This is to provide you the April updates on United Kingdom Work Visa package and Certificate of Sponsorship. Please note the following important changes:

1) For Candidates in Nigeria (or International), only the self Sponsorship option (marked Option 1) is available on this package for direct application. We will only consider Company sponsorship COS ( marked Option 2) as a back up plan if the Sponsorship license is not approved (at no additional cost based on the fee schedule below).

We also have another package for International COS with Job offer for International to be published weekly.

2) For Candidates in the UK (Local switch), both Self Sponsorship and company sponsorship options are available. However, we will only work with candidates who still have at least 3 month legal status to stay in the UK, to avoid unnecessary time pressure on the process.

3) COS is better than Post Study Work for people already in the UK, because it counts towards your ILR. PSW does not count towards your ILR, the earlier you switch, the better.

4) For our Self Sponsored COS, OPTION 1 below, it is now required that candidates have a business account and evidence of current transactions in the business account. Business account opening is part of our package. We also advise candidates to save the cash they want to use for their process (IHS fees, Visa feese.tc) into their business account as this will count towards available funds for startup capital.

5) Our COS Option 2 does not come with Job offer. Job hours is limited to 20 hours per week, while Spouse dependent can work 40 hours or more. Therefore, for a Married Couple, the partner who has the potential of earning more in the UK through employment should be the 'Spouse Dependent' while the other partner will be the main applicant. Also Skilled Worker COS requires that equivalent Tax and NI contribution that corresponds to the new salary threshold (38000GBP per year) be paid. The monthly Tax and NI contribution is minimum of 600GBP, which is the responsibility of the applicant. Payroll is available but Tax must be paid to the Government.

6) We have a maximum allocation of 5 Certificates of Sponsorship per month for switch/local COS. There is no limit on self sponsorship applications that we can take. Treatment will be based on first to pay, first served.

7) Our Long term goal is still to help 100 Nigerian Entrepreneurs transition to self Sponsorship over the next 2 years and before the next general election that can change this opportunity.

Therefore, our main focus for the year will be on the following pathways:

OPTION 1:Obtaining your own Sponsorship License and 5 Year Self Sponsored COS. You can use this to switch (if you are already in UK) or apply for your work Visa ( From outside the UK). You can also Sponsor a worker on your License and bring in your family.

OPTION 2: Getting you a minimum of 2 year COS from an organizationalready successfully obtained their sponsor license. The organization will be responsible for issuing a defined or switch COS to you, with payroll Management (no job offer). The Sponsor's license will be managed by our UK legal and tax partners to guarantee validity. This second option is pretty straight forward, I will elaborate more on the first option.

If you opt for the first option and your license is not approved, we can immediately prioritize you for the second option.

OPTION 1: Obtaining your Own Sponsorship License:

It is projected that more Business licenses for Start Up and Entrepreneurs will be issued in 2025 by the UK Government. This is because the Labour party is biased to favour Job creators than foreign Job seekers this year ( read that again).

The application is divided into 3 stages:

Stage 1: Assessment, Business Profiling, Business Registration, necessary tax registration, HR Documents and Bank Account opening.

Stage 2: Business Plan Creation, we help you develop a business plan to justify growth potential and to justify hiring Non-UK Nationals for the Job. Registered Office (Virtual), Registered Office mail forwarding Services, Authorizing Officer's fees, employee insurance, other Government regulations and requirements.

Stage 3: Sponsor License, Your Self Sponsored COS and Work Visa application.

The following Businesses have been successfully approved in the past. You can use this as a guide:

E-Commerce companies, logistics Companies, Cleaning Business, Care providers, Creatives such as MC, Artists and DJ, Tour Guides and Concierge services, Make up Artists, Nail Technicians, Event Managers, Florists, hair Stylists and other Self- employed creative roles.

Minimum Start Up Capital in your UK Account: 16,000 GBP. We will require that you have this fund before we set up your Business Account. You can also use part of this fund for your IHS fees and Visa Fees once your license is approved.

