UK Visas types and costs explained
What you need to know in 2024
Before your move to London or anywhere in the UK, you need to consider what type of visa you can apply for. There are a few factors to consider, your age, nationality, skill set, relationship status and whether you are planning to work while you are in London or not.
If your planning to work while living in London, the most popular visas are;
Health and Care Worker visa
Skilled Worker visa
British National (Overseas) visa
Graduate visa
Youth Mobility Scheme visa
India Young Professionals Scheme visa
Apply for the Global Talent visa
UK Ancestry visa
High Potential Individual (HPI) visa
There are also visas available if you:
Work in the UK for your overseas employer
Temporary work in the UK
You start a business
Require sponsorship for a visa
Cost of a UK Visa:
Unless you are on a sponsored visa from your employer, you will have to pay for your visa. The cost of each visa can be anywhere from around £400-£2000.
As well as paying for your visa, you will also have to pay for your NHS surcharge. And yes, National Insurance will also come out of your pay check so you are essentially paying for your healthcare twice. Not ideal, but it is a cost that you have to pay to live and work in London and the UK. The NHS surcharge will depend on the length of your visa. The NHS surcharge cost is £1,035 per year so this can add up if you are on a 5 year visa.
Over all, a working visa with fee’s and NHS surcharge will cost you between £1500-£3000 a year depending on the visa.
You will need to pay for the visa and the NHS surcharge up front and cannot be paid over a period of time.
Documents required for a UK visa:
Again, this will depend on the type of visa you are applying for.
Generally you will need to have:
A valid passport
Financial evidence of savings or salary
Biometric information like your birth certificate
Proof of your english language proficiently
Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies if you are applying for a student visa
You may also have to show documents like a marriage certificate, letter of employment or any other official documents depending on the type of visa you are applying for.
You will also need to collate and upload these documents to the official HMRC Government website. I have applied for a visa recently and I’d recommend setting aside 2-3 hours to do this.
And if you don’t fancy a few hours of visa administration in your free time there are plenty of visa services where you can pay someone to collate, upload and advise on your visa application process.
How long does a UK visa take?
The application process has a number of steps:
Application for your visa on the HMRC website
About 1-2 hours
Gathering your documents needed for the visa
About 3 hours to one day
Uploading your documents on the UK government portal website
1-2 hours
Attending your Biometrics appointment
Appointment time is approx. 60 mins with waiting time
Waiting for your visa to be approved
Standard waiting time is up to 8 weeks if you live in the UK. if you pay for fast track you will get a decision within 48 hours
Waiting for your BRP card to arrive
This will arrive in about 2 weeks of your visa being approved
Overall the application process will take about 9 weeks if you do not get fast track and 1 week if you do pay for fast track
In my experience, if you would like to speed up the process, correctly title all of your documents and make the application easy to read.
Remember there is a person at the end of the application process who will be making sure all of your documents are compliant so the easier you make it for them, the quicker your application should come through
If you do not want to manage the process yourself there are plenty of visa services that you can use. This will come at a cost but it means its less hassle for you.
The UK visa application process is a necessary evil. But once your visa is approved you can enjoy 2-5 years of working in the UK hassle free so in my opinion it is worth it!
Do you have any questions about your UK visa and the application process? Use our contact page and let us know your question