Standard Visitor visa

What is a Standard Visitor visa?

The Standard Visitor route is the UK's general visit route. GOV.UK describes it as allowing you to visit for tourism, business, study on courses of up to 6 months and a list of other "permitted activities". You can usually stay for up to 6 months, and in certain circumstances — private medical treatment or academic work — you may be able to apply to stay for longer.

Whether you need to apply for the visa itself depends on your nationality. Visa nationals must obtain a Standard Visitor visa before travelling; most other nationalities now need an electronic travel authorisation (ETA) instead; a small group need neither. Whatever your nationality, the same eligibility requirements and permitted activities apply when you arrive at the border.

A single visa costs £135 and is normally valid for 6 months. Frequent visitors can apply for a long-term Standard Visitor visa lasting 2, 5 or 10 years, still limited to 6 months on each visit. The earliest you can apply is 3 months before you travel.

Visa, ETA or neither: which applies to you

GOV.UK divides visitors into three groups by nationality. The permitted activities are the same for all three.

An ETA is a digital permission linked to the passport you apply with; you only show your passport when you travel. Decisions usually arrive by email within a day but can take up to 3 working days, and you must wait for the confirmation email before travelling. The fee is not refundable, and an ETA does not guarantee entry — you can still be refused at the border if you do not meet the visitor requirements.

• With an ETA you can come for up to 6 months for tourism, visiting family and friends, a business trip or short-term study; come for up to 3 months on the Creative Worker visa concession; come for a permitted paid engagement; and transit through a UK airport where you pass through border control.
• With an ETA you cannot stay longer than 6 months, do paid or unpaid work for a UK company or as a self-employed person (other than a permitted paid engagement or Creative Worker concession work), claim public funds, live in the UK through frequent or successive visits, or marry, register a civil partnership or give notice of either.
• You do not need an ETA if you have a UK visa, permission to live, work or study in the UK (including EU Settlement Scheme status or right of abode), are transiting airside without passing through border control, hold a British overseas territories citizen or British National (Overseas) passport, or live in Ireland and are travelling from Ireland, Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man.
• Dual British or Irish citizens cannot get an ETA; they must travel on a British or Irish passport, or another passport with a certificate of entitlement to the right of abode.
• Each traveller needs an ETA, including babies and children. You can apply for other people.

Eligibility in detail

The 'genuine visitor' test. Every applicant — and every visa-free traveller questioned at the border — must satisfy the decision maker of all of the following.

• Valid passport or travel document

  It should be valid for the whole of your stay in the UK.

• You will leave at the end of your visit

  The core test. Evidence of your life outside the UK — employment, study, family, property, return travel — is how you show this.

• You can support yourself and any dependants

  From your own funds or with funding from someone else, without working or claiming public funds.

• You can pay for your return or onward journey

  Again, from your own funds or with funding from someone else.

• You are not living in the UK through visits

  You must not live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits, or make the UK your main home. A long-term visa may be cancelled if your travel history shows otherwise.

• Your activities are permitted

  You must only do the activities the Visitor Rules allow. Extra requirements apply if you visit to study, as an academic, for a permitted paid engagement or for medical reasons.

The requirements above apply regardless of whether you need a visa. If you do not need one, you may be asked questions at the UK border about your eligibility and the activities you plan to do.

What you can and cannot do

GOV.UK's list of permitted activities and prohibited activities for Standard Visitors.

You can visit the UK as a Standard Visitor:

• for tourism, for example on a holiday or vacation
• to see your family or friends
• to volunteer for up to 30 days with a registered charity
• to pass through the UK to another country ('in transit')
• for certain business activities, for example attending a meeting or interview
• for certain paid engagements or events (a 'permitted paid engagement') as an expert in your profession, for example to give lectures or perform
• to take part in a school exchange programme
• to do a recreational course of up to 30 days, for example a dance course
• to study, do a placement or take an exam
• as an academic, senior doctor or dentist
• for medical reasons

You cannot:

• do paid or unpaid work for a UK company or as a self-employed person, unless you are doing a permitted paid engagement or event
• claim public funds (benefits)
• live in the UK for long periods of time through frequent or successive visits
• marry or register a civil partnership, or give notice of marriage or civil partnership — you need a Marriage Visitor visa for that

Visiting on business

Business activities are allowed as long as you are not paid by a UK-based organisation or client to do them.

• attend interviews, meetings, conferences and seminars
• negotiate and sign deals and contracts
• attend trade fairs to promote your business (you cannot sell things)
• get work-related training if you are employed overseas and the training is not available in your home country
• give a one-off or short series of talks, as long as they are not for profit or a commercial event
• carry out site visits and inspections
• oversee the delivery of goods and services provided by a UK company to your overseas company or organisation
• deliver training or share knowledge on internal projects with UK employees of the company you work for overseas
• carry out specific activities if your overseas employer has an eligible contract of purchase, supply or lease with a UK company (the 'manufacture and supply of goods to the UK' rules)

Certain overseas job roles carry additional permitted activities under the Visitor Rules, among them archaeologists, artists, entertainers and musicians, bodyguards, camera operators, drivers, internal auditors, journalists, lawyers and expert witnesses, market researchers, personal assistants, wet-lease pilots and cabin crew (1 March to 31 October), overseas professors, religious workers, scientists and researchers, seafarers, sports people and officials, tour group couriers, translators and interpreters, film crew, and production or technical staff supporting a performer or sports person. Any other paid or unpaid work requires a work visa.

