UK Work Permit Information for Teachers

There are currently skills shortages in several areas of Education and good Teachers with appropriate skills and experience are welcome in the UK. Teachers are required for all posts in the UK covering compulsory schooling.

SkillClear aims to guide qualified professionals from finding the right job in the UK to clearing work permits for you and your family to come here to live and work.

Several opportunities exist including :

Once you have found a UK employer and you wish to move yourself and your family to the UK to take up that employment, we will guide you, your employer and your family through the sponsored work permit process. Ask your new employer to talk to us about this.

Useful Links:

• UK Working HolidayMaker Scheme
• Highly Skilled Migrant Programme
• UK Work Permit Information

In General

Any teacher with overseas qualifications can come to the UK to work for up to 4 years without being required to register with the General Teaching Council of England [ GTCE ] or obtain Qualified Teacher Status [ QTS ].

It is at the sole discretion of the employer to determine the level and qualifications of the teaching staff it employs.

However, it is recommended, from the point of view of maximising your prospects of employment and furthering your career goals, that all overseas teachers obtain QTS and GTCE registration.


Qualified Teachers from EU countries will have qualifications broadly recognised around Europe including the UK. They will simply need to register with the GTCE via the fasttrack process and will obtain their DfES number as a result.

If from outside the EU you need attain post graduate entry level status to start the ball rolling toward QTS. This means you must have a degree or equivalent to UK degree and GCSEs grade C or above in Maths and Science.

With the above entry level qualifications you can prepare for your QTS.

During your first term at your new school, you will establish a portfolio of your skills and operational expertise including lesson plans and pupil assessments. Examples of these can also be provided from your overseas school.

Without the above entry level qualifications, you can still establish your portfolio as detailed above and will need some additional training. A grant of up to £750 is available for this.

Once the above portfolio and/or training is completed they can be assessed in one of 2 ways depending on your experience.

Less than 2 years experience:

1.5 day assessment. If you pass you will be QTS but also then need to complete a full induction year for full GTCE registration, again whilst working where you are now.

2 years or above experience:

2 day assessment. If you pass this there is no need for the full induction year as you will be QTS and GTCE registered.

The above process is subsidised first time round for you. However, should you fail, there will be charges for retakes.

GTCE registration bears a cost of £23. Again, this will be subsidised.

As with most industry sectors, the HSMP scheme applies equally to Teachers with longer and more specific skills. This scheme exists to allow highly skilled people to enter the UK to search for work.


Teachers and language assistants coming to the UK under approved exchange schemes are eligible for permit free employment.

You must be coming to an educational establishment in the UK under an exchange scheme approved by the Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) or administered by the Central Bureau for Educational Visits and Exchanges or the League for the Exchange of Commonwealth Teachers. You must intend to leave the UK at the end of your exchange period. You must not intend to take employment except within the terms stated above. You must be able to maintain and accommodate yourself and any dependants adequately without recourse to public funds.

Teachers will normally be issued with a numbered 'certificate of appointment' by one of the sponsoring bodies listed above. This certificate contains details of the educational establishment to which the applicant is to be appointed the duration of the appointment and their personal details.

If you are a member of a religious order and intend to teach you may do so only at an establishment maintained by your religious order.