HSMP Help quite important!!! Totally confused expenses

[incountryhsmp]

Hi everyone, Thanks for looking through my query. I am currently on a workpermit with a Univ in the UK. My WP was applied for by the Uni but I work onsite at a company. This is stated clearly on the WP. Its a joint govt funded project and there are three partners including the Govt involved. Now I plan to switch to an HSMP I have one main question which hit me in the mornign and I have been really upset since.

1. I get paid by the Uni and am on their employee rolls. But sometimes my company pays some of my expenses directly into my account. I get most of my expenses done from the Uni, but there are times when train tickets, meaels and some abroad trips have been paid for by the company. Now all this appears on my bank statement in the same account as my Pay. There is no overtime or taxable payment made by the company just part expenses. I am wondering whether this might be an issue for the HSMP OR FLR or BOTH!!! I dont want to get into unnecessary trouble and I would like your views on this.

In my calculations for my HSMP earnings, only my Gross salary has been taken into account. No expenses have been considered.

Please let me know your thoughts!!! Thanks

[goldfish]

Are your expenses paid in the same transaction on your bank statement, or are they separate transactions from your salary? If they are separate, I don't think there would be any problem because the caseworker could see your net salary and match this with your payslips. Presumably you would also have a P60 for at least part of the year so would be including that too?

[incountryhsmp]

Hi goldfish, Thanks for the reply. I have been refreshing every5 mins to see if anyone knew anything. The salary gets credited differently and the expenses as and when in a different transaction. But the thing that I am worried about is the fact that the Univ is my employer, but the company also pays some of my site expenses. I dont want the HO to think I have a second job or that I am earning underhand. That is what I am worried about. I cross the salary threshold with just my Gross salary. I dont take any expenses into account.

These company expenses (different from my Univ expenses) are not mentioned anywhere on the slips or anything. i dont even mention them in my application, but as they are in the same account, and visible as deposits in my bank print outs.!!

Even though my WP has my company listed as the working premises, I know at the speed at which each case is dealt with, they caseworker just needs a shadow of a doubt!!

Regards

[VictoriaS]

It shouldn't be a problem if they are listed as seperate payments, but you may want to explain.

Victoria

[goldfish]

Victoria's advice is good. You could mention in the covering letter than expenses are paid by the university/company - I would highlight that you are *not* including these in your earnings, otherwise the Case Worker might get confused. You could also put a coloured post-it flag beside the salary transactions to make sure attention is focussed on them rather than the other credits.

For my HSMP extension, I also had expenses paid by my company as well as salary. The expenses were paid by cheque so the company name didn't appear on the statement. I didn't mention them specifically in my cover letter, but I did put a post-it flag with a label (eg "Salary - May") beside each salary transaction. My theory is that making it easy as possible for the Case Worker makes it more likely they will process it quickly and have less time to come up with doubts

[1971]

Hi Dude,
In addition do any of your employers pay taxes on this salaries/expenses? Do you have a P60 to this affect.

Please, include this in your application. If not, there maybe some problems.

Let us know if you employers pay UK taxes on your salaries.

Regards,
1971.

[unileeds]

Hi, Yes my Univ does pay Ni and Tax on my salary. My expenses which are apid either by the Uni or seperately by the company dont incurr taxes. The P60 only lists the gross and does not take into account the expenses. The p60 is issued only for the Univ part of things. As the company does not pay me a salary. The company pays the uni a part of my salary. But to summarise

UNIV: SAlary + Expenses and P60 lists only Salary
Company: Only small expenses but no P60 as these do not incurr tax.

I have no issues crossing the earnings threshold. But after reading Sudhirs case where his visa and EC was curtailed as he was taking child benefits. I dont want the case worker or Ho to think I get paid a salary or something by the company. Thats all. To that matter I have been told that quite a lot of IT guys get their expenses paid by the onsite company, and not their employer. For more info on my case look at
http://www.immigrationboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=20410


Thanks for all the re-assurances!!
Cheers