Millions of people come to the UK each year to visit their family members, come for a short holiday or a business trip.
The United Kingdom has a rich history with unique buildings, many museums and historical landmarks. There is a vibrant culture, with London being the biggest attraction.
What are the general requirements for a visit visa?
To make a successful visit visa application, an applicant needs to show to the Entry Clearance Officer that they:
- will leave the UK at the end of their visit; and
- will not live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits, or make the UK their main home; and
- is genuinely seeking entry for a purpose that is permitted by the visitor routes; and
- will not undertake any prohibited activities; andmust have sufficient funds to cover all reasonable costs in relation to their visit without working or accessing public funds. This includes the cost of the return or onward journey, any costs relating to dependants, and the cost of planned activities such as private medical treatment.
What are the common reasons for a UK visit visa refusal?
There are many reasons why a UK visit visa application can be refused by an Entry Clearance Officer, as each case is different. It is the applicant who must show how they meet the visit visa rules.
Common mistakes that can be avoided by the applicant are:
- Not explaining in detail of your family, social and economic ties in your country.
- Making a mistake on the application form and not double-checking that the information is correct.
- Not mentioning a previous refusal decision or past immigration history, which the Entry Clearance Officer can take the view that it was withheld deliberately and as a result, ban the applicant from coming to the UK in the future.
- Your claimed income does not match the history of your bank statements.
- Unable to explain how you will fund your trip if your income is low or there are not enough savings.
- Lack of documents from your sponsor, who is looking to maintain and accommodate you in the UK.
- There are large unexplained deposits in your account, and failing to explain the source of the deposit and purpose of it.
- Failing to provide corroborative documents in support of the application.
- Documents which are not in English have not been translated by a certified translator or are not in the correct format.
- Following advice from friends, family, non-UK advisors or following suggestions from online forums, without seeking guidance from a regulated UK Immigration Solicitor.
What should you cover in your UK visit visa application?
When preparing your UK visit visa application, you should focus on what the visit visa rules require. Each case is unique, and there is no specified evidence that can be provided.
However, an applicant should try and explain if possible, with supporting documents, the following:
- Provide reasons for wanting to come to the UK, with your proposed itinerary.
- Give full details of your family ties in your country of residence.
- Provide evidence of any work, income or economic ties that you have in your home country.
- Give explanations of any other reasons why you will return to your country of residence.
- Provide a snapshot of your financial situation.
- Give a breakdown of the likely cost of your trip.
- Explain how you will be able to afford your trip, or if someone will be paying or contributing to the cost of your trip;
What to do if your visit visa application has been refused?
If your visit visa application has been refused, and you feel that the decision of Entry Clearance Officer is wrong and unfair, you should seek legal advice from a UK Immigration Solicitor who can assess your case.
There are three possible routes to challenge the visit visa refusal.
You can:
- Submit a new application, and deal with the issues raised by the Entry Clearance Officer. It may be that you provided everything, but yet the Entry Clearance Officer wrongly refused the application.
- Appeal to the First Tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum) under human rights grounds.
- Lodge a Judicial Review application, where you ask the court to look at the lawfulness of the visit visa refusal.
Contact WH Solicitors to help you to get a successful UK visit visa or assist you in challenging the refusal of your visit visa.
The contents of this webpage are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended to constitute legal advice. All information is correct as of the date of publication, and any individual or organisation should be careful to seek qualified advice from a specialist immigration lawyer before acting on any of the topics referenced by this content.