Tier 2 and furloughed employees

As predicted in our earlier news article, the Home Office has now confirmed that Tier 2 sponsored skilled workers can be placed on furlough without a negative impact to their immigration status provided that any reduction is part of a company-wide policy and is not discriminatory against sponsored workers.

Key points

An employer can temporarily reduce the pay of sponsored employees to 80% of their salary or £2,500 per month, whichever is the lower.

Any reductions must be part of a company-wide policy to avoid redundancies and in which all workers are treated the same.

These reductions must be temporary, and the employee’s pay must return to at least previous levels once these arrangements have ended.

Reporting via the Sponsorship Management System

Where relevant, employers should report that a worker has been placed on to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. If the employer is reducing salary payments to 80% in line with the scheme and not making up the remainder by voluntary payments, the report should also confirm the reduction in salary.

Additional guidance on reporting duties can be found in our article here.

RLegal Solicitors.
3 April 2020