ID Card instead of Birth Certificate

[hsmporwp]

Turkish citizens are not issued birth certificate and their driving licenses do not include full date of birth information (only year).

But they are issued with an ID card since birth which includes all this information.

Would it be enough to include the translation and the original ID Card as an evidence for age assessment in HSMP application or do we need to get the notarised copy of our passport?

Thanks

[hsmporwp]

I wonder if anyone has similar experience or any administrator can clarify this. Thanks for your help.

[hsmporwp]

Well, i have emailed my question to HO and here is their answer. Although it does not say much in addition to FAQ's I'd better share one might find it useful:

Thank you for your email

Age Assessment
Reasoning behind age assessment
The age assessment is intended to recognise that it is more difficult for a highly skilled young graduate to score maximum points in the previous earnings category, compared to an older counterpart with the same level of skills. Furthermore, there is a greater potential for young highly skilled individuals to be active in the labour market for longer than their older counterparts.

Points available
Points can be claimed in the age assessment category as follows:

Age 27 or under – 20 points

Age 28 or 29 – 10 points

Age 30 or 31 – 5 points

32 and over – 0 points

Points can only be awarded to individuals who are still within the age band when we receive their HSMP application. Applicants should ensure that their application form reaches us before their birthday if they are close to passing from one age band into another. The office that receives the HSMP applications is only open Monday to Friday (8.30am to 4.30pm) excluding public holidays.

Any application received by us on or after your birthday can no longer be considered under the previous age band. For example, if you are about to reach your 28th Birthday, and you wish to claim 20 points for being in the 27 or under age category, you should ensure that your applications reaches us by the last working day before your 28th Birthday.

Evidence Required
In order to score points in the age assessment category the applicant must provide evidence of their age. The evidence we will accept is as follows:

Original birth certificate; or
Original full driving licence.

Exceptional consideration
If there are exceptional reasons as to why the applicant is not able to provide either their original birth certificate or original full driving licence then he or she may request exceptional consideration of their case. We may be willing to consider alternative evidence specified below in support of these points claimed in exceptional circumstances, such as if war or natural disaster has affected you.

If there are exceptional and compelling reasons as to why the applicant is unable to provide one of the required pieces of evidence then he or she will need to explain these reasons fully on the application form.

The applicant will also need to provide alternative evidence in the form of a notarised copy of the personal details page of their passport. (Please do not send your original passport with this application form).

Applicants should note that unless we are satisfied that the reasons given for being unable to provide either an original birth certificate or driving license are compelling then we will not consider the alternative documentation submitted.

Previous Earnings

Which period will we accept earnings from?

We will assess your gross earnings before tax 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 continuous 12 month period out of the last 15 months. There can be gaps in employment within this 12 month period, however, the cumulative earnings total will still need to meet the earnings threshold claimed against. This applies where the applicant is in salaried or non-salaried employment. Applicants should indicate the start and end date of the period claimed on the application form. If the applicant claims for a period exceeding/outside the 12 months out of a 15 month period prior to the application date, we will assess the 12 months directly prior to the application date.

Pre-study earnings

If the applicant has been unable to earn an income for the last 12–15 months, due to undertaking full-time study, then we will be able to consider their earnings for a continuous 12 month period in the 15 months immediately prior to them becoming a full-time student.

The applicant must have been in full-time study within the 12 months prior to the application date, but prior to that, the period of study must have been continuous and date back to the period of earnings. We will do this in the following circumstances:

Current full-time students; this can be 12 months in the 15 months immediately prior to the period of study; or
Recent students who have finished a full-time course within the previous 12 months can use the period of 12 months in the 15 months immediately prior to the period of study.

Evidence of full-time study will be required in order for Work Permits to treat an application in this manner. This should be in the form of an original signed letter on the headed paper of the institution showing:

Applicant’s name
Dates of study
Number of hours studied per week

Translations
Applicants are required to submit certified translations where documents are not in English. This translation should be made and endorsed by a recognised translator. For those outside the UK , a list of local translators can be obtained from the local British High Commission or Embassy.

Where pay slips are identical apart from the figures the applicant does not need to have each pay slip translated, one is sufficient.

Evidence Required

Salaried Employment

Where the applicant is claiming points that relate to salaried employment (including part-time; temporary; short-term or consultancy work) then he or she will need to provide two pieces of evidence to support the earnings for which points are being claimed. The two pieces of evidence provided must be consistent with, and corroborate, each other.

We ask for more than one piece of evidence in these scoring areas because it is important that we can clearly establish the applicant’s salary. Having different forms of evidence helps us to do this quickly and efficiently.

