The UK’s Youth Mobility visa allows eligible young individuals from specific countries to live in the UK for up to two years, or in some cases up to three years, depending on their nationality. It is essentially a cultural exchange programme open to workers who are aged between 18 and 30, or 18 and 35, again depending on their nationality.
The aim of the scheme is to provide opportunities for young people and the visa is available to applicants from the following countries only: Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the Republic of Korea, Hong Kong, Japan, India, Iceland, Monaco, Andorra, Uruguay, Taiwan, or San Marino – as well as British Overseas citizens, British Overseas Territories citizens and British Nationals (Overseas).
Compared with other UK working visas, the scheme offers a more flexible and accessible immigration route for younger workers, as it does not require the applicant to find a sponsor, or to have a job, or to meet salary or skills thresholds in order to be eligible. The visa permits holders to engage in most types of work and employment and also allows for study opportunities.
The Youth Mobility visa offers a streamlined immigration route for young individuals seeking to experience life in the UK. It opens up new opportunities for both personal and professional growth, allowing visa holders to live, work, and study in one of the world’s most dynamic and culturally rich countries. However, it is important to be aware of the specific restrictions, conditions, and limitations associated with this visa. Applicants must meet strict eligibility criteria and financial requirements, and they cannot bring dependants. The application process also becomes more complicated for nationals from certain countries where a ballot system is in place, adding an element of uncertainty and competition.
Despite these challenges, the Youth Mobility visa remains a valuable option for young people eager to broaden their horizons and gain international experience.
The UK has country-based quotas in place for Youth Mobility visas, which means there are a limited number of visas available each year for citizens of each participating country. Any applications in excess of this annual allocation will not be successful, regardless of whether the other criteria are met.
In some countries, due to high demand, applicants will need to enter a ballot before they can apply e.g. in Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Visa holders can live and work freely within the UK. They can undertake most forms of paid or unpaid employment in the UK without the need for a sponsor. The only employment which is forbidden is working as a professional sportsperson or sports coach or as a trainee doctor or dentist (unless they have a primary medical degree from a UK institution that is a recognised or listed body, or an institution approved by the UK Health and Care Professional Council).
Visa holders can also work on a self-employed basis, provided they do not:
Visa holders can study on either a full or part-time basis, although for some courses they may need to obtain an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate.
Visa holders will not be entitled to access public funds while in the UK, to support their studies or for anything else.
To qualify for this visa, applicants must also be able to show that they have a certain amount of savings to support themselves.
Applicants cannot bring any dependants with them and will not qualify for the visa if they have children under the age of 18 who live with them and/or who are financially dependent on them.
For Australians, Canadians, New Zealanders and South Koreans, you are eligible for this visa if you are aged between 18 and 35. To be more specific, you must be aged 18 or over when your visa starts, or 35 or under when you apply for it but you can apply for your visa before you turn 18 or be over 35 when it starts.
For nationals of Andorra, Iceland, Japan, Monaco, San Marino and Uruguay, or if you are a British overseas citizen, British overseas territories citizen or British national (overseas), you are eligible for this visa if you are aged between 18 and 30. Again, you must be aged 18 or over when your visa starts, or 30 or under when you apply for it but you can apply for your visa before you turn 18 or be over 30 when it starts.
If you are from Hong Kong with an SAR passport or from Taiwan, you must first be selected in the Youth Mobility Scheme ballot (see below for more details).
Individuals from India need to apply through the UK’s India Young Professional Scheme (again see below for more details).
With the Youth Mobility visa, you can stay in the UK for a maximum of 24 months. Australians, Canadians and New Zealanders can now extend their visa for an extra 12 months after the initial two-year period.
You can enter the UK at any point while your visa remains valid and are allowed to leave and return to the UK as often as you want for the duration of your visa. If you reach the maximum age of 31 or 35 before your visa expiry date, you can remain in the UK until your visa expires.
The youth mobility route is not a path to settlement; you have to leave the UK before the end of your visa, and you cannot apply again to come to the UK under this scheme.
