TL;DR
The UK Standard Visitor visa allows visits of up to 6 months for tourism, family visits, business meetings, or short academic study. The fee is £135 (raised from £127 on 8 April 2026). Long-term visit visas (2, 5, or 10 years) allow repeated 6-month stays. Many nationalities don't need this visa at all and use the £16 Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) instead. No paid work is permitted on either route.
How much does a UK Visitor visa cost?
| Visa type | Fee | Stays |
|---|---|---|
| Standard Visitor (6 months) | £135 | Single trip up to 6 months |
| Long-term visit (2 years) | £432 | Multiple 6-month stays |
| Long-term visit (5 years) | £771 | Multiple 6-month stays |
| Long-term visit (10 years) | £963 | Multiple 6-month stays |
| Marriage / Civil Partnership Visitor | £135 | Up to 6 months for the ceremony |
| Permitted Paid Engagement | £135 | Up to 1 month for specific paid engagements |
The £135 fee was effective from 8 April 2026, up from £127 (gov.uk visa fees). There is no Immigration Health Surcharge on visitor visas.
Long-term visit visas are good value if you visit repeatedly — for instance to see family. The maximum length per individual stay remains 6 months regardless of which long-term option you choose.
Do I need a Visitor visa or just an ETA?
The UK introduced the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) in 2024–2025, rolled out by nationality. As of 2026:
- ETA-required nationalities (~90 countries including all EU/EEA, US, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico): apply for ETA. Cost is £16, valid 2 years for multiple short visits.
- Visa-required nationalities (the rest of the world): apply for the Standard Visitor visa described above.
- Irish citizens and people with the right of abode: no ETA or visa needed.
Check your specific nationality on gov.uk: Check if you need a UK visa. The ETA is approved within minutes for most applicants and is checked at the border like an electronic visa waiver. It does not allow paid work.
What documents do I need?
The standard Visitor visa bundle:
- Valid passport with at least 3 months remaining beyond your planned departure date
- Evidence of funds — typically 3 to 6 months of bank statements showing maintained balance and regular income. As a rough guide, £1,000-£3,000 visible across the application period is reassuring; the precise amount depends on length of stay and whether accommodation is sponsored
- Employment letter stating your role, salary, leave approval and confirmed return date
- Accommodation evidence — hotel bookings, or for family/friend visits, an invitation letter from your UK host plus their proof of address (council tax, utility bill) and immigration status
- Return flight booking (booked but refundable is fine)
- Evidence of ties to your home country — property ownership, ongoing employment, dependents, business interests
- TB test certificate if applying from a listed country for stays over 6 months (rare for standard visitor)
For business visitors: add a letter from the UK company hosting you, the agenda for your meetings/conferences, and any conference registration confirmations.
Use our free Bundler to assemble these into one ordered PDF for upload. Most visit visa applications fit comfortably in the 6 MB UKVCAS or 2 MB VFS Global limits.
How do I prove ties to my home country?
This is the single most common refusal reason for visitor visas: insufficient evidence that you intend to leave the UK at the end of your visit. Strong "ties" evidence includes:
- Stable employment with confirmed return-to-work date and ongoing contract
- Property ownership (title deed, mortgage statement, council tax in your name)
- Family obligations in your home country — dependent children, elderly parents, marriage
- Business interests — company registration, recent tax returns
- Pattern of compliant prior travel — previously visited UK, US, Canada, Australia, Schengen and returned within visa terms
Caseworkers look at the totality of evidence. A young single applicant with no property, no dependents and a recently-started job has weaker ties than someone with a mortgage, family and 5+ years' employment — but the latter still gets refused if the financial evidence is inconsistent.
Can I work on a Visitor visa?
No paid employment is permitted. You can:
- Attend business meetings, conferences, trade fairs, training courses
- Negotiate contracts on behalf of an overseas employer
- Provide brief on-site internal corporate work (not delivering services to UK clients)
- Examine students, give a few lectures (if invited and unpaid)
- Conduct research as an academic visitor
You cannot:
- Take any paid or unpaid job for a UK employer
- Deliver goods or services to UK customers (consultancy, freelancing, anything client-facing)
- Be self-employed in the UK
- Set up a UK business
Permitted Paid Engagement (PPE) is a separate visa category for specific 1-month engagements (lecturing, examining, performing) where you have a written invitation from a UK organisation.
How long can I stay?
The maximum single visit is 6 months. Long-term visit visas (2/5/10 years) don't extend the per-visit length — they save you from re-applying for each visit.
There is no formal rule about how often you can return, but the Home Office takes a dim view of patterns that effectively use the visitor route to live in the UK. Spending more than 180 days in any 12-month rolling period strongly increases the chance of being refused entry at the border on a subsequent visit.
If you want to spend more time in the UK, look at routes that match your purpose: Skilled Worker for work, Family / Spouse for living with a partner, Student for study, or High Potential Individual / Global Talent for high-skilled visas.
What happens if my application is refused?
There is no right of appeal on most Visitor visa refusals. Your options are:
- Re-apply with stronger evidence — no waiting period required, but the previous refusal is on your record and must be disclosed
- Administrative review — only available if the refusal was a caseworker error, not a discretionary judgment
- Judicial review — rare, expensive, and only for procedural unfairness
Common refusal reasons:
- Insufficient evidence of funds or income
- Weak ties to home country (especially for younger applicants)
- Inconsistent information across the application and supporting documents
- Previous immigration breaches anywhere
Refusals are recorded and considered in future applications globally — the UK shares immigration data with several allied countries.
Sources
- gov.uk: Standard Visitor visa
- gov.uk: Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA)
- gov.uk: Visa fees
- gov.uk: Check if you need a UK visa
- gov.uk: Immigration Rules Appendix Visitor
Common questions
- 01
How much does a UK Visitor visa cost in 2026?
The Standard Visitor visa fee is £135 for a single 6-month visit, increased from £127 on 8 April 2026. Long-term visit visas cost £432 (2 years), £771 (5 years), and £963 (10 years), each allowing multiple stays of up to 6 months. There is no Immigration Health Surcharge on visitor visas.
- 02
Do I need a UK Visitor visa or just an ETA?
Nationals of around 90 visa-exempt countries (including most EU/EEA, US, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia) need an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA), not a Visitor visa. ETA costs £16 and is valid for 2 years of multiple short visits. Nationals of all other countries need the Visitor visa.
- 03
What documents do I need for a UK Visitor visa?
Valid passport, evidence of funds to cover your trip and accommodation (typically 3-6 months of bank statements showing £1,000-£3,000+ depending on length of stay), employment letter confirming leave approval and return date, evidence of accommodation (hotel bookings or invitation letter from UK host), return flight booking, and evidence of ties to your home country (job, property, family).
- 04
How long does a UK Visitor visa take to process?
Standard processing is 3 weeks for applications from outside the UK. Priority service costs an additional £500 and reduces this to 5 working days. Super-priority (£1,000) gives a decision the next working day in many overseas application centres.
- 05
Can I work on a UK Visitor visa?
No paid employment is permitted. You can attend business meetings, conferences, training, and short-term internal corporate work for an overseas employer. You cannot work for a UK employer, deliver services to UK customers, or take a paid role of any kind. Breaching this is grounds for refusal of future applications.
- 06
Can I extend a UK Visitor visa?
Generally no — the 6-month maximum stay is firm. Limited extensions are possible only in exceptional circumstances such as medical emergency or to attend a scheduled academic exam. Standard tourism, family visit or business trip purposes do not qualify for extension. Plan your trip to fit within 6 months.