Working in the UK: short-term visa options

Global Business Mobility Visas

GBM: Graduate Trainee Visa

The Graduate Trainee visa replaces the Intra-Company Graduate Trainee visa and enables multinational businesses to transfer their non-UK employees from overseas to a UK branch to undertake training. The UK branch must be able to offer you an eligible job, which is part of a graduate training programme for a managerial or specialist role.

You must have worked for the overseas company for at least 3 months to be eligible to apply for this visa. Additionally, the UK branch of your overseas company must hold a UK Sponsor Licence and must have issued you with a Certificate of Sponsorship before you can apply for this visa.

The Graduate Trainee visa will allow you to stay in the UK for up to 12 months, during which time you can work in your sponsored role and if you wish, undertake voluntary work / study in the UK, subject to some restrictions. Graduates are expected to make an application to switch into another immigration visa category if they wish to remain in the UK after this time. Alternatively, you can apply for a new Graduate Trainee visa from outside of the UK if you can continue to meet the requirements.

Your partner and/or children may apply to join you in the UK as dependants. Generally, dependants may work and study in the UK, subject to certain restrictions.

Time spent as a Graduate Trainee does not lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), but you may be eligible to switch into another long-term immigration route.

GBM: UK Expansion Worker Visa

The UK Expansion Worker visa allows overseas senior managers or specialist employees to come to set up a branch of an overseas business that has not yet started trading in the UK.

To be eligible to apply for this visa, you must already work for the overseas business as either a senior manager or specialist employee. You will need to be issued with a Certificate of Sponsorship by your employer, your role must be eligible for sponsorship and you must be paid a gross annual salary that is at least £42,400 and which meets or exceeds the minimum salary requirement of your role.

You can stay in the UK with a UK Expansion Worker visa for up to 12 months from the start date on your certificate of sponsorship. If you want to stay longer in the UK, you can extend your visa by 12 months. The maximum time you can stay in the UK on a UK Expansion Worker visa is 2 years.

The UK Expansion Worker visa will allow you to work in your sponsored role and if you wish, undertake voluntary work and study, subject to some restrictions.

Your partner and/or children may apply to join you in the UK as dependants. Generally, dependants may work and study in the UK, subject to certain restrictions.

Time spent as an Expansion Worker does not lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), but you may be eligible to switch into another long-term immigration route.

GBM: Secondment Worker Visa

The Secondment Worker visa allows overseas employers to temporarily assign workers to the UK, to work for a UK organisation as part of a ‘high value’ contract or investment.

Your overseas employer must have a contract worth at least £50 million with the UK organisation and the UK organisation must hold a valid Sponsor Licence.

To be eligible to apply for a Secondment Worker visa, you must be an existing employee of the overseas organisation and have worked for them for at least the last 12 months. You must also have been issued with a certificate of sponsorship by the UK organisation (your sponsor) and have been offered a job with them that is eligible for sponsorship.

You can initially stay in the UK with a Secondment Worker visa for up to 12 months after the start date on your certificate of sponsorship. If you want to stay longer in the UK, you can extend your visa by 12 months. The maximum time you can stay in the UK on a Secondment Worker visa is 2 years.

On the Secondment Worker visa you may work in your sponsored role, undertake voluntary work and study, subject to some restrictions.

Your partner and/or children may apply to join you in the UK as dependants. Generally, your dependants may work and study in the UK, subject to certain restrictions.

Time spent on a Secondment Worker visa does not lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), but you may be eligible to switch into another long-term immigration route.

GBM: Service Supplier Visa

The Service Supplier visa allows employees of an overseas company, or those who are self-employed and based overseas, to come to the UK to provide services to a UK organisation, under a contract covered by a valid international trade agreement. The UK organisation must hold a valid Sponsor Licence.

To be eligible to apply for a Service Supplier visa, the UK organisation / sponsor must have issued you with a certificate of sponsorship for an eligible job. If your job is not eligible for sponsorship, you may still qualify for this visa if you have relevant qualifications and experience. You must also either have worked for your overseas employer for at least 12 months, or if you are self-employed, have at least 12 months’ professional experience.

The maximum length of time you can stay on a Service Supplier visa is 6 or 12 months – the duration of your visa will depend upon the type of trade agreement you’re providing services under.

A Service Supplier visa will allow you to work in your sponsored role, undertake voluntary work and study, subject to some restrictions.

Your partner and/or children may apply to join you in the UK as dependants. Generally, your dependants may work and study in the UK, subject to certain restrictions.

