Work permits
Business and Commercial work permit arrangements
This page explains what a Business and Commercial work permit is, and if you are an employer how you can apply for one.
This category (except senior care workers) will be abolished on 27 November 2008 and any applications must be received by 26 November 2008. For further information on how this affects you please see the page on transitional arrangements.
The Business and Commercial arrangements allow employers in the United Kingdom to employ people from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) to fill a vacancy that might otherwise be filled by a resident worker.
A Business and Commercial work permit will be issued for a maximum of five years.
You can make a Business and Commercial work permit application if:
- you are an employer based in the United Kingdom; and
- you can employ an employee and have a genuine vacancy for an employee in the United Kingdom; and
- you are responsible for the post and the delivery of any project or piece of work; and
- the gross pay and conditions are what you would give a resident worker and meet the national minimum wage; and
- the employment meets the United Kingdom legislation and you have ensured that you and your employee have obtained any necessary registration or licensing; and
- the person is suitably qualified or experienced enough to do the job; and
- there are no suitably qualified or experienced resident workers available.
If the potential employee owns a large share of the company this may affect your application for a work permit.
To qualify for a Business and Commercial work permit the post you want to fill must require the following qualifications:
- a United Kingdom degree level qualification; or
- a higher national diploma (HND) level qualification, which is relevant to the post on offer; or
- a HND level qualification, which is not relevant to the post on offer, plus one year of relevant full-time work experience at national/Scottish vocational qualification (N/SVQ) level three or above;
Or the job must need the following skills:
- three years full-time experience of using specialist skills gained through doing the type of job for which the permit is needed. This should be at N/SVQ level three or above.
You can also apply under the Business and Commercial arrangements if your post is included in the shortage occupations list.
You can download this list from the right side of this page.
For further information on Business and Commercial work permit arrangements you can download the Business and Commercial guidance from the right hand side of this page.
To find out how to apply for a work permit under the Business and Commercial arrangements see the Applying page.
To find out if the individual or any dependants will need a visa you should see the visa services website.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What previous experience can I demand for a job I am offering?
The work permit criteria state that the requirements for the job you are offering must be the same for resident workers as for overseas nationals.
If you say previous experience is a requirement, you should make it clear in your work permit application why that experience is required for the job on offer, and how a resident worker would be expected to gain this experience
If it is unclear from your application that the experience stated is a reasonable and practical requirement of the job on offer, we will ask the following questions:
Why does the job require someone with at least three years' previous experience at S/NVQ level 3? What elements of the job require this experience and why?
Why could the job not be carried out by someone with less experience or lower-level experience who has reached the S/NVQ level 3 standard?
How would you expect a resident worker in your company or another establishment to gain this experience?
Application forms
Postgraduate doctors and dentists
- Form PD1DOC 1.8M opens in a new window
- Business and Commercial guidancePDF 204K opens in a new window
Business and Commercial work permits, extension of stay
- Form WP1XDOC 1.5M opens in a new window
- Business and Commercial guidancePDF 204K opens in a new window
Business and Commercial work permits
- Form WP1DOC 2.2M opens in a new window
- Business and Commercial guidancePDF 204K opens in a new window
Sponsored researchers
- Form SR1DOC 1.8M opens in a new window
- Business and Commercial guidancePDF 204K opens in a new window
News & updates
Terms explained
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European Economic Area
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Irish Republic, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom. Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway are not members of the European Union (EU) but citizens of these countries have the same rights to enter, live in and work in the United Kingdom as EU citizens.
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Resident worker
A person who is a national of the European Economic Area (EEA) or is legally settled in the United Kingdom with permission to work here. In some cases, an employer who wishes to employ a person who is not a permanent resident must show that no resident worker could be found to take the job.
Related documents
- General informationPDF 157K opens in a new window
- Service standardsPDF 98K opens in a new window
- Payment guidePDF 159K opens in a new window
- Shortage occupation listPDF 24K opens in a new window
Internet links
Contact
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Work permits customer contact centre
0114 207 4074
Customer Contact Centre, UK Border Agency, PO Box 3468, Sheffield, S3 8WA