Obtain A UK Visit Visa

If you wish to visit the UK for a short period of time – usually six months or less –we provide a comprehensive visa service. Our UK Visit visa lawyers can advise and help you with your application for the relevant visa.

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Visit Visa UK Solicitors

Our central London-based immigration solicitors provide a complete service for those who desire a Visit visa for the UK. Whether you are interested specifically in obtaining a UK tourist visa, business visit or student visit visa – to cite just some popular routes – we can project manage your case from start to finish.

We also serve clients who wish to secure a family visitor visa for the UK, or to apply for a visitor visa extension. Indeed, those seeking a UK Visit visa tend to vary widely in their needs, which is why it makes sense to partner with a capable and experienced immigration law firm such as Cranbrook Legal.

Make an enquiry today with our Visit visa solicitors to find out how we can assist you with your application.

How can you help me obtain a Visit Visa?

Depending on your nationality and what you plan to do in the UK, you might not need a visa for your visit to the UK. If you are unsure whether this would be the case for you, our UK Visit visa solicitors can provide tailored advice.

If it does turn out that you must apply for a Visitor visa in order to spend time in the UK, we can hold your hand through the entire process. Our progressive and dynamic immigration lawyers provide a far-reaching and responsive service, also communicating with you precisely and transparently to answer all your questions and cater to your needs.

If you wish to submit a Visitor visa application, you will want to be confident of securing a visa at the first attempt. For a pre-agreed fixed fee, we will help ensure you meet all the eligibility requirements for your desired visa, and submit all the documents the Home Office expects. We can even provide a bespoke documents list, tailored to your circumstances.

Our Visit visa lawyers have an excellent success rate for this visa, so you can be confident in achieving a positive outcome from your application when you choose us. For more information, please call 0208 215 0053 now.

What is a UK Visit Visa?

The term ‘UK visit visa’ is generally used in reference to what is now known as the Standard Visitor visa. It is the visa for those who wish to make temporary visits to the UK, rather than those who wish to move to and base themselves in the UK in the long term.

You may seek a Standard Visitor visa for the UK for any of a range of purposes, such as to visit as a tourist, for certain business activities, or for medical reasons; more of these are explained below.

As the Standard Visitor visa is only designed for short visits to the UK, there are certain things you are not permitted to do as a holder of this visa. These include:

  • The Permitted Paid Engagement Visitor route was merged into the Standard Visitor route. This means that all visitors can now undertake permitted paid engagements without the need for a special visa.
  • Living in the UK for long periods of time through frequent visits
  • Accessing public funds (benefits)
  • Partaking in a course of study that lasts more than six months
  • Marrying or registering a civil partnership, or giving notice of marriage or civil partnership. If this is what you would like to do on your visit to the UK, you can instead apply for a Marriage Visitor visa, which is outlined in greater detail below.

What are the different types of UK Visit Visas?

The Standard Visitor visa for the UK is effectively the replacement for the following visa routes:

  • The Family Visitor visa
  • The General Visitor visa
  • The Child Visitor visa
  • The Business Visitor visa, which was also aimed at academics, doctors and scientists
  • The Sports Visitor visa
  • The Entertainer Visitor visa
  • The Prospective Entrepreneur visa
  • The Private Medical Treatment Visitor visa
  • The Approved Destination Status (ADS) visa

Now, you can simply apply for the Standard Visitor visa if you wish to come to the UK for any of the following purposes:

  • For tourism – for instance, to go on a holiday or to visit friends or relatives
  • For certain business activities, such as attending a meeting
  • To undertake a short course of study
  • To partake in research or an exchange programme as an academic
  • For medical reasons, such as to receive private medical treatment

Another type of UK Visit visa to be aware of is the Marriage Visitor visa. This is the visa route you must apply for if:

  • You wish to get married or to register a civil partnership in the UK
  • You wish to give notice of a marriage or civil partnership in the UK
  • You don’t intend to stay or settle in the UK following your marriage or civil partnership
  • You satisfy the other eligibility requirements

It will not be necessary for you to apply for the Marriage Visitor visa if you simply wish to convert your civil partnership into a marriage – the Standard Visitor visa will be sufficient for this.

Nor will you need a Marriage Visitor visa if one of the below is true:

  • You have settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme
  • You have applied to the EU Settlement Scheme, and are still waiting for a decision
  • You’re an Irish citizen

What are the requirements of a UK Visit Visa?

In order to secure this visa, you must satisfy the Home Office’s relevant UK visitor visa requirements.

Applicants for the Standard Visitor visa need to show that:

  • They will leave the UK when their visit is over
  • They won’t live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits, or make the UK their main home
  • They will be able to support themselves and their dependants during their time in the UK, or have funding from someone else to support them
  • They will be able to pay for their return or onward journey, or have funding from someone else to pay for their journey
  • They have proof of any business or other activities they wish to undertake in the UK, as permitted by the Home Office’s Visitor Rules

There are further requirements to which you will be subject as an applicant for the Standard Visitor visa, depending on whether you are applying:

  • To study for up to six months
  • As an academic
  • So that you can visit the UK for private medical treatment
  • As an organ donor, or
  • For a long-term Standard Visitor visa

For an in-depth discussion of the exact Home Office requirements that you will need to meet when applying for a UK visit visa, please feel free to arrange a consultation with our immigration experts, or call 0208 215 0053 today.

