- be from non-EEA countries
- have a good business plan that could help the economy of the UK
- have had received an endorsement from one of the endorsement bodies assigned by the UK government
- have £945 in your personal bank account for the consecutive 90 days before you submit your visa application
- a test result of approved English language tests at the level of at least CEFR B2 in reading, writing, listening, and speaking.
- having an academic degree that was taught in English medium of instruction and is recognized by UK NARIC as being equivalent to a UK bachelor’s degree, master’s degree or Ph.D.
- bring your family members including spouse and under 18 children
- switch from other visas to this visa if you are already in the UK and hold Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur), any Tier 2 visa, Tier 4 (General), student visa, and Standard Visitor visa(if you came to the UK to get funding and had a supporting letter from an endorsing body). Please do note that 2 years visa time will count altogether and this time includes any time spent in the UK on previous visas.
- do a job alongside working for your business
- settle in the UK on this visa permanently
- claim public funds
- work as a professional sportsperson, for example, a sports coach
- work as a doctor or dentist in training
| Applying person | from outside the UK | from inside the UK (switch) |
| yourself | £363 | £493 |
| dependants | £363 each person | £493 each person |
| citizens of Turkey & Macedonia | £308 | £438 |
- a current valid computerized passport (there must be a blank page in it to stamp the visa)
- tuberculosis test results (TB test report) if you are from certain countries)
- certified English translation of your supporting documents if they are not in English or Welsh.
- academic qualifications (optional but important)
- work experience documents (optional but important)
- bank statement of last three months with a saving of £945 held for consecutive days
- endorsement letter from endorsement bodies
- English language proficiency certificate at CEFR B2 level for all four modules (for example IELTS with minimum 5.5 band score). You can check here the complete list of approved English language tests and their CEFR levels.
- In order to get an endorsement from UK endorsement bodies, you can follow the following steps:
- First of all, choose if you have to apply to normal business endorsement bodies or HEIs. Most of the HEI (higher education institutions) acting as endorsement bodies are only for their graduate students.
- Secondly, chose a relevant awarding body as some are specialized in tech, some in science and some in services etc.
- Contact them only when you are applying for endorsement.
- Send them your business model plan and apply for the endorsement.
- Prepare the startup business model carefully. Teamwork is important so that you may avoid any mistakes.
- Always chose the startup models which are required in the UK.
- For more general queries regarding the Start-up route, applicants and immigration advisors should refer to the information on gov.uk contact the UKBA here.