UK Sole Representative Visa
Do you need to apply for a UK Sole Representative Visa?
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A Sole Representative visa allows an individual to come to the UK in order to set up a UK branch or subsidiary on behalf of an overseas company. The overseas company should not have any representative in the UK. The applicant must be a senior employee of the organisation. This route is currently only available for applicants for extension as a sole representative for 2 years and settlement or Indefinite Leave to Remain. However new applicants can apply for UK Expansion worker under Global Mobility Route which allows overseas businesses to bring a worker from outside the UK.
Only Media Representatives that are an employee of an overseas newspaper, news agency, or broadcasting organisation, posted by the employer for any long-term assignment in the UK can currently apply for Entry Clearance, which will be granted for 3 years.
The applicant must be an employee of the overseas newspaper, news agency, or broadcasing organisation and are required to be posted by their employer for a long-term assignment in the UK. The applicant must be recruited outside the UK and the overseas media company can have more than one representative in the UK.
The applicant must submit a valid application and not fall for refusal under the suitability requirements and general grounds for refusal.
The applicants are generally journalists, however, there can be other employees of the overseas media organisation such as producers, news cameraman, front-of-camera personnel. The media organisation must have its headquaters and principal place of business outside the UK. Secretaries and other staff of a media organisation cannot apply under this category.
For the purpose of Extension and settlement the representative of media organisation will need to provide evidence that they are still required by the overseas media organisation to work in the UK. They must provide last 12 months payslips and a letter from the media organisation.
All the applicant must be able to meet the English Language Requirement and the applicants must be able to maintain and accommodate themselves without recourse to public funds.
Applicants must already be in the United Kingdom on a sole representative visa which would have been granted to them for a period of 3 years. The applicant must meet the validity requirement and submit the application on specified FLR (IR) application form. As a part of the validity requirmement the applicant must pay for the Immigration Health Charge. The applicant must be above teh age of 18 years and must not be on a visit visa, short term student visa, parent of a child student, seasonal worker, domestic worker or outside the Immigration Rules.
In addition to the validity requirement the applicant must not fall for refusal under the general grounds for refusal, not be on immigration bail, and not be in breach of immigration laws in order to meet the suitability requirment.
The applicant applying for extension as a sole representative must provide evidence that the business in the UK was opened within 1 year and is carrying out same type of business activity as the overseas business. They have established a branch or subsidiary and the shares are owned by the overseas business (This should be shown on the companies house).
The applicant should also establish that they have been working full time for the established branch or subsisdiary in the UK. The applicant must also establish that they are genuine representative of an overseas business. As a part of the Eligibility requirement the applicant must be able to meet the English langauge Requirment and financial requirement in accordance with Appendix Finance of the Immigration Rules
There are additional requirements for Extension as a Sole Representative. The applicant must establish that they continue to be senior employee of the overseas business with skills and experience and knowledge of the business necessary to undertake the sole as a sole representative. They must have full authority to make operational decisions on behalf of the overseas business. The applicant should not have majority stake in the overseas business.
Documents requirement for UK Sole Representative Visa
A UK Sole Representative you can provide the following -
These are some relevant evidence, however these change according to the nature of the business.
The initial sole representative visa is given for 3 years and could be extended for a further 2 years (or 3 years, if the applicant was granted leave prior to 1st October 2009). Following this, an applicant can make an application for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in the UK.
For the purpose of the extension the applicants will need to complete FLR (IR) application online. The fee for the application is £827, the current Immigration Health Charge is £1035 per year and the fee for Indefinite Leave to Remain is £2885.
There is no requirement for the company to generate a minimum level of turnover. However, the company in the UK must be stable enough to support the Sole Representative and its ongoing commercial enterprise inside the UK. It is also important that the overseas company have its main centre of operations outside the UK throughout the five-year period, and that the conditions attached to the last leave have been breached.
We assess your circumstances and provide you a quote for our services. If you choose to move ahead with your fiance visa application, you pay a 50% deposit of our fee and 50% on submission. Once the process is started, we provide you with a comprehensive checklist of the documents you'll need to provide. We advise you on the evidence and submission process, in relation to the country you are applying from. We review all the evidence and suggest any amendments you may require, or we can draft letters and templates for you were necessary, as well as preparing your application forms and booking you an appointment in the country where you provide your biometrics. Finally, we prepare detailed representations for the Home Office or UKV&I.
We do not leave any scope for refusal of your application - if there is anything which is of concern, we point this out to you and help you to remedy the issues. Should there be a delay in your fiance visa processing times, we will chase the application for you. We can guarantee a positive outcome if you will be able to provide all the evidence we request from you in our checklist.
If you need more information or expert immigration advice regarding UK sole representative visa application, contact us now.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ans: No, you do not need to pay for Immigration Health Charge if you are applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain
Ans: You will need to pay £2070
Ans: Yes, you must provide evidence that your company has generated business in the UK.
Ans: No, there is no issue with this, however, the UK businesses must be majority
Ans: Yes, if the dependents are employed in the UK they will need to pay taxes
Ans: You can apply after you have completed 5 years
Ans: You can combine Sole Representative Visa with skilled worker visa with Tier 2 visa, global talent, Tier 1 visa, Global Talent , Innovator, Scale Up, etc to Apply for ILR.
Ans: Yes, you must be able to maintain and accommodate yourself and your family without recourse to public funds;
Ans: Yes, you are allowed to do this provided you provide evidence according to Appendix Fianance of Immigration Rules
Ans: Our service is second to none and we have greatly experienced caseworkers. Check our reviews as they speak for themselves.
Do you need to apply for a UK Sole Representative Visa?
Speak to our experts to find out about our fast, friendly and affordable service
