VISITOR'S VISA AND RESIDENCY PERMITS VISITOR’S VISA
The main intentions of this type of visa are that you intend to visit the United Kingdom for the purpose of holiday or perhaps, to visit family resident in the UK.
If you are not a commonwealth national or a European national, you must obtain a visitor's visa from the UK Embassy in your country of origin. You would normally be granted either six months' single entry, or a six months' multiple entry visa. The latter is granted if you can prove the reasons why you would wish to be travelling on a regular basis to the United Kingdom.
You must be able to demonstrate that you can financially support yourself and find accommodation without becoming dependent on UK financial assistance. You must be able to show that:
- you want to visit the UK for no more than six months
- you plan to leave the UK at the end of your visit
As a visitor, you are allowed to:
- go to meetings and trade fairs, buy goods, and negotiate and complete contracts with UK businesses
- go to conferences and seminars as a delegate
- find out about, check the details of or examine goods
You are not allowed to:
- take paid or unpaid work
- produce goods or provide services in the UK
- sell goods and services to members of the public
- receive training as long as it is classroom instruction or limited to observation only
Many Visitors Visa applications are refused each year because insufficient or incorrect information has been supplied.
RESIDENCY PERMITS
A residence permit is an authorisation issued by a member state of the European Union allowing nationals of other countries to stay legally in its territory. It will affect anyone given an extension of stay in the UK or intending to stay in the UK for more than six months. It will not affect visa nationals and EEA nationals.