On October 27, 2021, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak MP, confirmed as part of the U.K. autumn 2021 Budget that a new Scale-Up visa route will launch in the United Kingdom in the spring of 2022.

Sunak justified the move by saying an economy built on innovation must be open and attractive to the “best and brightest minds”. 

“A third of our science Nobel Laureates have been immigrants. Half of our fastest-growing companies have a foreign-born founder,” he said. 

“So, an economy built on innovation must be open and attractive to the best and brightest minds.” 

Sunak said that the budget confirms the eligibility criteria for the new Scale-Up Visa will make it quicker and easier for fast-growing businesses to bring in highly skilled individuals. 

 

 

The new Scale-Up visa route will allow fast-growing businesses to hire highly skilled migrant workers. The outline of the new Scale-Up Visa announced so far is as follows: 

The eligibility criteria for the Scale-Up visa

 

-     Companies that can sponsor Scale-Up visa needs to have an annual average revenue or employment growth rate over 3 years greater than 20% and a minimum of 10 employees at the start of these three years.

-     The UK government may also explore whether scale-ups that can demonstrate an expectation of strong growth in future years could qualify following a review.

-     The applicants who are eligible to apply must be employed in jobs that require professional skills with a salary of at least £33,000.

-     Applicants must pass the language proficiency requirement.

 

 

Differences between a Scale-Up visa and a Skilled Worker visa

 

Both Scale-Up visas and Skilled Worker visas are under the UK's point-based visa system, so the applicants will need to meet the standardised requirement. However, if a Skilled Worker visa prioritises workers with the skills required by the UK economy in areas such as healthcare, engineering, and computer science, the Scale-Up visa will be open to all sectors as long as the sponsor meets the growth criteria.

 

 

Annual Quotas for the Scale-Up visa

 

There has been no information announced on quotas available for application, but the point of visa is to help growing companies grow much faster, so there might be no limit.

 

 

Extension of Scale-up visa

 

Information published so far states that scale-up visa holders can extend their visas for up to five years. In general, similar to other visas, they will likely be initially granted for 30-36 months and extended it later.

 

 

Switch Employers while on a Scale-up visa

 

While staying on a Scale-Up visa, the holders will be able to switch employers, but they may need to renew their visa to qualify for an appropriate visa category. For example, if a new employer is not eligible to sponsor a Scale-Up visa, they need to qualify for the different types of visa categories such as Skilled Worker visa.

 

 

Dependant family members

 

Similar to a Skilled Worker visa, it is expected to bring family members, but details have yet to be confirmed.

 

 

Settlement of a Scale-Up visa

 

The period of stay on a Scale-Up visa will count toward settlement after 5 years, it is potential to apply for British citizenship.