Global Talent visa

The Global Talent visa route replaced the Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) and Tier 1 (Exceptional Promise) visas in early 2020 for leaders or potential leaders in the fields of academic or research, arts and culture or digital technology.

The Global Talent visa is a non-sponsored route and provides many benefits including greater flexibility to move freely between organisations, no language or minimum salary requirements and is a route to settlement after 3 years (for the main applicant only) or after 5 years if endorsed as 'Exceptional Promise'.

The application is a two-stage process:

There are different routes to apply for a Global Talent visa. Please see below further information on each route;

This route is for individuals whose role involves responsibility for academic, research or innovation leadership and development, or whose primary function is to undertake research or innovation.

To be eligible under the Academic and Research Appointments route, the job description must specify that holding a PhD or equivalent research experience at PhD level, is an essential requirement for the role.

Applicants under this route must obtain a Statement of Guarantee from the Director of Human Resources to support their endorsement application. This statement confirms that the required recruitment processes have been completed and verifies the level of the role.

This route is typically appropriate for individuals who have received a job offer from the University for a role with responsibility for academic, research or innovation leadership and development, or where research or innovation is the primary function of the role.

To request a Statement of Guarantee in support of the endorsement application, please contact:

• New starters: Your Recruitment and Resourcing Team contact.
• Existing members of staff switching to the Global Talent route: Your HR Services Team contact.

For further information about applying under the Academic and Research Appointments fast-track route, please visit the UKVI webpage.

The Individual Fellowships route is a fast-track route for individuals who have been awarded a fellowship approved by The Royal Society, British Academy or Royal Academy of Engineering.

To check which fellowships are eligible please see below. 

During the endorsement application process, the individual will need to provide a copy of their fellowship award letter.

To find more information on applying under the Individual Fellowships fast-track route, please visit the UKVI webpage.

The Endorsed Funders route is a route for individuals whose role is being funded by a UKRI approved grant.

The grant must have been awarded by an organisation on the list of endorsed funders, which is below.

The individual applying for endorsement must:

In addition, the individual must also:

During the endorsement process, the applicant must provide evidence of their grant or award and a statement of guarantee from the Director of Human Resources.

To request a statement of guarantee letter to support the endorsement application, please contact:

To find more information on applying under the Endorsed Funders fast-track route and full details of the documents required, please visit the UKVI webpage. 

The applicant must hold an eligible award on the Global Talent eligible prize list below. 

If an individual is not eligible under any of the fast track routes, they may be eligible through the standard route which will require the individual to submit an application for full peer review by The Royal Society, The British Academy or Royal Academy of Engineering. The individual will not need to have a job offer to apply for a Global Talent visa via this route.

For the Peer Review route, individuals can choose to be considered under two options and would need to meet specific criteria to be eligible;   

For more information on applying under the Peer Review standard route and the full criteria for eligibility and documents required, please visit the UKVI webpage. 

If the individual receives an endorsement from a UKRI approved funder, the application will be considered by the Home Office.

Dependents can apply for visas at the same time or can wait until the main applicant has entered the UK to work.

Individuals must apply for stage 2 within three months of gaining the endorsement or the immigration application will be refused, and they will need to re-apply for endorsement. 

Please note that there are application fees attached to each stage and individuals will also be required to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) and may require a tuberculosis (TB) test. Further information is available on the UKVI website.

There is no minimum salary for the Global Talent visa. 

For advice on which Global Talent visa route you are eligible to apply for, please contact a Home Office approved Immigration Adviser (see link below).

Processing times depend on the route you apply under.

For the fast-track routes, endorsement decisions are usually made within 18 working days.

For the standard peer review route, the endorsement stage can take up to 8 weeks.

Once you have received a successful endorsement, the second stage of the application process typically takes up to 3 weeks if you are applying from outside the UK or up to 8 weeks if you are applying from within the UK.

It is advisable that you look at all the endorsement routes before making your application and seeing which one is most suitable and you meet the criteria for.  The UKVI website and endorsing bodies have detailed information on all routes to assist you with making a decision. The Recruitment and Resourcing Team can advise on questions relating to the application process of the Global Talent route but cannot advise on the best option for an individual. If you are in any doubt regarding your eligibility and the content of your visa application, it is recommended that you seek independent legal advice as any rejection of your application could result in the loss of the visa application fees. Please see the link below to assist with locating a Home Office approved Immigration Adviser.