At the time of assigning a Tier 2 (General) Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS), you confirm either:
♠ you have conducted a resident labour market test as set out in this guidance and have been unable to identify a suitable settled worker to fill the post; or
♠ an exemption to resident labour market test applies.
All CoS, restricted or unrestricted, must be assigned within six (6) months of the date the job was first advertised. Where the job has been advertised in two stages, the CoS must be assigned within six (6) months of the date the first of the two advertisements appeared.
Exceptions to 6 months limit
Exceptions to this six (6) month limit are as follows:
♠ where a migrant is recruited via a milkround, a CoS must be assigned within 48 months of the milkround taking place.
♠ where the job falls within one of the PhD level SOC codes in Home Office guidance, a CoS must be assigned within 12 months of the start of the recruitment process. For more information on the codes, please contact us for advice
♠ where the migrant has been recruited to a pupillage position for trainee barristers, a CoS must be assigned within 24 months of the pupillage position first being advertised
♠ where the job advertised is for a rank and file (tutti) orchestral musician, the CoS must be assigned within 24 months of the date the job was first advertised. This makes sure the results of advertising reflect the current availability of the skills you need.
Things to Remember
When you assign a CoS you must do the following:
♠ give full details of the resident labour market test conducted, including: the dates the job was advertised; and, where the job was advertised, any relevant reference numbers including the Universal Jobmatch, Job ID number, or in Northern Ireland the Jobcentre Online vacancy reference number, as detailed in the SMS guidance; or
♠ elaborate why the resident labour market test is not needed where applicable.
When you assign a CoS to a migrant who will be employed as nurse, but who first needs to pass the Observed Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), the start date you give on their CoS should be the date on which they are scheduled to sit their OSCE. This is because if their Tier 2 leave did not start until after the date of their OSCE, they would need to make more than one application to the Home Office, which may delay the date they can start working for you. You should get legal advice on the Tier specific duties that apply in these circumstances.