Visa sponsorship

To be eligible for sponsorship the role must meet both of the following criteria. 

• The minimum skills level of RQF3 (equivalent to A-Level) or above and
• The minimum salary threshold which is either £38,700 or the minimum salary as set for that particular occupation - whichever is higher

The government has set out the roles which are eligible for sponsorship and the minimum salary for these roles - see Table 1 List of Eligible Occupations and Codes. 

There is also an Immigration Salary List, which replaces the previous Shortage Occupation List. Roles on the Immigration Salary List have a slightly lower minimum salary threshold.

The government requires all individuals who are coming to the UK to undertake research in an area that is stated on the list of sensitive subjects to obtain ATAS clearance before they apply for their visa.  Some nationals are exempt from the ATAS requirement.

Please review our guide on ATAS for further information on the government’s list of sensitive subjects.

Please also see our ATAS form for Departments/Institutes/Centres which you will need to complete and return to us for visa sponsorhip. This is so that we can demonstrate due diligence for auditing purposes.

The key points to remember are: 

• Follow a robust recruitment and selection process – i.e. clearly define what you are looking for in your advert and ensure it is consistent with the wording in your person specification.
• Advertise externally for at least 2 weeks and ensure screenshots are taken of the vacancy in all the places you advertised.
• Clearly indicate on the advert the salary package on offer - and offer within this range.  State any salary or market supplements on the advert if these will be offered as part of the package.
• Consider all applicants fairly against the criteria stated on the advert – therefore, ensure that you state enough criteria to refer to when shortlisting.

If you have any specific questions about advertising or the School’s recruitment process please speak to your HR Adviser who will be happy to assist you. 

To meet the sponsorship criteria, the advert must clearly state all the following information:

• The job title
• The salary package on offer (including any salary supplements, if applicable).  
  The salary offer must be in line with what was on the advert. 
• The main duties and responsibilities of the post
• The skills, qualifications and/or experience required for the role 
  This must be consistent with the criteria on the person specification and you must refer to them in your shortlisting grid and interview outcome.
• The location of the job 
  This is only required if the post will not be based at the main LSE campus
•  The closing date for applications

The screenshot needs to be taken when the advert is live and in the media it was advertised. It needs to show the full content of the advert including the URL address. If it is a long advert you may need to take several screenshots to capture all the information needed. 

The screenshot guidance gives you an example how a screenshot should look and the information it needs to contain. 

Your shortlisting grid and interview summary tells the story of what happened during the selection process and how you decided who to appoint. 

Your shortlisting grid should state a clear reason why each applicant was either shortlisted or not shortlisted, in accordance with the criteria stated on your advert. 

The interview summary sheet should summarise the outcome of the interview and your decision.  You should provide a reason for each candidate why they were either offered the post or not offered the post. Please do not send any copies of handwritten notes. 

You should state clearly if any of the applicants withdraw their application, decline the interview or decline the offer. 

For an example of what a shortlisting grid and interview summary sheet should look like, please see our shortlisting and interview guide [PDF] .

If you wish to make an offer to a candidate who needs visa sponsorship then the steps are: 

• Request a contract via the normal HR process 
• Send the HR Operations team by email a copy of the following: 1) the shortlisting grid, 2) the interview summary sheet, and 3) an explanation of how the successful candidate meets the qualifications criteria (if applicable) 
• Once the contract has been sent out, the HR Operations team create a recruitment pack with all the documents needed and pass the case to the Immigration Compliance team. 
• The Immigration Compliance team will then contact the candidate directly to let them know the next steps. 

Please avoid directing candidates to the Immigration Compliance team before the recruitment pack has been completed and sent to us.  We need all the information about their offer and the role that they are being appointed to in order to answer their queries. 

Academic, teaching and research roles normally meet the criteria for sponsorship however, other roles need to be considered on a case-by-case basis to assess whether they meet the criteria for sponsorship.

The  decision to sponsor other roles will be made on:

• if the role meets the sponsorship criteria,
• if the role's tasks and duties correspond to a suitable Code of Practice, and
• if sponsoring the role will enable the School to meet its aim of ensuring job opportunities for internal staff and students, and within the local labour market.

The School will also consider the use of resources and whether pursuing visa sponsorship is an effective use of School funds.

For further information on making a business case please see the following templates and select that one that is most apporpriate to the individual's circumstances:

Making a business case for sponsorsing a new PSS employee

Making a business case for sponsoring an existing PSS employee

There are many variables which affect how long it takes to obtain a visa, for example: 

• If they are applying from the UK or overseas 
• Volume of applications 
• If they need to obtain additional documents, such as proof of their English language, or a Tuberculosis test certificate 
• If they need to apply for an ATAS certificate before they can apply for their visa 

We normally recommend allowing 2 months  for the individual to get their visa and start their role.  However it may take longer depending on where the person is applying from and whether they need to obtain any additional documentation before they can apply for their visa. Therefore, it is advisable to plan for this in your recruitment timetable at the advertising stage.

Yes, if they are available when applying in the UK.

For applications overseas, we may be able to reimburse priority services depending on the circumstances. Please contact us if you have a specific case.

