On 4 October 2023, the cost of making many immigration applications will rise as UK visa fees increase. The increase will apply to applications made both outside and inside the UK. Applications for Indefinite Leave to Remain and Citizenship will also increase.
From 4 October, a person applying to come to the UK as a partner, parent or child on the family route will pay an application fee of £1846, up from £1538. Someone applying to stay in the UK on an existing family visa will pay the same fee of £1048.
Visit visas will now cost £115, up from £100. A student transferring to the graduate route within the UK will pay £822, up from £715.
The Skilled Worker application fee will rise from £625 to £719 to come to the UK for three years. This increase also applies to Skilled Workers extending their permission to stay in the UK. Business visas such as Innovator, High Potential Individuals, Global Talent, Scale-up and Expansion Worker will increase by 15%.
The highest immigration fee is for the most valuable immigration status – Indefinite Leave to Remain. This will rise by 20% from £2404 to £2885. If someone wants to go one step further and apply for British Citizenship, the cost goes up to £1500 from £1330, a fee that includes £80 for a citizenship ceremony.
Student visa application fees are up by 35% from £363 to £490. However, the fee to extend student permission to stay remains the same.
There is a priority service for those applying from overseas to come to the UK on a less than permanent basis, such as a visitor. This provides a quicker decision but will now cost £500, up from £250.
Companies applying for a sponsorship licence will not have to pay more in application fees, nor will those applying to come to the UK for private medical treatment or on the Hong Kong BN(O) route.
In an interesting move, one fee is actually going down – the fee to use the Priority Visa Service from overseas will drop to £500 from £573.
The 66% increase in the Immigration Health Surcharge has not yet come into effect, and we await an announcement from the government on this.
If you want to find out more about the UK visa fee increase, please view the government’s list of fees. Or alternatively, contact a member of our team to discuss your options.
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