The UK Graduate route and the Skilled Worker route can be put to use by those looking to study, work and thereafter get British citizenship. The UK Graduate route allows international students who have completed their degree to stay in the UK and work or look for jobs at any skill level for two or three years for doctorates. A Skilled Worker visa allows you to visit or stay in the UK to work for an approved firm. This visa has replaced the Tier 2 (General) work visa.
One can apply for the UK Graduate route, look for work, and then seek permanent residency in the UK. The Graduate route is unsponsored, therefore, you do not need a job offer to apply. You will be able to work flexible hours, change professions, and further your career in the UK as needed.
You can change from the Graduate route to other work routes if you find suitable employment. You might be eligible to switch from the Graduate path to the Skilled Worker route, which allows you to stay in the UK and work in permitted employment if you meet the requirements. It helps with settlement rights, so you might be able to apply to become a permanent resident of the UK. It can be used for up to five years at most.
The Graduate route does not count towards settlement rights. To be eligible for the Skilled Worker route, you must demonstrate:
You have a job offer from a Home Office-licensed sponsor at the required skill level
You will be paid the relevant minimum salary threshold by your sponsor
You can speak English at the intermediate level at B1 (on the Common European Framework of Reference for languages)
The current situation is that the UK is trying to reduce student numbers and the post-study work visa – the graduate visa – is also under review. Yash Dubal, Director & a Senior Immigration Associate, A Y& J Solicitors, London, United Kingdom says, “The Graduate visa, which allows international students to work in any job in the UK for two years after graduating is under review. It is expected that restrictions will be added, it may be scrapped altogether. It will also be harder for students to switch directly on to Skilled Worker visas because the baseline minimum salary to be sponsored is set to increase from £26,200 to £38,700. The average graduate salary in the UK is just over £33,000, well below the proposed threshold.”
“You can only switch to a Graduate visa upon successful completion of a UK degree as an in-country switch. It can only be used once (i.e. you cannot already have switched to a Graduate visa, complete a new course and switch again to Graduate).
Whilst the Graduate visa does not count towards a 5 year route to settlement (ILR), you can include time spent on the Graduate visa towards the 10 year long-residence route to ILR,” says David Hobbs, HR professional and immigration specialist working in a HEI in the UK.
To be eligible for a skilled worker visa, one can also apply directly. For that, you need to be employed by a UK company, receive a “certificate of sponsorship” from your employer, and get a minimum wage determined by the kind of work you do.