This article provides a useful factsheet on the Global Talent visa requirements.
This visa route is designed for individuals who are recognised or emerging leaders in digital technology and wish to work in the United Kingdom. Successful applicants will be granted up to five years' leave in the United Kingdom and can apply to extend their visa as many times as they like.
Tech Nation, a national network for ambitious tech entrepreneurs, will assess and decide whether applicants meet the criteria for endorsement as either a recognised leader (exceptional talent) or an emerging leader (exceptional promise) if the applicant is earlier in their career.
Applicants must demonstrate at least one of the key criteria and two of the qualifying criteria below.?
Key criteria
Applicants must demonstrate at least one of these key criteria:
- a proven track record or examples of innovation in the digital technology sector as a founder or senior executive of a product-led digital technology company, or an employee working in a new digital field or concept that must be clearly evidenced; and
- proof of recognition of work outside their immediate occupation that has contributed to the advancement of the sector.
Qualifying criteria
Applicants must demonstrate at least two of these qualifying criteria:
- significant technical, commercial or entrepreneurial contributions in the digital technology sector as either a founder, senior executive or employee of a product-led digital technology company;
- recognition as a leading talent in the digital technology sector;
- evidence of continuous learning or mastery of new digital skills (commercial or technical) throughout the applicant's career; and
- exceptional ability in the field by making academic contributions through research published or otherwise endorsed by a research supervisor or other expert.
Key criteria
Applicants must demonstrate at least one of these key criteria:
- more than one example of innovation in the digital technology sector as a founder of a product-led digital technology sector company, or an employee working in a new digital field or concept that must be clearly evidenced; and
- proof of recognition for work outside their immediate occupation that has contributed to the advancement of the sector.
Qualifying criteria
Applicants must demonstrate at least two of these qualifying criteria:
- significant technical, commercial or entrepreneurial contributions in the digital technology sector as either a founder or employee of a product-led digital technology company;
- recognition as having the potential to be a leading talent in the digital technology sector;
- evidence of continuous learning or mastery of new digital skills (commercial or technical) throughout their career; and
- providing two or more examples of innovation in the field by making academic contributions through research published or otherwise endorsed by a research supervisor or other expert.
Tech Nation will consider applicants with both technical and business skills in the digital technology sector. A wide range of technical applicants are considered, including AI and machine learning experts, back-end developers and cybersecurity experts. For business skills based applications, these are set at a very high level – for example, leading substantial virtual currency investment over £25 million or experience as a C-Suite in a small and medium-sized enterprise (eg, CEO, CMO or CIO) or head of operations for a digital business.
The following specialisms are not considered appropriate. Therefore, if an applicant were seeking to rely on these, they would not be deemed eligible for endorsement. These inappropriate specialisms include:
- service delivery;
- process delivery;
- outsourcing;
- consultancy or enterprise resource planning consultancy;
- systems admin and all related fields;
- corporate roles or experience of managing large corporate teams; and
- junior investors or analysts.
Tech Nation considers that business skills apply to in-house work within product-led digital technology companies; not tech-enabled or service companies such as agencies, outsourcers or marketing firms and other similar fields.
Individuals who are endorsed under the exceptional talent requirements will become eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain after three years. Those who are endorsed under the exceptional promise criteria will become eligible after five years.
Endorsement
After submitting an application for endorsement, Tech Nation's panel of independent experts will decide whether the applicant's skills and achievements meet the above criteria and whether the applicant should be endorsed for exceptional talent or exceptional promise. Current processing times for endorsement applications are up to eight weeks, with fast-track options available in some circumstances.
Visa
Applicants will need to apply for the Global Talent visa within three months of gaining their endorsement.
