United Kingdom

Representative of an Overseas Business visa

You can apply as a representative of an overseas business if you are either:

  • the sole representative of an overseas business planning to set up either a UK branch or wholly owned subsidiary
  • an employee of an overseas newspaper, news agency, or broadcasting organization posted on a long-term assignment to the UK

If you’re a representative of an overseas business planning to set up its first UK branch, apply for a UK Expansion Worker visa (Global Business Mobility) instead.

You must also meet the other eligibility requirements.

Eligibility

To be eligible for this visa you must:

  • have enough money to support yourself without help from public funds
  • meet the English language requirement

You must also meet the other eligibility requirements.

Knowledge of English

You may need to prove your knowledge of the English language when you apply.

You can prove your knowledge of English by either:

  • passing an approved English language test with at least CEFR level A1 in speaking and listening
  • having an academic qualification that was taught in English and is recognised by UK NARIC as being equivalent to a UK bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, or PhD

You may be able to meet the English language requirement in other ways also.

Exceptions

You will not need to prove your knowledge of English if you are a national of one of the following countries:

Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, New Zealand, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, USA.

Sole representatives

To apply as a sole representative, you must:

  • be recruited and employed outside the UK by an active and trading business (whose headquarters and principal place of business are, and will remain, outside the UK)
  • have the skills, experience, and knowledge to do the role
  • hold a senior position within the business (but do not own or control most of it) and have full authority to make decisions on its behalf
  • intend to establish the overseas business’s first commercial presence in the UK, either as a registered branch or a wholly owned subsidiary

You may also be eligible if the business has a legal entity in the UK that does not employ staff or do any business.

If your employer has been working to establish a UK branch or subsidiary, but it is not yet set up, you can replace a previous sole representative.

The immigration process is quite tedious and complicated. It involves several documentation and compliances that need to be adhered to. Any loopholes would result in the direct rejection of the visa. This is the reason why people hire an authorized immigration services provider like us. Contact us if you need complete guidance

Additional business requirements for Sole Representative applications

They must:

  • be the Sole Representative in the UK of an overseas business who was assigned to the UK to establish and supervise a registered branch or wholly owned subsidiary of that overseas business in the UK and that branch or subsidiary operates in the same type of business activity as the overseas business
  • represent a business that has, and intends to retain, its headquarters and principal place of business outside the UK
  • not be a majority owner of, or otherwise own or control, that overseas business
  • be a senior employee of the overseas business
  • have the skills, experience, and knowledge of the business necessary to undertake the role
  • have full authority to negotiate and make operational decisions on behalf of the overseas business for the purpose of representing it in the UK

Documents you must provide

When you apply, you’ll need to provide:

  • a current passport or other valid travel identification
  • evidence that you can support yourself and any dependants during your trip, for example, bank statements or payslips for the last 6 months
  • proof that you meet the English requirement
  • a full description of the parent company’s activities, including details of assets and accounts
  • confirmation that you will be representing them in the UK in a long-term, full-time role

If you’re applying from overseas, you’ll also need to provide:

  • details of where you’ll be staying during your stay
  • your tuberculosis test results if you’re from a country where you have to take the test

If you’re applying from overseas, you’ll need to have a blank page in your passport on which to put the visa. All applicants need to provide a certified translation of any documents that are not in English or Welsh.

Your partner and children

Your family members (‘dependents’) can come with you when you come to the UK on this visa.

A ‘dependant’ is any of the following:

  • your husband, wife, or partner
  • your child under 18 – including if they were born in the UK during your stay
  • your child over 18 if they currently have permission (‘leave to enter or ‘leave to remain’) to be in the UK as your dependant

If your partner or child’s application is successful, their visa will usually end on the same date as yours. If a child’s parents have visas with different expiry dates, the child’s visa will end on an earlier date.

If you’re a sole representative, your husband, wife, or partner cannot be in the UK as your dependant if they own or control a majority of the overseas business you will be representing.

How long it takes

A decision will be made within 8 weeks.

You’ll be contacted if your application is complex and will take longer, for example:

  • if your supporting documents need to be verified
  • if you need to attend an interview
  • because of your personal circumstances (for example if you have a criminal conviction)

Extension of stay as a Sole Representative of an Overseas Business

If your application for a Sole Representative visa is approved, you will be given permission to enter and remain in the UK for up to 3 years initially.  Beyond this, you will need to submit a further application for leave to remain, which would be valid for 2 years.

In order to qualify for an extension of stay as a Representative of an Overseas Business, you will need to still be working for the same employer as when your initial visa was issued and have established the parent company’s first presence in the UK.  The employer’s headquarters and principal place of business must still be outside the UK. You will need to show that you have generated business (principally with UK firms) on behalf of your employer since you were granted the visa and that you are in receipt of a salary from your employer.