Apply for a UK Innovator Business Visa
Innovator Visa is designed for entrepreneurs who want to set up a business in the UK and run it. The Innovator visa is designed for experienced businessmen or businesswomen who already have good financial backing.
For an Innovator Visa the applicant needs to have a good business plan and they also need to have endorsement (ie approval) for the business plan from an endorsing body approved by the Home Office, which could be either a private body or in some cases a university.
The applicant will need to have a minimum of £50,000 available to invest in their business. If more than one applicant is doing a joint business venture then each applicant needs to have at least £50,000 of funds available to invest in their business. So, if there are two applicants but 1 business idea they both need to show £50k each and in total funds of £100,000.
The Innovator visa is granted for three years and the applicant can apply for settlement or for a visa extension at the end of 3 year period. It depends how the business has performed and several things are too looked into to decide the best way forward for example funds invested, job creation, turnover, and number of customers etc.
Dependent applications (partner and minor children) of an Innovator are possible.
Applications may be made to the UK visa centre from outside the UK or, in some cases, to the Home Office in the UK. Student visa holders, for example, can apply in the UK to switch to Innovator Visa, and there other switching possibilities, for example a migrant holding a Start-Up visa status can apply to switch to an Innovator visa.
Requirements for Innovator visa
As mentioned above, all applicants need to have a good business plan and the business plan needs to be endorsed by an endorsing body. Setting up a business of course inevitably costs money, but some types of business are a lot more expensive than others to set up. In contrast, the Innovator visa in many cases requires the applicant to hold funds of at least £50,000, irrespective of how much it actually costs to set up the business.
There are a couple of exceptions to this requirement: applicants switching from a Start-Up visa or a Tier 1 Graduate Entrepreneur visa do not have to show any specific financial investment figure.
You are required to meet a set of requirements for the Innovator Visa:
- Be 18 or over
- Obtain endorsement of your business plan from an endorsing body
- Meet the English language requirement unless exempted based on nationality, age or qualifications
- Have access to minimum funds of £50,000 to invest in your business
- Availability of sufficient funds to support yourselves in the UK without having any access to public funds in the UK
What we can do for you for a successful Innovator Business visa application
If you are applying for an Innovator visa we can assess your business idea and prepare a business plan and advise you about it. We can work with getting your business plan endorsed by a relevant endorsing body and then can prepare your visa application to the best effect.
We will advise you on the documents required for the application and represent you with the full application for a successful outcome.
If you wish to know more about Innovator Visa application, you can watch an informative video on this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMTsz5bpztM&t
Why not give us a call and discover that we are the best Immigration lawyers in London to handle your Innovator Visa application. We work with clients from all over the UK and the World, so if you are not in London, do not worry, we can assist you wherever you are in the world.
Please call us on +44 208 150 6709 / +44 207 993 6981 for an initial chat to discover we are the right firm for you, and speak to an experienced Immigration Lawyer / Adviser to bring your matter to a successful conclusion. Alternatively you can Email us on info@gsnimmigration.co.uk
