Working in the United Kingdom

Eligibility to work in the UK

You are currently eligible to work in the UK, and therefore don’t need to obtain an employment visa, if any of the following apply:

  1. You are a British citizen
  2. You are an European Economic Area (EEA) citizen – see list below – who worked in the UK before 31st Dec 2020

EEA countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the UK.

  1.  You are a Swiss national who worked in the UK before 31st Dec 2020

If option 2 or 3 applies to you, you’ll need to apply for settled status in the UK before 30th June 2021 in order to avoid any potential issues when it comes to your employment.
For more information related to EU, EEA and Commonwealth citizens and your rights to working in the UK, please visit: https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/eu-eea-commonwealth.

If one of the parameters above does not apply, or you’re not from one of the countries listed, you may still be able to work in the UK. However, you will need to obtain a visa before finding employment in the UK.

Visas
A new points-based immigration system has been introduced in the UK, which aims to attract skilled workers who can contribute to the UK’s economy.

Below are some of the visas that people might be eligible to apply for:

  • Skilled worker visa– This visa has replaced the Tier 2 (General) work visa. In order to apply for this visa, you must work for a Home Office approved employer, have a ‘certificate of sponsorship’ from your employer, and do a job that’s on the list of eligible employers.

For more information about whether you’re eligible for a skilled worker visa please visit: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa

  • Health and Care Worker visa– This type of visa allows qualified health care professionals (such as doctors and nurses) to come to the UK to help support the NHS. Certain health and care workers will also be eligible. In order to apply for this visa you must also have a ‘certificate of sponsorship’ from your employer.
  • Global talent scheme– The global talent scheme is aimed at highly-skilled scientists and researchers and allows them to come to the UK without a job offer.
  • Graduate immigration– If you’re a foreign national completing a degree in the UK from summer 2021, you may be able to work in the UK at any ability level for up to two years (or three years if you’ve earned a PHD). More information on this visa will be available closer to the time.

You may be able to apply for these visas online, or at an overseas visa application centre. However, this will depend on your country of residence.

For a full list of the applicable visas  please visit: https://www.gov.uk/visas-immigration.

Visa Sponsorship
In order to apply for most work visas, you’ll usually need to gain a job offer with sponsorship from an employer in the UK first.
This employer must also be approved by the Home Office and be on its list of eligible employers.

Job Eligibility
This will depend on the individual employer, the type of role, and your relevant skills and experience.
Whilst some organisations have a licence to sponsor temporary and/or permanent employees to allow them to work at their business, not all of them will be able to do this.
To find out whether the job is something you’d be eligible for, check the job description – or get in touch with the employer directly.

Briefing: Guest satisfaction – Meeting expectations

A new study from J.D. Power has found that the overall hotel guest satisfaction score in the US has risen to a record high of 804 out of 1000 in 2015.

It is a different story in the UK. A survey by Hotel Info looked at guest satisfaction scores in Europe. The UK only scored 7.39 out of 10, which put them second from bottom in the list and far behind the top ranked Slovakia, which had an impressive score of 8.22.

So what makes the difference in these scores, and how important is guest satisfaction anyway? Our experts discuss how to ensure guests have what they want:

J.D. Power’s 2015 North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study is in its 19th year and this is the first time the overall score has passed the 800 point, having risen 20 points from 2014. The factors covered in the score are; the reservation, check-in/check-out, guest room, food and beverage, hotel services, hotel facilities, and cost and fees.

The study suggests that there are two very important elements in achieving good scores. One is that staff anticipate needs and offer friendly service. The second is that the overall operation meets the guest’s expectations of that hotel. The expectation element will vary depending on the branding of the hotel, whether it is a luxury or a budget hotel, and the cost. Guests expect to get what they pay for, and seek out good value.

The survey put The Ritz-Carlton top of the luxury segment, and put Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham top of the Economy Segment in the US.

Hotel Info’s survey of six million guest evaluations compared guest satisfaction in cities in the UK.  Sheffield had the highest score in the UK at 8.03 whereas the UK’s biggest market and capital city, London, lagged behind with a score of 7.12.

If you’ve been sent to this page and you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by yBC for the Hospitality Channel, including interview from industry conferences such as the IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: a focus on the UK hospitality market

The mature UK market has seen many changes in the last few years, not least in the change for demand in new hotel product as well as the lack of funding for new projects. One factor, however, has remained a constant.

The contrast between the provincial market and the London market has never been so different. London is a safe-haven for investors and good assets are at a premium. This of course isn’t the case in the provinces with many of the markets still struggling.

Is this about to change? And where is the future of the UK market? Experts in this briefing discuss, including comment from:

  • Andrew Taylor, National Head of Leisure at NatWest, on the future of the UK market
  • Rob Gray, Director & Head of Hotels & Leisure within RBS Global Restructuring, on the downturns seen in the UK market
  • Patrick Sanville, Director of Hotels at BNP Paribas Real Estate on where the funding is coming from for this market
  • And Rob Seabrook, Head of Hotel Transactions at Savills on liquidity returning to the provincial UK market
 


If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.hpgcms.wpengine.com for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: the hotel industry in the UK

The hospitality industry in the UK is not a unique one. However, the gap between London and the rest of the country is seemingly getting larger. In fact the BBC reported this week that ‘London’s top ten boroughs alone are worth more, in real estate terms, than all the property of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, added together.’

Where is the future of the UK market? How has it been impacted by the continuing lack of deal-making? What hotel product will work well in this market? All questions raised and answered in this week’s briefing, with:

  • Chris Boulton, CEO of yoo on the UK polarisation
  • Joe Stenson, of Queensway Group and the growth in the budget sector
  • Peter Malone, Managing Director of Madison Mayfair on the UK fragmentation
  • And John Brennan, CEO of Jurys Inn Hotels on what he understands the UK market to be like
 


If you’ve been sent to this page but you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do so here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.hpgcms.wpengine.com for the Hospitality Channel, including interviews from industry conferences such as the most recent IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

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