UK Residency through Business Visa

The UK’s direct immigration options are expensive and can be complex. The Tier 1 investor visa programme requires a substantial investment of £2,000,000 + costs. Like many countries, there is an alternative way to gain access to the UK by firstly investing in another country – Turkey.

Turkey’s Citizenship by Investment programme has a unique attraction that many other Golden Visa programmes do not offer. The Ankara Agreement between Turkey and the EEC permits Turkish nationals to apply for a Turkish Businessperson Visa, which allows them to reside in the UK.

Applicants must either start a new business in the UK or help to run an existing UK business. This visa is initially granted for a 12 month period with an option to later extend for a further 3 years. It is also possible to apply for indefinite leave to remain in the UK after one has resided there for 5 years. The initial application takes just 12 weeks.

The Turkish Businessperson visa has no fixed costs associated to the programme, however, applicants will be required to provide a detailed business plan, evidence of their business premises, HMRC documents and evidence of funds; proving they can financially support themselves and the business. The main applicant can also include their dependent and spouse, allowing the whole family to reside in the UK. This is a great lower cost solution for those wishing to relocate to the UK.

Applicants must firstly apply for their Turkish passport making a minimum real estate investment of $250,000 + costs. The citizenship application can be processed within three months. Following approval,  applicants can then apply for the Turkish Businessperson Visa in the UK. Based on these average processing times, it will take approximately six months to gain both Turkish Citizenship and the UK business Visa, making the entire process fast and cost-effective compared with other direct UK immigration routes. Due to the Brexit transition period, we urge applicants considering this route to act promptly. Applications submitted before 31st December 2020 will still be processed. 

For more details on the programme and how La Vida can assist, please contact our team.

**Update Jan 2021 – The Turkish Businessperson visa in the UK has now closed following the UK’s departure from the EU.