Average total Processing Fees for Stages 1 and 2 combined: 8000 GBP ( Done in 2 installments and includes your COS fees)

Additional Fees for Stage 3 are as Follows, some of the fees do not apply if you are already in UK:

a) NARIC or UKVI IELTS: . What you need is UK Credentials evaluation (Ecctis, formerly NARIC) which typically costs around 150 Pounds. UKVI IELTS for non-degree holders is 150 Pounds

b) Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS): Bulk of the additional money you will require will go into IHS Fees. 5 year IHS Fee is 5175GBP per Adult and 3880GBP per Child.

c) Tuberculosis Tests: The cost of Tuberculosis test is N100,000 for applicants aged 11 and above and N50,000 for Applicants below 11 years in Nigeria

d) Visa Fees: Your Visa fee based on 5 year Visa is 1420GBP per person.

e) Proof of Fund: For proof of funds, you are expected to submit a Bank statement, showing that you have an equivalent of 1270GBP only in your Bank account for a minimum of 28 days. If you have a spouse, add 285 Pounds to that and for each Child add 315 Pounds.

f) Immigration Skill Charge, ISC: 1820 Pounds

OPTION 2: Getting you a Company Sponsored COS:

This option simply includes getting a license owner to sponsor your COS for a minimum of 2 years. Response from home office is usually faster. The service charge for this is 6900 Pounds (UK VAT included) ( payable in 2 installments, before and after confirmation of COS) . We only work with organizations that we can manage and monitor their license status to avoid revocation of license. We also handle your payroll for home office for the duration of the COS.

For fresh UK Graduates, getting a COS is generally better than a PSW, PSW does not count towards your ILR. Also with a managed COS, the risk of losing your status is eliminated.

After obtaining your COS, Please note that some or all of these additional fees may also apply based on 2 year COS:

a)Language Test or NARIC if applicable:If you have a Bachelor’s Degree, you do not need to write test of English. What you need is UK Credentials evaluation (Ecctis) which typically costs around 150 Pounds. If you do not have a Bachelor’s Degree, you may need to write the UKVI IELTS. We can help you with registrations and training

b)Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS):Bulk of the additional money you will require will go into IHS Fees. 2 year IHS Fee is 2070GBP per Adult and 1552GBP per Child.

c) Payroll Management fees for the second year is 5000GBP in total, payable in quarterly instalment. Note that if you wish to renew your COS with us after 2 years, this fee is recurring every year.

d)Visa Fees if applicable:Your Visa fee based on 2 year Visa is 568 GBP per person.

e)Proof of Fund if applicable:For proof of funds, you are expected to submit a Bank statement, showing that you have an equivalent of 1270GBP only in your Bank account for a minimum of 28 days. If you have a spouse, add 285 Pounds to that and for each Child add 315 Pounds.

f) Immigration Skill Charge ISC:728 GBP for the 2 years.

For reference purpose, you can use the exchange rate of N2000 to 1 GBP.

Average Processing time line for Option 1 if you are in UK: 3 Months

Average processing time for Option 1 if you are applying from outside the UK: 4 month

Average processing time for Option 2, generally: 8 weeks or less.

We do not set a deadline for this package. Once you send us your details for assessment, we will give you a proper breakdown of the steps.

Documents to Submit now:

Send PDF Copies of the following documents for assessment:

1) Your CV OR Resume which must contain your Complete address and phone number.

2) Your Business Registration and current Business profile

3) Biodata page of international Passport

4) If you are already in the UK, your current address and your residency status (COS, BRP, PSW and expiry date).

All documents can be sent as email.

In your email, indicate which option you want us to assess.

If you need more information or have further questions on the terms and conditions, please contact any of our listed representatives below:

Stella 08104378769, Temitayo 08139686452, Folakemi 08103051178, Dijah 07070446037