| Please see the section below if you are applying to extend an existing Global Talent visa |
Applying for your first Global Talent visa
How to apply
When your application is endorsed (stage 1), you will be notified via the email address you provided in your application form - you must apply for the Global Talent visa (stage 2) within three months of notification of endorsement. How to apply depends on where you are applying from.
Applying from outside the UK
- You must apply online
- You can apply from any country in the world (except Republic of Ireland) even if you are only temporarily resident there, i.e. as a visitor.
Applying from inside the UK (switching from a different visa type)
- You must apply online
- You can switch into Global Talent from any visa whilst inside the UK except if you hold:
- A visitor visa/visitor status granted at the border; or
- A short-term study visa; or
- A visa issued outside of the Immigration Rules, i.e. ‘exempt status’.
You may need to attend an appointment at a visa application centre within the UK after submitting your application, to submit your biometric information and any supporting documents. Alternatively, you may be able to do this via the Home Office UK Immigration: ID Check app - once you submit your visa application, you will be informed which option is appropriate for you.
Important: if you are applying to switch from another visa type:
- The start date will be the date the permission to stay is granted, rather than the day after your existing visa expires. You may wish to factor this in when deciding when to submit your visa application, but it wholly depends on your circumstances; and
- You must not leave the Common Travel Area (the UK, Ireland, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man) between submitting your visa (stage 2) application and receiving a decision. If you do, the Home Office will automatically withdraw your application.
For further information on how to apply, please see the published Home Office guidance
Tier 4/Student visa holders
If you are applying under the Individual Fellowships or Endorsed Funders paths, you must not submit the visa (stage 2) application until:
- Undergraduate and Masters students: you have completed your course (i.e. the course end date on your Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) has passed); or
- PhD students: you have completed at least 24 months of your current PhD studies.
The Senior Academic/Research Appointments and Peer Review paths require you to already hold a PhD.
How much does the application cost? (all paths)
Please see the gov.uk webpage for current endorsement and visa costs.
New employees: the University will pay the endorsement and visa fees, the Immigration Health Surcharge fee and (at departmental discretion) the fast track fees for you. Please see the “Visa fee payments” section of our webpage for more guidance on this process.
Current employees: you may be eligible for financial assistance for you and your family members via our interest free loan scheme. Please see our webpage for more guidance on this process.
Immigration Health Surcharge
The payment of the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS), also known as the NHS surcharge, is mandatory for all non-UK nationals who apply overseas for a visa of more than 6 months in length or who apply in the UK for any length of visa. It is an additional charge, over and above the visa fee, and must be paid in full at the time of the visa application. Payment of the IHS will ensure that you have full access to the UK National Health Service (NHS) on the same terms as a permanent UK resident. As noted above, the University will pay this fee for all new employees.
If you include family members in your visa application, the IHS payment page may say you do not have any dependants. This is because, though the IHS must be paid with your visa application, it is a separate system. Your dependants will need to pay the IHS themselves separately.
If a visa application is refused or rejected, the IHS will be automatically refunded; however, there is no refund if you obtain a visa and then decide not to come to the UK, if you leave the UK earlier than the end of your visa, or if your visa is cancelled by the Home Office; nor is there any refund if you do not use the NHS.
For further guidance, including information on who needs to pay the IHS and how much it costs, please see the gov.uk webpages.
Tuberculosis Testing
You will need to have a tuberculosis (TB) test before applying for your visa if all of the following are true:
- you are coming to the UK for 6 months or more; and
- you have lived in any of these listed countries for 6 months or more; and
- you were living there (or in another listed country) within the last 6 months.
If you meet these criteria, you must provide as part of your visa application a valid medical certificate issued by a medical practitioner approved by the Secretary of State, confirming that you have undergone screening for active pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) and that such TB is not present.
Please see gov.uk for more information on TB screening.
What documents will I need to provide with stage 2?
- In all cases you will be required to submit your valid passport.
- If TB testing is required (as above), you will need to submit a copy of the test outcome.
