Wrong SOC code on my 3-year-old Certificate of Sponsorship

[AndAllTheRest]

Hello,

I've been in the UK on a Tier 2 visa since December 2011 (so, pre-April 2012). While gearing up to renew my visa this year, I requested my employer's original Certificate of Sponsorship, which I never saw in full during my original application.

Only now do I see that my employer used the wrong SOC code for me. They have me down as 2471—Journalists, Newspaper and Periodical Editors, but the much more appropriate code is 3412—Authors, Writers, and Translators (Creative).

Not only is this a difference in SOC code, it's a difference in NQF Level. 2471 is NQF 6; 3412 is NQF 4 (but it is "Creative" at least, which is important, I know).

My title is Specialist Editor, and I mostly work on books, both writing and editing them. I do generate and edit content that goes into a variety of different digital media, including an iPad magazine, but that magazine is not at all the main part of my job.

The original application for my Tier 2 Visa was approved without a hitch, but I'm nevertheless very worried that this will get red-flagged, either during my extension application, or years down the road when I apply for ILR. I feel that the best course of action would be to be completely upfront with the Home Office, either immediately or in 3 months when I apply for my extension.

My question is:

1) Will this automatically require a new RLMT, even though the job is exactly the same, merely because the SOC code is being corrected?

2) Will the Home Office see the original application as fraudulent and penalize me in some way?

3) Or would it be best to continue using this current SOC Code, which is marginally correct but not really the best SOC code for my job, considering that the Home Office has already approved it once? (This seems incredibly risky, especially in light of my eventual ILR application. I would hate to get all the way to that point only to have my ILR denied because of this mistake 5 years previous).

Obviously this is my employer's mistake, but it really is an honest one. My original application was pre-April 2012, and would have been approved even using the NQF Level 4 SOC code. Does anyone have any experience with the Home Office recognizing such a mistake and allowing it to be corrected, without requiring a new RLMT (because the job is staying the same)?

Many thanks ahead of time.

[Silv]

Hello - wondered if you got response to this?

I am exactly in the same situation, I am tier 2 general and have been working for 2 years in the wrong SOC code, my sponsorship in current role expires next july 2015. I only noticed because i have applied to a new role in same company which falls under a different code I was originally assigned

The core duties of new role are very similar than old role, hence if the SOC would have been assigned correctly first time off there wouldn't be an issue now

Does the company necessarily need to apply for a new certificate of sponsorship with the correct code? and does this need RLMT?
Is it best to stay in the wrong code for the new role and then if that is the case, will this be observed when I need to renew the sponsorships next year?

Any help will be very appreciated