The Service Supplier visa allows you to travel to the UK to provide contracted services to a UK company.
The UK Service Supplier visa is aimed at foreign workers who have a contract to provide services to a UK-based company.
This can be either as:
You must fulfil certain eligibility criteria regarding your job and also have a Service Supplier visa certificate of sponsorship to be eligible for this visa.
This visa is a part of the UK government’s Global Business Mobility category of work visas. It is the replacement for the old International Agreement route.
In order to be eligible for the Service Supplier visa, you must:
You must also have worked for at least 12 months either:
You will be able to do the following in the UK with a Service Supplier visa:
Note that you will not be able to:
Only certain jobs are eligible for the Service Supplier visa.
To find out if your job is eligible, you will first have to find out its 4-digit occupation code. This can be obtained from your employer or your certificate of sponsorship.
You should then refer to the list of eligible occupations and codes on the UK Government’s website.
If your occupation code isn’t listed as eligible, you may still be able to apply for a Service Supplier visa if you have relevant qualifications and experience.
You will normally need one of the following:
In addition to this, you will also need either:
Note that if you wish to do certain jobs in the UK with a Service Supplier visa, you will have to meet certain specific experience and qualification requirements for that specific job.
These jobs and their respective requirements are as follows:
| Services | Qualifications and experience |
| Advertising or translation | Relevant qualifications |
| Chef de cuisine | Advanced technical qualification and 6 years experience |
| Entertainment services (excluding audio-visual services under the CARIFORUM-UK Economic Partnership Agreement) | No qualifications required |
| Fashion and modelling | No qualifications required |
| Management consulting services | Bachelor’s degree |
| Technical testing and analysis | Bachelor’s degree or relevant technical qualification |
How long Service Supplier visa holders will be able to stay in the UK depends on the type of trade agreement that the services are being provided under.
You will be able to stay for whichever is the shorter of:
The maximum amount of time you will be able to stay on a Service Supplier visa will be 6 or 12 months, depending on the type of trade agreement you’re providing services under.
Note that if you’ve spent time in the UK on this or another visa, you can only stay in the UK for a maximum of 5 years in any 6 year period. Other visas that contribute to this time limit include the following:
Service Supplier visa applicants must apply online through the Gov.uk website.
When applying for this visa for the first time, you’ll have to fill in the application form and upload the necessary supporting documents needed.
You’ll also have to prove your identity. This will either be done at a visa application centre, where you’ll give your biometrics information, or the ‘UK Immigration: ID Check’ app to scan your identity document.
If you need to attend a visa application centre, you’ll give your fingerprints and have a photograph taken of you for your biometric residence permit. In addition, the visa application centre may need to keep your passport and documents while they process your application.
You’ll be notified of how you’ll have to prove your identity when you apply.
There are also separate application processes if you wish to extend your Service Supplier visa, switch to it from another visa in the UK, or update it if your job changes.
Applying for a Service Supplier visa is made easier through WMYV’ bespoke Application Package. One of our expert legal advisers will take on your case and fully ensure that your application is completed to the highest standards against Home Office Guidelines. For more information, call us now or contact us online today.
You will need to provide the following when applying for a Service Supplier visa:
You may also be asked to provide some additional documents with your visa application. These may include the following:
After you apply for your visa, you may be asked to show that you’ve either:
If you’re an overseas employee, you’ll need to show you’ve been paid by your employer for at least 12 months. This can be through any of the following:
If you’re self-employed, you’ll need to show evidence of work you’ve done over the past 12 months. This can be through any of the following:
The Service Supplier visa costs £259 to obtain.
You will also have to pay the immigration healthcare surcharge when applying. This will be £624 per year, for every year you’ll be in the UK.
You must also have at least £1,270 in your bank account to show you can support yourself when you arrive in the UK.
You will need to have had the money available for at least 28 consecutive days. The end date of the 28 day period must be within 31 days of your date of application.
You’ll normally need to show proof of this when you apply, unless either:
If your sponsor can support you instead, this must be confirmed on your certificate of sponsorship under the ‘sponsor certifies maintenance’ section.