In order to demonstrate total annual salary before tax applicant’s should provide both:

Income tax return. If the tax year does not cover the full period claimed other corroborating evidence is required for the period(s) not covered. Self-assessment tax documents are not accepted, as they are not independent
Wage slips covering the entire 12 months period

Salaried Employment, no tax system

Applicants that work in a country that does not have a tax system should provide two of the following:

Wage slips to cover the period claimed;
Bank statements covering the period claimed, as evidence of their income;
A letter from his or her employer stating their income as claimed.

Applicant’s are advised to supply evidence that the country in question does not have a tax system.

Salaried Employment, with no tax return

Applicants should submit their tax return documentation wherever it is available. Where the applicant has not yet received this documentation for the current tax year, or if the documents only cover part of the period claimed, the applicant must submit what tax information/documentation he or she has.

In addition, the applicant must complete the exceptional consideration box AND send us documentary evidence to support your request for exceptional consideration. This may be the applicant’s most up-to-date tax return but may also include other documentary evidence to support the reasons given.

If the applicant provides sufficient information to support exceptional consideration then Work Permits will then consider the alternative documentation provided (i.e. bank statements covering the period claimed for and/or a letter from their employer stating salary as claimed), and make a decision based on these.

Part-time earnings
We will consider an applicant’s total part-time earnings over a period of up to 12 months in the 15 months prior the application, and can consider his or her total earnings from several jobs over this period. Earnings do not have to be with a single employer.

If applicant’s wish us to consider several part-time jobs he or she should send in sufficient evidence to establish their earnings for each post individually – that is at least two pieces of evidence for each job for the relevant period.

Self-employed, with a tax return
Where the applicant is not in salaried employment he or she must supply an appropriate combination of the following documents (as stipulated below) to demonstrate earnings over the full period claimed.

The applicant must provide both of the following pieces of evidence to cover the full period claimed:

Personal tax returns – if the tax year does not cover the full period claimed, other corroborating evidence is required for the period(s) not covered. Self-assessment tax documents are not accepted as they are not independent;
Personal bank statements.


In addition to the documents detailed above, the applicant must supply one of the following combinations of documents to cover the full period:

Company audited accounts and company tax return (one of these documents should confirm the total payment that is being claimed); or
Unaudited business/management accounts confirming the total amount that is being claimed; plus either
o Business bank statements and a business tax return; or
o Copies of contracts totalling the full amount payable and corroborating invoices that show that he or she has been paid the amount claimed.

Self-Employed, with no tax return
Those applying as a self-employed person must supply both an income tax return and personal bank statements to cover the entire period claimed. In addition, one of the following combinations should be provided:

Company audited accounts and company tax return
Unaudited business/management accounts confirming the total amount claimed plus either of the following:
Business bank statements together with a business tax return (2 documents)
Copies of contracts totalling the full amount payable to the individual together with corroborating invoices detailing your payment.


If the applicant has not yet received their tax return or if they do not have an income tax return to cover the entire period claimed, they should provide their most recent tax return or what tax information they have. We will consider the tax evidence you have provided alongside the other required evidence.

Company/business tax returns need not cover the entire period for which previous earnings are being claimed, but should detail the individuals earnings for the period they do cover.

If the required documents above do not provide two forms of corroborating evidence that clearly demonstrate your gross earnings for the period claimed, you should provide supplementary documents from the following list;

· An accountant’s letter on their letterhead confirming your gross and net salary for the period claimed.

· Invoice explanations/Payment advice for the full period claimed – where dividends have been paid as a part of your earnings, the payment summaries provided should show that the gross dividend has been paid to you.

· Company bank statements (if not supplied through the combination of documents requested above.

It is not essential that you provide all of the supplementary documents listed above. The additional documents requested are there to ensure that suitable corroborating evidence is provided to support your claimed earnings.

If you operate through a Limited Liability Company as one of a number of shareholders, you should provide a letter from your accountant confirming your proportionate shareholding within the company together with confirmation of your gross and net income and payment summaries. This evidence will demonstrate your stake within the company.

Independent Contractors

If you are an independent contractor you may consider yourself to be self-employed because you do not have continuity of employment with a single employer, but you may only be able to provide some of the required evidence from the self-employed evidence list and some from the employed salaried evidence list. To help cater for this we have created a specific category for Independent Contractors (e.g. some IT Consultants, Freelance Journalists, Artists, Management Consultants etc.)

You might find it helpful to refer to the H.M. Revenue and Customs (HMRC) definition of an independent contractor to help you - Information on employment status for NIC can be found on the HM Revenue and Customs website, under the section on Intermediaries Legislation IR35, found on the A-Z list via the site map on the HMRC website.

