A seasonal worker visa is a temporary visa for people who need to work in the UK for a certain period of time. Workers in “edible horticulture,” such as picking fruit or vegetables, pork butchery, poultry work, and HGV drivers, are all included.

Application deadlines for seasonal worker visas are as follows:

Poultry Workers – You must have applied for a seasonal worker visa as a poultry worker by November 15, 2021. Poultry employees are allowed to stay in the UK until December 31, 2021.

Drivers of heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) – You must apply for a seasonal working visa as an HGV driver by December 1, 2021. HGV drivers are allowed to stay in the UK until February 28, 2022.

Pig butchery workers– Before December 31, 2021, you must apply for a seasonal worker visa as a pork butchery worker. Workers in the pork butchering industry are allowed to stay in the UK for up to six months.

Edible horticulture workers – You can apply for a seasonal worker visa at any time and stay in the UK for up to 6 months as an edible horticulture worker.

HudsonMcKenzie shares on their website the latest information available on the matter.

Occupational codes

HGV drivers

• heavy goods vehicle (HGV) drivers to transport food goods – large goods vehicle (occupation code 8211)

Poultry workers with an on-farm or off-farm poultry

• butcher (occupation code 5431)
• bird or game dresser (occupation code 5433)
• killer and plucker (occupation code 5433)
• plucker (occupation code 5433)
• poulterer (occupation code 5433)
• poultry processor (occupation code 5433)
• poultry sticker (occupation code 5433)
• trusser (occupation code 5433)
• food operative (occupation code 8111)
• poultry catcher or handler (occupation code 9111)
• poultry vaccinator (occupation code 9119)
• poultry meat packer (occupation code 9134)

Pork butcher

• pork butchers (occupation code 5431)

Edible horticulture

Means those growing:

(i) Protected Vegetables – those grown in glasshouse systems

(ii) Field Vegetables – those grown outdoors, including vegetables, herbs, leafy salads and potatoes

(iii) Soft Fruit – those grown outdoors or under cover e.g. in glasshouses or polytunnels. Includes strawberries, raspberries, blackcurrants, blueberries and all ribes and rubus species

(iv) Top Fruit (Orchard Fruit) – trees that bear fruit e.g. apples, plums, cherries, apricots; or

(v) Vine and Bines – both twining or climbing flexible stems of certain plants, e.g. hops is a bine, and grapes is a vine

(vi) Mushrooms – typically covers Agaricus bisporus species but can also include more exotic species (typically grown indoors)

Thank you to our partners at Hudson McKenzie for the useful information. If you need any legal advice, contact their specialists via email at londoninfo@hudsonmckenzie.com or by telephone +44(0) 20 3318 5794.

The information provided does not amount to legal advice.