What work does the permission allow? Is the holder tied to an employer, occupation or sector? Can family accompany where clearly established?
The retained consolidation labelled “Immigration Rules in effect from 24 July 2026” provides the following. The worker is tied to the full-time employer and job recorded in a continuously valid Confirmation of Employment, including qualifying third-party work under W6.2(6A). Notified changes remain subject to prohibited-change rules. Supplementary employment and voluntary work are allowed; supplementary work must satisfy the listed-occupation or same-profession/level definition, stay within 20 hours weekly outside contracted main-job hours, and retain the sponsored role. Self-employment and equivalent arrangements are prohibited. W5.2 restricts an employer change during the first 12 months but expressly excepts an employer that ceased trading or faces specified enforcement, written Immigration Officer approval for exceptional circumstances, and an approved intra-group transfer. The current official notice clarifies that ordinary further leave does not restart a completed initial 12 months; a UK-to-Isle-of-Man switch generally starts the period at the Isle of Man grant. Shortage-list roles cannot normally sponsor dependants, but W2.2.1(6) preserves those granted Appendix W leave before Change 18 commenced who continue to meet their extant conditions. The notice dates the new regime to 1 June 2026 and separately preserves the stated pre-June CoE processing transition. Therefore neither the employment-change restriction nor the family restriction is absolute. No public funds; study is subject to ATAS where applicable.
See recorded sources
Limits of the record- The later linked full consolidation has not been compared, so the detailed statutory exceptions retain that currency limitation even though the current official policy notice corroborates the non-reset rule and transitional framework. Individual eligibility under the pre-June CoE and extant-leave transitions must be assessed against the applicable grant rather than inferred merely from the occupation label.
- The official rules index now links a later upload of the July 2026 consolidation. Whether that upload changes these retained clauses has not been established; they are not presented as confirmed current law.
- https://www.gov.im/media/1393769/immigration-rules-from-24-july-2026_compressed.pdf — AppendixW2.2.1 conditions and family transition
2.2.1 Worker Migrants – Period and Conditions of Grant
(1) Applicants who meet the requirements for entry clearance under paragraph 2.2 of this
Appendix shall be granted entry clearance as a Worker Migrant.
(2) Entry clearance will be granted with effect from:
(a) 14 days before the start date of the applicant’s employment in the Isle of Man, as
recorded by the Confirmation of Employment,
(b) 7 days before the intended date of travel recorded by the applicant through the
relevant Home Office application , providing this is not more than 14 days after
the start date of the applicant’s employment in the Isle of Man, as recorded by the
Confirmation of Employment, or
(c) the date entry clearance is granted,
whichever is the latest.
(3) Entry clearance will be granted for a period ending:
(a) 14 days after the end date of the applicant’s employment in the Isle of Man, as
recorded on the Confirmation of Employment, or
(b) at the end of the maximum time of 3 years and 1 month,
whichever is the earlier, from the date entry clearance was granted.
(4) Entry clearance will be subject to the following conditions:
(a) no recourse to public funds,
(b) [omitted]
(c) no employment except:
(i) working for the Employer in the full time employment recorded on the
Immigration Rules in effect from 24 July 2026
Appendix W
Confirmation of Employment, and for the avoidance of doubt, work done for
a third party in accordance with the requirements of paragraph 6.2(6A) will
be considered as work done for the Employer,
(ii) subject to any notification of a change to the details of that Employment,
other than prohibited changes as defined in Part 5 of this Appendix,
(iii) supplementary employment, and
(iv) voluntary work, and
(d) a valid Confirmation of Employment (in accordance with paragraph 6.1 of this
Appendix) must be held at all times during the grant of leave, and
(e) study subject to the condition set out in Appendix ATAS to these Rules where the
applicant is 18 years of age or over at the time their leave is granted, or will be
aged 18 before their period of limited leave expires.
(5) Applicants whose roles fall within Appendix Shortage Occupation List may not be
accompanied by dependants unless they satisfy the transitional provisions in
subparagraph (6).
(6) A Worker Migrant employed in an occupation listed in Appendix Shortage Occupation
List is ineligible to sponsor dependants, unless —
(a) they were granted leave under Appendix W prior to the date of commencement
Change 18 of Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules (No.3) 202643; and
(b) they continue to meet the conditions of their extant leave.
- https://www.gov.im/media/1393769/immigration-rules-from-24-july-2026_compressed.pdf — AppendixW5.2 and Part6 opening
5.2 Restriction on change of employment within initial period
(1) A Worker Migrant or Worker (Intra Company Transfer) Migrant must not change
employer or take up alternative employment within the first twelve months of the grant
of leave under Appendix W, unless –
47
SD2026/0102 commencement date 1 June 2026.
