UK Visa Requirements

The UK visa requirements that must be met will all depend on the purpose for which you are wanting to come to or stay in the UK and your chosen immigration route.

In this essential guide to UK visas, we look at the rules and requirements for some of the most common visa categories, from short-term visitor visas to more long-term visas for those wanting to work in the UK or for foreign entrepreneurs looking to set up a UK business, as well as for those looking to come to live with British or UK-based relatives.

We also look at what visa applicants need to know about meeting the UK visa requirements and making a successful application to the Home Office.

 

Do you need a visa for the UK?

If you are an overseas national subject to UK immigration control, you may need a visa to visit the UK. You will also usually need a visa to live, study or work in the UK. As both an EEA or non-EEA national, you will be subject to UK immigration control, unless you are either an Irish citizen, you have been granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme or otherwise granted indefinite leave to remain (ILR) under the UK’s Immigration Rules.

However, there are a whole host of visas potentially available to you, all designed to suit the particular purpose of you coming to the UK, including for tourism or business purposes, to undertake a course of study or paid employment, to start a UK-based business or to live with family settled or temporarily residing in the UK. In some cases, you may already be in the UK but are looking to switch into a different visa category, for example, from a study to a work visa having recently graduated, or from one type of work visa to another. There are also visas that will eventually allow you to settle in the UK on a permanent basis, provided you meet the requirements for settlement under the immigration route in question.

 

Choosing the right visa

The type of UK visa that you apply for will depend on your reasons for travelling to the UK, for instance, for a holiday, to study or to work.

The most common types of UK visa are:

• Standard visitor visa – for a holiday in the UK, to visit family, for business purposes, for short-term medical treatment, to participate in sports or creative events, and to perform (artist, musician, entertainer).
• Marriage visitor visa – to get married or enter into a civil partnership, or give notice of such.
• Transit visa – to travel through the UK to another destination but not stop in the UK for more than 48 hours.
• Student visa – short-term, both for adults and children.
• Work visas – there are several sponsored and unsponsored worker routes for short and longer-term periods.
• Family visa – to live with certain types of family member in the UK for longer than 6 months.

 

The main categories of UK visas available to overseas nationals include visitor visas, study visas, work or business-based visas, as well as innovator and family visas. Each visa category will allow you to come to or stay in the UK for different purposes, including:

 

Standard Visitor visas

This type of visa will allow you to visit the UK for up to 6 months for a number of permitted purposes, including for tourism or visiting friends and family, or for business-related reasons, such as attending any UK-based meetings or conferences, provided you do not undertake any paid employment while you are in the UK. A marriage visitor visa allows foreign nationals to get married or enter into a civil partnership while in the UK.

 

Transit visa

Allows you to travel through the UK to another destination but not stop in the UK for more than 48 hours.

 

Student visas

There are different types of study visas, depending on your age and the length of course you are looking to do. In each case, your visa will enable you to come to the UK or switch into this visa category from within the UK for the full period of study.

 

Worker or Temporary Worker visas

The Skilled Worker visa is the primary immigration route for skilled migrant workers, where this will allow you to come to the UK to work for a UK licensed sponsor. Equally, the Temporary Worker routes will allow you to temporarily work in a sponsored job role in a number of industry sectors, including the creative and charity sectors. There are also several unsponsored work routes potentially available to you, including the Graduate visa and the High Potential Individual (HPI) visa.

 

Innovator Founder or Global Business Mobility (GBM) visas

The GBM visas are a combined category of five different sponsored work routes for overseas businesses looking to either establish, develop or support UK-based operations on a temporary basis. This includes those looking to establish a commercial presence in the UK for the first time, under the GBM UK Expansion Worker route. In contrast, the Innovator Founder visa is if you are an overseas entrepreneur looking to set up a new innovative business in the UK.

 

Dependant or Family visas

A Dependant visa is for the spouse, partner or dependent child of the principal applicant or primary visa-holder on a number of different immigration routes, including those on the Student or Skilled Worker routes. These visas will allow immediate family to accompany or follow to join their partner or parent to the UK, where their visa will be granted for the same length of time as the primary visa-holder. The Family visa, on the other hand, is if you are looking to come to the UK to live long-term with either an immediate British relative or a close relative living permanently in the UK.

