Working in the UK after study

This section contains information for international students on work visas for the UK, including changes in 2012 and how these will affect international students. You can also read our tips on where to look and how to get a job in UK on our page of frequently asked questions.

• Current work visas
• Changes in 2012
• How will the changes affect international students?
• Frequently asked questions about getting a job in the UK

The Careers Service can provide general visa information relevant to all international students with a particular focus upon how work visas affect UK job hunting and employers.

For visa advice specific to your own situation, and to find out the latest regulations contact the University's International Advice Team in the Student Service Centre and see the UK Border Agency (UKBA) and UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) websites.

Main visa options for international students

• Tier 1 - Post-study work visa
• Tier 2 - Employer sponsored work visa

For a full listing of the other visas available in the UK please see the UKBA website.

The Tier 1 (General) visa and The Highly Skilled Migrant Programme are no longer available.

No work visa required (including European Economic Area (EEA) and Swiss students)

Most EEA/Swiss students can work unrestricted in the UK but some EEA students may need to register with the Home Office. To confirm your eligibility to work check the UKCISA website.

Some non-EEA international students may also have a right to work in the UK, see the International Advice Team website or the UKCISA pages to explore this further.

The UK Border Agency has announced the closure of the Post Study Work Visa from April 2012 which is currently available to international graduates in the UK. This closure, however, will also be accompanied by the relaxing of requirements for an alternative visa route - the Tier 2 employer sponsored work visa. This will allow continued opportunities for international students to gain graduate level employment in the UK under this visa.

The concessions or relaxed requirements announced by the UK Border Agency will be that:

• There will not be a limit on the numbers of students able to switch from student visa to Tier 2 (students switching to Tier 2 will not affect a company's visa quotas)
• Employers sponsoring switching students will not be required to meet the Resident Labour Market Test - the need to demonstrate that they could not recruit a UK or EEA national for the job. (Although other requirements for the visa will still apply such as minimum salary levels). Please note that the specific guidelines are yet to be confirmed by the UK Border Agency

The main impact for students graduating in 2012 onwards will be a need to research the graduate job market in the UK, ensure you have the required skills and qualities sought by the employer and apply early.

Given what has been announced so far, the changes suggest:

• The Tier 2 route has always been used by UK graduate employers, alongside the post-study work visa. It is anticipated that more graduate employers will now be able to utilise this route and the concessions from 2012.
• In the past the main barrier to more graduate employers using Tier 2 has been the need to pass the resident labour market test. Relaxing this requirement will be an asset to graduate employers who are on the Sponsor Register and therefore able to use the Tier 2 route. 
• There are currently around 20,000 employers on the Sponsor Register in the UK. This is available on the UKBA website, enabling students to target their applications to these firms. It is also possible for firms to get onto the Register although this takes time / costs money.
• Another barrier to recruiters in 2010 was the new cap, or limit, on numbers of Tier 2 visas that UK employers faced. There will not be a limit on the numbers of graduating international students transferring to Tier 2 from within the UK.

To take advantage of these concessions:

• You will have to find a graduate job offer with a sponsoring employer before your student visa expires. Although graduate employers hire all year round, some popular graduate programmes have a long recruitment cycle, so you will need to begin your graduate job hunting early in the final year of study if you are to maximise your chances of success with particular firms. Some closing dates are October / November.
• Pay attention to how UK graduate employers recruit, and in particular the skills and qualities sought on applications to ensure you are in a position to apply early. Focus upon ensuring your language ability is proficient for job applications and selection processes with employers. See The UK graduate job market section for more information.
• The Tier 2 visa currently also requires a minimum salary of £20,000 for the position. This may reinforce the need to ensure that you have a range of employability skills on offer, and apply early in order to secure a position that pays this salary. The average graduate starting salary for Manchester graduates is around £20,000 (Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). To explore the UK job market for your preferred career, starting salaries and how employers typically recruit, see our careers sector pages and the Prospects website.