- If you have given consent for your Endorsing Body to contact the Home Office and share the outcome of your endorsement application, you will not need to submit the email you received confirming the endorsement was granted.
Your family members
Applying from overseas: your husband, wife, civil partner or unmarried partner and your child(ren) under 18 can apply to be dependants on your Global Talent visa at the same time as you to enter the UK. Alternatively, they can wait until you have entered the UK and started work before they apply.
Applying to switch from another visa type in the UK: if your family members already have dependant visas (if you are currently a Skilled Worker, GAE (Temporary Work), UK Ancestry or High Potential Individual visa holder) they do not need to make a switching application when you do, their visas will simply continue until expiry and they will be able to extend them as normal.at that time.
Dependants are not involved in any way with the endorsement (stage 1) process and should apply for their visa online.
A dependant visa provides the right to work in the UK and/or study at any private or State-funded school, Further Education College or University. Our website provides comprehensive guidance concerning dependants.
Extending an existing Global Talent visa
How to apply
- You do not need to reapply for endorsement, unless the Endorsing Body has told you that they have withdrawn it.
- You must apply online, and pay the full fee in a single payment.
- Though you can work in any job, when you apply to extend your visa you must show that you have earned money in the UK as a result of employment or self-employment in your field of expertise while holding your current Global Talent visa. This is the field for which the endorsing body endorsed you.
- You may need to attend an appointment at a visa application centre within the UK after submitting your application, to submit your biometric information and any supporting documents. Alternatively, you may be able to do this via the Home Office UK Immigration: ID Check app - once you submit your visa application, you will be informed which option is appropriate for you.
Important
- The start date of your extension will be the date the permission to stay is granted, rather than the day after your existing visa expires.
- You must not leave the Common Travel Area (the UK, Ireland, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man) between submitting your visa (stage 2) application and receiving a decision. If you do, the Home Office will automatically withdraw your application.
For further information on how to apply, please see the published Home Office guidance.
How much does the application cost?
Please see the gov.uk webpage for current visa cost.
New employees: if you are extending your Global Talent visa to allow you to accept a job at the University of Cambridge, the University will pay the endorsement and visa fees, the Immigration Health Surcharge fee and (at departmental discretion) the fast track fees for you. Please see the “Visa fee payments” section of our webpage for more guidance on this process.
Current employees: you may be eligible for financial assistance for you and your family members via our interest free loan scheme. Please see our webpage for more guidance on this process.
Immigration Health Surcharge
The payment of the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS), also known as the NHS surcharge, is mandatory for all non-UK nationals who apply in the UK for any length of visa. It is an additional charge, over and above the visa fee, and must be paid in full at the time of the visa application. Payment of the IHS will ensure that you continue to have full access to the UK National Health Service (NHS) on the same terms as a permanent UK resident. As noted above, the University will pay this fee for all new employees.
If you include family members in your visa application, the IHS payment page may say you do not have any dependants. This is because, though the IHS must be paid with your visa application, it is a separate system. Your dependants will need to pay the IHS themselves separately.
For further guidance, including information on who needs to pay the IHS and how much it costs, please see the gov.uk webpages.
What documents will I need to provide with stage 2?
- In all cases you will be required to submit your valid passport.
- To show that you have earned money in the UK in your field of expertise, you will need to provide (a) a copy of your employment contract with University of Cambridge and (b) a letter from your department stating that, during your most recent period of permission, you have earned money in the UK in your field of expertise (no further information about your employment is required in this letter)
- If TB testing is required (as above), you will need to submit a copy of the test outcome.
- You will not need to provide a further copy of your endorsement.
Your family members
Your husband, wife, civil partner or unmarried partner and your child(ren) under 18 can apply to extend their existing dependant visas at the same time as you apply to extend your Global Talent visa, if they have the same expiry date. If their visas have a different expiry date, perhaps because you have switched previously from a different UK visa and they did not have to switch, they do not have to apply to extend until nearer that expiry date.
Please see our website for comprehensive guidance concerning dependants.