 

Check you meet the visa requirements

The different categories of UK visa have their own individual requirements which applicants must satisfy, along with the general requirements common to most UK visas.

When applying for any UK visa, basic eligibility will rely on your ability to demonstrate that:

• You will depart the UK once your visit ends
• You can afford to support yourself and anyone dependant on you during your time in the UK, including the costs of your travel out of the UK and journey home or to another destination
• Your reasons for visiting the UK are fitting for the type of visa and you can provide proof of those reasons, e.g. proof of confirmed place on a study course

In addition, each type of UK visa will have its own individual requirements and you must check to ensure that you meet all of these requirements before making your application.

 

UK visa requirements for visitors

Visitors to the UK of certain nationalities may be able to travel to the UK without needing to apply for a visa. So-called ‘non-visa nationals’, which include EU nationals, can request entry into the UK as a visitor on arrival at the border, although you would still be required to meet the relevant requirements under the visitor rules. As such, you may be asked by immigration officials for evidence that you are a visitor, such as proof of accommodation and return travel arrangements.

Importantly, even if you are potentially eligible for visa-free travel under the rules, you may soon need to apply for Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA). The ETA scheme will come into force for nationals of Qatar towards the end of 2023, and for nationals of Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates at the beginning of 2024, where there are plans to add more nationalities to the scheme later.

So-called visa-nationals cannot travel to the UK visa-free and must instead first apply for a visitor visa, regardless of how brief their visit is intended to be.

The UK visitor visa can be used to:

• Take a holiday in the UK
• Visit family members who live in the UK
• Undergo short-term medical treatment
• Short-term business reasons (e.g. attending a business conference or taking part in a musical performance(
• Participating in an exchange programme or educational visit as long as you are under 18 years of age
• Convert a civil partnership into a marriage
• Travelling through the UK on the way to another destination

 

To qualify as a visitor under the UK immigration rules, the following must apply:

• genuinely seeking to come the UK for a purpose permitted under the visitor rules
• being able to support yourself for the duration of your stay in the UK
• being able to pay the reasonable costs relating to your UK visit, without undertaking paid work or accessing public funds, including the
• cost of your return or onward journey
• not undertaking any prohibited activities during your stay in the UK
• intending to leave the UK at the end of your permitted stay
• not intending to live in the UK for extended periods of time through either frequent or successive visits, nor trying to make the UK your main home.

 

During the visa application process, you will be required to evidence your reasons for visiting the UK and provide documentation as proof.

For instance, where you wish to undertake private medical treatment in the UK that can be completed within the visa’s 6 month time limit, you must be able to demonstrate that this treatment has already been arranged prior to your arrival in the UK by providing supporting documentation such as a doctor’s letter which states the medical condition that will be treated, how much the private medical treatment will cost, how long the treatment will last, and where the medical treatment will be carried out.

 

UK visa requirements for workers

There are various work visas potentially available to you, although the Skilled Worker visa is one of the most popular routes for skilled migrant workers. Under this route you will need the offer of a suitable job from a UK licensed sponsor that meets the minimum skill and salary requirements for this route. You will also need to meet an English language requirement, unless you have already satisfied this requirement in a previous immigration application, such as on the Student route, as well as a financial requirement if you are applying for entry clearance or have been in the UK for a period of less than 12 months.

You can renew the Skilled Worker visa an unlimited number of times, provided you continue to meet the relevant route-specific requirements. You can also apply for ILR, also known as settlement, having continuously lived in the UK on this route for 5 years.

Under any one of the Temporary Worker routes, as with Skilled Worker visas, you will again need a suitable job offer from a UK licensed sponsor and meet a financial requirement. However, the Temporary Worker visas are short-term visa only, of between 6 to 24 months.

To qualify for any one of the unsponsored work routes available, such as the Graduate visa or HPI visa, there are various strict requirements relevant to those routes, such as having successfully completed a degree in the UK under the Graduate route or having been awarded a qualification by an eligible world-ranking university under the HPI route. Both these visa are also short-term, just 2/3 years depending on your level of qualification, but will allow you to switch into the Skilled Worker route prior to their expiry, if eligible.

