Tier 1 Investor Visa
The Tier 1 Investor Visa allows non-EU Citizens to live and work in the UK in return for a significant investment. In order to qualify for the Tier 1 Investor Visa you will need to have at least £2million available to invest in actively trading UK Companies.
Tier 1 Investor Visa Overview
An initial Tier 1 Investor Visa application will result in a visa grant period of 3 years and 4 months. Within 3 months of entry to the UK you must have invested your funds into suitable UK investments. Alternatively, you can invest those funds within the 12 months prior to submission of your initial visa application.
At the end of this initial visa grant period you can apply to extend for a further 2 years.
The Tier 1 Investor visa allows you to live, work or study in the UK.
You are not permitted to:
- work as a professional sportsperson or sports coach.
- access public funds.
You also cannot work as a doctor or dentist in training unless one of the following applies:
- you have a primary degree at bachelors level or above in medicine or dentistry from a UK institution that holds a Tier 4 sponsor licence or is a UK recognised or listed body;
- you worked as a doctor or dentist in training the last time you were in the UK;
- neither of those conditions were part of the terms and conditions on a previous visa.
Tier 1 Investor Visa Eligibility Requirements
You must have at least £2,000,000 investment funds available to you in order to apply for a Tier 1 Investor visa.
You must:
- be at least 18 years of age;
- be able to prove that the money belongs to either you or your husband, wife, unmarried or same-sex partner;
- have opened an account at a UK regulated bank to use for your funds.
Your funds must be:
- held in one or more regulated financial institutions;
- free to spend (‘disposable’) in the UK.
Your money can be in the UK or overseas when you apply.
Tier 1 Investor Visa Extension
A Tier 1 Investor Visa Extension application requires you to evidence that you had previously invested the full amount of at least £2million into the UK by way of UK share capital or loan capital in active and trading UK registered companies and this must have been done within 3 months of your entry to the UK.
Tier 2 Investor Visa ILR Application
You can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK:
- after 2 years if you invest £10 million.
- after 3 years if you invest £5 million.
- after 5 years if you invest £2 million.
You will need to show that you have not spent more than 180 days outside the UK during any 12-month period during the relevant qualifying period.
In addition to the above requirements you will also need to pass the Life in the UK Test and satisfy an English Language requirement.
These types of applications attract intense scrutiny from the Home Office and it is vital to ensure that the application is prepared and submitted correctly and that you are made fully aware of the requirements for extension of your Tier 1 Investor visa from the start so that you can avoid any issues in the future.