Global Business Mobility Route – Graduate Trainee Visa
The Global Business Mobility Route (GBM) has a number of sub–categories, one of which is the Graduate Trainee visa. The GBM – Graduate Trainee visa was introduced on 11th April 2022. It replaced the Intra–Company Graduate Trainee visa, also previously known as the Tier 2 (Intra–company) Graduate Trainee visa.
The Graduate Trainee visa is for employees based abroad that work for a business or organisation with a link to a UK employer, who intend to work temporarily in the UK as part of a structured graduate training programme. Applicants must have worked for their employer aboard for at least three months prior to submitting an application for a visa under this Immigration category. Their employer abroad must also be linked to the UK sponsor (employer) by being a business or organisation that is associated by way of common ownership or control, or one that has a joint venture with the sponsor that the employee intends to work with in the UK.
The UK sponsor must have a Sponsorship Licence and have issued a Certificate of Sponsorship to the Graduate Trainee.
The Home Office must be satisfied that there is a genuine vacancy and not one simply created for the facilitation of obtaining permission to enter the UK.
Graduate Trainees are required to be paid in line with the minimum salary requirement. The minimum salary must be at least £23,100, however only 48 hours per week will be taken into consideration when UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) review a Graduate Trainee visa application. In addition, the required salary must be 70% of the going rate for the role the graduate trainee will be taking on.
Graduate Trainee visa applicants can meet the financial requirements by showing they have held £1,270 for at least 28 days or getting their maintenance certified by their UK sponsor.
Applicants with an adverse immigration history or criminal records should seek legal advice before applying as the Home Office will take this into consideration when deciding Immigration applications.
Applicants applying from certain countries are required to take a Tuberculosis Test showing a negative result dated no earlier than six months before they arrive in the UK.
The maximum length of time that an applicant can stay on the Graduate Trainee visa route is 12 months.
Extension applications are not permitted but further applications may be successfully made from abroad.
References:
Workers and Temporary Workers: Guidance for sponsors
Sponsor a Global Business Mobility Worker (Version 04/22)