If you wish to come to UK for leisure or a temporary purpose, you may need to apply for a Standard Visitor Visa.
You can check if you need a Standard Visitor Visa on the official Home Office website:

https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa

Visa Requirements When Planning to Visit the UK

In order to obtain a Standard Visitor Visa for leisure purposes, you will need to meet the following requirements:

  • You need to prove that you will leave the UK at the end of your visit.
  • You need to be able to financially support yourself and any of your dependents during your stay in the UK.
  • You need to show that you can pay for your journey and any necessary costs.

If you need to visit the UK regularly, you have the option to apply for a long-term Standard Visitor visa which lasts 2,5 or 10 years.

Frequently Asked Questions:

When can I apply for a Standard Visitor Visa?

The earliest you can apply for a Standard Visitor Visa is 3 months prior to your intended travel date to the UK.

Can I work on a Visitor Visa in the UK?

You cannot work on a Visitor Visa in the UK unless the work falls under the permitted activities contained in Appendices 3,4 and 5 of the Immigration Rules. You can check whether a type of work falls under the permitted activities on the Home Office official website.

As QC Immigration client, we can advise you on whether a type of work is permitted under the Standard Visitor Visa. If it is not permitted, we can help you obtain the right visa.

How long will it take to receive a decision on your application?

You will normally receive a decision within 3 weeks. You can check the visa guide processing times for the country you are applying from on the official website of the Home Office.

How long can I stay in the UK under a Standard Visitor Visa?

Under a Standard Visitor Visa, you can stay in the UK for up to 6 months. You might be able to stay longer if you are coming to the UK for private medical treatment (11 months) or you are an academic on sabbatical and coming to the UK for research (you, your spouse or civil partner may be able to stay for up to 12 months).

How much does a Standard Visitor Visa cost?

The current Home Office fee for a Standard Visitor Visa is £100.
The current Home Office fees for a long-term Standard Visitor Visa are £376 for 2 years, £670 for 5 years and £837 for 10 years.

The fees are subject to change, please check the Home Office website for the latest fees

Can I extend my Standard Visitor Visa?

You may extend your Standard Visitor Visa as long as the total time you spend in the UK is less than 6 months.

If you would like to learn more about how we can help you with a Visit Visa application, please contact QC Immigration today.

Need more information?

Learn more about how we work and support you through the UK Immigration Application Process.

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What do our users say

Thank you very much for your contribution and good job you have done for me and my family. Today, I feel that thanking you is not enough. You will remain in our hearts and we will always have this deepest and sincere regard for you, as you have always shown your kindness and your work have been appreciated by the whole family.

Long Residence Settlement (10 years) client – Mauritian

Qiyin is an extremely diligent and thorough immigration lawyer. She took the time to fully understand my case and application for the highly skilled migrant program. She was very careful to consider both the short and longer term issues related to my application and provided very balanced and frank advice. My highly skilled migrant visa was successfully renewed thanks to her advice and help. I highly recommend her.

Tier 1 (General) visa client – Singaporean

I would like to thank you for all the hard work you’ve done for us in the past few years! I am now finished with the whole process and had my UK Citizenship ceremony. We couldn’t have gotten this far without you!

Entry Clearance Settlement (Spouse) visa client – Canadian

Thank you for all your help. I got the visa this morning and look forward to going on holiday. See you again in 30 months for the next visa.

PEO same-day service (Spouse leave to remain) client – Thai

We are so glad that our friend recommended you to help with our ILR application and we have no doubt it may have been a different story if we were applying without your support! We appreciate your professional approach and knowledge on immigration matters and wish your business well in the future (we are sure you will be very successful). Have no doubt we will be using your services for our application for Citizenship.

Indefinite Leave to Remain (Spouse) client – Russian

The QC Immigration team has proved an absolute star on the immigration front and my son’s fiancée is now happily settled, thank you again.

Partner (Fiancée) Settlement Visa – Brazilian

Many thanks for all your work on our application, especially since I contacted you on short notice! I contacted you on Sept 22nd and we signed up with you on/around Sept 27th! So we pulled this all together a little over 3 weeks.

Premium Service (Fiancée) Partner visa client – American

You have exceeded our expectations by saving us so much time and money when organising this! Thank you for also co-operating with our investment manager and accountant to ensure everything ran smoothly.

Tier 1 Investor (Super Premium Service) client – Chinese

Naturalisation (British Citizenship) client - Dutch

EEA Permanent Residence client – Belgian

My family and I were very emotional receiving the good news today. Thank you for all your help and we will definitely recommend you to our European friends who are planning ahead after Brexit!

Naturalisation (British Citizenship) client – Dutch

My family and I were very emotional receiving the good news today. Thank you for all your help and we will definitely recommend you to our European friends who are planning ahead after Brexit!

Naturalisation (British Citizenship) client – Dutch