The UK company was already incorporated, and that was the problem

A Japanese games developer had set up its British subsidiary before taking advice. If that entity had started trading, the route the company's European president needed would have closed.

At a glance

• Client: Japan-registered mobile games developer, around 1,000 staff, trading 16 years
• Individual: President, European division, South Korean national
• Matter: Expansion Worker route, then sponsor licence and Skilled Worker as a second phase
• The obstacle: UK entity incorporated by the parent before advice was taken
• Instructed: 7 August 2025, 19 days after first contact
• Outcome: Sponsor licence granted February 2026

How they found us

He found our business immigration page and contacted us through its guidance form on 19 July 2025. We met him in person before his flight back to Japan, and he instructed us 19 days later.

The challenge

• The Japanese headquarters had already incorporated the UK entity itself, creating a live risk that it would begin trading and become ineligible for the Expansion Worker route.
• There was no authorising officer in place.
• The applicant would be a UK director but hold no shares, with the parent company's chairman holding all of them.
• The client wanted settlement, which the Expansion Worker route on its own does not lead to.
• There was a cross-border VAT question, with services to a UK company paid for by an overseas entity.

What we did

• Gave the warning that mattered most, first. Advised explicitly not to trade through the pre-incorporated UK entity, because doing so would break eligibility for the route the whole plan depended on.
• Built a two-phase strategy. Phase one, the Expansion Worker visa to establish the UK presence. Phase two, a sponsor licence and Skilled Worker route once the business was trading, which is what opens the path to settlement.
• Issued two separate proposals. So the client could take a structured decision back to headquarters rather than a single figure.
• Settled the VAT question in writing. Checked with finance and explained that VAT applies because the UK company is the recipient of the service, and that the source of payment does not determine VAT, only the client's identity and location.

The outcome

The sponsor licence was granted in February 2026. As at May 2026, the second phase was to follow on arrival, once the business was trading.

Why it matters

Companies expanding into Britain routinely do the company formation first, because it feels like the obvious first step. On this route it can be the step that closes the door. The order of operations is the advice.