Many overseas businesses are interested in expanding their operations into the UK.
One of the visa options facilitating such a move is the UK Expansion Worker visa. It is designed to allow foreign senior managers or specialist workers to come to the UK in order to set up a branch or subsidiary of a business that operates overseas, but that has not yet started to trade in the UK. To be eligible for this visa, the applicant must already be an employee of the business overseas.
This visa has replaced the Representative of an Overseas Business visa route, which was closed down for new applications in April 2022. The main difference between the old Sole Representative visa and the new UK Expansion Worker one is that the business will need to obtain a UK Expansion Worker sponsor licence before it can sponsor anyone. The time and cost involved in obtaining a sponsor licence needs to be factored into any UK expansion plans.
The UK Expansion Worker visa can be issued for up to 12 months, and can be extended in the UK for another 12 months. After 2 years, the business is expected to change its UK Expansion Worker licence to a Skilled Worker licence, and anyone with a UK Expansion Worker visa will also need to switch to a Skilled Worker visa.
If a partner and dependent children meet the necessary criteria for dependents, they may join or accompany an Expansion Worker to the UK.
It is important to ensure that the UK Expansion Worker route is the most appropriate one to fulfil the requirements of the overseas business. There may be other ways to expand into the UK, which should be discussed with an immigration specialist before any decisions are made.
How Gherson can assist
Gherson’s Immigration Team are highly experienced in advising on UK visa matters. If you have any questions arising from this blog, please do not hesitate to contact us for advice, send us an e-mail, or, alternatively, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn to stay-up-to-date.
The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Gherson accepts no responsibility for loss which may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please do not hesitate to contact Gherson. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Gherson.
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