UK Immigration: Government launches review of the Intra-Company Transfer category

On 23rd March the MAC launched its call for evidence, as such now is a useful time to take a look at what has prompted the review and what this means for the tech industry.

The Background

The ICT category sits alongside the Skilled Worker category as one of the two primary routes for employers who want to hire skilled workers from outside the UK who need a visa. The category is specifically designed to enable businesses to move senior and highly skilled members of staff from their overseas offices to UK for secondments and assignments, and in order to be able to use the ICT category the business must hold a Sponsor Licence. Historically the ICT category has been very popular with international businesses as it used to be significantly easier to obtain an ICT visa compared to the old Tier 2 (General) category, however with the introduction of the new Skilled Worker category this is no longer the case:

• The ICT category has always been exempt from the  Resident Labour Market Test requirement , however now that this has also been removed from the Skilled Worker category the ICT category has lost arguably its biggest attraction
• The skill and salary thresholds for the new Skilled Worker category have been reduced, meaning that they are now significantly lower than the thresholds required for the ICT category
• The requirement to complete a 12 month cooling off period after the expiry of a visa has also been removed from the Skilled Worker category, whereas it still remains for the ICT category, albeit with more relaxed criteria. 
• The annual cap on new applicants has been removed from the Skilled Worker category, meaning that no longer need to be quite so selective as to who they offer a Skilled Worker visa to.

All of these changes have resulted in a number of questions being raised regarding the utility of the ICT category. Apart from not needing to evidence English language ability most of the reasons why an employer would chose the ICT category over the old Tier 2 (General) category have now been taken away, so is there any purpose for the ICT category going forward? In order to help the government answer this question the MAC have been asked to advise on the following points:

• The salary threshold for entry to the ICT route.
• What elements, if any beyond base salary should count towards meeting the salary requirement
• Whether, as now, different arrangements should apply to the very highly paid
• What the skills threshold for the route should be
• The conditions of the route, in particular those where it differs from the main Tier 2 (General)/Skilled Worker route

How will this affect tech companies?

As in other countries such as the US and Australia, IT and business consultancy firms rely heavily on Intra-Company Transfers to meet the needs of their clients. Whether it’s an internal project or a client commitment which needs fulfilling, these types of firms have become highly adept at maximising the utility of their global talent networks and are able to deploy staff around the world at speed. 

Given the relaxations which have been introduced with the Skilled Worker category the natural reaction is to dismiss the ICT category as a thing of the past and start only using the Skilled Worker route going forward. The Skilled Worker route can be used for temporary assignments as long as the relevant requirements are met, however it is important to remember that the Skilled Worker route is primarily intended to be used for overseas nationals who are filling permanent roles in the UK that arise from skills shortages. As such, some of the requirements for the Skilled Worker category do not necessarily suit the nature temporary assignments. 

For example, Skilled Worker visa holders must be paid at the level required by the rules for the entire duration of the visa, whereas ICT visa holders only need to be paid at the level required by the rules whilst the visa holder is physically present in the UK. Also, under the Skilled Worker category, allowances typical with temporary assignments such as a Cost of Living Allowance cannot be counted towards the pay level required by the rules. However, as the ICT category is designed for temporary assignments these types of allowances can count towards the pay level required by the rules. 

As such, a large number of businesses are fundamentally locked in to the ICT category because of the nature of the way that they move their staff around the world. The MAC’s study of the ICT category will therefore go a long way in shaping how many tech businesses manage their global assignments over the coming years.

How can I get involved?

The MAC’s call for evidence is now open, and the deadline for submissions is 15th June 2021.

Click here to access the Government link