Note that your partner and children will also need to prove they can support themselves while they’re in the UK.
If you’re applying for a Service Supplier visa from outside of the UK, you’ll normally receive a decision within 3 weeks.
If you’re applying from inside the UK, you’ll normally receive a decision within 8 weeks.
Note that you will only be able to apply for this visa up to 3 months before the day you are due to start work in the UK. This date will be listed on your certificate of sponsorship.
You should also allow for extra time if you’re required to attend an appointment at a visa application centre.
Your application may also take longer if, for example, your supporting documents need to be reviewed, you’re asked to attend an interview, or because of your personal circumstances.
You may also be able to pay extra for a priority service or super priority service to get your application processed within 5 days or by the next working day, respectively.
Note that this service may not be available in all countries.
You must apply to extend your Service Supplier visa online through the Gov.uk website.
You will only be able to extend your visa if all of the following apply:
Note that you must be inside the UK to apply to extend your visa. If you travel outside of the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man while your application is being processed, your application will be withdrawn.
Service Supplier visa extension applications normally take up to 8 weeks to process.
You may be able to switch to a Service Supplier visa if you’re already in the UK on another type of visa and you meet the eligibility requirements.
Note that you will not be able to switch to this visa if you’re currently in the UK:
If any of the above apply to you, you must first leave the UK and apply for the visa from abroad.
Additionally, if you plan to switch to this visa from a Student visa, one of the following must apply to you:
You should normally receive a decision on your application within 8 weeks.
We can assist you with the process of switching to a Service Supplier visa or any other UK business or work visa. For more information about WMYV’ legal advisory services, call us today, or contact us online.
If your job changes to a different occupation code, you must apply to update your Service Supplier visa.
You must still be contracted to work for the sponsor who issued your current certificate of sponsorship.
Your new job must still meet the eligibility requirements for the Service Supplier visa. In addition, you’ll need a new certificate of sponsorship.
You’ll also need to provide additional supplementary documents if you’ve been in the UK for less than one year.
You will be able to apply to update your visa up to 3 months before your new job starts.
You may continue working in your current job while your new application is being considered, just as long as you apply before your current visa expires.
You should not start your new job until you’ve got confirmation of your new permission.
You should normally receive a decision on your application within 8 weeks.
The Service Supplier visa is a valuable route to enable overseas contractual service suppliers to come to the UK and provide services to UK businesses.
If you’re an overseas service provider looking to come to the UK for this purpose, then WMYV can help.
We are experts in international immigration and can help with your business immigration needs. Our team of experienced legal advisers have helped countless businesses and individuals obtain visas and come to the UK to expand or explore new business opportunities, and we could do the same for you also.
Whether you’re a contractual service supplier employed by a business looking for assistance with a Service Supplier visa application, a self-employed individual looking to expand your reach into other countries, or looking to apply through one of the other Global Business Mobility visa routes, we can help.
We can also assist if you’re looking to apply through the Temporary Work – International Agreement route for your business.
Reach out to us for more information or to see how we can help you?
As part of the Service Supplier route, you will be able to bring your partner and children with you as your dependents to the UK.
You will normally need to provide evidence of their relationship with you when you apply for your visa.
In addition, your dependents must also pay application fees and the immigration healthcare surcharge. They must also prove that they have enough money to support themselves in the UK. These requirements are as follows:
Your dependents must apply separately for their own visa. They must also apply separately if you are extending, updating or switching your visa.
There are a number of different UK trade agreements that are eligible for the Service Supplier visa.
These include various trade agreements with specific countries or territories, and services that cover a wide range of industries and professions.
The full list of eligible trade agreements and sectors can be found on the Gov.uk website.
Global Business Mobility visas are a category of visas that launched in April 2022.
These visas are aimed at specific individuals or businesses who wish to carry out certain work functions in the UK.
The Global Business Mobility visas are as follows:
For an overview of all of these visas, visit our page on Global Business Mobility visas.
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