Immigration Rules in effect from 24 July 2026
Appendix W
(a) The original employer has ceased trading or is subject to enforcement action
under Part 6.4 of Appendix W;
(b) An Immigration Officer has granted written approval for the change on the basis
of exceptional circumstances;
(c) The change occurs within the same corporate group under an approved Intro
Company Transfer arrangement.
(2) Subparagraph (1) does not restrict the migrant’s ability to perform supplementary
employment provided that –
(a) The migrant remains working for the Employer in the employment that the
Confirmation of Employment records that the migrant is being employed to do;
and
(b) The other employment does not exceed 20 hours per week and takes place outside
of the hours when the migrant is contracted to work for the Employer in the
employment the migrant is being sponsored to do.
(3) Any unauthorized change of employment within this period –
(a) Will be treated as a breach of the Immigration Rules; and
(b) May result in either or both of the following –
(i) Curtailment of leave in accordance with Part 9A (Part Suitability);
(ii) Result in refusal of future Confirmations of Employment applications.
PART 6: CONFIRMATION OF EMPLOYMENT
A Worker Migrant and a Worker (Intra Company Transfer) Migrant must include a valid
Confirmation of Employment when making an application for entry clearance or leave to
remain under this Appendix.
A Worker Migrant and Worker (Intra Company Transfer) Migrant are not permitted to be self-
employed or be in any arrangement akin to self-employment. Any arrangement with the
Employer’s business or any related business, structure or entity which amounts to an
arrangement described in paragraph 3.3(13) will not be permitted.
The issuance of a Confirmation of Employment does not guarantee the success of a migrants’
visa application.
- https://www.gov.im/media/1393769/immigration-rules-from-24-july-2026_compressed.pdf — AppendixW supplementary employment definition
“supplementary employment”:
(a) In the case of a Worker Migrant and Worker (Intra Company Transfer) Migrant means
other employment which appears in Part 7 of this Appendix(for those applying under the
Immigration Rules in place prior to the date of commencement of Statement of Changes
in Immigration Rules (No.3) 202640) Appendix Skilled Occupations and Appendix Shortage
Occupation List, or in the same profession and at the same professional level as that which
the migrant is being employed to do, provided that:
(i) the migrant remains working for the Employer in the employment that the
Confirmation of Employment records that the migrant is being employed to do; and
(ii) the other employment does not exceed 20 hours per week and takes place outside
of the hours when the migrant is contracted to work for the Employer in the employment
the migrant is being sponsored to do; and
- https://www.gov.im/categories/travel-traffic-and-motoring/immigration/latest-immigration-rules-and-associated-policy-notices/ — 31 May policy clarification, full numbered paragraphs
## Worker Migrant Policy Clarifications Released 31 May 2026
1. Any CoE received before 12:01am on the 1 June 2026 to be processed under the pre 1 June 2026 rules. Any CoE issued before the 1 June 2026 to support a visa application received after 12:01am on the 1 June 2026 will be processed under the pre 1 June 2026 rules. Any CoE received after the 1 June will be processed under the new rules in operation from 1 June 2026
2. Continue to apply the current Isle of Man Health and Care visa application fee-reduction position. Workers using new SOC codes for health and care roles remain entitled to the reduced fee where the role remains eligible in our Confirmation of Employment Guidance. Do not treat UK removal of an equivalent SOC code as automatically removing Isle of Man eligibility for the visa application fee-reduction
3. Apply the 12-month restriction to the first 12 months on an Isle of Man-issued entry clearance Worker Migrant visa. For people switching from a UK visa into Isle of Man further leave, apply the restriction from the Isle of Man grant of leave unless further policy direction says otherwise. Do not reset the restriction on ordinary further leave where the person has already completed the initial 12-month period with the employer. Escalate exceptional cases
4. The CoE Policy uses the terms 'responsible person', 'key contact' and 'reporting officer'. The Sponsor Policy uses 'Authorising Officer' and 'Key Contact'. The Employer Compliance Policy refers to 'key personnel'. For operational purposes, these terms should all be read as referring to the person or role within the employer's organisation responsible for managing the migrant worker and dealing with employment or immigration-related reporting duties. Companies use different terminology and reporting structures, so the responsible person may reasonably be the worker's manager, HR lead, director, owner, sponsor contact, Authorising Officer, Key Contact, reporting officer, key personnel, or authorised representative. The requirement is that both the employer and the worker know who that person is. The employer should have a documented internal policy assigning responsibility to a specific person or role
5. Staff must apply the maintenance funds requirement as follows. For applications submitted before 8 April 2026, applicants must show the required funds were held for 28 days. For applications submitted from 8 April 2026 until the making of Statement of Changes No. 4, applicants only need to show that they held the required funds at the date of application, unless the evidence relied on is a bank letter, where the relevant evidential holding period still applies. From the making of Statement of Changes No. 4, the 28-day holding requirement applies again. Staff do not apply a 90-day holding period to Worker Migrant or Worker ICT Migrant applications
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