The Senior or Specialist Worker Visa is one of the new routes to come to or stay in the UK as part of the Global Business Mobility Visa. It has now replaced the Intra-Company Transfer Visa.
The Senior or Specialist Worker Visa allows workers to come to the UK to carry out an eligible job at their overseas employer’s UK branch. This visa may allow workers to stay in the UK for 5 years, or the time stated on their Certificate of Sponsorship plus 14 days, whichever is shorter.
There are core requirements you need to meet in order to be eligible for this visa:
You will also need to ensure that you have worked for your employer long enough to apply. If your salary is under £73,900, you must have worked in your current job for at least 12 months. Over £73,900, there is no minimum.
If your employer is not currently licensed to sponsor workers, they will first need to apply for an Employer Sponsorship Licence.
To prove that you meet the requirements for the Senior or Specialist Worker Visa, you will need to provide documents. These documents may include:
If you are coming to the UK with your partner and children, you will also need to provide proof of relationship.
Individuals coming from a listed country may also need to provide a tuberculosis test.
Based on your circumstances and your profession, there may be additional requirements, such as evidence you have worked for your employer outside the UK, or a valid Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate if your job requires it.
Please note that any documents that are not in English or Welsh will need to have a certified translation for your application.
When applying for a Senior or Specialist Worker Visa, you will need to pay the application fee as well as the healthcare surcharge (usually £624 per year).
If you are applying from outside the UK, the application fee is:
If you are applying from inside the UK, the application fee is:
Additionally, you need to have at least £1,270 available to support yourself when you arrive, and any partner or children coming with you will also need to prove they can support themselves. Your employer may choose to support you financially, but this should be clearly stated in your Certificate of Sponsorship.
Our London-based team of immigration lawyers has decades of experience helping businesses and workers across the globe with all Business Visas, and will be happy to assist with your Senior or Specialist Worker Visa or Global Business Mobility Visa application. Please get in touch if you would like to discuss your case.
We start a discussion by understanding your history, and we will clearly outline the best option available and any recommendations to save you time and costs.
Once you instruct us to be your legal representative, we will start preparing your case. We may require more information about you to help you more effectively.
Documentation is a crucial part of an immigration application. We will customise a document list to guide your preparation. Your dedicated lawyer will check the documents and advise of any improvements needed.
We will complete your application to the Home Office and may also write a cover letter with strong legal arguments where relevant. We may discuss this with you to confirm the final details.
We will submit your application to the Home Office, Court authorities securely. We will represent you as the main point of contact with them for any further requests.
You may sometimes be invited to attend a Home Office interview or Court hearing. While this may sound daunting, we will help you prepare and provide guidance on what questions to expect.
As soon as we receive a decision from the Home Office, we will get in touch with you to share the news.
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Definitely the best law firm I've ever dealt with. Hafsah Awan is an amazing lawyer, she is extremely professional, she truly cares, and gives great advise to ensure all goes smoothly. My entire process with Hafsah went really well, and we successfully got our Start-up visas to the UK, many thanks to Hafsah for her great efforts. I also loved that they are very responsive, to emails, calls, etc. Qiyin Chuah, the founder, actually helped me in the last moment during her weekend, I was very thankful for that, as not many people would even get back to you during the weekend. Overall, an amazing law firm, I'm very pleased, and I truly wish Hafsah, Qiyin, and the rest of QC Immigration team all the best, God bless you all :)
I had an exploratory conversation with QC Immigration. Qiyin was professional and personable throughout our conversation, explaining clearly the current criteria and regulatory considerations to keep in mind. I would have no reservations in appointing them for representation should there ever be a need, as Qiyin provided from the outset, the calm assurance of having the knowledge, experience and an individual approach that I strongly value.
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Both my fiancé and I used QC Immigration this year for our new visa and naturalisation applications, respectively, and were very happy with the service. Our main point of contact was Marianna, who was very prompt and thorough in her preparation of our applications and helpful throughout every step of the process with our concerns, etc. Highly recommend QC Immigration. Thank you again, Marianna!
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I have been using QC Immigration to help prepare for my partner's Proposed Civil Partnership Visa application. We have been dealing with Marianna since January, and have found her to be extremely professional, knowledgeable and personable. She has always responded to my queries and concerns, (however neurotic!) and she has paid great attention to detail. It has been an invaluable service, and should our application be successful in this instance, I will not hesitate to appoint QC Immigration again to assist with the next stages. Many thanks again for your hard work and for showing us such an understanding and caring attitude! :)
My partner and I recently used QC Immigration when applying for a UK partner visa. They were very professional throughout and dealt with all questions and queries accordingly. Marianna was our main point of contact and was extremely diligent and reassuring throughout the process. We appreciated their attention to detail and extensive knowledge of UK immigration law and would highly recommend them to any prospective clients.
You may extend this visa as long as it does not exceed the maximum stay allowed, which is 5 years in any 6-year period if your salary is under £73,900 per year, or 9 years in any 10-year period if your salary is £73,900 or more per year.
If they are eligible, your partner and children (‘dependants’) may apply to join you in the UK. You will need to provide proof of relationship, and you and your partner will need to be able to financially support your family. Contact us if you would like additional guidance.
If you are already in the UK on a different visa, you may be able to switch to a Senior or Specialist Worker Visa, as long as you meet the requirements. Some UK Visas are not eligible to switch, such as those on short-term visas.
QC Immigration can help Increase your chances of your UK visa application being accepted with the help of our experienced immigration lawyers.