TIER 2 (GENERAL) CERTIFICATE OF SPONSORSHIP INITIAL APPLICATION FORM Please complete this form when applying for a Certificate of Sponsorship and return it to the Work Permits Desk along with the necessary supporting documents listed at the end of the form. Signed applications can be sent to the Work Permits Desk: via the internal mail - Work Permits Desk, Personnel Services, Level 2, 5 Worcester Street by fax - 01865 289927 by email – laxmi.vikraman@admin.ox.ac.uk / natalie.goldsmith@admin.ox.ac.uk It is important that the information provided on the Certificate of Sponsorship application is accurate since this information must match the information provided by the applicant on their visa/leave to remain application. It is not possible for the Work Permits Desk to consider incomplete applications. Therefore, please ensure that you provide all of the required information. Eligibility Will the migrant apply for their visa overseas, or for leave to remain from within the UK?* * Note that migrants can only apply from within the UK if they hold a valid visa in a category that is eligible to switch into Tier 2. See http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/personnel/permits/status/ for further information. For migrants applying from overseas only: Has the migrant held any Tier 2 visas (with any employer) within the past twelve months?** ** Note that migrants applying from overseas who have held a Tier 2 visa within the past twelve months will not be eligible to return to the UK on another Tier 2 visa for at least twelve months after either their previous visa expired, or the earliest date from which they can evidence they had left the UK and have not since returned. For migrants applying from within the UK only: Has the migrant held any Tier 2 visas (with any employer) within the past six years?*** ***Note that the maximum permitted time on a Tier 2 visa is six years. Tier 2 migrants wishing to stay in the UK longer than six years should apply for settlement, if they are eligible to do so. Points Assessment Please ensure you are satisfied that the migrant will meet the points criteria for Tier 2 before applying for a Certificate of Sponsorship. Further information on the points criteria for a Tier 2 visa can be found at http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/personnel/permits/tier2/overseas/cosapplicationprocess/ Updated April 2013 1 Is the department/college satisfied that the applicant will meet the Tier 2 points criteria? Maintenance Requirement Departments/ colleges may certify the maintenance requirement on behalf of the migrant where the migrant is unable to meet this requirement him/herself. By doing so, the employing department/ college is certifying that they will, if necessary, maintain and accommodate the migrant for the first month of their employment (to a minimum value of £900). Does the department/ college intend to certify the maintenance requirement on behalf of the migrant? If the department/ college intends to certify the maintenance requirement on behalf of the migrant, please specify the limit to this undertaking (the minimum undertaking must be £900 for the first month of employment). Departments/ colleges may certify the maintenance requirement on behalf of the dependant(s) of a Tier 2 migrant where the migrant/their dependant(s) are unable to meet this requirement themselves. By doing so, the employing department/ college is certifying that they will, if necessary, maintain and accommodate each dependant migrant for the first month of the main applicant’s employment (to a minimum value of £600 per dependant). Does the department/ college intend to certify the maintenance requirement on behalf of the migrant’s dependant(s)? If the department/ college intends to certify the maintenance requirement on behalf of the migrant’s dependant(s), please specify the limit to this undertaking (the minimum undertaking must be £600 per dependant for the first month of employment of the main applicant). Updated April 2013 2 Passport Information Please complete the following personal information in full. appear in the migrant’s passport, where applicable. Please complete personal details as they Title (e.g. Dr, Mr, Mrs) Last name First name(s) Other name(s) – [i.e. previous name] Nationality City of birth Country of birth Date of birth Gender Passport number Passport issue date (DD/MM/YYYY) Passport expiry date (DD/MM/YYYY) Passport place of issue (city / country) Migrant contact details Country of residence This must be the country in which the migrant will apply for their visa/leave to remain. Full residential address including post code / zip code / area code This must be the country in which the migrant will apply for their visa/leave to remain. Email address Updated April 2013 3 Identification numbers UK ID card number (if applicable) UK National Insurance number (if applicable) National ID card number (if applicable) Employment details Start date (DD/MM/YYYY) The start date of the COS must be the start date of the job (except where the migrant is switching from Tier 1 PSW or Tier 4 and has already commenced the employment). Please give a date in the future. It is not possible to