Time spent on a Service Supplier visa does not lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), but you may be eligible to switch into another long-term immigration route.

Youth Mobility Scheme

The Youth Mobility Scheme visa allows young people from certain countries or with certain types of nationality to come to the UK for up to 2 years. This visa permits you to work and study in the UK with very limited restrictions.

You can apply for a Youth Mobility Scheme visa if you are aged between 18 and 30 years old and you are from any of the following countries:

Australia;
Canada;
Monaco;
New Zealand; or
San Marino

Nationals of the following countries may also apply for this visa providing they have applied and been selected through a ballot system:

Hong Kong;
Japan;
South Korea;
Taiwan

Alternatively, you may also apply for this visa if you are aged between 18-30 years old and you are a:

British overseas citizen;
British overseas territories citizen; or
British national (overseas)

It is not possible to extend this visa and this visa route does not lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR).

We can advise you of the requirements of a Youth Mobility Scheme visa and assist you in preparing your visa application.

High Potential Individual Visa

The High Potential Individual visa is for graduates who have been awarded a degree that is at least equivalent to a UK bachelor’s degree at an institution listed on the Home Office’s new Global Universities List within the last five years.

This visa will be granted for at least two years and will allow you to work in the UK (except as a professional sportsperson).

Your partner and / or children may apply to join you in UK as dependants. Dependants may work and study in the UK, subject to certain restrictions.

You cannot extend a High Potential visa, but you may switch into another immigration route if you meet the relevant requirements.

The High Potential visa route does not lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) in the UK, but time spent on this visa can count towards an application for ILR under the 10 year long residence route.

We can advise you of the requirements of a High Potential visa and assist you in preparing your visa application.

Graduate Visa

If you are in the UK on a Student visa or Tier 4 (General) Student visa and you have completed a UK bachelor’s degree, postgraduate degree or other eligible course, you may be eligible to apply for a Graduate visa. A Graduate visa allows you to stay in the UK for at least 2 years after successfully completing your course.

A Graduate visa will allow you to live and work in the UK, be self-employed and undertake voluntary work. Your partner and / or children may apply to join you as dependants.

The Graduate visa route does not lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR). It is also not possible to extend a Graduate visa. You may, however, be able to apply to switch into a different visa category, for example, by making an application for a Skilled Worker visa if you are offered employment from a licensed employer.

We can advise you of the requirements for a Graduate visa and assist you in preparing your visa application.

Other Temporary Worker Visas

The Temporary Worker route includes the following sub-visa routes:

Creative;
Charity Worker;
Government Authorised Exchange;
International Agreement Workers; and
Seasonal Workers

All of the above temporary worker visas require the applicant to be sponsored by an employer who holds a valid UK Sponsor Licence.

The Temporary Worker visa route does not lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR). Temporary workers may, however, count any time spent in this visa category towards an application for ILR under the 10 year long residence rules.

We can advise you on the requirements of these visas and assist you in preparing your visa application.

Skilled Worker Visa

The Skilled Worker visa enables UK employers to sponsor non-UK nationals (including European and Swiss nationals who do not qualify for status under the EU Settlement Scheme) to take up skilled employment in the UK, which cannot be filled from within the resident labour workforce. The UK employer must have a Sponsor Licence in place and have issued the applicant with a Certificate of Sponsorship before a skilled worker visa application can be made.

As this visa category is part of the UK’s points-based immigration system, applicants are required to score a certain number of points to fulfil the eligibility criteria. Points will be awarded if you can demonstrate you have been offered a genuine and eligible role by a UK sponsor; if you can meet the salary requirement for that particular role and if you can meet an English language requirement. Applicants must also meet a maintenance requirement and, if relevant, provide a tuberculosis test certificate.

A skilled worker visa will allow you to work for your UK sponsor, undertake additional part-time employment, voluntary work and study, subject to some restrictions.

Skilled Worker visas are granted for up to a maximum of 5 years. After spending 5 years on the skilled worker visa route, you may be eligible to apply to live in the UK permanently / apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR).

Your partner and / or children can apply for a visa to join you in the UK as your dependant. They will need to meet a relationship and financial requirement. Dependants may work and study in the UK, subject to certain restrictions.

If you are already in the UK on a long-term visa, you may be able to apply to switch into the Skilled Worker visa route.

We can advise on the requirements for a Skilled Worker visa and assist in preparing your application and supporting documents.

