Business Immigration Advice

There is no single "business visa" for the UK. Founders, investors and overseas companies choose between several different routes, each with its own purpose, requirements, length of stay and consequences for settlement. Choosing the wrong one can cost months of work and a refused application, so the most valuable step is often the first one: working out which route actually fits your plans.

Our business migration advice looks at what you want to achieve in the UK, how your business is structured, who needs to come, and over what timescale. We then explain the realistic options, the risks of each, and the order in which things need to happen.

Who this is for

• Founders who want to start a new, innovative business in the UK.
• Overseas companies planning to open a first UK branch or subsidiary.
• International groups moving senior staff or specialists to an existing UK business.
• UK businesses owned or run by people who need permission to work in the UK.
• Existing Turkish businesspersons with ECAA leave who need to extend or settle.

The main routes we advise on

Sponsor licence and Skilled Worker

A UK organisation that is genuinely trading can apply for a sponsor licence and then sponsor workers under the Skilled Worker route. The job must be genuine, generally at graduate level (RQF 6) for new applicants, and meet the salary threshold, which for most roles is currently the higher of £41,700 or the going rate for the occupation. English at B2 is required for new applicants. Skilled Worker can lead to settlement, subject to the rules. See our pages on sponsor licence applications and the Skilled Worker visa.

People who own or run the business sometimes ask about being sponsored by their own company. This is often called "self-sponsorship", but it is not a separate route, and there are real practical obstacles. Our self-sponsorship and business sponsorship page explains how it works and where it can go wrong.

Innovator Founder

The Innovator Founder route is for people setting up a business that an approved endorsing body confirms is innovative, viable and scalable. There is no minimum investment requirement, English at B2 is needed, and settlement may be possible after 3 years if the business meets the required criteria. See our Innovator Founder visa page.

Global Business Mobility

These routes allow overseas businesses to send staff to the UK for specific, temporary purposes. None of them leads to settlement on its own.

• UK Expansion Worker: for senior managers or specialists sent to set up a UK branch or subsidiary of an overseas business that is not yet trading in the UK. The salary must generally be at least £52,500 or the going rate, whichever is higher, and stay is limited to a maximum of 2 years. The sponsor licence for this route is time-limited. See the UK Expansion Worker visa page.
• Senior or Specialist Worker: for employees transferred from an overseas business to a linked UK business. The salary must generally be at least £52,500 or the going rate, whichever is higher, and the worker usually needs 12 months' prior employment with the group overseas unless paid £73,900 or more. See the Senior or Specialist Worker visa page.
• Graduate Trainee: for employees on a structured graduate training programme moving to a UK business in the same group. See the Graduate Trainee visa page.

Global Talent

Global Talent is a separate route for individuals in certain fields, with its own eligibility requirements. It can suit some founders and senior professionals, and settlement may be possible after 3 or 5 years depending on the field and how the person applies. We can discuss whether it is worth exploring alongside the business routes.

Turkish Businessperson (ECAA)

This is a legacy route that is closed to new main applicants. It remains available only to people who already hold, or successfully applied for, ECAA leave by the cut-off, and to their family members, for extensions and settlement. See our Turkish Businessperson (ECAA) page.

Questions we help you answer

• Is your business ready to apply for a sponsor licence, and who can fill the key personnel roles?
• Does the proposed role meet the skill, salary and genuineness requirements?
• Is an endorsement-based route such as Innovator Founder more suitable than sponsorship?
• Should an overseas parent company use a Global Business Mobility route first, and what happens after?
• Which routes can lead to settlement, and which are temporary only?

Common problems we help with

• Businesses set up on the assumption that owning a company guarantees a visa. It does not.
• Roles that do not meet the current RQF 6 skill level or salary thresholds.
• Overseas companies unsure whether they count as "trading in the UK" for expansion purposes.
• Groups that need a plan for moving from a temporary route to a longer-term one.

How Stonebridge can help

• A structured review of your business, your goals and the people involved.
• Clear written advice comparing the routes that realistically fit your circumstances.
• A step-by-step plan covering licences, endorsements, visa applications and timing.
• Preparation and submission of sponsor licence and visa applications.
• Ongoing compliance support once your business becomes a sponsor.

Every business is different, and the rules change regularly. To discuss your plans in confidence, book a consultation with one of our advisers.