An overseas domestic worker visa allows foreign workers to come to the UK with their overseas employer, who is coming to the UK as a visitor or diplomat posted to the UK. On this visa, overseas domestic workers can work in the private home of their employer or a diplomat in the UK. If your employer is coming to the UK as a visitor, you must travel with them, their wife, husband, or children. You can stay in their home for up to 6 months only. However, if your employer is a foreign diplomat, you must travel with or join them in the UK. You will initially be granted leave for 24 months, but you may apply to stay longer if your employer is still in the UK and you are still working for them.
Appendix domestic worker in a private household sets out validity, suitability, and eligibility criteria for overseas domestic workers. An overseas domestic worker visa allows you to come with your current employer (a visitor or a diplomat) to the UK and work in their private homes there. You must have worked for your employer for at least 12 months in their private household overseas. Domestic workers can include chauffeurs, cooks, cleaners, those providing personal care to the employer and their family, and nannies.
If your employer is a visitor, you must travel to the UK with them and their family members. On the other hand, if you are going to work in the home of a foreign diplomat posted to the UK, you must travel with them or join them in the UK.
You can apply for an overseas domestic worker visa to visit the UK with your employer if:
• You are a domestic worker in your employer's private household
• You have worked for your employer overseas for at least 12 months
• You are from outside the EEA (European Economic Area) and Switzerland
• You meet the other eligibility requirements
You must apply on the UKVI’s official website gov.uk while applying for entry clearance as an Overseas Domestic Worker on the Domestic worker in a private household visa form.
You must meet the following requirements for an application for entry clearance on the Overseas Domestic Worker route:
(a) You must be outside the UK on the date of application; and
(b) You must pay the required fee; and
(c) You must have enrolled your biometrics when required; and
(d) You must have provided your passport or other valid travel document to establish your identity and nationality.
If your application does not meet all the validity requirements mentioned here, your application for an Overseas Domestic Worker visa may be rejected as invalid and not considered.
Your application must not fall for refusal under Part 9: Grounds for Refusal. Grounds for refusals under part 9 include factors such as breaches of immigration laws, criminal conduct, false information, or concerns about an applicant’s presence in the UK not being in their public interest.
To work in the UK as an overseas domestic worker, you have to prove to the UKVI that you meet the eligibility requirements. You have to meet the age, entry, your employer’s immigration status, your employment in the UK, financial, and your intention to leave the UK requirements.
You must prove that you will travel to the UK with your employer, their partner, or children, and you intend to work as a full-time domestic worker in a UK private household where your employer will live.
If your employer is a diplomat, you must travel with or join them in the UK.
You must be aged 19 or over on the date of application.
If you want to come to the UK as an Overseas Domestic Worker in a Private Household, you must apply for entry clearance and obtain it as an Overseas Domestic Worker before you arrive in the UK.
Your employer, in whose home you have worked and will work in the UK, must be one of the following;
• A British citizen who usually stays outside the UK and who intends to remain in the UK for not more than 6 months
• A foreign citizen who is coming to visit the UK and who intends to remain here for not more than 6 months
• A diplomat posted to the UK
If you are seeking entry clearance as an Overseas Domestic Worker in a Private Household, your employer must have employed you as a domestic worker. You must be living with your employer or in their property that they use as a home for themselves regularly, for 12 months or more immediately before the date of application.
You must be able to demonstrate to the decision makers that you can and will financially support yourself and adequately accommodate yourself during your stay in the UK without recourse to public funds.
Your employer must pay you at least the national minimum wage throughout your employment in the UK.
You must demonstrate the following to the decision makers:
• You will leave the UK at the end of 6 months in the UK on an overseas domestic worker visa or at the same time as your employer, whichever is the earlier; and
• You will not live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits; and
• You will not make the UK your main home.
You need to submit the supporting documents in order to prove your identity and your eligibility. You should gather these requirements before you apply for an overseas domestic worker visa. You require some documents from your employer as well. You need to get them on time.
Here are the documents required for the visa application:
• Your current passport or other valid travel document.
• Proof of your financial capacity, such as bank statements or pay slips for the last 6 months, to prove that you can support yourself during your stay in the UK.
• A completed ‘Appendix domestic worker statement’. The document must be signed by both you and your employer.
• A letter from your employer confirming your job title, how long you’ve worked for them, and that you’re a permanent employee.
You should have a blank page in your passport on which to put the overseas domestic worker visa.
You must also provide 1 of the following documents covering the same period of employment:
• Bank statements or Pay slips showing payment of your salary
• Confirmation of tax paid
• Confirmation of health insurance paid
• Employment contract
• Work visa, residence permit, or equivalent passport endorsement for the country where you are currently employed by your employer
• Visas or equivalent passport endorsement if you have travelled with your employer in the past as well
Depending on your circumstances, you may have to submit more documents or different documents.
You must apply online. You can apply up to 3 months before your travel date to the UK.
As part of your application, you need to submit the supporting documents. You also need to prove your identity, for which you need to enroll your biometric information (fingerprints and photograph) at a visa application center in your country.
You need to pay the overseas domestic worker in a private household visa fee of £682.
You should receive a decision from the UKVI within 3 weeks.
On an overseas domestic worker you can visit the UK with your employer for up to 6 months. You must leave the UK at the end of the 6 months.
You cannot extend your visa.
If you are working in the home of a diplomat in the UK, your visa will initially be for 24 months, but you may apply to stay longer if your employer is still in the UK and you are still working for them.
You can travel overseas and come back to the UK to complete your stay. You can change employers to another job as a domestic worker in a private household - only if you do not stay more than 6 months.
However, you cannot work except as a domestic worker in a private household, live in the UK for long periods of time through frequent visits, and get public funds.
We have served several clients who have applied for various UK visas, including the overseas domestic worker visa. We help eliminate the roadblocks you may face while applying for the visa. You and your employer both need to meet certain eligibility conditions, and we help you understand how you can meet them accurately. We also assess your documents and ensure they are in order and the correct format. At the stage of application, we help you fill out the information required in the visa form. If there are delays from the UKVI, we will keep you updated about your visa application status.
For detailed discussion about an overseas domestic worker visa in a private household, you can call us at +44 (0)20 3411 1261.
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