High Potential Individual (HPI) Visa

• Qualification from an eligible universityAn overseas degree-level academic qualification, equivalent to a UK bachelor's or postgraduate degree, awarded within the 5 years immediately before the date of application, by an institution on the Global Universities List for the date the qualification was awarded.
• The Global Universities List changes every yearThe list of eligible universities is based on international rankings and is republished for each application year, so the institutions it covers can change. UK universities are not on the list.
• Qualification verified by EcctisYou must apply to Ecctis to confirm your qualification is genuine and at the right level. Ecctis checks the qualification itself; it does not check whether the awarding institution is on the Global Universities List.
• English language at B2You must show knowledge of English at level B2 or above, in reading, writing, speaking and listening, as measured on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, unless an exemption applies.
• Personal savingsYou must show at least £1,270 available, held for 28 days in a row, unless you have already been in the UK with a valid visa for 12 months or more.
• Minimum ageYou must be 18 or over on the date of application.
• Not previously granted certain visasYou must not have already been granted a Graduate visa, the Student Doctorate Extension Scheme, or a previous High Potential Individual visa. This route can only be used once.

• Valid passport or travel documentMust show your identity and nationality.
• Proof of your knowledge of EnglishFor example an approved test result or a qualifying degree.
• Your Ecctis certificate or reference numberConfirms your qualification has been checked and is valid.
• Proof of personal savingsFor example bank statements, unless you're exempt.
• Proof of your relationship to a partner or childIf they are applying with you.
• Tuberculosis test resultsIf you're applying from a country where the test is required.
• Certified translationFor any document that is not in English or Welsh.
• Evidence of your current immigration statusIf you're switching from inside the UK: an eVisa share code or biometric residence permit.

Ecctis qualification check (includes VAT)

£252

Home Office application fee

£880

Healthcare surcharge, per year of stay

£1,035

Healthcare surcharge: total for a 2-year grant

£2,070

Healthcare surcharge: total for a 3-year grant

£3,105

Dependent partner's healthcare surcharge (2-year grant)

£2,070

Dependent child's healthcare surcharge, under 18 (2-year grant)

£1,552

Dependent partner's healthcare surcharge (3-year grant)

£3,105

Dependent child's healthcare surcharge, under 18 (3-year grant)

£2,328

Fees are set by the Home Office and can change. Each family member pays their own application fee and healthcare surcharge. Source: GOV.UK, https://www.gov.uk/high-potential-individual-visa/how-much-it-costs

Apply from outside the UK

Usually within 3 weeks

Switch from inside the UK

Usually within 8 weeks

Standard Home Office service times; a decision can take longer if documents need to be verified or because of individual circumstances.

• Run the standard right to work checkYou check that the person can work for you in the UK before they start. They hold an eVisa, so the Home Office online service is the only way to evidence it. Ask them for their share code and run the check yourself. Keep your record of it for the whole employment and for two years after it ends.
• Diary the follow-up checkThis permission is time-limited, so the statutory excuse you get is time-limited too. Do a follow-up check shortly before their permission is due to end. If you let it lapse, the civil penalty is up to £45,000 for each illegal worker, rising to up to £60,000 if you have been found employing one in the previous three years.
• Do not run this as a sponsored hireThere is no certificate to assign and no sponsor reporting or monitoring to do. Employer guidance telling you to assign a certificate for every foreign worker is addressing sponsors, and it does not reach this route. The duties to report changes and monitor attendance apply to sponsored workers only.
• Plan the succession before the permission endsThis permission cannot be extended, and nobody can hold it twice. A repeat application may be rejected as invalid rather than refused, in which case there is no administrative review of it. If you want to keep the person on an employer-led route, that route is Skilled Worker and it needs your sponsor licence. They may instead move to a route that needs no employer, such as Global Talent.
• Start the licence early if sponsorship is the planThey can switch inside the UK, so they do not have to leave to do it. You do need to be licensed by then. A licence application carries a fee and can involve a UKVI visit, and you can only assign the certificate once you hold the licence. The certificate has to have been issued to them no more than 3 months before they apply, or 90 days where it is linked to a Sponsorship Reference Number. Starting in the final months of their permission is late.
• Check where the annual cap stands if timing mattersThe route has an annual allocation of 8,000 places, running from 1 November to 31 October. Once it is reached, a candidate is told when they apply online and cannot apply until the next year opens. A fully qualified person can therefore be unable to apply at all. If your start date depends on their application, ask them where the year stands before you commit to it.