Players and work permits?

racso1975

Can anybody explain this to me? I have seen a number of deals fall through because of work permits and now talk of muntari having problems getting one.

Why would an established footballers have problems getting work permits. I presume the permits are required for non eu players only

Mitch Connor

racso1975 wrote: »

Can anybody explain this to me? I have seen a number of deals fall through because of work permits and now talk of muntari having problems getting one.

Why would an established footballers have problems getting work permits. I presume the permits are required for non eu players only

Non-EU players, and then the country has to be ranked in the top 70 or 80 sides as well. The player also needs to have played in 2/3rds of the countries competitive games over the previous 24months.

You see a lot turned down then won on appeal as the player is considered a 'special talent'.

smokedeels

I'm aware of the following...

"The player must have appeared in 75% of their country''s competitive international ''A'' team fixtures in the previous two years; - Permits will be valid for the length of a player''s contract with the club; - The FIFA ranking of the player''s national side aggregated over 2 years will be a criteria."

I'm unsure if there's additional criteria that must also be met.

GavRedKing

Happened to Cheslea with Alex, we had problems getting a work permit after signing him so he stayed at PSV for a bit.

Fr Tod Umptious

gavredking wrote: »

Happened to Cheslea with Alex, we had problems getting a work permit after signing him so he stayed at PSV for a bit.

Who were you , the club emigration lawyer ?

henke

Can someone tell me what the reasoning is that work permits only seem to be required in the EPL. Holland is an EU country but Alex can play there when not eligible for a work permit.

Also this is probably why a lot of the South American talent goes to Spain or Italy.

Just wondering what is the difference in the UK and these other EU countries?

GavRedKing

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

Who were you , the club emigration lawyer ?

Nope, I cant say who I am, but my first name is Roman, thats all I can say. :rolleyes:

darragh16

MichaelM1987 wrote: »

Can someone tell me what the reasoning is that work permits only seem to be required in the EPL. Holland is an EU country but Alex can play there when not eligible for a work permit.

Also this is probably why a lot of the South American talent goes to Spain or Italy.

Just wondering what is the difference in the UK and these other EU countries?

Usually to do with the specific countries immigration laws really and gaining EU citizenship. For example, Man United had/has a relationship with Royal Antwerp, they send new young fella's there on Loan to gain experience and also improve there chances of citizenship or gaining a work permit.

Paully D

Muntari's having problems as he hasn't played in 75% of Ghana's games in the last few years after falling out with the manager.

He meets financial requirements though and has played in The UK before, along with Ghana being in the Top 70 of the world rankings so he'll have no problem getting a work permit as a ''special talent''.

Here's a list of the requirements players as supposed to meet:

International Appearances

Any foreign player who seeks a work permit must have appeared in at least 75 percent of his national team's competitive A matches during the previous two years. A competitive A match includes the World Cup, World Cup qualifying and any other match played in the country's federation. If the player has not fulfilled this requirement because of injury, the club must provide written evidence documenting the player's injury history.

National Team Ranking

The player's national team must also be ranked in the top 70 in the official FIFA world soccer rankings. The Football Association averages the monthly FIFA rankings over a two-year period to assess whether the player meets this requirement. The national team ranking regulation ensures the prospective player comes from a strong international playing background.

League Membership

The club cannot apply for a work permit on the player's behalf unless it is a member club of the Premier League or the Football League. Work permits are only granted to players in these leagues, so his parent club must be a proper member to receive the work permit.

Length of Work Permit

When the club's initial application has been approved, the player is granted a valid work permit for a maximum of three years or the length of his contract, whichever is shorter. If the player's contract exceeds three years, the club may file extensions in two-year increments.

daithijjj

Mitch Connor wrote: »

Non-EU players, and then the country has to be ranked in the top 70 or 80 sides as well. The player also needs to have played in 2/3rds of the countries competitive games over the previous 24months.

You see a lot turned down then won on appeal as the player is considered a 'special talent'.

This is true but there are other grey areas that even somebody well up in the home office couldnt give you a decision on their own. I was reading an article from the home office on this a while back and searched for it, here are some other things of interest.

Take Mark Gonzalez to liverpool. Gonzalez was born in South Africa and moved to Chile as a young boy. He had initially agreed a one year loan deal, which, if successful, would result in a £4.7m transfer to the European champions. His work permit application, however, was rejected due to Chile's position outside the top 70 FIFA world rankings: Chile were ranked 72 at the time.

At the appeal, the club argued he was well worth a permit but they upheld the decision based on such things as how much his wages were going to be, this didnt even need to be included in an appeal but it worked against the player and the club. It basically came down to benitez being told by the home office that the player was not good enough (but they could have decided he was good enough), its a bit of a ridiculous scenario, who are they to say how talented a player is?.

Now take Yakubu. His application, following a transfer from Portsmouth, was initially turned down as he had failed to play the required 75% of games for Nigeria. But the decision was overturned after it was argued that but for a personal disagreement with the national team coach he would have played enough games.

Dundee United had a work permit renewal for Trinidad and Tobago striker Jason Scotland turned down because, like Yakubu, his rocky relationship with his international coach had resulted in him being overlooked for certain games. The appeal board refused to reverse this decision as it decided that Scotland had not made "enough of an impact" in Scottish football. Then, amazingly, United were further frustrated with the news that having given up on signing the player, he was granted a work permit for First Division side St Johnstone. :cool:

Dundee then questioned the integrity of the Home Office's system obviously.

Portsmouth striker Collins Mbesuma the Zambian striker, incidentally brought in to replace Yakubu, saw his application rejected as his country, although ranked 62, had not figured regularly in the top 70 in the last two years. Portsmouth were, however, able to convince the appeal board that Mbesuma was good enough to bring something to the English game and was therefore worthy of a work permit.

It appears that, because of the subjective nature of these cases, two separate appeal boards can make an entirely different decision faced with almost exact details. This inconsistency is infuriating clubs and leaving them feeling that the whole process is something of a lottery.


I dont know if its changed much in the last couple of years but it doesnt seem to have.

henke

There doesn't seem to be much sense to this rule.

So for example if a player has the talent of Lionel Messi but is from a nation outside the top 100 he can't play in the EPL? He meet the 'special talent' requirement but not the nation in top 70 requirement.

Do players have to meet one or all of the requirements outlined and evidence to be provided where one is not met as in the case where a player hasn't played for a nation because he fell out with the coach.

Kiwi_knock

I know Hleb got recommendations by Wenger and Ferguson that he was a special talent when Birmingham were trying to get a work permit for him last summer.

dreamers75

Work permit is not a rule, its the goverments way of ensuring they areny over run with foreigners.

It depends on the goverments agreement with the other country, ie its easy for americans to get a work permit in ireland but much harder for them in england.

France and holland have former colonies and you can be a citizen of both so easier for them to recruit from Africa.

yahoo_moe

MichaelM1987 wrote: »

There doesn't seem to be much sense to this rule.

So for example if a player has the talent of Lionel Messi but is from a nation outside the top 100 he can't play in the EPL? He meet the 'special talent' requirement but not the nation in top 70 requirement.

If he's deemed to meet the 'special talent' category, that overrides anything else he's short on.

Special talent visas are awarded only if the player doesn't qualify for a straight work permit.

Guy:Incognito

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

Who were you , the club emigration lawyer ?

Immigration lawyer surely?