Applying for Permission to Work in the UK
Most people who have claimed asylum in the UK are initially not allowed to work. This
can be really difficult because it feels like you cannot move on with your life, and you
cannot earn your own money whilst waiting for a delayed decision from the Home
Office.
On this page, you will find the following information:
- What is asylum permission to work?
o Immigration Salary List
o Difference between permission to work and skilled worker visa
o Working as a student - How to apply for permission to work
o National Insurance number - Common problems
o How does permission to work affect asylum support?
o Delays, including:
▪ ARC cards not being delivered
o Share code issues
o Your rights – employers withdrawing offers - Further information about migrant workers’ rights
What is asylum permission to work?
Most people who have claimed asylum in the UK are initially not allowed to work. This
can be really difficult because it feels like you cannot move on with your life, and you
cannot earn your own money whilst waiting for a delayed decision from the Home
Office.
However, the immigration rules allow for you to request permission to work if you have
been waiting for more than 12 months for a Home Office decision on your asylum
claim “through no fault of your own”. This may be 12 months after initially claiming
asylum, or 12 months after submitting further submissions to be considered as a fresh
claim.
If you have received a refusal of your claim from the Home Office and have lodged an
appeal and are waiting for a decision on that appeal, you will not be able to apply for
permission to work. Almost everybody granted permission to work under this policy is
only allowed to work in a job on the Home Office’s Immigration Salary list.
However, people seeking asylum always have the right to volunteer.
Immigration Salary List
The Immigration Salary List is a list published by the Home Office that shows jobs that
have a shortage (this means not enough) people working in them in the UK.
In April 2024, the Immigration Salary List replaced the former Shortage Occupation
List.
Many jobs on the immigration salary list are specialised (like chemical scientists or
classical ballet dancers). This is limiting because it means that people who seek asylum
in the UK and obtain work permission cannot work in whatever job they would like to
choose.
However, there are also jobs like bricklaying, roof tiling, construction, and care work
available.
Difference between permission to work and skilled worker visa
Applying for a ‘skilled worker visa’, and claiming asylum in the UK are two separate
paths to immigration status. This often confuses people because both routes have the
same job list – the Immigration Salary list.
A skilled worker visa is for people who apply to come to or stay in the UK to do an
eligible job with an approved employer. Their visa is tied to sponsorship by their
employer. See the Immigration Salary List here
By contrast, someone who claims asylum comes to the UK to seek international
protection from fear of persecution.
Something else that confuses people is the mention of ‘lower’ and ‘standard’ rates
of pay for the jobs listed on the Immigration Salary List. For people who have claimed
asylum in the UK, a grant of permission to work allows them access to the jobs on the
Immigration Salary List – nothing else. For people on the skilled worker route, their
certificate of sponsorship will state whether they need to look at the lower or standard
rates of pay on the list. So, the rates are only relevant to people who are on the skilled
worker visa route, not to people on the asylum permission to work route.
In theory, people on the permission to work route should be able to negotiate a salary
just like anyone else. They should not be paid less than the minimum wage.
People who have claimed asylum in the UK are not eligible to go down the skilled
worker visa route to get a job if they are still waiting for a decision on their asylum claim.
People can only switch to the skilled worker route if they already have another type
of visa in the UK.
Similarly, skilled workers cannot apply for permission to work as an asylum seeker
because they are already in the UK on the basis of a sponsorship by an employer
(although skilled workers are now allowed to update their visa if they change their role
or employer).
Working on a student visa
Again, permission to work as a person seeking asylum and permission to work as
someone with a student visa in the UK are two separate paths.
Students are able to work in line with the conditions outlined on their student visa, and
that work doesn’t have to be on the Immigration Salary list. However, if a student is
receiving legal aid or asylum support, how much they earn could affect whether or not
they continue to be eligible for these services. Learn more about working on a
student visa
How to apply for asylum permission to work
Permission to work is not issued automatically: you have to apply to the Home Office
for it.
If you have a lawyer, it is a good idea to ask them to help you apply for work permission.
If you do not have a lawyer, the Migration Justice Project (part of the Law Centre in
Northern Ireland) has drafted a useful guide to applying for work permission.
You can access the guide in English, Tigrinya, Somali, Farsi, and Arabic.
To apply for permission to work from the Home Office, you will have to write to the
Home Office with evidence.