Permitted paid engagements

The one situation in which a visitor may be paid by a UK organisation.

You can visit for a permitted paid engagement if you have a written invitation from a UK-based organisation or client for a pre-arranged event, can show you are an expert in your profession, and are 18 or over. The engagement must relate to your expertise, qualifications and main job in your home country. You can be granted up to 6 months but must carry out the engagement in the first month.

Visiting to study, take an exam or do a placement

• Study for up to 6 months at an accredited UK institution, including English language courses. You must have been accepted onto the course and it must be no more than 6 months long (unless it is distance learning). The institution cannot be an academy or state-funded school.
• Distance learning courses can last longer than 6 months; you can visit for induction weeks, face-to-face intensive learning, progress checks and exams or assessments.
• Do a short piece of research relevant to your overseas degree-level course if you are at least 16, enrolled overseas and accepted by a UK higher education institution. Bring confirmation from your overseas provider that the research is part of or relevant to your course.
• Do an elective in medicine, veterinary medicine and science, nursing, midwifery or dentistry, with written confirmation from the UK provider that you will not treat patients or be paid.
• Sit an entrance exam, retake an exam or module, or attend a PhD viva.
• Do an unpaid clinical attachment or dental observer post for up to 6 months as an overseas medical, dental or nursing graduate. You must not treat patients and must confirm you have not done one in the UK before.
• Take the OSCE or PLAB test, with a registration letter from the Nursing and Midwifery Council or General Medical Council. If you fail PLAB you can apply to stay a further 6 months to retake it; if you pass you can apply to stay for a clinical attachment, up to 18 months in total.
• You may need an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate to study or research certain subjects at postgraduate level or above.

Academics, senior doctors and dentists

Scientists, researchers and academics can take part in formal exchange arrangements with UK counterparts and carry out research, as part of their job or independently. Senior doctors and dentists can additionally take part in research, teach and undertake clinical practice, provided the post is not permanent. Visits of up to 6 months follow the normal rules; all academic visits lasting longer than 6 months require a Standard Visitor visa regardless of nationality.

• 12-month academic visa — £234

  Apply before you travel for a visa lasting up to 12 months, or visit for 6 months and extend in the UK for £1,172 (12 months in total). Your partner and children can apply to stay with you for up to 12 months on the same basis.

• Highly qualified

  Usually a PhD or higher, and currently working in that field at an academic institution overseas.

• Not filling a permanent teaching post

  Academics must be visiting to do research or a formal exchange; senior doctors and dentists may also visit for clinical practice or to teach.

• Documents

  A letter from your employer setting out the dates of your sabbatical or exchange and the research to be undertaken, and a letter from the UK host confirming the arrangements. A TB test certificate may be needed for stays over 6 months, depending on where you live.

Visiting for medical reasons

You can visit for up to 6 months to have private medical treatment, to have NHS treatment paid for by your own government under a reciprocal healthcare arrangement, or to donate an organ to a family member or close friend (including being assessed as a donor match).

If you are under 18

• You may visit if you have made suitable arrangements for travel and stay, have written consent from a parent or guardian if travelling alone, can pay for your return or onward journey, and have enough money to support yourself (or family and friends who can support you).
• Travelling alone: your parent or guardian must provide written consent and full contact details, plus the name and date of birth of the person you will stay with, the address, your relationship to them, and consent for you to stay with that person.
• If you are under 16 (or under 18 with a disability) and will be looked after for more than 28 days by someone who is not a close relative, your parent, guardian or school must tell the relevant local authority ("private foster care"). Provide the local authority’s reply if you have one. Scotland and Northern Ireland have different rules.
• The same applies to education exchange visits of more than 28 days, unless you travel and stay as a group or are accompanied by an adult such as a teacher.
• Travelling with an adult: you must show your parent or guardian consents to the travel and accommodation. If you need a visa, identify the adult in your application — up to 2 adults, whose names appear on your visa. Each person completes a separate application.
• If you are under 18 when you apply for a long-term visa, it will only be valid for up to 6 months after you turn 18 and the fee is not refundable.

Fees and costs

Figures as published on GOV.UK, last updated 31 October 2024. No Immigration Health Surcharge applies to visitor routes.

