Alphabetical list of UK visa categories that come with the right to work legally in the UK.
For Commonwealth citizens with a grandparent who was born in the UK. A visa is for 5 years and allows to work without Sponsorship. Settlement after 5 years.
A group of several temporary work visas, all require sponsorship. Used by multinational companies with a branch in the UK, to train workers or to scale up the business. This group replaced the old Intra-Company Transfer visas and also incorporated the old Representative of Overseas Business category. Does not lead to Settlement but allows to switch to another category.
Dependant visas are issued to family members of the main applicant, such as Skilled Worker Dependant or Student Dependant. Also called Dependant Partner or PBS Dependant. The word “Dependant” implies the visa is attached (“depends”) to a family member having the “main” visa. Unlike the main visa, however, Dependant visa allows to work for any employer without sponsorship. Only immediate family members are covered: husband, wife, partner of 2 years and children aged 18 years of age (at the 1st application). Since this visa allows so much freedom of working in the UK, further restrictions were introduced with the most recent Rules. Students can only bring dependants if the main applicant is studying a PhD level course (used to be Master’s). Graduates can only include family members who already have Student Dependant visas. Care Workers, who had their 1st visa from 11 March 2024, cannot bring dependants.
It is a part of Skilled Worker visa and requires sponsorship, but for certain jobs in the healthcare and social care sectors. A list of the eligible SOC codes in these occupations can be found here. Employers can offer a salary lower than £38,700 and the workers do not pay Immigration Health Surcharge. Like the main Skilled Worker visa, this category leads to Settlement after 5 years.
For those who graduated from top international universities during the last 5 years. The list of acceptable universities is published every year and can be found here. A visa is for 2 years for most graduates, for PhD graduates it is 3 years. Allows to work with sponsorship, does not lead to Settlement, but allows to switch to another category.
It is similar to a working holiday visa, for Indian nationals, aged 18 – 30 years who have a Bachelor degree. It is operated via a ballot system, where you have to submit your application and hope it will be selected for a place. A visa is for 2 years, allows to work without sponsorship. Does not lead to Settlement but allows to switch to another category.
These are explained in more detail under the Family visas section. A Partner visa is for a spouse or unmarried parter of a British or Irish citizen, of someone with Indefinite Leave. It is also issued to a partner of someone with a pre-settled status under EU Settled Scheme. A Parent visa is issued to parents of a British child or of a child with a settled status. All family visas allow to work without sponsorship and lead to Settlement after 5 years (standard route) or 10 years in the UK.
This visa can be for 5 or 2.5 years, depending on how a person qualifies for it. A child under 18 years of age qualifies after living in the UK for 7 years. A young adult 18 – 24 years of age – after living in the UK for most of his/her life. An adult 25 years of age and over – after 20 years in the UK. Residence doesn’t need to be legal but has to be continuous. Allows to work without sponsorship and leads to Settlement after 5 years (child or young adult) or 10 years (adult) on this visa.
This is the main work visa category. We have a dedicated page here on this website, for both workers and employers.
If you are studying at a UK university at a degree level, Bachelor or above, you can work 20 hours per week during the term time. You can work full-time when on vacation between terms and also after completing your course. No need for sponsorship. A Student visa does not lead to Settlement but allows to switch to another category, such as Graduate, Skilled Worker or Partner.
We advise on the Rules, we train other lawyers and we do it well! From our London office, we serve customers of all nationalities who are in the UK or overseas, to work, join family and settle in the UK. You can book a consultation with an Immigration Lawyer here.
This visa is for certain nationals from the approved list. You can apply if you are aged 18 – 35 years and you are from Australia, New Zealand, Canada or South Korea. You can apply if you are aged 18 – 30 years and are from Japan, Iceland, Uruguay and some other countries as well as hold a British Overseas Citizen or similar status . There is a ballot system if you are from Taiwan or hold a Hong Kong SRA passport. A visa is for 2 years, allows to work without sponsorship. Does not lead to Settlement but allows to switch to another category.
This is a route where a person can qualify for Settlement (Indefinite Leave) after 10 years of living in the UK. Having Indefinite Leave means working in the UK without restrictions, not needing sponsorship and not needing to re-apply every 3-5 years. Very often used by young people coming here as Child Students and Students, then spending some time on work visas and coming to the point of 10 years in the UK. Most visa categories can be counted, even those that do not, normally, lead to Settlement, such as Student visas + Graduate, or Student+Work. If you cannot qualify for ILR of this type, but have 10 years nonetheless, you can also obtain an extension, which would be for 2 years and allows working without sponsorship.
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