Innovator Visa
& Start-up Visa
UK Visas & Immigration (UKVI) launched the Innovator visa and Start-up visa on 29 March 2019. They replaced the Tier 1 Entrepreneur and Tier 1 Graduate Entrepreneur visas respectively. There is a major shift by the Home Office to put the emphasis on Innovation, Viability and Scalability when assessing the business idea, with the introduction of the Endorsing Body role.
Innovator Visa vs Start-up Visa
Key Benefits of Innovator Visa
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Applicant may apply for settlement after just 3 years
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Minimum investment of just £50,000
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Endorsing Body de-risking the investment
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No restriction on the industry sector
(Start-up visa applicants will have to switch to the Innovator program to apply for settlement.)
Endorsing Body and Settlement Criteria
Prior to making a visa application with the Home Office, the applicant must obtain the endorsement from the Endorsing Body by demonstrating that his business idea is sufficiently innovative, viable and scalable.
Under the Innovator category, in order to qualify for settlement after 3 years, the applicant will have to be endorsed again by satisfying any 2 out of a list of 7 criteria covering investment, innovation, business growth and job creation. He will be able to select which criteria they wish to be assessed against. Applicants in the Start-up category will have to switch to the Innovator category to gain settlement.
Application Process
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The 7 settlement criteria are:1. At least £50,000 has been invested into the business and actively spent furthering the business plan assessed in the applicant’s previous endorsement. 2. The number of the business’s customers has at least doubled within the most recent 3 years and is currently higher than the mean number of customers for other UK businesses offering comparable main products or services. The business has engaged in significant research and development activity and has applied for intellectual property protection in the UK. The business has generated a minimum annual gross revenue of £1 million in the last full year covered by its accounts. The business is generating a minimum annual gross revenue of £500,000 in the last full year covered by its accounts, with at least £100,000 from exporting overseas. The business has created the equivalent of at least 10 full-time jobs for resident workers. The business has created the equivalent of at least 5 full-time jobs for resident workers, which have an average salary of at least £25,000 a year (gross pay, excluding any expenses).