Apart from the year extension allowed for Australians, Canadians and New Zealanders mentioned above, the Youth Mobility scheme does not allow a visa holder to extend their visa. This means that if a visa holder wants to extend their stay in the UK, they will either need to switch to a different visa route from within the UK or return to their home country to apply for a different visa.
The applicant must have at least £2,530 in cash savings held in either a current or savings account to show that they can support themselves while in the UK. You will need to have had the money available in your account for at least 28 consecutive days and day 28 must be within 31 days of applying for the visa.
You have to be outside the UK to apply for the Youth Mobility visa and apply online using the specified form. Anyone wanting to come to the UK under this route must have applied for and obtained entry clearance from UK Visas and Immigration before arriving in the UK.
After you have completed the form and paid the visa application fee, you will be advised if you need to enrol your biometric information at a visa application centre.
The earliest an application can be submitted for a Youth Mobility visa is 6 months prior to travel. A decision should then be made by UKVI within 3 weeks. It may be possible to pay for a faster decision using one of the priority services, provided these services are available in the country where your application is made. Even though you can apply 6 months before travel, bear in mind that if your application is successful, you will have 90 days from the start date of the visa to enter the UK.
You will need to provide all the following documents in support of your visa application:
How you prove your identity will depend on your nationality and what type of passport you hold. You will normally have to have your photograph and fingerprints taken at a visa application centre. Some applicants might be able to use the ‘UK Immigration: ID Check’ app to scan their identity document.
You may need to provide additional documents depending on your circumstances and nationality as follows (for Hong Kong, Taiwan and India see relevant sections below):
San Marino nationals: The applicant must provide a letter confirming the applicant is a suitable candidate for the Youth Mobility Scheme from the Directorate of Political and Diplomatic Affairs of the Republic of San Marino Department of Foreign Affairs that has been issued no more than 6 months before the date of application.
Iceland nationals: The applicant must provide a Criminal Certificate for Private Use that has been issued no more than 6 months before the date of application.
Andorra nationals: The applicant must provide a certificate of criminal records issued no more than 6 months before the date of application.
Uruguay nationals: The applicant must provide a Certificate of Judicial Records that has been issued no more than 6 months before the date of application.
The cost of applying for a youth mobility visa is £298. There will be an additional cost if using one of the priority services to get a faster decision. If priority service is available, you can either pay £500 for a decision within 5 working days from the biometrics appointment or £1000 for the super priority service for a decision within 24 hours of the biometric appointment.
You will also need to pay the immigration health surcharge as part of your application at a discounted rate of £776 per year of visa. This is always paid upfront and allows the successful visa holder to access the NHS in the UK for the duration of their stay.
The ballot is used because the number of applicants from Hong Kong and Taiwan is far in excess of the annual quota. The ballot process is used to ensure a fair distribution of the visa slots available to young people from countries with high demand.
The ballot for the Youth Mobility Visa normally opens twice a year, in February and July for a short 48-hour period during which applicants must submit their expressions of interest online. Once the ballot closes, successful applicants are then chosen at random. The results of the ballot are final, and there is no process for appealing the decision. All eligible applicants have an equal chance of being chosen.
To enter the ballot, you need to visit the relevant part of the UK government website during the open ballot period. You will need to provide basic personal information about yourself and confirm your eligibility for the visa. You should make sure that you have all your personal details and necessary documents ready such as your passport number and proof of available funds.
After you have submitted your expression of interest, you will receive an email confirming your unique reference number which you must keep for your records.
The results of the ballot are normally announced a few weeks after the closing date. If you are successful, you will receive an email with instructions on how to proceed with your visa application within a specified timeframe. It is important to comply with the visa application deadline, as otherwise you will lose your place.
If you are not successful, you can always try again with the next ballot as long as you remain eligible for the visa.
The India Young Professionals Scheme (IYPS) visa allows Indian nationals aged between 18 and 30 to live and work in the UK for up to two years, providing an opportunity for professional development and cultural exchange. This visa programme is designed to strengthen ties between India and the UK by offering young professionals valuable international experience.
The scheme has the same conditions as the Youth Mobility Scheme for other eligible countries apart from the following differences/additional conditions:
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