If you are claiming points for a period where you have been working as an independent contractor and you therefore do not have wage slips covering this period, you should provide specified alternative documents to confirm that the total amount of earnings over the full period claimed equals the full amount you are claiming points for. You must provide the following items of supporting evidence.:

· Your income tax return. If you do not have a tax return which covers the full period, please provide the most recent tax return available. Self-assessment tax documents are not acceptable, as they are not independent; and


Copies of contracts from your employer to cover the period claimed and to total the amount of earnings claimed. They should give details of the employment, period of contract and your salary; and

· Invoices from the employers showing the actual amounts paid to you; and

· Your bank statements showing the payments made by your employers to you.


If the required documents above do not provide two forms of corroborating evidence that clearly demonstrate your gross earnings for the period claimed, you should provide at least one of the documents listed below;

· An accountant’s letter on their letterhead confirming your gross and net salary for the period claimed.

· Invoice explanations/Payment advice for the full period claimed.

Those claiming points for a period where they have been working as an independent contractor may not have wage slips covering this period. Such applicants must therefore provide specified alternative documents to confirm that the total amount of earnings over the full period claimed equals the full amount being claimed. Applicants must provide all of the pieces of evidence from the list below:

Income tax return. If the tax year does not cover the full period claimed other corroborating evidence will be required for the period(s) not covered. Self-assessment tax documents are not acceptable, as they are not independent
Copies of contracts from his or her employer to cover the period claimed and to total the amount of earnings claimed. These should give details of the employment, period of contract and salary.
Invoices from the employer(s) showing the actual amounts paid to him or her
Copies of bank statements showing the payments made to the applicant by his or her employer(s).

If the applicant has not yet received this documentation for the current tax year, or if their tax return only cover part of the period claimed, they should provide your most recent tax return or what tax information they have. We will consider the tax evidence provided, alongside the other three pieces of required evidence.

Earnings we cannot assess

It is important to note that not all income will be considered.

Unearned income
Unearned income such as dividends from investments (unless it is in a company in which the applicant is in active in day-to-day management), property rental income, and interest on savings or funds received through an inheritance are not used when calculating income.

Allowances not included on the payslip

We will not be able to consider any allowances paid to the applicant that are not declared on his or her pay slips. If the company the applicant works for pays part of his or her income in dividends then the applicant should provide evidence that this has been declared as earnings (i.e. declared to the appropriate tax authorities). This should be in the form of either personal tax returns or the corporate tax voucher from the company.

Shares or dividends

If shares or dividends are part of the applicant’s earnings package they must be shares or dividends from the company he or she is working for or running. The applicant must provide evidence of the earnings made on the shares or dividends and evidence that it is derived from shares or dividends in the company he or she works for or runs. Dividend vouchers will only be assessed if they form part of the earned income and are not dividends derived from investments.

Redundancy payments

Redundancy pay is not acceptable as earnings, this is because it is an unusually high one-off payment which is not an indicator of an applicant's ability to earn whilst in the UK.

On-line pay slips

Applicants who can only provide on-line payslips will be required to obtain their employers’ signature and stamp on a printout to authenticate the evidence.

Income Bands

In order to reflect differences in income levels across the world, the income level required to score points varies depending on where the applicant lives and works. Therefore the country the applicant has been residing and working in over this period, rather than their nationality, determines the income band.


There are five income bands, these have been set by HM Treasury. Applicants will need to convert their earnings into Pounds Sterling (£) in order to calculate how many points he or she can claim.

For example, a Chinese national working in India would be required to demonstrate a minimum annual income level over the correct period of £4,900 (once converted to Pounds Sterling) in order to score 25 points for previous income.

A full list of income bands can be found on page 23 of the HSMP guidance notes.

Exceptional consideration

If there are exceptional reasons as to why the applicant is not able to provide either their income tax return or their wage slips covering the 12 months period for which he or she is claiming then exceptional consideration of the case may be requested.

Work Permits may be willing to consider alternative evidence specified below in support of a claim for points associated with previous earnings in exceptional circumstances, such as if you have been affected by war or natural disaster.

If there are exceptional and compelling reasons as to why the applicant is unable to provide the required evidence then he or she will need to explain these reasons fully on the application form. Alternative supporting evidence, as specified bellows, must be provided.

You should note that unless Work Permits is satisfied that the reasons given for not being able to provide either an income tax return or wage slips to cover the 12 months period for which the applicant is claiming are compelling then we will not consider the alternative documentation submitted.

If the applicant is not able to provide an income tax return and/or wage slips to cover the 12 months period for which he or she is claiming, then he or she will need to provide alternative supporting evidence in the form of:

Bank statements showing that you received the salary described for the full 12 month period
and/or

A letter from (previous) employer(s) confirming received the salary claimed

The evidence provided must be consistent with, and corroborate, each other.

I hope this is helpful.

well unfortunately it is not.