UK Seasonal Worker Visa & Sponsorship for Nigerian Citizens

How to Get UK Seasonal Worker Visa Sponsorship for Short-Term Work

We have a proven track record of assisting numerous Nigerians in obtaining seasonal worker visas. If you’re considering working for a short period in the UK in a specific sector and require guidance on how to get started, contact us for expert assistance. We can handle all the complexities and provide you with comprehensive support.

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Why do you need a Seasonal Worker Visa?

Nigerian workers may visit the UK and work in certain jobs thanks to the Seasonal Worker visa.

The following forms of employment are permitted under this visa:

• Horticulture, which includes collecting produce, flowers, or fruits for up to six months
• Poultry, From 18 October through 31 December (in the same year)

By the deadline of 15 November each year, you must apply if you want to work with poultry with this visa.

You may submit an application at any time of the year if you want to use this visa to work in horticulture.

Who Can Apply for a UK Seasonal Work Visa? Eligibility Criteria Explained

The eligibility for a Seasonal worker visa is:

• You have to be at least 18 years old .
• You need to provide a certificate of sponsorship with a reference number from your company in the UK. The Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) is a digital document that you will get from your UK sponsor. When applying for a Seasonal Worker visa, you will need to provide the reference number provided by CoS. The certificate of sponsorship is only good for usage for a period of three months, and you are only allowed to use the reference number once.
• You need to have at least £1,270 available to you in order to maintain yourself. Following the submission of your application, the funds need to be accessible for a period of twenty-eight calendar days. You are exempt from having to satisfy this requirement if your UK sponsor will be providing financial assistance for you instead. The certificate of sponsorship has to specify that your UK company will pay at least £1,270 toward your living expenses during the first month of your stay.

Duration of the UK Seasonal Worker Visa: How Long Can You Stay?

You will have the opportunity to continue your stay in the UK while:

• Horticultural labour might take up to six months.
• For work pertaining to poultry, every year from the 18th of October to the 31st of December

As soon as your visa is accepted, you will be permitted to enter the United Kingdom (up to 14 days before the day on which your new work is scheduled to begin).

What You Can Do on a UK Seasonal Work Visa: Permitted Activities

You will have the authorisation to do the following if you have a visa for seasonal work:

• Work in the employment that is stated in your certificate of sponsorship
• Study (for certain classes, you may be required to get a certificate from the Academic Technology Approval Scheme)

Please be aware that the following actions cannot be taken by you:

• Take a permanent job
• Employ yourself in a work that isn’t listed on your certificate of sponsorship or in a job in addition to the one you already have.
• Obtaining access to public finances
• Bring along some members of your family.
• Put in an application for permanent residence in the UK.

Seasonal Work Opportunities in the UK: Eligible Jobs Under the Seasonal Worker Visa

Overview

Your planned position has to fall into one of the categories of “eligible roles” in order for you to be able to apply for a Seasonal Worker Visa in the horticulture or poultry production industries.

Because of this, in order to be eligible for a Seasonal Worker visa on the basis of a job in the horticulture industry, the sort of product that is being farmed must be:

• Seasonal Worker Visa in the Horticulture Sector
• Seasonal Worker Visa in the Poultry Production Sector

Seasonal Worker Visa in the Horticulture Sector

• Protected Vegetables are those that are cultivated either inside or in greenhouses.
• Those vegetables, herbs, leafy salads, and potatoes that are cultivated in the open air are referred to as field vegetables.
• Fruits that are considered soft may be cultivated either outdoors or under cover, such as in greenhouses or polytunnels. This includes berries such as strawberries, raspberries, blackcurrants, blueberries, and all species of the rabes and rubus genera; or Top Fruit (Orchard Fruit) – trees that yield fruit such as apples, plums, cherries, and apricots; or Orchard Fruit (Fruit of the Orchard) – fruits that grow on trees in orchards; or Orchard Fruit (Fruit
• Both vines and bines are characterised by their ability to twine around or climb the flexible stems of their host plants, such as hops or grapes.
• Mushrooms primarily refer to species belonging to the genus Agaricus bisporus, although the term may also refer to more unusual species that are often produced indoors.
• Grown both inside and outdoors, bulbs and cut flowers (such as daffodils), for example; or
• Plants that are grown in containers, include seasonal bedding plants such as pansies, violas, germaniums, and poinsettias;
• Hardy ornamental nursery stock; tree and forest nurseries; this includes Christmas trees as well as shrubs, roses, decorative trees, and perennials.

