Employing International Students and Graduates

As a small business you might find the thought of employing an international student or graduate daunting. The following information is designed to give you up-to-date advice and guidance to help you make informed decisions during the recruitment process.

At both Southampton Solent University, and the University of Southampton (and indeed at most of the UK Universities) there are a growing number of international students and graduates, from Europe and worldwide. Many of these look for work in the Southampton area while they are here and also look to apply for graduate jobs when they leave. The following information is intended as a guide only, and should not be seen as official guidance. Please check with the Home Office for specific advice.

****News update: New international graduate's scheme announced ****

A new scheme which will enable international students to stay on in the UK for a year to work after they have completed their studies has been announced by the government.

To be introduced on 1 May 2007, the scheme replaces the Science and Engineering Graduates Scheme (SEGS), established in 2004 to encourage international students who had graduated in certain scientific disciplines to stay in the UK to work.

Under the new scheme, international students who have obtained a bachelors degree or higher level qualification in any subject from a university or college in the UK will be able to stay on for a year, and unlike SEGS which applied only to those with a 2:2 or above, any degree class (except fail) will be eligible.

Applicants will have to apply within one year of successfully completing their qualification. Those with post-graduate certificates and diplomas, such as a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) will also be eligible to apply.

For more information, see DfES press release (28 March 2007) at:http://www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2007_0057

National Insurance Numbers

You can employ students who do not have a permanent national insurance number. They should, however, apply for one as soon as possible after employment commences. The benefits office may require proof of employment, such as a letter of confirmation on company letterhead, or a contract of employment. The local Benefits Office in Southampton is St. Cross House, 18 Bernard Street, Southampton SO14 3PJ. Their phone number is 023 8071 3600. There is a national insurance helpline - call 0845 302 1487 for general queries.

EU Students

Students from the old EU countries (those in the EU prior to 1/5/04) have the same rights to work as UK students with no restriction on working hours. Students from eight of the ten countries who entered the EU on 1 May 2004 have to register in the Workers Registration Scheme operated by the Home Office after starting employment. Different rules apply to Bulgarian and Romanian nationals. Please visit www.workingintheuk.gov.uk | for details of regulations.

Other International Students

Passports/visas will have work restrictions listed. If they are permitted to work, most are limited to 20 hours work per week during term time, with no restrictions during vacation times.

You are required to do document checks |for all employees.

Restrictions on Romanian and Bulgarian Nationals

Romanian or Bulgarian nationals currently in the UK with immigration permission as a student can work up to 20 hours a week during term time, and unlimited hours during holidays. The UK Government has decided that students must apply for a registration certificate if they want to continue or start working from 1 January 2007. Permission to work will be limited to 20 hours a week, both during the term and in the holidays.

Information from the Home Office:

If you are a student in the United Kingdom, you may engage in employment for up to 20 hours a week without obtaining an accession worker card. However, if you wish to work, you must first obtain a registration certificate confirming that you are exercising a Treaty right as a student. This will provide authority for you to work up to 20 hours per week. You will be required to demonstrate that you are enrolled at a genuine educational institution. If you are a student and wish to work for more than 20 hours a week, you will need to obtain an accession worker card for this purpose. If you wish to exercise your treaty right as a student and do not intend to work you are not required to register.

Students should request a Form BR1 for a registration certificate from the Home Office:

Telephone: 08705 210224 (between 9.00am and 5.00pm, Monday to Friday)

Or visit: www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk | or www.workingintheuk.gov.uk |

Further information on the registration certificate and the accession worker card is at: http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/6353/11406/49552/guidancefornationalofbulgar1.pdf |

Employers should be aware that it will be difficult for students to work more than 20 hours during vacations as the types of employment they can undertake is restricted.

Students on Placements

The restriction on Bulgarian and Romanian students' working to 20 hours a week raises the issue of whether undertaking courses with work placements would be a problem for these students. UKCOSA raised this with the Home Office and has had the following response from Suzanne Barnes of the Student and Visitor Task Force:

"Just to confirm the regulations are about controlling the amount of work carried out by students outside their course - a course which involves a work placement where the work contributes to the course is not covered by this restriction so the student will be fine."

The legal basis for the Home Office response appears to be the definition of 'student' in Article 7 (1)c) of the 'Citizenship Directive' (Directive 2004/38/EC), which includes those enrolled on vocational training as students. It is always advisable to check with the Home Office with regards to specific circumstances.

Workers Registration Scheme

From 1 May 2004, most nationals of the new member states (Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia) working in the UK will be subject to the Accession State Worker Registration Scheme.

Persons subject to the scheme will need to register if they plan to work for more than one month for an employer in the UK. Nationals of Cyprus and Malta are not required to register for this scheme.

Workers from Romania and Bulgaria are subject to different regulations.

Your employees will need to register with the Home Office if:

they are a national of one of the new Member States (apart from Malta and Cyprus) subject to the Worker Registration Scheme; and
they start a new job or or after 1 May 2004; or
they have been working in the UK before 1 May 2004 without permission.

Your employees will not be subject to the Worker Registration Scheme and therefore will not need to register if one or more of the following applies:

they are self-employed;
they have been working legally in the UK for 12 months or more in the job they hold on 1 May 2004;
they have been working legally in the UK and you stay in the same job after 1 May 2004; they were issued with leave to enter the UK before 1 May 2004 as a Seasonal Agricultural Worker and took up employment on the Seasonal Workers Scheme on or after 1 May 2004;
they are providing services in the UK on behalf of an employer who is not established in the UK;
they are also a citizen of the UK, another EEA State (other than one of the 8 new Member States) or Switzerland;
they are the family member of a Swiss or EEA national (other than one of the 8 new Member States) who is working in the UK;
they are the family member of a Swiss or EEA national who is living in the UK as a student, or a retired self sufficient person.

Those subject to the scheme should apply to register as soon as they start a new job. If they do not apply within one month of starting a job, their employment will be illegal after that date. It will be illegal until they are issued with a registration certificate and they may have to stop working.

For further information on the Worker Registration Scheme and an application form, visit the website: http://www.workingintheuk.gov.uk |

Further information for employers regarding international students:

http://www.solent.ac.uk/careers/employers/employing_international_students/international_students_home.aspx

Restrictions on Romanian and Bulgarian Nationals and Students on Placements:

http://www.solent.ac.uk/careers/employers/employing_international_students/romanian_bulgarian.aspx

Workers Registration Scheme:

http://www.solent.ac.uk/careers/employers/employing_international_students/workers_registration.aspx

Working in the UK:

www.workingintheuk.gov.uk

UKCOSA

www.ukcosa.org.uk

Work leaflet(DfES)