Will 2025 Mark a New Start for the UK Investor Visas?
For some months, UK Immigration Lawyers have speculated that the UK government will introduce an Investor Visa. The speculation has intensified with the financial uncertainty created by US tariffs and the UK government's acknowledgement that incentives are needed to attract the brightest and best to settle in the UK.
Contact London-based OTS Solicitors for immigration legal advice.
The old Tier 1 Investor Visa route.
The old Tier 1 Investor Visa allowed high net worth individuals to enter the UK and apply for accelerated settlement, but the timescales for Indefinite Leave to Remain (and therefore British citizenship) depended on the size of the investment:
- £2 million investment meant the Investor Visa holder was eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain after meeting a residence requirement of five years.
- £5 million investment and the Investor Visa holder became eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain after meeting a residence requirement of three years.
- £10 million investment and the Investor Visa holder was able to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain after meeting a residence requirement of two years.
The Tier 1 Investor Visa closed to new applicants in 2022.
Many UK Immigration Solicitors regretted its closure because, unlike visas such as the Innovator Founder Visa, the rules were relatively simple. The immigration rules required an investor to invest in the UK in accordance with the investment rules. If those requirements were met, the visa applicant could obtain a visa and apply for accelerated settlement.
Critics of the Investor Visa argued that:
- Entry clearance based primarily on financial wealth was enabling individuals to purchase British citizenship.
- Accelerated British citizenship was offered based on the size of the investment, rather than any other criteria.
- Some high-profile individuals granted British citizenship after entering on the Investor Visa have evoked strong public criticism of the route due to concerns about the sources of their funds.
- The visa applicant’s money had to be invested in accordance with the immigration rules. However, economists and others argued that changes to the rules and a requirement to invest in UK businesses would be of greater benefit to the UK economy and to the growth of UK businesses.
Calls for a repurposed 2025 Investor Visa
Grumblings about the lack of a UK Investor Visa route have centred on:
- Countries competing for the brightest and best have Investor Visas to attract high-net-worth individuals to their shores.
- UK Business Visas are restricted and require endorsement from a third party, as well as approval from the Home Office. The business must meet strict eligibility criteria to comply with the rules and continue to meet rigorous growth criteria if the visa applicant wishes to extend their visa or apply to settle in the UK.
- The need to grow the UK economy requires overseas money specifically targeted at UK companies.
- The current global political climate and the imposition of US tariffs create opportunities for the UK that could be exploited by attracting overseas entrepreneurs with money to invest in the UK economy.
Is 2025 the time for a new Investor Visa?
Some argue that the 2022 closure of the Investor Visa was wrong, as all that was required to boost the UK economy and ensure the Investor Visa brought benefits to the UK was a change to the investment rules. There is now a growing call for a new Investor Visa, but one that’s fit for purpose through:
- Requiring positive at-risk investment
- Ensuring that visa applicants are required to invest in key sectors of the UK economy and growth areas, such as clean energy, artificial intelligence, or the life sciences.
- More rigorous checking processes and due diligence requirements for visa applicants.
New Investor Visa requirements
If the UK government decides to reinvent the Investor Visa, UK Immigration Lawyers hope that a carefully thought-out strategy underlies the 2025 Investor Visa immigration rules and the visa's intended objectives. Knowing what went wrong in the past should hopefully focus efforts on:
- Due diligence – to ensure that the source of funds for Investor Visa applicants is rigorously vetted and verified.
- UK and sector-focused investments.
- Balancing accelerated settlement with the benefits of the Investor Visa scheme to the UK.
Many Immigration Solicitors accept that with the old Tier 1 Investor Visa, the Home Office lost sight of these three imperatives and ultimately lost the battle of public opinion to retain the scheme. The politics of UK migration have got tougher since 2022. Therefore, it is even more critical that the new Investor Visa isn't a quick fix, but a measured and targeted solution that matches overseas investment with the pull of British citizenship, combined with strict requirements to invest in key growth areas of the UK economy.
There is an idiom, ‘’you don’t get something for nothing’’ but with the old Tier 1 Investor Visa the general public were swayed into thinking that the UK was getting very little in return for the accelerated British citizenship of high net worth individuals who may not have qualified for a UK visa under other routes or who would not have wanted the commitment of work under a Skilled Worker Visa or the management commitment under a Business Visa.
2025 is the time to re-examine the balance between the British citizenship on offer with an Investor Visa and what can be achieved through the investor’s targeted and entrepreneurial investment in the UK. We will hopefully end up a long way from accelerated settlement and British citizenship for investment in government bonds, and instead make overseas money work for the prize of a UK visa and British citizenship after a prescribed residence requirement and strict investment rules have been met.
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