Working in the UK

Finding a job in the UK is nearly the same as in the US, you apply with your resume/CV (Curriculum Vitae) and wait to be contacted for an interview. If you’re looking for an employer to hire you from abroad, it is very difficult to find one to do so, because they have to explain why they cannot find a local citizen to do said job and have to be approved.

If you are not coming to the UK as someone’s dependent, the family route, the UK Home Office has a range of schemes and programs that allow US nationals to come and work in the UK. Their website has a full listing of the Work Visa schemes, the following two are most common.

• From 2021, Student Visa holders who are graduates of UK universities can apply to work for 2-3 years under the Graduates Visa Scheme.  This visa cannot be extended but you may be able to switch to another visa. ¹
• Skilled Worker Visa. This visa has replaced the Tier 2 (General) work visa.  This visa lasts 5 years and is extendable. You must extend or update your visa when it expires or if you change jobs or employer. Your partner and children can apply to join you or stay in the UK as your ‘dependents’ if they’re eligible. The Work Visa is discussed more below. ²

Other common UK Work Visas are:

• Health and Care Worker visa
• Global Talent Visa
• High Potential Individual (HPI) visa
• Scale-up Worker Visa
• Innovator Visa
• Start-up Visa

This list is not complete, and the last two replaced the previous Entrepreneur (Tier 1) Visa. Those currently on the Tier 1 Visa can continue on this visa path.

Please note that people on a marriage or fiance visa and visitors are not allowed to work at all, this includes volunteering for charities, any remote working, as well as self-employment, including paid babysitting, etc.

Skilled Worker Visa

A UK Employer must apply for a sponsor permit/licence on your behalf, and unless your job is an acknowledged shortage occupation, they must prove to the Home Office that it is a genuine vacancy that has been advertised but could not be filled by a local worker. This is a points based system (PBS), and if your Permit is granted, you can use it to apply for immigration permission to stay and work in the UK for that employer. If they lose their licence, you must leave that job and the UK. The BBC has a great illustration of the PBS and UK immigration statistics.

Finding a job in the UK is pretty similar to the US, a resume is referred to as a CV or curriculum vitae, meaning life story. If you’re looking for an employer to hire you from abroad, it is very difficult to find one to do so, because they have to explain why they cannot find a local citizen to do that job.

There is a list of shortage occupations in which it is easier to obtain a work permit. It is sometimes worthwhile to use the UK NARIC service to have an official “translation” of US qualifications to UK terms, there is a fee.

Cost

• pay the application fee – the standard fee ranges from £625 to £1,423 depending on your circumstances
• pay the healthcare surcharge – this is usually £624 per year
• support yourself when you arrive in the UK – you’ll usually need to have at least £1,270 available (unless you’re exempt) ³

There will additional visa fees and healthcare surcharges for any additional family members joining you. ⁴

Other Routes to Work in the UK

You might not need any work-related visa at all: if you have permission to be in the UK as someone’s spouse, civil partner or unmarried partner, whether that person is permanently settled in the UK or not, you can normally work with no restrictions. This is true even if your spouse themselves has a restriction on working (for example, a student).

Fiances and visitors cannot work at all, this includes volunteering and remote working.

References

1. Graduate visa. (2023). Retrieved 6 June 2023, from https://www.gov.uk/graduate-visa 

2. Skilled Worker visa. (2023). Retrieved 6 June 2023, from https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa

3. Skilled Worker visa. (2023). Retrieved 7 June 2023, from https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/how-much-it-costs

4. Skilled Worker visa. (2023). Retrieved 7 June 2023, from https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/your-partner-and-children

“Travel has a way of stretching the mind. The stretch comes not from travel’s immediate rewards, the inevitable myriad new sights, smells and sounds, but with experiencing firsthand how others do differently what we believed to be the right and only way.”

– Ralph Crawshaw