Scale-up Visa

The Scale-up visa scheme is to attract highly skilled individuals from overseas to work for scale-up businesses in the UK.

The aim of this scheme is to support fast-growing businesses in the UK and contribute to boosting the UK’s economy.

What are the requirements for a Scale-up Visa?

1. have a job offer from a scale-up company
2. have a certificate of sponsorship (CoS) from a Scale-up Sponsor
3. do a job that’s on the list of eligible occupations
4. be paid at least £34,600 or the going rate for your job
5. English B1 level

What documents do you need to apply for a Scale-up Visa?

1. COS (certificate of sponsorship from a Scale-up company who's willing to sponsor you)
2. Passport with minimum 6 months of validity
3. UKVI IELTS (General Training) if you are applying from outside the UK - Minimum 4 in each module (Reading, Writing, Listening, Speaking)
4. Financial proof if you're applying outside of the UK (£1270 in your bank account for more than 28 days)
5. TB test report (if you're from the list of countries that require a TB test and apply from outside the UK)

Requirement for the Scale-up Business

In the 3 year period immediately before they were approved by the Home Office to sponsor scale-up workers, they must have:

• had at least 10 employees at the start of the 3 year period
• grown by 20% on average in each year in either employment or total sales (turnover)

How much does it cost to apply for a Scale-up Visa?

For Scale-up visa applicants, you only need to pay the visa application fee, and the Immigration Health Surcharge for the number of years you're staying.

The Scale-up Visa Application fee is £715, it is the same whether you apply from inside or outside the UK.

How long does it take to apply for a Scale-up Visa?

• 3 weeks, if you’re outside the UK
• 8 weeks, if you’re inside the UK

How long can you stay under a Scale-up Visa?

You can stay 2 years if you apply for a Scale-up Visa for the first time. 

Can you extend a Scale-up visa?

Yes, a Scale-up Visa is extendable, you can extend for another 3 years after you finish your initial stay.

Does a Scale-up Visa lead to settlement?

Yes, after 5 years you can apply for settlement in the UK.

How does the Scale-up Visa scheme benefit organisations?

Normally, UK sponsors need to pay the Immigration Skills Charge (ISC) for the migrant workers they are sponsoring, for example, the Skilled Worker route.

However, the Scale-up Sponsors do not need to pay the ISC. This visa scheme will help Scale-up Businesses to hire scale-up workers more easily.

Employers in scale-up businesses who want to recruit people from overseas need to have a valid sponsor licence.

If you do not already have one, you need to apply for a sponsor licence before hiring a migrant worker.

How can Work Permit Cloud help?

The Scale-up Visa is a newly published visa route by the Home Office. It is important to clearly understand the requirements and whether is it suitable for you. WorkPermitCloud is regulated by the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) and we stay on top of Immigration news. Our professional immigration advisers will assist you throughout the journey to maximise the probability of success on your scale-up visa application.

Book our professional Immigration service at info@workpermitcloud.co.uk