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Moving to the UK as a US professional or entrepreneur is an exciting prospect, but it requires navigating the UK’s complex visa system. In this series of articles we are exploring several visa routes available to Americans, including:
- Global Talent visa
- Innovator Founder visa
- Skilled Worker visa (covering both intra-company transfers and self-sponsorship)
- High Potential Individual visa.
For each route we will provide an overview of its purpose, the key requirements, duration, and processing times.
Innovator Founder visa
The Innovator Founder visa is the UK’s dedicated route for ambitious entrepreneurs. This visa’s purpose is to attract entrepreneurs with high potential startups to the UK. It is aimed at those who have a new business idea that is innovative, viable, and scalable. It is not for someone looking to buy a franchise or join an already-established UK business. Nor is this visa for passive investors. Applicants must intend to play an active day-to-day role in the business. Applicants can be part of a team and have co-founders who can each apply for and obtain their own Innovator Founder visa.
The UK is keen on attracting startups in sectors such as AI, life sciences, fintech, and other innovative fields, recognising that startups can become significant job creators. Indeed, a report by The Entrepreneurs Network noted that 39% of the UK’s fastest-growing businesses had at least one foreign-born founder. Accordingly, it is clear why the British government welcomes global entrepreneurs.
For US entrepreneurs this visa provides a route to start a business in the UK, stay long-term, and obtain Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR, colloquially known as permanent residence/Green Card) in the UK within three years if the business is successful and meets certain benchmarks. Unlike a traditional work visa, applicants will not require a sponsoring employer, the innovative business idea and endorsement are the ticket to the UK.
Key requirements
There is a two stage process to obtain an Innovator Founder visa. Stage 1 is the endorsement application, and stage 2 is the visa application. To qualify applicants must be at least 18 years old, have an original business idea that they intend to pursue in the UK, and obtain endorsement for that business idea from a government approved endorsing body. Breaking down the core requirements:
Innovative business idea: The proposed business must be something genuinely new, innovative, viable, and scalable.
- “New” means that applicants cannot join or continue an existing trading business; it must be a fresh venture.
- “Innovative” means the business should have a unique selling point or offer something distinct from anything else on the market. For example, a novel technology, a new business model, or a creative solution to a problem. From our experience, this is the most difficult requirement to satisfy.
- “Viable” means the business has potential to succeed, i.e. applicants have or will obtain the necessary skills, knowledge, and market awareness to make the business succeed.
- “Scalable” requires the business to have potential to grow, create jobs, and possibly expand beyond the UK into international markets.
In short, the Innovator Founder visa is aimed at startups with potential to scale up, not small static shops. Applicants will need to articulate how their idea meets these criteria in a detailed business plan. Importantly, there is no minimum funds or investment amount. However, applicants are required to show that they have sufficient funds to start the business and implement their business plan. The endorsing body will also expect to see realistic financial forecasts. Once the business plan, financial forecasts, and other supporting documents are ready, applicants can apply for endorsement.
Endorsement: The gatekeepers for the Innovator Founder visa are the endorsing bodies. These are organisations authorised by the UK government to review business proposals for the Innovator Founder visa.
Applicants will be required to submit their detailed business plan, be interviewed, and present their business to an endorsing body. The endorsing body will then assess if the idea is indeed new, innovative, viable, and scalable and if the applicant is a suitable entrepreneur to execute the plan. If they are convinced, they should issue the applicant with an endorsement letter. This endorsement letter is crucial for the visa application as it is proof that a credible UK institution has reviewed and endorsed the startup idea. Once applicants have obtained an endorsement letter, they can submit their Innovator Founder visa application.
Please note however, just because a business has been endorsed does not mean that the Home Office will automatically approve the visa application. Strangely, despite delegating the business plan review process to endorsing bodies, the Home Office will conduct their own analysis of the applicant’s background and business plan. If the Home Office have any concerns, they may request further information or refuse the application. Accordingly, it is critical to ensure that the visa application is prepared as robustly as possible.
In summary, the key hurdle is convincing an endorsing body that the startup idea is innovative and has potential to grow. US entrepreneurs should approach it almost like pitching to an investor or accelerator. Applicants will need a detailed business plan, market research, and, if possible, a prototype or proof of concept to have the best chance of being endorsed. The endorsing bodies also like to see that applicants have thought about the UK market specifically. For example, why the business will thrive in the UK, any connections or potential customers, funding available in the UK, etc…
We have significant experience advising and obtaining Innovator Founder visas. We work closely with our clients to help ensure their endorsement and visa applications meet all the requirements and are as robust as possible.
Visa duration
The Innovator Founder visa is granted for three years. This is a fixed length, unlike the Global Talent visa where applicants can choose the length of their visa.
Applicants must have checkpoint meetings at 12 and 24 months with their endorsing body to demonstrate progress against their original business plan. If all goes well with the business and checkpoints, applicants should be issued with a fresh endorsement letter allowing them to submit a visa application and extend their Innovator Founder visa for another three years. There is no limit to the number of extensions as long as the business remains viable and continues to be endorsed.
After three years, applicants also become eligible for ILR if the business is doing well and has met at least two of several success benchmarks concerning minimum investment raised, jobs created, revenues, intellectual property, etc… Applicants will need to demonstrate to their endorsing body that they have met the benchmarks. If successful, they should be issued with a fresh endorsement letter allowing them to apply for ILR. Obtaining ILR means that applicants no longer need a visa and can live permanently in the UK.
Processing times
The endorsement application can take up to six weeks to process. Once applicants have the endorsement and submit the visa application, the Home Office should make a decision within three weeks. The Home Office usually offer fast-track processing so that a decision may be made as quickly as within a few business days.
As it can take considerable time to prepare the business plan, it is advisable to start preparing the Innovator Founder endorsement and visa applications at least three months before the intended date of relocation.
Conclusion
The Innovator Founder visa offers an opportunity for ambitious entrepreneurs to build and scale a business in the UK. While it demands a truly innovative idea and a rigorous endorsement process, successful applicants benefit from the ability to run their own company and work without a sponsoring employer. With a clear three-year path to ILR for high-performing startups, this visa is an excellent route for driven founders looking to establish themselves in the UK. It is not the easiest path, but for those with a compelling business vision, it provides a powerful platform to grow and thrive in one of the world’s leading innovation hubs.
Should you wish to discuss any of the issues raised in this article, please contact Madni Chaudhary or Lynsey Blyth. Our leading Immigration team is available to guide you through the Innovator Founder visa route.
Next time we will look at the Skilled Worker visa, which is aimed at highly skilled professionals being sponsored to work in the UK.
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