the requirements to qualify?
This scheme is suitable for all non-European nationals who are between the ages of 18 and 30.
How long can I stay in the UK
Under this scheme, you are entitled to get permission to work for up to 12 months. It is expected that you will leave the UK once you have completed the maximum 12 months. It is possible for you to apply to return under this scheme once you have been outside the UK for a minimum of 2 months.
Can I stay in the UK for longer than the work permit states?
If there is still work for you to complete you are entitled to stay longer under the scheme, however, it can not be for longer than 12 months. It will be necessary for the employer to apply to Work Permit UK for another work permit for you. In addition, you will need to apply to the Home Office in order to get permission to stay longer
Is it possible to change employers in the UK?
When you are in the UK it is possible for you to change employers during the period of the Work Permit but you are still restricted to the 12 months allowed under the scheme. The new job you take up must be the same type of work that you are already doing. In addition, your new employer will have to apply for the work permit for you prior to you commencing work. You are not allowed to start working for the new employer until the work permit has been issued with a stamp in your passport, which confirms that you have the right to work for a new employer. If you leave your job and you are unable to find another job immediately, you must leave the UK as soon as possible.
Can I apply to stay in the UK permanently?
Under this scheme, it is not possible to stay in the UK permanently.
Can I bring my dependants with me under the scheme?
Under the scheme you are only entitled to stay in the UK for a short period of time, accordingly, you cannot bring any dependants with you.
Advertising requirements
From 1 May 2004, nationals of the new EU Accession Countries are entitled to work freely in the UK under the worker registration scheme. The following procedures are necessary in order to prove that you are unable to fill the positions from the UK labour market.
- You must advertise the job at least 4 weeks in the 6 months before you apply for the sector based work permit
- You must advertise the job through the Job Centre network
- You must also advertise the job with the European Employment Service (EURES) network
If you do not fulfil the above requirements, it is likely that your application will be refused. If you do not satisfy the above requirements but you still feel that you should be issued with the work permit you must explain why your way of advertising is more effective in finding job applicants than those required by Work Permits UK.
Change of status
It is not possible to change your status while you are in the UK to someone on the sector based work permit scheme. Your initial application must be made out to Work Permits UK in the UK. As soon as the work permit has been granted, you are required to apply for entry clearance at a British Embassy from outside the UK.
Documents to submit
For a work permit application
It is necessary for UK based employers to send a completed work permit application to the Home Office Work Permits (UK) with the following documentation:
- Fees (Check if fee is exempted)
- Annual report;
- Certificate of Employers Liability;
- Lease of premises and floor plan;
- Copies of necessary registration documents (for example with the Local Health Authority);
- Invoices;
- Utility bills;
- VAT returns;
- P35 - Employers Annual Return to the Inland Revenue
- Accounts submitted to the Inland Revenue; and
- NESI 8 - document from the Inland Revenue.
- Menus, Wine list (In case of hotel and catering establishments)
- Hierarchy charts
- Proof of placement of a suitable Advertisement in Job centre plus and Eures website.
- All the academic and work experience documents of the applicant
For a leave to remain application
If you are applying, you will need to supply the following documents with a completed FLR (IED) to the Home Office:
- Original Passport of the main applicant
- Copy of Work Permit Intimation letter
- Two Pictures of the main applicant and the dependants, if any
- Fees for the application (Check if the fee is exempted)
- Original bank Statements for the last 3 months
- Original Pay slips.
For a leave to enter application
If you are applying, you are required to supply the following documents with a completed Visa form (VAF1) to the British Diplomatic post:
- Original SBS Work Permit
- Original Passport
- Two Pictures
- Fees (Check if the fee is exempted)