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How long can I get a UK Visit Visa for?

Those who successfully apply for a Standard Visitor visa for the UK can normally stay in the country on this visa for a maximum of six months.

However, it may be possible for you to remain in the UK on this visa for 11 months if you are coming to the UK for private medical treatment, or 12 months if you are an academic and satisfy the eligibility requirements.

If you opt for the long-term Standard Visitor visa – which is explained in greater detail below –this visa can last for two years, five years or even 10 years. However, this does not mean you can stay continuously in the UK for that period of time. This long-term visa is designed for those intending to regularly visit the UK over that period, with a maximum of six months’ stay allowed for each visit.

How much does it cost to apply for a UK Visit Visa?

Provided that you are looking to stay in the UK for up to six months on a Standard Visitor visa, there will be a £95 application fee for this.

Ifyou are applying for a visa of up to 11 months that would enable you to come to the UK for private medical treatment, you will need to pay a £190 fee.This same fee also applies if you are an academic who meets the eligibility requirements, and you wish to come to the UK for up to 12 months with your spouse or partner and your children.

If, meanwhile, you are interested in applying for the long-term Standard Visitor visa, the fee will depend on the length of the visa:

  • If two years, £361
  • If five years, £655
  • If 10 years, £822

Why Choose Us For Your UK Visit Visa?

We Are Dedicated

We Are Committed

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We Are Result Driven

We Are Strategic Thinkers

We Are Commercially Aware

Contact our Immigration Solicitors In London on 0208 215 0053 or
via info@cranbrooklegal.com to make your enquiry.

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Visit Visa Frequently Asked Questions

1. Will I lose my Visit Visa if I apply for another Visa?

Especially if you currently hold a long-term Standard Visitor visa that allows you to enter the UK multiple times over the course of the visa’s validity period, you may understandably wonder whether you are permitted to apply for a new visa under a different category – and if so, what would happen to your existing Visit visa.

As an existing holder of a Visit visa, it is not possible for you to apply to switch directly from this visa to any other type of visa for the UK. This is because the UK Visit visa is designed for those who wish to come to the UK only temporarily as visitors, rather than those who wish to move permanently to the UK.

It is also important to bear in mind that if a UK visit visa could be easily converted into a longer-term visa, it is likely that many unscrupulous people would seek to abuse this. The UK Government therefore attempts to prevent people from doing so.

If you do wish to replace your visit visa with another type of visa for the UK, our UK visit visa solicitors would therefore probably advise you to leave the UK first, before applying for the new visa from your country of origin.

If you wish to make regular visits to the UK over an extended period, it is possible to apply for a long-term Standard Visitor visa that lasts for two, five or 10 years. As a holder of this visa, you will be permitted to stay for up to six months on each visit to the UK.

If you are under 18 years old at the time of your application for a long-term Standard Visitor visa, your visa will only be valid for a maximum of six months after you turn 18. You will not be able to get a refund on the fee.

It is unfortunately not possible to switch from a Standard Visitor visa to another type of visa from within the UK. You might have the option of extending your visa, but you will only be able to do this for specific reasons – for instance, because of a need for further private medical treatment.

Even if you are able to extend your stay, if you are on the usual (not the long-term) Standard Visitor visa, you will normally only be able to do so as long as the total time you remain in the UK as a visitor is no more than six months. This would mean that if, for example, you have spent three months in the UK as a visitor, you can apply to extend your stay for another three months.

Holders of the Standard Visitor visa can only apply to extend their stay in the UK as a visitor for more than six months if they are:

  • A patient receiving medical treatment
  • An academic who still meets the eligibility requirements
  • A graduate undertaking a clinical attachment or retaking the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board (PLAB) test

If, meanwhile, you hold a long-term multiple-entry visa and you wish to stay in the UK beyond your current visa expiry date, you will be able to apply to extend your permission for up to the maximum six months allowed for visitors (standard). So if, for instance, you come to the UK as a visitor in January, and your long-term visit visa is set to expire in February, you will be permitted to extend for up to six months, or until as late as June, as a visitor (standard).

There are various reasons why the Home Office might refuse your application for a UK Visit visa. For some unsuccessful applicants, there may be just one reason for the rejection of their visa application, while for others, multiple reasons for the refusal might apply.

Applications for a Visit visa for the UK may be refused due to the candidate failing to satisfy all the general suitability requirements and specific eligibility requirements. Sometimes, the problem may be that the applicant has not provided enough evidence to meet a particular requirement. Alternatively, the applicant may have an adverse immigration history, or serious or recent criminal convictions.

Whatever the reasons might be for your Visit visa application having been refused, our immigration specialists can advise and guide you through your options. Those options are likely to be:

  • Re-applying for the Visit visa;
  • Appealing the decision on human rights grounds; or
  • Applying for a judicial review of the decision.

Whichever course of action you take, it is crucial to be well-informed and prepared, to help maximise the likelihood of a positive outcome. Please feel free to contact our UK Visit visa lawyers today for advice on a way forward that is tailored to your case and circumstances; you can call us on 0208 215 0053.

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