UNITED KINGDOM – Summer 2011 interns exempt from Tier 2 cooling off period
The UKBA yesterday announced that students who worked as interns in the UK during the summer of 2011 and want to return to a graduate job with the same company are now temporarily exempt from Tier 2 cooling off rules.
The UKBA website states that the cooling off rules, introduced to Tier 2 (General) in February this year, mean those who have left Tier 2 must wait a year from the end of their last application before they can apply again through that route.
Qualification Criteria
To qualify for the temporary exemption, which is available until 31 October 2012, applicants must:
- be sponsored by the same company where they worked as an intern in the summer of 2011;
- have previously been granted permission under Tier 2 (General) with that company for a temporary job lasting no more than 4 months as an intern or a summer associate;
- have completed a degree course within 18 months of the application;
- be returning to the UK on a graduate trainee scheme; and
- be making a Tier 2 (General) application with a start date on the certificate of sponsorship of 31 October 2012 or before.
The Tier 2 policy guidance and sponsor guidance will be updated by 14 June.