The government of the UK said on July 13, 2023, that most visa application fees would go up by at least 15%. The release didn’t say when the higher fees for applying for a UK visa would start to apply. But now it’s been announced that the fees to apply for a UK visa will go up on October 4, 2023.

On October 4, 2023, the fee to apply for most UK cards will go up, but not all of them. This rise will be made for both applications for entry clearance from outside the UK and applications for leave to stay from inside the UK. There will also be changes to applications for settlement and citizenship.

The fee for applying for most UK visas will go up by 15%. The fee for applying for a family visa (spouse, civil partner, fiance, proposed civil partner, unmarried partner), indefinite leave to remain, and naturalisation as a British citizen will go up by 20%, and the fee for applying for a student visa will go up by 35%:

• Visit visa (6 months) – up by 15% from £100 to £115
• Skilled Worker visa – up by 15% from £625 to £719
• Innovator Founder visa – up by 15% from £1,036 to £1,191
• High Potential Individual visa – up by 15% from £715 to £822
• UK Expansion Worker visa – up by 15% from £259 to £298
• Global Talent visa – up by 15% from £623 to £716
• Scale-up visa – up by 15% from £715 to £822
• Student visa – up by 35% from £363 to £490
• Graduate visa – up by 15% from £715 to £822
• Spouse visa – up by 20% from £1,538 to £1,846
• Indefinite leave to remain – up by 20% from £2,404 to £2,885
• Naturalisation as a British citizen – up by 20% from £1,250 to £1,500

It will cost 13% less to use the Priority Visa Service to apply for a settlement visa from outside the UK, from £573 to £500. However, it will cost 100% more to use the service to apply for a non-settlement visa from outside the UK, from £250 to £500.

But not all fees for applying for a UK visa are going up.

As an example, it will still cost £200 to apply for a private medical treatment visa that lasts longer than 6 months. It will also still cost £250 to apply for a Hong Kong BN(O) visa that lasts for 5 years.

The Home Office fee for both a worker sponsor licence application and a casual worker sponsor licence application will stay at £536 for a small sponsor and £1,476 for a large sponsor. This means that employers who apply for a sponsor licence will not have to pay more.

However, it’s not all good news for companies because the cost of giving out a certificate of sponsorship is going to go up by 19% to 20%.

To discuss your UK visa application with one of our Immigration Solicitor, Atty Magsino contact our immigration lawyers on 07446 888 377 or email don@mbmsolicitors.com or attydonmagsino@gmail.com.