Standard Visitor visa — up to 6 months

£135

Standard Visitor visa for medical reasons — up to 11 months

£234

Standard Visitor visa for academics — up to 12 months

£234

2-year long-term Standard Visitor visa — 6 months per visit

£506

5-year long-term Standard Visitor visa — 6 months per visit

£903

10-year long-term Standard Visitor visa — 6 months per visit

£1,128

Electronic travel authorisation (ETA) — if you do not need a visa

£20

Extend your stay in the UK as a Standard Visitor

£1,172

Super priority service on an in-UK extension (extra)

£1,000

Biometrics (fingerprints and photograph)

No fee

Processing times

Published UKVI processing times for applications made outside the UK, last updated 26 June 2026.

Standard Visitor — decision after biometrics

3 weeks

Marriage Visitor

3 weeks

Transit

3 weeks

ETA — decision by email

Usually within a day; up to 3 working days

Extend your stay in the UK — standard service

Usually within 8 weeks

Extend your stay in the UK — super priority

End of next working day (2 working days after a weekend appointment)

Processing starts when you attend your visa application centre appointment (or verify your identity through the UK Immigration: ID Check app, where available) and ends when you receive the decision email or letter. Times are based on the UK working week and include UK public holidays. GOV.UK lists reasons a case may take longer: inaccurate information, a request for further evidence, document verification, an interview, a criminal conviction, increased demand or a technical outage. You will be contacted within the standard time if your case will take longer. You do not need to book travel before you apply or before a decision is made.

Documents and information you will need

Your passport or travel document must be valid for the whole of your stay. The online form asks for the following information, and you must provide certified translations of any documents not in English or Welsh.

• the dates you are planning to travel to the UK
• where you will be staying during your visit
• how much you think your trip will cost
• your current home address and how long you have lived there
• your parents' names and dates of birth (if known)
• how much you earn in a year (if you have an income)
• details of any criminal, civil or immigration offences you may have committed

Depending on your circumstances, you might also need to provide:

• details of your travel history for the past 10 years
• your employer's address and telephone number
• your partner's name, date of birth and passport number
• the name and address of anyone paying for your trip
• the name, address and passport number of any family members you have in the UK
• a tuberculosis (TB) test certificate if you are visiting for more than 6 months
• additional documents if you are visiting to study, as an academic, for a permitted paid engagement or for medical reasons (see the sections above)

Application process

Extending your stay and long-term visas

Extensions are the exception, not the rule. Long-term visas suit frequent visitors.

• Extending to a total of 6 months

  If your permission is for less than 6 months, you can apply to extend as long as your total time in the UK stays within 6 months — for example 3 more months after 3 months here. This applies whether or not you needed a visa. Fee £1,172.

• Staying beyond 6 months

  Only for patients receiving medical treatment, academics who still meet the requirements, and graduates retaking PLAB or doing a clinical attachment. Apply before your current permission expires; fee £1,172 regardless of nationality.

• How you apply

  Online, with a UKVCAS appointment for biometrics. Upload documents or have them scanned at the appointment. Do not travel outside the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man before the decision — the application will be withdrawn if you do.

• Decision and outcome

  Usually within 8 weeks on the standard service; next working day with super priority (£1,000 extra). You can stay while you wait if you applied in time. If successful you receive an eVisa accessed through a UKVI account.

Long-term Standard Visitor visas last 2, 5 or 10 years and allow a maximum of 6 months on each visit. They cost £506, £903 and £1,128 respectively. UKVI may grant a shorter visa than requested, and a long-term visa may be cancelled if your travel history shows you are repeatedly living in the UK for extended periods.

Common refusal reasons

Each of these maps to a requirement in the Visitor Rules or to the general grounds for refusal. A refusal letter will tell you which applied.

• The decision maker is not satisfied you will leave the UK at the end of your visit — usually because ties to your home country (work, study, family, property) are not evidenced.
• Funds are not evidenced: the bank statements or sponsor evidence do not show you can support yourself and any dependants for the trip and pay for your return or onward journey.
• The stated cost of the trip, your declared income and the money shown do not add up, or large unexplained deposits undermine the account given.
• The intended activities amount to work for a UK organisation or as a self-employed person, rather than a permitted business activity or a qualifying permitted paid engagement.
• The pattern of previous visits suggests you are living in the UK through frequent or successive visits or making it your main home.
• The purpose of the visit is unclear or inconsistent with the invitation, itinerary or supporting documents.
• Extra requirements for study, academic, medical or permitted paid engagement visits are not met — for example no acceptance letter, no consultant letter, or no written invitation.
• Previous overstaying, breach of conditions or use of deception in a UK application, which engage the general grounds for refusal.
• Criminal convictions or other conduct falling within the general grounds for refusal.
• False or undisclosed information — for example omitting a previous refusal, or submitting documents that cannot be verified.

Source note

Information sourced from GOV.UK ("Visit the UK as a Standard Visitor", last updated 31 October 2024; "Get an electronic travel authorisation (ETA) to visit the UK", last updated 28 May 2025; "Visa processing times: applications outside the UK", last updated 26 June 2026) and reproduced under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Rules change; we verify requirements at the point of instruction.

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