backdate a COS. Required COS end date (DD/MM/YYYY) Note that a COS can only be issued for three years, or the length of the contract, whichever is the shorter period. Please indicate the end date accordingly. Does the migrant require multiple entry to the UK for work purposes? Migrants who will be require to travel overseas for work purposes (such as to attend conferences or conduct fieldwork) will require a multiple entry visa. Migrants who will only travel overseas for domestic and leisure purposes do not require a multiple entry visa. Total weekly hours of work Full work address in the UK including postcode Other regular UK work address(es) Job title (must match the advertised job title and contract) Main duties e.g. conducting experiments, analysing and publishing results, teaching Updated April 2013 4 (maximum 700 characters) The UKBA does not view University research and University teaching as the same profession. Therefore, if a research post requires the holder to teach, or a teaching post requires the holder to conduct research, this must be noted in the job description on the COS. Give registration details if there is a legal requirement for the migrant to be registered with a professional or other official organisation in the UK (e.g. GMC membership). Is the applicant a ‘New Entrant’ or ‘Experienced Worker’? † (This determines the relevant salary threshold as specified in the Codes of Practice) Gross annual pay £ Gross annual allowances £ Description of allowances (e.g. £1000 per annum travel, £5000 per annum accommodation) † ‘New Entrants’ are: graduates switching from Tier 1 (Post-study Work) or Tier 4 into Tier 2 under the post-study provisions; and anyone aged 25 or under on the date of their Tier 2 visa application. ‘Experienced Workers’ are: anyone not switching into Tier 2 under the post-study provisions and aged 26 or over on the date of their Tier 2 visa application; Recruitment Is the applicant any of the following? If yes, please indicate which: A named researcher on a grant. A Tier 1 Post-Study Work visa holder A Tier 4/ student visa holder who has successfully completed and passed a UK recognised bachelor or postgraduate degree or completed a minimum of 12 months study in the UK towards a UK PhD during their current period of leave or a period of continuous leave which includes the last grant of leave, and who will apply from within the UK. Filling a post with an annual salary of more than £152,100 per annum. Updated April 2013 5 If you have answered yes to any of the above you do not need to meet the UK Border Agency’s advertising requirements so please do not complete the recruitment section of the form and continue to the next section. Adverts used to support a Tier 2 COS application for University research and/or teaching posts, and any post with an annual salary of £71,000 or more, must be advertised in TWO locations which both meet the UK Border Agency's criteria for suitable media, as a minimum. Please note that the two locations do not need to be two different types of media and can be, for example, two different websites. Suitable locations include the University’s main vacancies web page and the Jobs.ac.uk website. There is no requirement to advertise these posts on JobCentre Plus. All adverts used to support a Tier 2 COS application for other posts (e.g. administrative and IT posts) must have been placed on both (i) JobCentre Plus and (ii) either the University’s main vacancies web page, or one other place which meets the UK Border Agency's criteria for suitable media, as a minimum. Further information on the advertising requirements can be found at http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/personnel/permits/tier2/overseas/advertisingrequirements/ . Please give details of the recruitment exercise for this post below. Advertisement 1: Place of advertisement Advertisement reference number Date advert placed Closing date Advert contains (please tick to confirm): job title If the advert does not contain all of the required criteria, a COS cannot be requested. Please contact the Work Permits Desk for further advice. main duties and responsibilities of the job location(s)of the job salary range and terms on offer qualification(s) required skills and experience needed closing date for applications Advertisement 2: Place of advertisement Advertisement reference number Date advert placed Closing date Updated April 2013 6 Advert contains (please tick to confirm): job title If the advert does not contain all of the required criteria, a COS cannot be requested. Please contact the Work Permits Desk for further advice. main duties and responsibilities of the job location(s)of the job salary range and terms on offer qualification(s) required skills and experience needed closing date for applications THIS QUESTION DOES NOT NEED TO BE ANSWERED FOR UNIVERSITY RESEARCH AND/OR TEACHING POSTS, OR ANY POST WITH AN ANNUAL SALARY OF £71,000 OR MORE. Is the department/college satisfied that their recruitment search did not identify any suitable resident workers for the post? Is the department/college satisfied that they hold the following documentation on file? All applications shortlisted for final