Challenges of moving from the US to the UK involve complex immigration laws and visa applications. Just one misstep — delay or even denial of entry could affect your personal and professional plans. Let an expert team of immigration solicitors help you with your relocation. Leave all your worries behind and rest assured regarding having every aspect of your move managed efficiently and in compliance with UK regulations. Become a UK citizen by investment through our guidance. From securing an appropriate visa to enter the country to understanding the minutiae of residency in the UK, our services help you to move seamlessly.
The Success Story: Read about how A Y & J Solicitors helped this US client relocate to the UK and made the process easy, ensuring timely entry into the UK.
At A Y & J Solicitors in London, we've helped thousands of new and experienced business owners move to the UK from around the world. We understand the typical challenges that come along with your visa application for self-sponsorship UK and know how to mitigate them. We walk you through step by step, showing you how to self-sponsor a work visa in the UK. Instead of going it alone, let our lawyers take the weight off your shoulders, so you can rest easy knowing you'll be able to bring your business (and family) to the UK.
Kate Corey, Founder of 6 Degrees
We are specialists in immigration law and have supported more than 4,000 business owners and professionals around the globe to successfully navigate the British system. We work quickly, always responding to any queries within 24 working hours. And we work closely with the Home Office to pre-empt issues before they jeopardise sponsorship applications or breach compliance. We manage all United Kingdom immigration matters including visa applications under the new points-based immigration system, Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), Spouse Visas, nationality and more. We also handle complex cases of appeal, administrative reviews, judicial reviews and the many immigration challenges involving European Union law and human rights.
A Y & J Solicitors has more than 1,200 positive client reviews across Google and Trustpilot and is listed in The Legal top 500 best UK law firms, so you can rest assured your immigration challenges are in safe hands when you take these three simple steps:
As a multi-award-winning law firm recommended by The Legal 500 with over a decade of specialised immigration experience, we create the gold standard and benchmark in expertise, authority, and credibility to get the desired results. Moreover, this result driven approach has created an overall record of 5,000+ successful immigration and visa applications, enabling the companies and individuals to be confident that their visa process is in experienced hands committed to their success.
"Quick and professional. I enjoyed working with Imad on my Visa."
"When I started the processes with Ikra, I remembered the tortoise and hare story by Aesop, so slowly they are progressing my application. Despite my request to speed up the processes, my application still does not accelerate. After two weeks of documentation and drafting the application, they submitted it to HMRC for decision. Ikra's much appreciated work has resulted in a decision from HMRC being made in less than 24 hours. Though the hare ran fast, the winner was the tortoise. Ikra is the winner on my application, just like the tortoise. I am grateful for your excellent and helpful assistance."
"Many thanks for your excellent work on my behalf. You were so thorough, persistent, and transparent. God Bless you"
"I would recommend and work with A Y & J again, my team, Ashu, Surabhi and Diana was very professional, informative and kind. They are always available and approachable. Thank you for the assistance on my complicated visa matter, which were dealt with again; professionalism and kindness. And all the challenges were dealt swiftly as well. Highly recommend and thank you so much!"
"I am very happy with the service of AY & J solicitors, thank you especially to Nagina Hanif for being patient with us and for for being fast responsive, I felt the visa I applied was quiet complicated but Nagina guided me through every step, and this has made it possible and finally the visa is granted.Thank you to the entire team of Ay & J solicitors."
"Ikra Ahmed helped me with Skilled worker visa. She is faster than light!! Much Appreciated!!! Thanks Ikra!!!!"
The traditional way that overseas investors could gain UK nationality by investment was through the Tier 1 Investor Visa (sometimes called the ‘Golden visa’). The UK used to be one of the most popular citizenship by investment countries. This route is no longer open to new applicants, but existing visa holders can still extend their stay. Likewise, the old Entrepreneur and Start-up visas, which were designed to encourage overseas investors to establish a new business in the UK, have also been closed to new applications. For people who are still interested in the US permanent resident investment options abroad, the good news is that there is another way to get UK citizenship by investment. That better option is Self-Sponsorship.
While there is no longer a Tier 1 Investor Visa in the UK, the Entrepreneur and Startup visas have been replaced by theInnovator Founder Visa. The UK Innovator Founder Visa allows overseas entrepreneurs and investors to set up a new innovative business in the UK and settle after just 3 years. This provides a fast track to British citizenship, given that holders of other visa types normally have to wait for at least 5 years before applying.
To qualify for an Innovator Founder Visa, you must:
Most importantly, you will need to demonstrate that you have enough funds (and show the source of the funds) to establish your new venture. There is no minimum level of investment funds needed; what matters is that you have enough to get your business off the ground. You will not need to show proof of investment funds if your business is already established and has been endorsed for an earlier visa or if you have changed your business and already agreed this with your endorsing body.
In 2024, the UK remains one of the most citizenship by investment countries for overseas investors who wish to invest and grow their capital. In large part, this is due to the enormous opportunities of establishing a new and innovative business to tap into the UK and European markets. Understandably, many overseas investors dream of gaining citizenship in the UK by investment, allowing them to remain for the rest of their lives and bring their family members with them. While it is not possible to gain British citizenship immediately by investing in the UK, it is possible to get on a fast track to citizenship by choosing the right visa route. In this guide, we will explain how you can get UK residency by investment and citizenship by investment in London or any other part of the UK.
If your Innovator Founder visa is approved by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), you will be able to stay for an initial period of 3 years, at which point you can extend your visa or apply for permanent residency (PR), also known asIndefinite Leave to Remain. To gain PR by investment in the UK through the Innovator Founder Visa route, you will need to demonstrate to UKVI that:
You can submit your application for ILR up to 28 days before you become eligible. It is important not to apply earlier than 28 days because your application may be refused.
There are strict requirements that must be met before you apply for PR on the basis of your Innovator Founder Visa. Firstly, your business venture must be properly registered with Companies House, and you must be a director or member of the company. Your company must also be currently actively trading and must be able to continue to do so for the next 12 months. The rules also state that you must be able to demonstrate that you meet at least 2 of the following requirements:
Once you have PR, after 12 months, you can apply for British citizenship. This means that the total amount of time between arriving in the UK and gaining citizenship is 4 years. Once you have British citizenship, you will have the full rights and privileges of a person who was born in the UK, including the right to vote and claim benefits
The Self-Sponsorship route is an increasingly popular UK immigration route that allows foreign nationals to relocate to the UK without needing to work for an employer but rather by setting up their own company. Even though it is not an official visa route to become a citizen by investment, the Self-Sponsorship route provides a direct pathway to permanent settlement in the UK and, after a further 12 months, British citizenship. If you need any information on self-sponsorship, speak to an immigration solicitor who can guide you through the process.
A Y & J Solicitors is a specialist immigration law firm with extensive experience with all types of visa applications. We have an in-depth understanding of immigration law and are professional and results-focused. For assistance with your visa application or any other UK immigration law concerns, please contact us on +44 20 7404 7933 or at contact us today. We’re here to help!
