Visa Requirements
If you are currently living outside the United Kingdom, you may need to apply for entry clearance before you travel. These notes are only an outline of the UK visa requirements, and so you should use the Internet to find information relevant to your own circumstances (see UK Border Agency website) or contact the British Embassy in your home country.
A national of a country in the European Economic Area, a Swiss national or a British citizen, does not need a visa to enter the UK and work there.
If you are a citizen of a Commonwealth country and can show that:
- You have a British-born grandparent,
- You intend to take or seek employment in the UK,
- You will be able to maintain yourself without recourse to public funds,
you may apply for an Ancestry Visa through the British High Commission in your home country. Following a successful application, you may be eligible for permanent residence once you have spent five years employed in Britain and continue to meet the other requirements.
For news and comment on the changing requirements for working in UK, see websites of firms specialising in immigration law, such as workpermit.com or Breytenbachs .