Standard Visitor category has replaced all the following categories: Family, Academic, Sports, Entertainment, Business, and Private Medical Treatment.
You have to meet the suitability requirements to be successfully granted a standard visit visa and you may be refused if you have previously been excluded or deported from the UK, you have a criminal conviction, you breached UK immigration laws before, you provided false information or representations, failed to provide information or identity documents, you are in debt with NHS or your presence in the UK is undesirable for medical reasons. Should any of these apply to you we recommend getting a professional immigration advice before applying.
You also have to meet the eligibility requirements:
- You have to be a genuine visitor.
- You have to be able to accommodate and maintain yourself while in the UK with no recourse to public funds using your own or third party funds.
- You must not intend to work, study, receive any payment, get a medical treatment, marry or form a civil partnership while in the UK.
There are additional requirements set for some of the standard visitors, i.e. children, visitors for private medical treatment, organ donors, ADS agreement visitors, academic wishing to stay for 12 months.
Standard visitors will usually be granted 6 months visa unless they come here for medical treatment, in which case they may be granted up to 11 months stay, academics may be granted up to 12 months and visitors under the Approved Destination Status (ADS) Agreement may be given up to 30 days.
In order to apply for a standard visitor visa you have to make an application online. Once you submit the application and pay the visa fee you will have to book an appointment to attend a Visa Application Centre in the country you are applying from (or in the neighbouring country in some cases) to enrol your biometric details. You will also need to submit the supporting documents that are required with your application to the specified address.
Standard visitor visas are normally processed within approximately three weeks. However, the processing times may vary from country to country. You can check it here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/visa-decision-waiting-times-applications-outside-the-uk.
There must be suitable arrangements in place for minors applying for standard visitor visas for their travel and stay in the UK. Their parents or guardians must have consented for them to travel to the UK. They must be able to afford an onward and return journey and have enough money to support themselves without any recourse to public funds or working during their stay in the UK. Minors can be supported by their friends or family they are visiting in the UK.
Anglia Immigration Law is here to make sure that your visit visa application is made in accordance with the recent changes of the UK Immigration Rules. You can expect an excellent client care, timely and professional service from our experienced immigration team for an affordable fixed price.
Our visa specialists will carefully explain you the current requirements you have to meet, guide you through the specified evidence that needs to be submitted with your application and also draft detailed representations to accompany the application to the Entry Clearance post abroad (out of country applications) or the Home Office (in country applications). We will then take care of all the correspondence with the decision maker until your visa application is processed.