The UK is a popular destination for business and commerce. It has one of the world’s largest economies, a fair legal system, world-renowned schools and universities, and a good standard of living and quality of life.

UK business and investment visas come in different types, appropriate for different situations. The Start-Up visa and Innovator visa are designed for entrepreneurs who want to set up and run a business in the UK, whereas the UK Expansion Worker visa enables a migrant to run a business in the UK on behalf of their overseas employer.

The Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa, although now closed to new entrants, still enables entrepreneurs to extend their visas and apply for settlement if they qualify.

The Tier 1 Investor visa, also now closed to new entrants, is a pure investment visa, and the migrant does not have to carry out any work or get involved in running a business unless they want to.

Some but not all of these visas offer a route to settlement.

Tier 1 (Investor) Visa

The Tier 1 (Investor) visa route is now closed to new entrants, but those migrants who are already on the route may apply for extension or settlement at the appropriate time.

This visa route enabled wealthy migrants to come to the UK on the basis of intending to make a substantial investment of between £2 million and £10 million into UK companies, either by way of share capital or loan capital. Applicants could apply from outside the UK or, in some cases, from within the UK and their close family members could apply with them.

Applicants had to show that they held sufficient funds, fully under their control.
The initial grant of leave was for three years, and settlement was possible in ether five years, three years or two years, depending on the level of investment. So those who invested larger sums (£5 million or £10 million) did not need to apply for extension: they could apply straightaway for settlement.

So Tier 1 Investors who are heading towards extension or settlement will be able to submit their applications in due course.

Global Talent Visa

The Tier 1 Exceptional Talent visa is now closed to new entrants, and it has been replaced by the Global Talent visa, which has some close similarities.

As with the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent visa, applicants for the Global Talent visa require initial endorsement by an official endorsement body as being either a recognised leader in their field (“exceptional talent”) or an emerging leader in their field (“exceptional promise”).

The list of endorsement bodies is this:

Tech Nation, for digital technology
The Royal Society, for science and medicine
The Royal Academy of Engineering, for engineering
The British Academy, for humanities
Arts Council England, for arts and culture
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), for research applicants
Each endorsement body has its own detailed criteria for endorsement, and you must in every case prove your experience and expertise.

If the applicant successfully acquires endorsement they can then apply for the visa. The visa can be granted for between one and five years and it may be possible to apply for settlement – depending on the circumstances – after either three years or five years.

In some ways the visa application is very easy: there is no English language or financial maintenance requirement. Applicants may apply from outside the UK or, if they are in an eligible switching category, from within the UK. Dependants may also apply. And, unlike with the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent visa, there is no annual limit on visas.

The Home Office’s rules about visa conditions for the Global Talent visa are slightly confusing. Migrants are allowed to – and indeed are encouraged to – work. The Home Office states that there are no restrictions (apart from very minimal ones) in the type of work that migrants can do.

However, there are other rules which state that a migrant who is applying for an extension visa or settlement must show that (a) they have earned money in the UK and (b) that those earnings were “linked to the expert field which led to their initial endorsement”.

So if you want to succeed in this visa route you will have to find the right kind of work. However, self-employment and running your own business are permitted, so there is plenty of scope for creativity. The rules only say what they say and do not specify that you have to have been running a successful or highly profitable business.

This is quite a simple explanation of the Global Talent visa. At Get UK Visa we will be able to give you more detailed and personalised advice and help if you need it.

Overseas Business Visa

The Representative of Overseas Business visa was designed to help overseas companies which have no UK presence to establish an entity in the UK and send a senior employee to the UK to set up and run it. This senior employee could apply for a Representative of Overseas Business visa for this purpose.

If the visa application was successful the visa was initially granted in most cases for three years. Extension might be possible for a further two years, and after five years in total it might be possible to apply for indefinite leave to remain.

This visa route has now been closed to new entrants and has been replaced by the UK Expansion Worker visa. However, those who are already on the route can apply for extension and settlement when the time comes.

Business Visitor Visa

The business visitor is a type of Standard Visitor visa which allows a businessperson to come to the UK as a visitor and carry out certain defined peripheral working activities, which include attending meetings, conferences, trade fairs, seminars or interviews; negotiating and signing contracts; carrying out site visits and inspections; providing training and trouble-shooting; installing and servicing equipment.

Business visitors cannot come to the UK for longer than six months at any one time and they cannot spend more than 180 days per 12 months in the UK.

They must show that they have sufficient funds and appropriate accommodation for the visit and they must also show that they intend to return to their home country at the end of the visit.

A migrant from a non-visa national country (eg Brazil, Italy) does not need to apply for a visitor visa in order to enter the UK but when they reach the border they might have to prove that the proposed visit meets all the requirements of the rules.

There is no English language requirement.