December is always a time for reflection, that moment when you look back over the last twelve months and assess what went well and how things could have gone better. We’ll be honest, when we published our blog ‘New Year, Fresh Start?’ in January, merrily chatting about SMART goals and target setting, there was no way we could have predicted how 2020 would change all of our working practices. For many employers, the past twelve months have led to significant ways in the way we all work, furloughed staff and, in some cases, redundancies and restructuring.  

Alongside this, April 2020 saw the introduction of new employment legislation which made significant changes to employment contracts, holiday pay and continuous employment calculations, the introduction of Parental Bereavement Leave, and the roll out of IR35 to the private sector. Looking back, it would be easy for us all to announce that we’ve had a rough ride and probably need to just relax into 2021 with minimal disruption. We may all need to wait a little bit longer until that happens for two reasons. The first is that furlough is still likely to continue to March and with the new Tier system, job security in some sectors looks precarious. The other reason is Brexit. 

The transition period for the UK’s exit from the European Union ends on 31 December 2020, meaning that at this point immigration rules will change. The points-based system will impact on any new arrivals from anywhere other than The Republic of Ireland. This includes EU, EEA, and Swiss citizens. Additionally, existing employees who are from the EU, EEA, and Switzerland will need to apply to the European Settlement Scheme (EUSS) in order to continue living, working, and studying in the UK. The deadline for applications is 30 June 2021. If they travel for work, they will also need to ensure that they comply with UK business visitor rules and that they have the correct documentation in place (in some cases national ID cards will no longer be acceptable identification for travel into and out of the UK). 

For any employers considering recruiting in Europe, we recommend that they complete any recruitment before 31 December 2020 and provide support to enable them to achieve pre-settled status under the European Settlement Scheme.  

Recruiting foreign nationals after 1 January 2021 will require employers to follow the Skilled Worker Route. Any job offers must be for roles that require at least a level 3 (A-Level equivalent) on the Regulated Qualifications Framework with a minimum salary of £25,600 (there may be exceptions for some public services). Any business sponsoring a skilled worker may also need to prove that there is a genuine need for the role. There are some exceptions which include the Global Talent Scheme, which allows talented scientists and researchers to enter the UK to work, the Health and Care Visa, which allows fast track entry for successful applicants and their families, and the Graduate Visa, which enables any students who have completed a UK degree from summer 2021 the opportunity to work for a fixed period (2 years for Batchelor/Masters, 3 years for PHD).   

So, what do employers need to do next? 

If your business usually relies on recruiting EU nationals, one of the most important things is to build a new recruitment plan, which allows for potential staff shortages and knowledge gaps. It’s a good time to readdress training programmes for existing staff to fill these skills gaps both in the short and long term and implement actions to grow and retain UK talent.  

Additionally, for employers who plan to continue to recruit abroad, there will be additional costs which need to be factored into recruitment budgets: 

• Sponsorship Licence - £1536 (medium to large companies), £536 for SMEs 
• Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) – payable for every sponsored worker, £1000 (£364 for SMEs and Charities) for the first 12 months and then £500 (£182 for SMEs and charities) for each subsequent 6-month period of employment 
• Immigration Health Surcharge - £624 per year of visa.