The new system, like HSMP, is based on points. Points are awarded for age, educational qualifications, earnings for the last 12 months, English language skills, and being able to show savings to support yourself. Additional points are also available if you have already worked in the UK or studied in the UK previously.
Earnings
Applicants may claim points for their earnings made in the 12 months before their Tier 1 (General) visa application is submitted. This applies if you are in salaried, self-employed or contractor employment. You can claim your gross amount rather than net amount, that is, the amount before deductions such as tax or national insurance.
Total part-time earnings over a period of up to 12 months in the 15 months prior to your application will be included as part of your total earnings. If you held several jobs over this period, sum the earnings for each job. Earnings do not have to be with a single employer.
Only work related earnings are taken into account when points are awarded. Dividends from a company, where the applicant works for the company, founded the company, or is actively involved in the company's daily management may be included.
Since the strength of the economy in the country a person works in is a factor in determining earnings power, different countries are assessed differently. Countries are divided into five categories - A, B, C, D and E. Category A includes Countries such as the US, EU member states, Australia, and Canada, while category E covers developing countries such as Afghanistan and Nigeria. The earnings requirement will vary depending on the country a person derives their earnings from.
Those applying from outside the United Kingdom would not be expected to earn the UK equivalent. The income level required to score adequate points to qualify will depend on where you actually worked. The country you have been residing and working in determines the income band.
For example, for a given skill set, earnings in Australia will be noticably higher than incomes in India. The Immigration Rules allow applicants earning their income in India to multiply their earnings by 5.3, before measuring their total points in the table below. An applicant earning their income in Australia would not be able to apply this multiplier.
Similarly, an Indian national residing and earning their income in the UK will need to demonstrate the same earning power as a UK national with similar skills, and will not be able to apply the multiplier.
Incomes can be multiplied by up to 11.4, to obtain the figure the UK Border Agency or Embassy will use to allocate points, depending on which country your earnings are from. The Tier 1 HSMP calculator will automatically determine your earnings points based on your country. Enter you actual earnings, and the country you derived your earnings from, and the points calculator will do the rest!
The following table lists the earnings brackets, and the points allocated to each bracket.
| Previous earnings | Points |
| £40,000 or more | 45 |
| £35,000 - £39,999 | 40 |
| £32,000 - £34,999 | 35 |
| £29,000 - £31,999 | 30 |
| £26,000 - £28,999 | 25 |
| £23,000 - £25,999 | 20 |
| £20,000 - £22,999 | 15 |
| £18,000 - £19,999 | 10 |
| £16,000 - £17,999 | 5 |
If you have lived and worked in more than one country during the period you want to claim points for, your total earnings will be considered for Tier 1 General earnings points. For example, if you have spent 8 of the last 12 months in the United Kingdom and 4 in India, take your earned income in the United Kingdom, and add this to your Indian earnings times 5.3. Only the component that you earned while working in India can be multiplied by 5.3.
To find out how many points you score, enter your earnings and the country of earnings in the Tier 1 HSMP calculator.
Period for earnings
The period of earnings used for Tier 1 (General) visas will usually be the 12 months immediately prior to the submission of the application. However, points can be awarded based on the gross earnings over a total period of up to 12 months out of the 15 months immediately prior to your application. The earnings can be for any consecutive 12 month period out of the last 15 months.
There are other acceptable periods, as listed below.
- If you have been unable to earn an income due to undertaking full-time study, use your earnings for a 12 month period in the 15 months immediately prior to you becoming a full-time student. This applies to both current full-time students and for recent students who have finished a full-time course within the previous 12 months.
- If you have been unable to earn an income continuously due to a period of maternity or adoption leave that falls within the last 15 months, then you may exclude the period of maternity or adoption leave, and make up for this period by claiming earnings further back, up to a period of 15 months plus the amount of time you were on maternity or adoption leave.
Note that if you already hold either a HSMP or Tier 1 (General) visa, point 1 above is not acceptable.
UK Experience Points on Earnings
Those earning points in this category from work done in the UK will also be eligible for an additional 5 points for their UK experience. If you have successfully claimed points for UK earnings then you will automatically be awarded 5 points for UK experience.
