| For whom | senior managers or specialists of an overseas company that does not trade in the UK yet |
| Salary | at least £52,500 a year or the going rate for the job, whichever is higher |
| Length | 12 months, extendable by 12 months, 2 years at most |
| Application fee | £340 plus the Immigration Health Surcharge of £1,035 a year |
| Settlement | no route to settlement |
| As of | November 2026, checked against GOV.UK and the sponsor guidance |
What the visa is for
The Home Office describes the UK Expansion Worker as the visa for people coming to the UK to set up a branch of an overseas business that is not yet trading in the UK. You must already work for the company, as a senior manager or a specialist. A new hire recruited specially for the UK does not fit.
For an established European business this is often the cleanest way in. The parent company sets up a UK subsidiary or registers a UK branch, applies for a special sponsor licence for it and sends one person over to arrange the lease, the bank account, the first staff and the first customers. Once the UK entity is running, the team moves on to the standard work visas.
How the UK company is formed, what it means for tax and which form suits you is on our UK Company Setup page. The order of the steps is decisive, and that is where we help most.
What the company has to bring
The real hurdle is not the individual's visa but the company's sponsor licence. The Home Office guidance on Global Business Mobility asks for the following.
The company must not yet be actively trading in the UK, but it needs a UK footprint. You show that either with UK business premises, such as a lease, or with a Companies House registration as a branch or as a new subsidiary of the overseas business.
The overseas business must normally have been actively trading for at least three years and prove it, for example with bank statements for the last twelve months and accounts covering the three-year period. A business trading for less time may sponsor only one person at a time. Pure holding and investment companies are excluded, and the expansion must be in the same business as at home: no new venture under a new name.
The UK entity must be wholly owned by the parent or be part of the same legal entity (the branch). Joint ventures do not count. Parents listed on the London Stock Exchange or an equivalent regulated market get some relief on the evidence.
The process in the right order
This is the route when it is planned well. The times are the processing times the Home Office itself gives.
- 1
Settle structure and tax
Subsidiary or branch, where profits are taxed, and what that means for permanent establishment, transfer pricing and payroll. That is our consult.
- 2
Create the UK footprint
Incorporate a limited company or register a branch at Companies House, or rent premises.
- 3
Apply for the sponsor licence
The company applies for a licence for the UK Expansion Worker route. UKVI decides most applications in under 8 weeks; for £750 you get a decision in 10 working days, while places last.
- 4
Assign the certificate of sponsorship
With the licence in place, the company assigns the certificate of sponsorship to the person going to the UK. They then have three months to apply for the visa.
- 5
Apply for the visa
Online application, identity check by app or at a visa application centre. A decision usually comes within 3 weeks from outside the UK.
- 6
Start trading within two years
The licence requires the company to establish a genuine trading presence in the UK, normally within 2 years, and to add another route to its licence, such as Skilled Worker.
The authorising officer question
Every sponsor licence needs key personnel: an authorising officer, a key contact and a level 1 user. Normally they must be based in the UK. The UK Expansion Worker has an exception, and it is the heart of the route: the authorising officer may start out overseas.
The licence then gets a provisional rating first. With it the company may assign exactly one certificate of sponsorship, to the authorising officer, so that person can enter the UK. Once they hold the visa, the licence is upgraded to an A rating and further certificates become possible. No more than 10 people may be on this route at the same time, and an expansion licence runs for 4 years at most.
What the individual needs
| Point | Rule |
|---|---|
| Employment overseas | at least 12 months with the company, unless the salary is above £73,900 |
| Salary | at least £52,500 or the going rate, whichever is higher |
| Occupation | the occupation code must be on the list of eligible jobs |
| Personal funds | £1,270 held for 28 days, unless the sponsor certifies maintenance |
| Family | partner and children can come as dependants |
| Total stay | no more than 5 years in any 6 across all Global Business Mobility visas |
GOV.UK, UK Expansion Worker visa, as of November 2026
The five Global Business Mobility routes compared
All five need a licensed sponsor, none leads to settlement, and together they share a cap of five years in any six.
| Route | Typical case | Length | Salary or threshold |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK Expansion Worker | Company sets up its first UK presence | up to 2 years | £52,500 or going rate |
| Senior or Specialist Worker | Transfer to the group's established UK entity | up to 5 years in 6 | £52,500 or going rate |
| Graduate Trainee | Trainee on a group programme | up to 12 months | £27,300 or 70 per cent of going rate |
| Service Supplier | Contract for a UK client under a trade agreement | 6 or 12 months | qualifications and experience |
| Secondment Worker | Secondment to a UK contracting party | up to 2 years | contract of £50 million or more |
GOV.UK, Global Business Mobility visas, as of November 2026
Under the Immigration Rules the UK Expansion Worker is not a route to settlement. If you want to stay for good you need another visa afterwards, usually Skilled Worker through your own UK company once it is trading. Put that in the plan from the start.
Costs to budget for
The visa fee is £340. On top comes the Immigration Health Surcharge of £1,035 a year, paid upfront for the whole stay, and separate fees and proof of funds for a partner and children. On the company side there are the fees for the sponsor licence and the certificate of sponsorship. All the items are listed on our page on what a UK visa costs.
Don't forget: from the first day in the UK the person you send has a tax story of their own. Whether they become UK tax resident is decided not by the visa but by the Statutory Residence Test. More under status and tax.
Frequently asked questions
Can we set up the limited company first?
Yes. Registration at Companies House as a subsidiary is one of the two accepted ways to show a UK footprint. The company must not be actively trading yet, though.
Can I go myself as the owner?
If you work in the company as a senior manager or specialist and meet the salary threshold, yes. What matters is that the company meets the licence requirements.
What happens after two years?
Then the maximum stay is reached. By then the company should be trading in the UK and the person should switch to another visa, such as Senior or Specialist Worker or Skilled Worker.
Sources: GOV.UK: UK Expansion Worker visa; GOV.UK: Sponsor a Global Business Mobility worker; GOV.UK: Workers and Temporary Workers, guidance for sponsors part 1; GOV.UK: UK visa sponsorship for employers; GOV.UK: Immigration Rules Appendix Global Business Mobility; GOV.UK: Pay for UK healthcare as part of your immigration application
