Earnings and Early Application Questions

[Anio]

Hello All,

1. I came to the UK just as the recession hit (Nov. -09), on my present income I am not able to meet the earning requirement for HSMP Extension/ Tier 1 renewal, however I have a second job as a support worker and would like to know if I can present this as earnings as well? Would I be penalised as the second job is not a highly skilled one? What proof of earnings are required – are bank statements and payslips sufficient?
2. I would like to renew my visa 5 months before the expiry; do I need to give an explanation or can I just apply? My reason is that I want to score points for my age without which I won’t meet the minimum points required.

I would really appreciate to hear from someone with similar experience or knowledge of how this works. Thank you.

[ChetanOjha]

Hello All,

1. I came to the UK just as the recession hit (Nov. -09), on my present income I am not able to meet the earning requirement for HSMP Extension/ Tier 1 renewal, however I have a second job as a support worker and would like to know if I can present this as earnings as well? Would I be penalised as the second job is not a highly skilled one? What proof of earnings are required – are bank statements and payslips sufficient? You can use multiple jobs to reach minimum requirements. Low skilled or higher skilled requirements are no more in place. All you have to do is to make sure you have payslips + bank statements to support your claim.
2. I would like to renew my visa 5 months before the expiry; do I need to give an explanation or can I just apply? My reason is that I want to score points for my age without which I won’t meet the minimum points required. People in this forum has received renewal 5-6 months in advance. You need to provide strong reason for doing that.Besides, it also depends on case worker whether to allow you extension or not which means it is not gauranteed that your application will be accepted/approved.

I would really appreciate to hear from someone with similar experience or knowledge of how this works. Thank you.

[Anio]

Thank you for the quick response, in that case when do you think would be the earliest I can apply before visa expiry? 1 or 2 months?

[ChetanOjha]

Thank you for the quick response, in that case when do you think would be the earliest I can apply before visa expiry? 1 or 2 months?

1-3 months are ideal cases.

[vc]

In view of the below, you may like to apply early if you qualify. You will obviously have to consider the risk of getting the visa issued from application date.

"The government has also asked the MAC to report on what further changes to the criteria for Tier 1 should be made in 2010/11, given the changing economic circumstances. The MAC will report to the government on this issue by the end of October."

[Anio]

"The government has also asked the MAC to report on what further changes to the criteria for Tier 1 should be made in 2010/11, given the changing economic circumstances. The MAC will report to the government on this issue by the end of October."

I know i should not panic but that's exactly why I want to apply early. This year it was the introduction of Masters Degree, thankfully it didn't apply to those already on HSMP/ Tier 1 but then you never know what they'll come up with, especially in the present economic climate.

Like most people (if not all), i left a very good job back home, up-rooted my family (with young children), was welcomed to the UK with the current economic crisis, we're barely settled and now I have to deal with the visa renewal. The earlier I can get it over with, the better for planning and decision making for my family.

If anyone has applied much earlier, i would really love to hear your story so i can decide if i would take the risk.