All applications for permission to work from people seeking asylum or people who have
submitted further submissions for a fresh claim should be made by writing to UK Visas
and Immigration (UKVI) and should include the following information: - Your full name, date of birth and nationality
- Home Office reference number
- A statement setting out your request for permission to work
- Your contact details (email address, phone number and address) and the contact
details of your legal representative (if you have one). - Applications must be sent to the one of the following teams:
o Asylum Casework Teams: people awaiting an initial decision on their asylum claim
should submit any request for permission to work via email to
[email protected] or by post to: Permission to Work Team, Asylum
Operations, Department 139, The Capital, Old Hall Street, Liverpool, L3 9PP
o Refused Case Management: Applications for permission to work from people
whose asylum claims have been refused but who have outstanding further
submissions are dealt with by Refused Case Management and should be sent via
email to [email protected] or by post to: Permission to Work Team,
Administrative Unit, Level 7, The Capital, New Hall Place, Liverpool, L3 9PP
Once you have received permission to work, you will be issued with a new Asylum
Registration Card (often referred to as an ‘ARC’ card) to reflect that you have
permission to work. Often people experience a delay in receiving their new ARC card.
National Insurance Number
When you have received your updated ARC card, you will need to apply for a National
Insurance Number (often shortened to ‘NI’). Again, the Migration Justice Project has
published a guide to obtaining a National Insurance Number once you have obtained
permission to work.
PLEASE NOTE THAT IF YOU ARE IN NORTHERN IRELAND, YOU APPLY FOR A
NATIONAL INSURANCE NUMBER ON THE NIDIRECT WEBSITE. IF YOU ARE IN
THE REST OF THE UK, YOU APPLY FOR A NATIONAL INSURANCE NUMBER ON
THE GOV.UK WEBSITE.
You can access the guide in English, Tigrinya, Somali, Farsi, and Arabic.
Your new employer may also ask you to complete an Access NI check. This is a
criminal history record check which lets your employer know if you have been
convicted of a criminal offence or are barred from working with children or vulnerable
adults. This is the standard procedure for anyone who works with vulnerable persons.
Common Problems
Unfortunately, for many people, receiving permission to work can often lead to a
number of other problems. We will list the most common challenges here, along with
some potential actions that you can take to resolve them.
How does permission to work affect asylum support?
If you have claimed asylum, and do not have anywhere to live and/or money to support
yourself, you may be able to get asylum support. This is provided by the Home Office
and, depending on your circumstances, can include housing and/or basic living
expenses.
Asylum support is provided by the Home Office while your asylum claim is being
considered (this means while you are waiting for a decision), or after your claim for
asylum has been refused.
Asylum support is different from mainstream welfare benefits.
If you receive permission to work, this will not affect your asylum support.
However, if you start working and have an income (this means you start to earn money),
you will have a legal duty to notify the Home Office of this. The Home Office will then
review your situation to see whether or not you are still considered ‘destitute’. The
outcome of this will depend on your specific situation.
Delays
Many people in our community tell us that they have been experiencing very long
delays from the Home Office in: - Moving forward with their asylum application (having their interview, or receiving a
decision on their claim) - Receiving a grant of work permission after they have applied for it
- Receiving an updated ARC card once they have been granted work permission
We know that waiting a long time for a Home Office decision can be a very stressful
and exhausting experience.
A report published by the Refugee Council in July 2021 found that the average waiting
time for an initial decision on an asylum case is likely to be between one and three
years. It stated that Home Office delays in providing initial decisions on asylum claims
were mainly caused by a failure by the Home Office to keep up with the number of
decisions that needed to be made.
Waiting a long time for a Home Office decision can be emotionally exhausting and
stressful, even if you eventually receive a positive decision and refugee status.
If you are facing a delay at any point in the asylum process, it can sometimes be useful
to get your local Member of Parliament (MP) involved in your asylum, human rights, or
immigration case. You can find out who your local MP is by visiting the They Work For
You website and typing in your postcode. Contacting your MP can be useful for two
main reasons. First, they may be able to contact the Home Office on your behalf to
speed up the time it takes for them to give you a decision.
However, given the number of delays across the country, this might not be possible or
successful. So, the second useful thing about contacting your MP about a delay is that
it shows them just how many people in their constituency are facing Home Office
delays; and this makes it more likely that they will raise the issue in Parliament which
will give it more attention.
This article cannot be reproduced without permission from the author who can be
contacted on his email at [email protected].