Changes within 28 days of the Certifcate of Sponsorship (CoS) start date are allowed. However, changes after 28 days are normally only possible if there is a very specific and/or unforeseen reason which has delayed an individual from starting their role.   

Please contact us if you have a specific case.

Individuals applying from overseas can start work as soon as they receive their visa and arrive in the UK, providing that they conduct their right to work check before they do any work.

Please note they cannot start working from abroad and then come to the UK later. 

Individuals applying in the UK may be able to start work before they have received their visa, if they have a valid visa which allows them to work – for example a current student visa.  However, a right to work check must still be completed before the person starts any work at the School. 

You can read more about the School’s process for right to work checks on our website. 

LSE employment contracts are UK-based and are not appropriate for overseas working. Similarly, there may be other legal, tax, and social security implications for people working abroad.

Therefore, they cannot start working from abroad and then come to the UK later. 

Please agree a realistic start date for when the individual can arrive and start work in the UK. 

One of LSE’s sponsorship obligations is  that it to demonstrate that it maintains a weekly record of attendance and has reported any changes in circumstances to the Home Office within 10 days.

To meet this obligation the School has a process whereby Departments/Institutes/Centres need to send an email each week to HR to confirm any changes.  

Please refer to our guidance on changes which need to be reported to the Home Office. 

Departments/Institutes/Centres need to send HR an email on a weekly basis which confirms if:

• there has been no changes of circumstances, or
• there is something to report, and if so, what that change is

Most Departments/Institutes/Centres find it helpful to set up a weekly calendar reminder to ensure that they send the weekly email to HR.  

If you are unable to report on occasion, for example you are on leave or are off sick, please delegate this responsibility to another person to take action in your absence.

All sponsored employees are advised that they need to engage with the weekly process in their area and that it is an important part of their visa conditions.  

So please explain to them at the start of their sponsorship how this process works in your area to ensure the sponsorship obligations are met as easily as possible.

Please be aware that if LSE fails to report a change within the Home Office’s timescales of 10 days, then it could be liable for a significant financial penalty or the School’s licences could be revoked. 

In addition, the employee’s visa could be impacted, particularly if they wish to apply for indefinite leave to remain in the future and they have not kept their reported absences with the Home Office up-to-date.

An individual is free to leave the UK and re-enter during the validity of their visa.  However, there may be some implications to their sponsorship depending on the type of leave that they wish to take and for how long. 

Please see the implications of taking leave [PDF] before making any decisions.

Please note that there may be other School processes that the individual needs to follow before taking the leave.  Please see HR's A to Z of useful documents for further details. 

The earliest they can appy for the visa is 3 months before their visa expires and they need to submit their application before the expiry date in order to continue working at LSE. 

If their employment contract will be extended, this must be processed through HR in the normal way first. Once the extension is confirmed, we will contact the individual with information about how to apply and get some details from them. Therefore, please do submit any contract extension request as early as possible. 

If they are undertaking a role which requires ATAS clearance we will also ask the Department to complete an ATAS form for Departments/Institutes/Centres. 

Yes, they can switch to another visa category at any time providing that they meet the criteria. Further information about other visas is available on our website. 

Yes, providing the other work is:

• For no more than 20 hours per week; and
• Is on the Table 1 List of Eligible Occupations and Codes, and
• Is outside of the contracted working hours for which their Skilled Worker, Tier 2 or Tier 5 CoS was assigned.

If you are doing other research work, you may need to have an ATAS certificate if the additional research work is in one of the government's list of sensitive subjects. See our guide on ATAS for further information. 

If you are doing additional work outside of the LSE, you will need formal School approval before you can undertake it. Please refer to the Terms & Conditions for your role for further information on how to obtain approval.

The immigration rules changed on 4 April 2024.

Researchers are now allowed to carry out teaching in addition to their sponsored role, providing it is for no more than 20 hours per week and it is undertaken outside of their normal contracted hours.

From a visa perspective, individuals do not require any specific approval from the Home Office, or from HR in order to take on additional work providing it meets the supplementary work rules (see question above). 

Individuals are responsible for checking the rules and making sure that any additional work meets the rules.  However, LSE employees will need to seek formal approval to undertake other work in addition to their role at LSE.  Further details on how to do this are set out in the relevant Terms and Conditions for their role.

In cases where an individual is sponsored by another employer, and they wish to come to LSE to take on additional work, we will need to complete a right to work check and check that the work that they are being offered meets the rules.   We will need to see a letter from their employer confirming the details of their employment, that they are still employed in that role, and their normal hours of work. 

Individuals should be aware that doing supplementary work that does not fit with the rules is a breach in their visa conditions and can be classed as illegal working.  Illegal working is taken very seriously by the Home Office and individuals risk a fine and/or other penalties if found to be in breach of their visa conditions.  In addition, LSE’s sponsor licence may be at risk which may affect its ability to continue to sponsor students and staff.

No, it is not possible for sponsored employees to work on a self-employed basis.  Therefore, if they wish to take on additional work, they must receive an employment contract.