Seasonal Worker Visa in the Poultry Production Sector

Work in poultry production must entail one of the following jobs in order to fulfil the criteria for a Seasonal Worker visa based on work in poultry production:

• Butcher,
• Killer and plucker,
• Bird/game dresser,
• Plucker,
• Poultry processor,
• Poulterer,
• Poultry sticker,
• Food operative,
• Trusser,
• Poultry vaccinator,
• Poultry catcher/handler,
• Poultry meat packer

Documents Required to Apply for a UK Seasonal Work Visa

Documents needed for the seasonal worker visa is:

• A Nigerian passport that is in excellent condition (your passport must still have at least six months of validity left and must have at least one blank page).
• A sponsorship certificate that was issued to you by the company that is sponsoring you.
• A statement from your bank indicating that you have an available balance of at least £1,270 held for 28 days or your company is willing to pay for your costs during your first month in the UK to an amount that is at least £1,270;
• Proof you have paid the visa application fee and the Immigration Health Charge as well as provided any biometric information that is required;
• * Additional documents might be required depending on the case.
• ** Any of your papers that are not in English or Welsh need to be accompanied by a translation that has been officially verified.

Certificate of Sponsorship Requirements for UK Seasonal Worker Visa Applicants

To be eligible for a Seasonal Worker Visa, you need to have a current Certificate of Sponsorship for the position that you want to fill in the organisation. This is captured by an electronic recording.

Your Certificate of Sponsorship has to have been given to you by a sponsor who meets all of the following requirements:

• Has an A rating on the roster of registered sponsors maintained by the Home Office;
• Has the approval of the Department of Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs in regard to the Seasonal Worker route;
• Possesses a licence issued by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority.

Your application for a Seasonal Worker visa cannot be processed without a Certificate of Sponsorship that was granted no more than three months before the date of your application.

If the Certificate of Sponsorship verifies that the position is associated with the poultry production industry, the deadline for submitting an application must be on or before November 15 of each year.

Certain mandatory information is required to be included on your Certificate of Sponsorship, including the following items:

• Your name, your employer, your annual pay.
• A commencement date that is no more than three months following the date on which you submitted your application for a Seasonal Worker visa;
• Confirmation that the Certificate of Sponsorship has not been used in a prior application that has either been approved or denied, and that it has not been withdrawn by the sponsor or revoked by the Home Office;
• Confirmation that the job satisfies the requirements of the applicable pieces of law, such as the Working Time Regulations and the Agricultural Wages Order rate, in cases where these regulations are applicable;
• Confirmation that you will be paid at least £10.42 for every hour that you put in at the company.

Sponsorship Statement for UK Visa

Your Certificate of Sponsorship has to include a statement confirming that you will do the following:

Be paid a minimum of £10.42 for each hour that you put in; and If you are getting sponsored in the horticulture sector or work as a food operative, poultry vaccinator, poultry catcher/handler, or poultry meat packer in the poultry production sector, receive at least 32 hours of paid employment each week;

If you are being sponsored in the poultry production sector for this visa as a butcher, bird/game dresser, plucker, killer and plucker, poultry processor, poultry processor, poultry. It is possible for your Sponsor to provide you a seasonal work of Sponsorship that is valid for numerous entries, which will enable you to go outside of the UK and then come back later.

The hourly rate only accounts for the guaranteed basic gross pay (before income tax and including employee payments to pension and national insurance), but it does not take into account any other forms of compensation or benefits.

If the application is being sponsored to work more than 48 hours per week, then only the pay for the first 48 hours per week will be included against the wage requirement of £26,200. This applies even if the applicant is sponsored to work more than 40 hours per week.

If the seasonal work candidate is being sponsored to work an arrangement in which the regular hours are not the same each week, which results in uneven pay, work in extra of 48 hours in some weeks may be considered towards the salary threshold of £26,200, provided that the average over a regular cycle (that can be less than, but not longer than, 17 weeks) is not more than 48 hours a week.

