Global Talent Visa
The Global Talent Visa is for individuals who have been endorsed by a designated UK organization for being exceptionally talented or demonstrating exceptional promise in their field.
Awards and Accreditations
Global Talent Visa Overview
The Global Talent Visa is designed for highly skilled individuals in the fields of science, humanities, engineering, medicine, digital technology or the arts who will “enrich the United Kingdom’s knowledge economy and cultural life” who have been endorsed:
- as a recognised leader (exceptional talent),
- as an emerging leader (exceptional promise), or
- under the UK Research and Innovation endorsed funder option.
Global Talent Visa Process
The Global Talent Visa involves two distinct stages. The first stage involves an application to the Home Office for endorsement as a leader or an emerging leader in your particular field. Stage two is the formal Global Talent Visa application. The fee for the endorsement application is £456. The government processing fee for the stage two visa application is £152.
Most people apply for endorsement first, but you can complete both applications at the same time. However, if your endorsement is refused, your visa application will also be refused and you will not get any money back for either application.
The first step in securing a Global Talent Visa is to get an endorsement from one of the following organisations to show that you have “exceptional talent or promise”. You would approach the appropriate organization depending on your discipline:
- Arts Council England – for arts and culture applications,
- The British Academy – for humanities and social science applications,
- The Royal Society – for natural sciences and medical science research applications,
- The Royal Academy of Engineering – for engineering applications,
- Tech City UK – for digital technology applications.
- UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) for research applicants.
It is up to the institution to decide to award the endorsement rather than the Home Office, but there is detailed official guidance on the level of achievement the person must show. If they are successful in being awarded the endorsement, the applicant can proceed to make the visa application, as they will be awarded the full 75 points required for attributes for this visa route.
Global Talent Visa - ILR
There is no separate English language requirement until the settlement (Indefinite Leave to Remain) stage is reached. Likewise, there is no maintenance requirement for the Global Talent visa.
The Global Talent visa is very flexible as it allows the individual to work for any employer or be self-employed. The visa is granted initially for a period of up to five years and four months, at which point the applicant is eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain.
The immigration rules provide various accelerated routes to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain after three years:
You can apply for indefinite leave to remain once you’ve been in the UK for:
- 3 years with an exceptional talent visa,
- 3 years with an exceptional talent endorsement in science,
- 3 years with an endorsement under the UKRI endorsed funder scheme, or
- 5 years with an exceptional promise endorsement in either arts and culture or digital technology.
The legal team at Sterling Immigration have a wealth of experience representing applicants in Canada and the United States with Global Talent Visa applications. Please schedule your in-depth UK immigration consultation using the link below.
