List of UK immigration fees for 2022

If you are applying for a UK visa in 2022, you should be aware of the various immigration fees you will need to pay in support of your application.

UK immigration and nationality fees are set by the Home Office, and how much you need to pay will depend on the type of application you are submitting, whether you are applying from inside or outside the UK, and whether you choose to utilise any of the optional premium services which are available at an extra cost. Alongside the visa application fee, applicants should be aware of additional costs that may be required, such as the Immigration Health Surcharge and fees for any accompanying dependants.

Broadly speaking, Home Office fees can be divided into the following categories:

• Work visa fees
• Student visa fees
• Other visas and applications
• Settlement and citizenship fees
• Sponsorship fees

Below is a breakdown of Home Office immigration fees for 2022 covering some of the most popular categories, plus some case study examples setting out the costs involved with bringing Skilled Workers and their dependants into the UK.

Please note: The immigration fees outlined below are correct at the time of publication and are subject to change by the Home Office. The below is not an exhaustive list. For a full list of up to date Home Office fees, please click here or alternatively contact Smith Stone Walters.

Work visa fees

The application fees for UK work visas vary significantly depending on the category you are applying under, whether your role is in a shortage occupation, and whether you are submitting your application in-country or from overseas.

Work visa fees for applications made outside the UK:

• Skilled Worker (CoS issued for 3 years or less) – £610
• Skilled Worker (CoS issued for over 3 years) – £1,220
• Skilled Worker, shortage occupation (CoS issued for 3 years or less) – £464
• Skilled Worker, shortage occupation (CoS issued for over 3 years) – £928
• Health and Care Worker (CoS issued for 3 years or less) – £232
• Health and Care Worker (CoS issued for over 3 years) – £464
• Intra-Company Transfer (CoS issued for 3 years or less) – £610
• Intra-Company Transfer (CoS issued for over 3 years) – £1,220
• Intra-Company Transfer Graduate Trainee – £482
• Innovator – £1,021
• Start-up – £363
• Temporary Worker – £244
• Representative of an Overseas Business – £610
• Global Talent (approval letter required) – £152
• Global Talent (approval letter not required) – £608

Applications for work visas made from within the UK may attract a higher application fee for some categories.

Student visa fees

Study visa fees for applications made outside the UK:

• Student – £348
• Child Student – £348
• Short-term student studying English language for 6 – 11 months – £186

Study visa fees for applications made inside the UK:

• Student – £475
• Child Student – £475

Other visas and applications

Some examples of current visa fees for other popular categories are as follows:

• Standard Visitor visa (up to 6 months) – £95
• Graduate Route – £700
• Hong Kong British National (Overseas) for 30 months – £180
• Hong Kong British National (Overseas) for 5 years – £250

Settlement and citizenship fees

Under certain immigration routes that lead to settlement, you can apply to live permanently in the UK after a period of continuous residency. Under the Skilled Worker route, you will usually be eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) after five years’ continuous residency. After 12 months ILR, you will be able to make an application for British citizenship.

Below are some of the current fees for settlement and citizenship applications:

• Indefinite Leave to Remain – £2,389
• Naturalisation – £1,330
• Nationality registration as a British citizen (adult) – £1,206
• Nationality registration as a British citizen (child) – £1,012

Sponsorship fees

Businesses applying for a sponsor licence are required to pay certain fees when they apply for a licence or apply to renew it, and each time they assign a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) to a migrant worker. Some examples of current sponsorship fees are as follows:

• Worker sponsor licence (large sponsor) – £1,476
• Worker sponsor licence (small sponsor) – £536
• Student sponsor licence – £536
• Temporary Worker sponsor licence – £536
• Certificate of Sponsorship for Skilled Worker, ICT and ICT Graduate Trainee – £199
• Certificate of Sponsorship for Temporary Worker – £21
• Confirmation of Acceptance for Study (CAS) for student, child student – £21

Sponsors should also be aware of additional costs associated with hiring migrant workers, such as the Immigration Skills Charge, which sponsors must pay for each CoS they assign, unless an exemption applies.

Case Studies

Now that we’ve looked at the visa application fees for various categories and touched on the additional fees workers and their sponsors may need to pay, let’s take a look at a couple of examples.

Case Study 1

The below example shows the fee breakdown for a single applicant applying for a Skilled Worker visa from outside the UK, where the CoS has been issued for three years.

Remember, the fee to issue the CoS and the Immigration Skills Charge must be paid by the sponsoring employer and cannot be passed onto the migrant worker. The visa application fee and the Immigration Health Surcharge are normally covered by the visa applicant, although some employers choose to cover this cost on behalf of their assignees.

Case Study 2

If the sponsor is issuing a CoS for more than three years, the fee to issue the certificate is still £199, but all other costs will be higher to cover the longer period of time the applicant will be spending in the UK.

In cases where a Skilled Worker will be moving to the UK with multiple dependants, the costs can quickly escalate. Dependant spouses and children will usually have to pay the visa application fee at the same rate as the main applicant, and will also need to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge. However, a reduced IHS fee applies for under 18s.

The below example shows the cost for a Skilled Worker with three dependants, where the CoS has been issued for five years.

Help with applying for a UK visa

If you are applying for a UK visa or if you are a business interested in sponsoring workers and need some assistance, Smith Stone Walters can help.

Our team of immigration experts in London, New York, Hong Kong and Mumbai are available to provide qualified advice and practical support to individual applicants and businesses. To find out how we can help, please contact us today.