interview in the medium in which they were received (e.g. emails, application form, cv) The names and total number of applicants short-listed for final interview Notes from the final interviews conducted Documented reasons why each rejected EEA national who attended a final interview was not employed. Reasons must directly relate to the essential selection criteria for the post. Record-keeping and Reporting Responsibilities Departments and colleges employing migrants on Tier 2 (General) visas have a number of record-keeping and reporting responsibilities. The consequences of non-compliance with these duties, including reporting details late, are potentially severe for the University. Departments and colleges can view their record-keeping and reporting responsibilities at http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/personnel/permits/employresp/ Updated April 2013 7 Departments and colleges can view the consequences on non-compliance at http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/personnel/permits/noncompliance/ Has the department/ college has read and understood their record-keeping responsibilities for Tier 2 migrants? Has the department/ college read and understood their reporting responsibilities for Tier 2 migrants? Has the department/ college read and understood the consequences of noncompliance with their record-keeping and reporting responsibilities for Tier 2 migrants? Supporting documents Please tick to confirm that the following documents are enclosed with this application: Copy of photo and personal information page(s) of a valid passport. Up to date CV. For overseas applicants - copies of any current and previous Tier 2 visas held within the past twelve months. For in-country applicants - copies of any current UK visas (under any category) and any previous Tier 2 visas held within the past six years. Where advertisements were placed online – a printout from the website of the advertisement placed showing the date of the first day that the advertisement appeared/ the date the advertisement was printed, the name of the website and URL, the contents of the advertisement and the closing date. Where advertisements were placed in a newspaper or journal advertisements – the original advertisement as it appeared in the publication showing the title and date of the publication, the name of the sponsor organisation and the closing date for applications. Where advertisements were placed on JobCentre Plus – a printout from the website showing the date of the first day that the advert appeared/ the date the advertisement was printed, the name of the website and URL, the contents of the advert and the closing date. Further particulars for the post. Copy of any registration or professional accreditation document(s) that a migrant requires in order to do the job (e.g. GMC membership). For named researchers on a grant – a signed copy of the original document from the funding body specifically naming the applicant as a researcher which confirms the start date and starting salary. For migrants switching from a Tier 4/ student visa - a copy of a qualification certificate, academic transcript or academic reference, on the official headed paper of the awarding institution that confirms that the migrant has fully completed their studies (or for PhD students, that they have completed at least one Updated April 2013 8 academic year of their studies), and that their course was/is more than one academic year in length. The academic reference must show the migrant’s name, the course title/award and the duration of the course. For migrants switching from a Tier 4/ student visa who have been sponsored by an overseas Government or international scholarship agency within the past 12 months - the agency’s unconditional consent in writing, giving permission for the migrant to remain in or re-enter the UK. The evidence must be original, issued by an authorised official of the organisation on their official letter-headed paper or stationery. Payment and Authorisation The cost of each Certificate of Sponsorship is £184. Please give the full general ledger cost code that you wish this fee and any in-country leave to remain application fee to be cross-charged to. We cannot crosscharge to project codes. Cost codes should be in the format cost centre/natural account/ activity/ source of funds / organisation (e.g. AX0000/85210/00/00000/10). Cost code to charge application fee to: We are unable to cross-charge application fees to colleges. Therefore, Colleges should attach a cheque made payable to the ‘University of Oxford’. Please sign below to confirm that you are satisfied that the migrant named on this form meets the necessary points requirements for a Tier 2 (General) Certificate of Sponsorship and that the department has read and understood its reporting and record-keeping responsibilities. Signature Print name Position Date Department Telephone Email Should you have any queries regarding Certificates of Sponsorship requirements, please do not hesitate to contact us. Regards, Work Permits Desk Tel: (2)89919 / (2)89904 / (2)89912 Email: laxmi.vikraman@admin.ox.ac.uk / natalie.goldsmith@admin.ox.ac.uk Updated April 2013 9