Innovator Founder Visa

Basic Criteria – Eligibility – Points System

 

In order for your visa application to be approved, you are expected to obtain 70 points. The score criteria to be calculated may vary depending on whether the business idea applied for is new or a continuation of an existing business. The criteria determined for you to get these 70 points are detailed in the table below.

 

 

Required Criteria	New Business / Existing Business	Points
Business plan	New business	10
Is the business venture innovative, reliable and open for growth?	New business	20
Applicants whose previous visa was a New Graduate Entrepreneur visa or Start-up visa are developing their business idea in the marketplace, which has already been approved by the Home Office	Existing Business	10
The business is still commercially active, sustainable and shows significant developments contrary to those stated in the initial business plan	Existing Business	20
The applicant plays an active role in the day-to-day development and management of the business	Existing Business	20
To know English at B2 level	All applicants	10
To be able to complete financial requirements	All applicants	10
Total points required	–	70

 

 

 

As can be seen and stated in the table; there are separate criteria for people who already have a business (for example, people who have come to the UK on a Start-up visa, have established and grown their business, and are almost at the end of their 2-year visa) or who want to start a business in the UK with a new business idea. We will evaluate these in three separate categories.

New Business

 

• Business Plan

A unique business plan must be submitted with your application to demonstrate that the applicant will take an active role in the management and implementation of the new business to be established in the UK and that they have contributed significantly to the core ideas of the business to be established. This business plan must, of course, be approved by an authorised body in advance of the application, as mentioned earlier.

 

• The business idea is innovative, viable and scalable

Your endorsement letter, which will be given by the endorsing body approving your business idea, will include this declaration. Therefore, the endorsing body should be convinced that the business plan and the business idea is suitable depending on the applicant’s educational and occupational status.

Existing Business

 

Expanding the business

The endorsing body who previously approved your business plan, or a different endorsing body, should also approve the business plan you will be submitting to show your business growth. Applicants who wish to continue to stay in the UK by investing to expand their businesses must present a business plan to the endorsing bodies just like the new applicants.

Your current business is viable

At this point, the endorsing body must indicate in the endorsement letter that your business has a potential to grow or it has already grown successfully depending on real evidence you will provide such as projects you created in recent years.

You have actively taken part in the management and growth of your business

This is also related to the endorsing body who will approve that your business has successfully grown due to your contributions and investments.  Nevertheless, you are encouraged to show further evidence in your visa application as well to prove that you have actively taken part in the management and growth of your business in addition to the endorsement letter.

Mandatory Criteria for All Applicants

 

• English at B2 Level

You must prove that you can read, write, speak and understand English at least up to level B2 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) scale. The name of the exams may vary depending on the test centre. The procedures, fees, etc. of each test centre may be different, but as long as your result is taken from an approved and official centre and you can prove that you are at level B2, you can use your result for your visa application. In some cases, you may not need to take the test, but it is a basic requirement to prove your proficiency in English.

 

• Financial Requirements

If the application is made in the UK and the applicant has been in the UK for the last 12 months, the financial need criterion will be automatically fulfilled.

However, if the applicant is applying from outside the UK, they must show that they can support themselves. The figures for this criterion are as follows:

 

• £1,270 for the applicant
  • £285 (if applicable) for your spouse/partner applying with you
  • £315 (if applicable) for your first child
  • £200 (if applicable) for each additional child

Cost

In addition to the investment in your business and proof of your ability to support yourself in the UK, you will be expected to pay the visa application fee and additional medical fees at the time of application. The basic cost of the application varies depending on whether you are applying from within or outside the UK. There is an application fee of GBP 1036 if you are applying from outside the UK and GBP 1292 if you are applying from within the UK.

 

In addition to the application fee, you will be expected to pay a medical fee for each year of your stay in the UK. This fee is set at GBP 624 for each year of your stay. For example, for a 3-year start-up visa, you must make a health payment of 624 x 3 = £1872. In order to complete your visa application, you must complete the health payment stage.

Visa Duration & Rights

With the Innovative Founder visa you can start one or more businesses. You can also work in your company on a salaried basis (e.g. in a managerial position).

You can work outside your business as long as it is ‘skilled work’ – for example, you can work in a job on the Skilled Worker list

Your family can also apply for a dependant visa to live with you during your stay in the UK. The amounts described in the financial requirements section must be shown in a bank account.

 

At the end of your innovative investment visa, you may be eligible to apply for permanent residence (indefinite leave to remain). The conditions and your eligibility may vary depending on the work you do, your rate of profit and the length of your stay in the UK.

 

The required documents and conditions for your ILR application can be summarised as follows:

• Proof that you have spent at least 180 days each year for the last 3 years in the UK on an Innovator visa.
• You must have an updated version of your endorsement letter which will summarise the current status of the business. You are expected to meet at least two articles of the “success” criteria placed in the relevant guidance of the Home Office. The success criteria can be seen in the table below.

 

 

At least £50,000 has been invested in the business and is being actively spent to further your business;

The number of customers of the business has at least doubled in the last three years and is now higher than the average number of customers of other UK businesses offering comparable core products or services

The business has created the equivalent of at least 5 full-time jobs with an average salary of at least £25,000 per annum for resident employees;

The business has achieved an annual gross income of at least £1 million in the last full year covered by its accounts;

In the last year covered by the business’s accounts, the business had gross annual income of at least £500,000, of which at least £100,000 was from overseas exports.

The business is engaged in significant research and development activities and has applied for intellectual property protection in the UK;

The enterprise has created the equivalent of at least 10 full-time jobs for resident employees, with no average salary requirement