 

UK visa requirements for business-owners

There are various requirements under each of the five GBM routes. These different visa categories include the Senior or Specialist Worker visa, the Graduate Trainee visa, the UK Expansion Worker visa, the Service Supplier visa and the Secondment Worker visa.

For each type of GBM visa, you will need to be sponsored by a UK-based organisation, such as the UK-based branch under the Senior or Specialist Worker route, or by your overseas employer where you are setting up a new UK branch on the UK Expansion Worker route.

There are limits on how long you can stay in the UK on any one of the GBM visas, as these are classed as temporary work routes. However, as with other work visas, you may be eligible to switch into the Skilled Worker route prior to expiry of your visa, provided you have the offer of an eligible job role and meet the other route-specific requirements.

 

UK visa requirements for entrepreneurs

Under the Innovator Founder route, you can apply to set up a new innovative business in the UK, provided that business is different from anything else on the UK market. You must also secure an endorsement from an endorsing body before you can apply, providing sufficient evidence to satisfy that body that your business is innovative, viable and scalable.

This visa will usually last for up to 3 years, but as long as your new UK business is a success and you continue to meet the relevant requirements for this route, you will be able to renew your visa any number of times. You can also apply for ILR in the UK having accrued a period of lawful continuous residence under the Innovator Founder route, where you may be eligible to apply to settle after just 3 years of living and working in the UK on this route.

 

UK visa requirements for students

If you are looking to undertake a further or higher education course in the UK, you will need to apply for the Student visa. This visa is for over 16’s and will require the offer of a place from a UK licensed sponsor. You will need to be able to speak English to a certain standard, depending on whether you are studying at/above or below degree level. You will also need to have enough money to support yourself and pay for your course, where the amount needed will vary depending on your circumstances. Additionally, if you are aged either 16 or 17, you will need written consent from your parents before applying.

If you are 16 or older and have been accepted onto an English language course with an accredited institution that lasts between 6 to 11 months, you can also come to the UK on a Short-term study visa. However, you must have enough money to support yourself without working or claiming public funds, or have friends and family that can accommodate and maintain you. You will also need enough money to pay for your return or onward journey.

 

UK visa requirements for dependants of visa-holders

If you are applying as the dependant of someone coming to or already in the UK as either a student or worker, first and foremost, you will need to meet a relationship requirement. This means, for example, that you must be able to show that you are the lawful husband, wife or civil partner of the principal applicant or primary visa-holder, or that you have lived together in a relationship akin to a marriage or civil partnership for at least 2 years.

You will also be required to meet a financial requirement if applying for entry clearance or having lived in the UK for less than a year. This is in addition to your partner or parent demonstrating sufficient funds to support themselves on their arrival in the UK.

You can renew a Dependant visa in line with any application made by your partner or parent to extend their own visa, and may be able to apply for ILR having met the relevant requirements, including a continuous residence requirement. You may also be able to switch into a different immigration route, such as the Skilled Worker route.

 

UK visa requirements for family of those settled in the UK

The Family visa is potentially available for partners, children, parents and adult dependant relatives where, as with a Dependant visa, the main requirement is being able to satisfy a relationship requirement with a qualifying person. For example, you must be able to show that you are married or in a civil partnership with a British citizen, someone settled in the UK, or someone with permission to stay as a refugee or with humanitarian protection.

The length of a Family visa will vary, depending on the category of visa sought and whether you are applying from overseas or to switch from another visa. However, you can apply to extend your stay once in the UK, provide you continue to meet the relevant route-specific requirements. You will also usually be able to apply to settle in the UK on a permanent basis having lived in the UK on this route for a continuous period of 5 years.

 

UK visa requirements to transit

A transit visa may be needed when you will pass through the UK to another destination but do not stay in the UK for more than 48 hours.

You will not need a transit visa for the UK if you have a valid UK visitor visa.

To apply for a transit visa, you must demonstrate that you will be ‘in transit’ to another destination by providing proof of your travel (tickets to the other destination) and proof of your ability to enter the other destination (appropriate passport or travel documents).

