UK work permit rules explained: How Liverpool could get Ifeanyi Ndukwe back in January
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A player featuring for 90%-100% of minutes in a Band 1 league can earn 12 points, compared to just two for the same percentage in Band 6. A player featuring for 90%-100% of minutes in the UEFA Champions League can earn up to 10 points.
League position: Quite simply, the higher a club finishes, the more points the player will earn. A title win in a Band 1 league is worth up to six points.
Band 1 is worth 12 points, with a decreasing scale of two points between each band. Band 1 (highest-ranked) Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1 Band 2 Portuguese Primeira Liga, Eredivisie, Belgian First Division A, Brazilian Serie A, EFL Championship Band 3 MLS, Argentine Primera Division, Liga MX, Turkish Super Lig, Scottish Premiership Band 4 Swiss Super League, La Liga 2, Bundesliga 2, Ligue 2, Greek Super League, Austrian Bundesliga, Danish Superliga, Russian Premier League, Japanese J1, and the Czech, Croatian, Ukrainian and Colombian top flights Band 5 Serbian SuperLiga, Polish Ekstraklasa, Swedish Allsvenskan, Norwegian Eliteserien, Italian Serie B, Hungarian, Chilean and Uruguayan top flights, South Korean K League 1, Australian A-League, EFL League One Band 6 (lowest-ranked) All other leagues It’s important to note that the bands are reviewed every summer, so a Band 1 league for 2026/27 could drop to Band 2 for 2027/28, or vice versa.What does all this mean for Ndukwe?In theory, Liverpool’s best chance of getting Ndukwe a work permit by January is by loaning him to a Band 1 club where he’ll be starting every week, both domestically and in continental action.For example, if he were loaned to Como and he starts regularly in Serie A and the Champions League, he’ll accrue points rapidly; whereas a move to Basel in Switzerland and more sporadic game-time would make it a lot harder for him to reach the qualifying mark of 15 points.However, as Lynch pointed out, a prospective loan club might be wary of the 18-year-old earning enough points for an Anfield recall in January and losing him mid-season, which could make them more reluctant to sign him.Obviously Liverpool would like to see Ndukwe being tested at as high a level as possible, but the single most important factor over the next few months is that he’s playing regularly (wherever that may be) and the promise he’s shown in recent weeks isn’t left go to waste because of a poorly-chosen destination.