T2 ICT Cooling-off period exemption clarity

[KN2019]

Hello,

This is to request experts to help with clarity on T2 ICT cooling off period exemptions stated in gov.uk website. I came into UK in Jun/2014 with a 5 year visa which was then extended by 4 more years as I was in the high earners category (>£120,000). This visa now is valid till Jun/2023 when I complete 9 years.

Reference clause from the gov.uk website on one of the 12-month cooling off exemption criteria is as below:

" The applicant is applying under Tier 2 (ICT) and the gross annual salary stated on the applicant’s current certificate of sponsorship (CoS) is £120,000 or higher (or £155,300 if their Certificate of Sponsorship was assigned before 6 April 2017) "

I have 2 queries.

1) Does the above mentioned exemption mean that once I complete 9 years in my current visa, I will be able to extend my CoS & visa without any cooling-off period since I will continue to earn £120,000?
2) If answer to query 1 is Yes, then can I extend my CoS/visa whilst living in UK and should I go out of UK to apply for an extension?

Thanks in advance.
KN.

[CR001]

Useful to post the official link you are quoting

[CR001]

On a salary of £120k pa, you cannot stay for longer than 9 years on Tier 2 ICT, as the official UKVI website clearly states. Not sure what link you are looking at though.

https://www.gov.uk/tier-2-intracompany- ... -your-visa

How long you can stay

The amount of time you can extend your stay depends on the type of Tier 2 (Intra-company) visa you have.
Long-term Staff

Your stay can be extended for the shortest of the following:

the time given on your certificate of sponsorship plus 14 days
the time needed to extend your stay to the maximum time allowed in the category
5 years (9 years if you earn more than £120,000 a year)

How long you can stay

You can come to the UK with a Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) visa for up to the maximum stay allowed for your visa type, or the time given on your certificate of sponsorship, whichever is shorter.

The maximum stay for each type of Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) visa is:

Long-term Staff (if you earn more than £120,000 a year): 9 years
Long-term Staff (if you earn less than £120,000 a year): 5 years, 1 month
Graduate Trainee: 12 months

[KN2019]

Thanks for the reply. The quoted clause is in the below link, pls refer to clause 254GB point (e) (iii).

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration ... tracompany

[CR001]

It doesn't apply to your circumstances.

You cannot hold Tier 2 ICT for more than 9 years in total.

[KN2019]

Thanks for clarifying. Just out of interest, which circumstance does the clause apply?

[CR001]

The same link para (d) explains.

[KN2019]

Thanks CR001, I went through para (d) a few times but might not be interpreting it correctly, so apologies. Para (d) talks about entry clearance application will be refused if leave to remain was 3 months or less and that the applicant must not have had entry clearance for 12 months.

Para (e) then says that para (d) doesn't apply if one earns £120K. Could you please help me understand.

[KN2019]

Hi CR001, Also looked at Tier 2 policy guidance document on gov.uk (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.u ... -v33.0.pdf). Please refer to the section "The cooling off period does not apply where"

In this section, the second bullet point reads as stated below. Does it not clearly mean that the cooling off period is exempted if the salary on CoS is 120K or higher? Please clarify.

"the applicant is applying under Tier 2 (ICT) and the gross annual salary stated on the applicant's current certificate of sponsorship (CoS) is £120,000 or higher"

[CR001]

You seem to be missing the point, as I have already posted, that you cannot hold an ICT visa for longer than 9 years, regardless of your higher salary!

To get a tier 2 general visa, which is what you would likely have to apply for, you are subject to the cooling off period unless earning above £159,600pa salary.

On a salary of £120k pa, you cannot stay for longer than 9 years on Tier 2 ICT, as the official UKVI website clearly states. Not sure what link you are looking at though.

https://www.gov.uk/tier-2-intracompany- ... -your-visa

How long you can stay

The amount of time you can extend your stay depends on the type of Tier 2 (Intra-company) visa you have.
Long-term Staff

Your stay can be extended for the shortest of the following:

the time given on your certificate of sponsorship plus 14 days
the time needed to extend your stay to the maximum time allowed in the category
5 years (9 years if you earn more than £120,000 a year)

How long you can stay

You can come to the UK with a Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) visa for up to the maximum stay allowed for your visa type, or the time given on your certificate of sponsorship, whichever is shorter.

The maximum stay for each type of Tier 2 (Intra-company Transfer) visa is:

Long-term Staff (if you earn more than £120,000 a year): 9 years
Long-term Staff (if you earn less than £120,000 a year): 5 years, 1 month
Graduate Trainee: 12 months

[KN2019]

Ok thanks for the reply