Senior or Specialist Worker Visa

The Senior or Specialist Worker visa is part of the recently introduced Global Business Mobility (GBM) route. The GBM senior or specialist worker visa has replaced the old Intra-Company Transfer (ICT) visa.

The GBM senior or specialist worker visa is specifically for managers or specialist employees looking to transfer to a UK business that is linked to their employer overseas. The UK business must have Sponsor Licence in place and have issued you with a Certificate of Sponsorship before you may apply for this visa.

If you will receive an annual gross salary of less than £73,900, you must have been working for your overseas employer for a cumulative period of at least 12 months before you may apply. If, however, you are a ‘high earner’ (will be receiving an annual gross salary of at least £73,900), there is no minimum amount of time you must have spent working for your overseas employer.

As this visa category is part of the UK’s points-based immigration system, you are required to score a certain number of points to meet the eligibility criteria. Points will be awarded if you have been issued a valid Certificate of Sponsorship by your UK sponsor and if you have been offered a genuine role that meets the minimum skill and salary level for senior or specialist workers. You will also be required to meet a financial / maintenance requirement and, if relevant, provide a tuberculosis test certificate.

The GBM Senior of Specialist Worker visa will allow you to work for your sponsor, undertake voluntary work and study, subject to some restrictions. This visa does not however lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR). If you wish to settle in the UK, you will need to make an application to switch into an alternative visa category, such as the skilled worker route.

The maximum period that you can remain in the UK on a Senior or Specialist Worker visa will depend upon your gross annual salary: if you will receive a salary of less than £73,900, you may spend up to 5 years in any 6-year period. If you will receive a salary of £73,900 or more, you may stay for up to 9 years in any 10-year period.

Your partner and / or children may apply to join you in UK as dependants. They will need to meet a relationship and financial requirement. Generally, dependants may work and study in the UK, subject to certain restrictions.

Global Talent Visa

The Global Talent visa provides a route for talented and promising individuals aged 18 or over in the fields of science, technology, engineering, medicine, humanities, the arts and culture, to live and work in the UK.

To be eligible to apply for a Global Talent visa, you must be a recognised leader in your respective field or be able to show you have the potential to become a leader in your field. Before you can apply for a Global Talent visa, you must usually apply for an endorsement from the relevant expert body for your field. Applicants who have been awarded a qualifying prestigious award, as defined by the Immigration Rules, may, however, bypass the endorsement stage and proceed to apply for a Global Talent visa straight away.

With very limited exceptions, a Global Talent visa will allow you to work in almost any type of employment or self-employment in the UK.

If you are already in the UK on a long-term visa, you may be eligible to switch into the Global Talent visa route.

The Global Talent visa can be extended and does lead to settlement / Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) after 3 or 5 years’ continuous residence in the UK.

We can advise you of the requirements of a Global Talent visa and assist you in preparing your visa application.

Scale-up Visa

The Scale-up visa is for talented individuals who have the skills to enable a fast-growing UK business (a scale-up business) to continue growing.

A Scale-up visa allows you to come to the UK to do an eligible job for a UK scale-up business. The UK business must hold a valid Sponsor Licence and must have issued you with a certificate of sponsorship before you may first apply. You must have a genuine job offer from the UK business which is confirmed to last at least 6 months and you must be paid a salary that meets or exceeds the minimum set for that eligible role. You will also need to meet an English language requirement, a maintenance requirement and, if relevant, provide a Tuberculosis test certificate.

A Scale-up visa is initially granted for two years and may be extended for a further three years. After spending 5 years in the UK on this route or in combination with other eligible routes, you may apply for settlement /

Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR).

The Scale-up visa has an initial sponsored stage and a latter unsponsored stage:

during the first 6 months of the initial two year visa, you will need to be sponsored by and work for the UK scale-up business. After this time, your sponsorship with the UK scale-up business will automatically terminate, but you may continue working for them or find alternative employment if you wish;

after completing two years on this visa, you may then apply to extend your Scale-up visa for a further three years. You will not need to be sponsored by a UK employer (be tied to any specific UK employer), providing your previous UK PAYE earnings were at least £33,000 per annum during at least 50% of the time you spent on your initial Scale-up visa.

Your partner and / or children may apply to join you in UK as dependants.

They will need to meet a relationship and financial requirement. Generally, dependants may work and study in the UK, subject to certain restrictions.

We can advise you of the requirements of a Scale-up visa and assist you in preparing your visa application.