Tier 2 ICT Long-term to Tier 2 General (In country)

[Alexander7227]

Dear all,

Asking this on behalf of a friend

Case background

The person got first leave to remain on Tier 2 ICT Longterm in Dec 2015, it was long term but only granted for 1 year, and was renewed to Tier 2 ICT Longterm which is the current leave to remain and valid until Nov 2020.

The current leave to remain is tied to a Business passport which is issued by current employer, which needs to be handed back when the employment terminates.

Current situation (and reason for asking the question)

The person has managed to get a job and the company is willing to sponsor and wants the person to switch to a Tier 2 General .
The person is holding a regular passport as well in addition to the business passport.

Question :

Does the cooling off period apply when switching to Tier 2 General? If it does not, can the person make an in-country application?

Other details which are relevant:

Visa Applicant: In the country
Current Visa: Tier 2 ICT Long-term
Current Nationality: Chinese

Regards

[CR001]

12 month cooling off applies, application must be made from home country.