Where you will stop over in the UK for less than 48 hours, you must demonstrate that you can afford to do this and that you have no intention of remaining in the UK beyond that time limit.

 

Do EU citizens need a visa for the UK?

EU citizens and their relatives, who have valid settled status or pre-settled status under the EU settlement scheme do not need a visa to enter or remain in the UK. By virtue of their status, they can live, work and study in the UK on an indefinite and lawful basis, provided their status does not expire, for example, due to excessive absence from the UK. They also do not require separate permission to work in the UK as this forms part of their rights under the EU settlement scheme.

EU citizens without EU settled status coming to the UK post-Brexit will need to apply for permission to enter and remain, unless they qualify for visa-free travel as visitors and are visiting for up to six months.

 

Suitability requirements

While you may satisfy the requirements under the specific visa category, you will also need to show that none of the general grounds for refusal apply, by meeting the UK’s ‘suitability’ requirements:

• Permission must be refused or cancelled where there has been a direction that the applicant be excluded from the UK. A visa can also be refused if the applicant is the subject of either an exclusion or deportation order.
• Permission must be refused or cancelled where the applicant’s presence in the UK is not conducive to the public good, for example, because of their conduct, character, associations or other reasons. This includes convictions which do not fall within the criminality grounds.
• Permission must be refused or cancelled where the applicant has been convicted of an offence in either the UK or overseas and they have received a custodial sentence of 12 months or more; is a persistent offender who has shown a particular disregard for the law; or has committed an offence, or offences, which have caused serious harm. Further, permission may be refused or cancelled where the applicant has been convicted of a criminal offence in either the UK or overseas for which they have received a custodial sentence of less than 12 months, or for which they have received a non-custodial sentence or an out-of-court disposal that is recorded on their criminal record.
• Permission must be refused or cancelled where there is involvement in a sham marriage or civil partnership grounds. Permission may be refused or cancelled where it’s more likely than not that the applicant is, or has been, involved in either a sham marriage or sham civil partnership.
• Permission may be refused or cancelled where, in relation to the application, or in order to obtain documents in support of the application, false representations are made, or false documents or false information submitted, or relevant facts are not disclosed, whether or not to the applicant’s knowledge. Further, a visa must be refused or may be cancelled where there is proof that it’s more likely than not that some form of deception was used in the application, although this would require evidence of some dishonesty directly on the part of the applicant.
• Permission must be refused where the applicant has previously breached immigration laws and the application is made within a relevant time period, for example, within a period of 10 years if the applicant was deported or removed from the UK at the public expense. A visa may also be refused where the applicant has previously breached immigration laws, albeit outside the relevant time periods, but there are other aggravating circumstances, such as failing to report.
• Permission may be refused or cancelled where the applicant or visa holder fails without reasonable excuse to comply with a reasonable requirement to attend an interview, provide information, provide biometrics, undergo a medical examination or provide a medical report.

There are various other general grounds for refusal, including grounds relating to exclusion from asylum or humanitarian protection, debt to the NHS or unpaid litigation costs, or where someone is seeking to enter or stay in the UK for a purpose not covered by these rules.

In some cases, more than one ground for a refusal or cancellation decision can apply. This could include, for example, where the presence of a foreign criminal in the UK may not be deemed conducive to the public good. In this instance, both the non-conducive and criminality grounds would apply to any refusal decision.

 

Need assistance?

Given the time and costs associated with applying for a visa, it is worth ensuring you meet the relevant UK visa requirements and that your application is comprehensive and complies with the Home Office guidance.

If you have a question or need advice on any aspect of a UK visa application, contact us.

 

UK visa requirements FAQs

What are the requirements for a UK visa?

The requirements for a UK visa will vary, depending on the immigration route. For example, on the Skilled Worker route, you must have a job offer in place from a UK licensed sponsor meeting minimum skill and salary requirements. All UK visa applicants must meet the suitability requirements.

What are the different types of visas in the UK?

There are various different types of visas available to come to the UK, depending on where you are from, plus the reason and proposed length of your stay. To simply visit the UK, you may be able to travel visa-free.

Last updated: 30 July 2023