If you have a business established overseas and you are willing to expand your business, then take advantage of the UK’s lucrative economy. You can establish a wholly-owned business or a subsidiary without having to disburse huge amounts of money.
What you need is a Sole representative to send to the UK to set up and run a branch or subsidiary on behalf of the overseas business.
The question comes, who is a sole representative?
If you are a business firm abroad, a sole representative is an individual who you would be sending to the UK to set up a business branch on your behalf.
This Sole representative is considered to be a senior person in the organization, in most cases it is a senior at a managerial level or HR manager.
If you are a media or broadcasting firm, then the sole representative will be replaced by a ‘Media Representative’. Both will have a similar role to play.
Let’s have a look at the eligibility needed to be a sole representative.
First and foremost, you need to be a senior manager in an overseas organization, who is actively trading outside the UK.
Secondly, you must not be possessing major shares of the overseas business.
Thirdly, you must be in full time employment with the overseas company.
Fourthly, you meet all the requirements to take independent decisions on behalf of the overseas company. You can also prove that you have A1 level of proficiency in English Language. You will be exempted if you belong to any country where English is a first language.
And lastly, you must have enough finances to accommodate yourself in the UK.
What are the key benefits of this role as a Sole Representative?
A sole representative must obtain a sole representative visa or an overseas business visa in order to move to the UK to set up a branch of an overseas company.
This opportunity is beneficial in many ways, such as:
You do not need a giant investment at the start, a small business branch would be enough to begin with.
You can bring your dependents along with you on a Sole representative visa.
This overseas business visa route is a direct pathway to British citizenship.
The Visa allows you to stay in the Uk for 3 years initially and is further extendable to 2 more years.
Once you complete 5 years you can apply for ILR or Indefinite Leave to Remain UK.
How to make an application?
You need to apply online and pay a fee of £610 for applying from outside the UK.
If you choose to apply from within the UK, you must pay £704 for the visa and
£19.20 to have your biometric process done.
You need to wait for at least 8 weeks before the Home Office decides on your application.
You can take legal assistance from immigration specialists who can guide you through the process and update you with Home offices information on your visa application.
Get in touch with A Y & J Solicitors for bespoke immigration service and assistance.
If you have a legal blog then you can share your content with us, here is our write for us legal guidelines.