However, this only applies if the applicant is being sponsored to work a pattern in which the regular hours are not the same each week. When determining whether or not the minimum income requirements are reached, the number of unpaid rest weeks will be included into the average.

How to Apply for a UK Seasonal Worker Visa from Nigeria

Seasonal Worker Visa applications must be submitted from Nigeria.

There is no application deadline for employees in the edible and ornamental horticulture industries.

The earliest you can submit an application for a  Seasonal Worker Visa is three months prior to your scheduled start date. This information can be found on your Sponsorship Certificate.

If the Certificate of Sponsorship verifies that the position is in the poultry production industry, the application must be submitted no later than November 15 of each year.

You should get a decision on your Seasonal Worker Visa application within 3 weeks.

UK Seasonal Worker Visa Fees: Application Costs and Financial Requirements

The current Home Office application fee for a Seasonal Worker Visa for Nigerians is £340.

UK Seasonal Worker Visa Processing Times: How Long Does It Take?

After you have sent in your online application, demonstrated the proven identity, and provided the documentation that supports your claim, you should receive information about the status of your request within three weeks.

Take into consideration that you may only submit an application for your visa up to three months before the date when you will begin your new employment. Your certificate of sponsorship needs to include a date that corresponds to the beginning of your employment.

Validity Period of the UK Seasonal Worker Visa: Duration and Conditions

If your application for a Seasonal Worker Visa to work in the horticulture industry is approved, you will be granted permission to arrive and remain in the United Kingdom for either the duration of the job that is listed on your Certificate of Sponsorship in addition to 14 days before and 14 days after that time frame for a maximum period of 6 months in any 12 month period, whichever is shorter.

If your application for a Worker Visa to work in the poultry production sector is approved, you will be granted permission to enter and remain in the United Kingdom for either the duration of the job listed on the Certificate of Sponsorship plus 14 days before and 14 days after that period or the period beginning on October 2 and ending on December 31 of the year during which the application is submitted (inclusive), whichever is shorter. If your application is approved, you will be able to work in the poultry production sector.

UK Seasonal Worker Visa Conditions: Rules and Restrictions for Visa Holders

You will be able to continue working in the position for which you have been sponsored while you are in the United Kingdom as a Seasonal Worker coming from Nigeria. You will be granted permission to continue your education; but, in order to enrol in some classes, you will be required to have an Academic Technology Approval Scheme certificate.

You will not be permitted to work in a job that is permanent, work in a second job, or work in a job that is not mentioned in your Certificate of Sponsorship. All of these things are prohibited. You will also lose your eligibility to receive government assistance of any kind.

Can You Extend or Switch Your UK Seasonal Worker Visa?

The Seasonal Worker visa does not allow for extensions of its validity. Under the terms of a Seasonal Worker visa, you are only permitted to remain in the United Kingdom for a total of six months.

It is not possible to switch to the Seasonal Worker visa if you are already in the process of obtaining another kind of visa. Only those who are currently located outside of the UK or if you are in Nigeria are eligible to submit an application for the Seasonal Worker visa.

How IAS Can Help You with UK Seasonal Worker Visa Sponsorship & Application

The United Kingdom’s government provides a wide variety of temporary work visas, one of which is the Seasonal Worker visa route.

IAS is here to assist you whether you are a worker from Nigeria who is interested in coming to the United Kingdom as part of the seasonal worker program or an employer in the UK who is interested in obtaining a Seasonal Worker visa for a Nigerian.

Our firm is composed of experienced immigration lawyers that focus on both individual and corporate client cases involving overseas relocation. We have expertise working with people in addition to company owners and operators of schemes to ensure that they are able to receive the results and outputs that they desire.

We are able to assist you in whatever capacity you want, whether you are an organisation in need of aid in acquiring a sponsor licence in order to sponsor foreign employees, a person who is seeking to come to the United Kingdom for temporary employment, or simply someone who needs to talk to an immigration lawyer for additional information about their own particular situation.

Get in touch with a member of our staff right away to get further details about the services we provide and the ways in which we may be of assistance to you. You may reach us by phone at +2342013306361 or Our UK Office at +44 (0) 3316300929, or you can contact us online.