UK Visa Fees New Update: Revised fee structure for students and skilled workers from October 2023

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The cost of UK visas is set to go up for students, skilled workers and immigrants. From October 4, the new fee structure for UK visas will be in place for foreigners. The cost of family, settlement, and citizenship visas will increase by 20% starting on October 4, while the cost of work and visit visas will increase by 15%. As an illustration, settlement is rising from around £2,400 to £2,900. The health surcharge will rise by 66% to £1,035 a year at a date to be confirmed.

The visa charge for students, including child students and dependants, will rise from £363 to £490, representing a 35% increase. However, there will be no rise in visa fees for short-term courses where students study English for more than 6 months but no more than 11 months.

The visa price for Skilled workers, where a certificate of sponsorship has been issued for three years or less – main applicant and dependants – will increase from £625 to £719. If the sponsorship certificate has been given for more than three years, the immigration fee will increase from £1235 to £1420, a 15% increase.

The visa price will increase from £479 to £551 for skilled workers in shortage occupations where a certificate of sponsorship has been given for three years or less, a 15% increase. If the sponsorship certificate has been in effect for more than three years, the immigration fee will increase from £943 to £1,084, a 15% increase.

The fees going up include:

Work and visitor visas by 15%

Family visas, settlement and citizenship by 20%

Student visas by 35%

The immigration health surcharge by 66%, from £624 a year to £1,035 (and from £470 to £776 for students and under-18s)

A three-year Skilled Worker visa in a shortage occupation costs around £2,350 in application fees and surcharge. After both increases are implemented, the combined cost will be £3,650 (ignoring employer levy and sponsorship certificate). Settlement is increasing from around £2,400 to £2,900.

People who desire a visa, permission to stay, or citizenship in the United Kingdom have to pay for it. Fees have grown dramatically in the last 20 years. Earlier, the cost of a student visa was £33. The UK did not charge anything at all for visa extensions, work permits, or settlements up until 2003. Initial citizenship and visa fees were both quite affordable as applications to stay in the UK forever used to be free but now cost £2,400.

In addition to the headline application fees, a £624 annual immigration health premium is charged for visas and extensions. Additionally, work permits are subject to an employer charge of up to £1000 annually. A five-year employment visa totaled roughly £7,000, while a two-and-a-half-year partner visa cost £3,400.

According to 2021 research released by the Royal Society, UK immigration expenses are significantly greater than those in numerous other nations, including Canada, Germany, France, and the USA. The cost of a UK skilled worker visa is greater than it was for the other countries. It found that the initial cost of a UK Skilled Worker visa, taken as £9,700, was 790% higher than the mean total upfront costs across the other countries.

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