An ancestry visa is a visa that will allow a Commonwealth citizen with ancestral links to the United Kingdom to live in the UK. As such, if your application for an Ancestry Visa is successful, under your conditions of stay you will be allowed to work and study in the UK. You will also be allowed to bring family members to live with you.
There are generally no restrictions under an Ancestry Visa as to the type of work you can undertake. You may wish to work in an employed role for a UK employer or, alternatively, you may want to establish your own business to enable you to work for yourself.
Note also that Ancestry Visa holders must show they can accommodate and financially support themselves, as they are ineligible to access public funds in the UK.
To satisfy the “ancestry” requirement, you must show that you have a grandparent born in any one of the following circumstances:
In the UK, including the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man Before 31 March 1922 in what is now the Republic of Ireland On a British-registered ship or aircraft
Please note that the birth of a grandparent in a British colony or a military base overseas will not make you eligible for an ancestry visa. You can, however, still claim ancestry even if either you or the relevant parent were adopted, or born outside marriage in the UK. That said, UK ancestry cannot be claimed through step-parents.
Had a great experience with Mr Sukhdev Singh. He is very experienced and confident adviser and immigration lawyer. I will highly recommend him and his firm. He will take all the stress away form you and make sure the paperwork is done the right way.
Dev Bhakar
Sukhdev is very well-versed in his area and and has always been very helpful. Throughout he listened to us, advised us, guided us, and provided us with what we sought. Highly recommended, and thank you.
Jasjeet Kaur
Mr Singh has been incredibly helpful and supportive throughout my visa application. His prompt availability and quick responses to my queries has further helped me gather my thoughts and be more organisers throughout my experience with the home office.
Ali
Great services, good intuition and great customer satisfaction and flawless time keeping. definitely refer to anyone and everyone
Stephen E. Anthony
Very good for me and you, I’m surpised how quick it was well done
Twumasi
I am very grateful for your support and hard work. It came to a point where all hope was gone but thank God, your hard work has seen me through. Thank you very much
Nana Adu
Mr. Singh thank you for good job done. finally my application has been granted.God richly bless you.
Joseph Atta Manu
I will greatly recommend Sukhdev. He has been brilliant and always helped me throughout the painstaking process.
Rotimi Akinlade
Professional, quick, responsive and a great service.. Suki was excellent and on point. Suki done application for my wifes overseas spouse visa before, and now he done the extension for spouse visa. Highly recommended.
Haf Rashid
This company during a stressful time, ensured we were in great hands and that was a fact. At the end, the results are brilliant! So grateful.
Kylie Francis
This company was simply amazing. They made a very stressful experience bareable. I would use them again in an instant. Top marks and thank you sooooo much. Steve and Renata.
Steve Bradeley
Other documents may be required depending on your circumstances. Taking professional advice will ensure you compile and submit a comprehensive submission.
In relation to the “work” requirement, you do not have to be working at the time you apply for an Ancestry Visa, but you must have the ability and intention to work in the UK. In other words, you must show with reference to documentation that you genuinely intend to seek work in the UK and have a realistic prospect of finding work.
As such, you will either need the offer of a job from a UK employer or, where you plan to work for yourself, a business plan for self-employment.
There are various reasons why an application for an Ancestry Visa may be refused, for example, where the applicant has failed to prove that they are actively seeking work or where they have been unable to locate their grandparent’s original birth certificate.
However, in the event that your Ancestry Visa application is refused, there is no right of appeal. You will only be able to ask UKVI for an Administrative Review of their decision where you believe that the initial decision was incorrect.
In circumstances where your application has been refused on the basis that you failed to meet the eligibility criteria, or to provide the necessary documentation in support, then the refusal decision is unlikely to be overturned on review.
Take professional advice on your case to understand your options to challenge the Home Office’s decision, or whether a new application or a different immigration route would be appropriate in your circumstances.
To renew your visa, will need to submit an online application prior to expiry of your existing visa, together with your documentation in support. You will also need to include any dependants who are on your current visa, including children who have turned 18 during your stay.
You will be asked to make an appointment at a UKVCAS service point to provide your biometric information. There is a fee of £19.20 for enrolling your biometric information. You can upload any documentation into the online service or, alternatively, have them scanned at your UKVCAS appointment.
If you are applying to extend your visa from within the UK, the application fee is £1,048.
When applying to extend your Ancestry Visa, a decision will usually be made by UKVI within 8 weeks of your application date if using the standard service.
As well as meeting the residence requirement, you must also show that throughout the qualifying period you have been working or genuinely seeking work.
If you do not meet all the necessary requirements for ILR, you can instead apply for an extension to your Ancestry Visa to ensure you retain lawful status.
With ILR, you are also on the route to British citizenship. To apply for citizenship, you must have lived in the UK for 12 months with ILR status, unless you are married to a British citizen or person with UK settled status, in which case you can apply as soon as you attain ILR.
That said, where you were born outside the UK and one or both of your parents are British citizens, you may already be classed as a British citizen by descent. In these circumstances, you will not need to apply to naturalise as a British citizen.
The ancestral route entitles a Commonwealth citizen, who has a grandparent born in the UK, to gain entry to the UK. The visa will permit you to take up or seek employment and eventually settle in the UK. At the end of a five-year period on this visa, you can qualify to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain.
The fee to apply from outside the UK is £516, plus you will be liable to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge (NHS charge) as part of your application. The IHS will be calculated on the basis of how much leave you are granted, at a rate of £624.00 per year per applicant.
The documents could include the following:
Taking professional advice will ensure you compile and submit a comprehensive submission
You will also need to have spent not more than 180 days outside the UK in any of the previous 5 years and demonstrate satisfactory knowledge of the English language and Life in the UK.
You can study while in the UK on an ancestry visa. If you are living in the UK with this visa you can also get married without any additional immigration permissions. You can only apply for an Ancestry Visa from your home country and not from within the UK.
You can apply to extend your visa and stay in the UK for a further 5 years. You must apply before your current visa expires. You can extend this visa as many times as you like, as long as you still meet the eligibility requirements.
You can apply for the Ancestry Visa for more than one time. The visa will be granted for five years. After the completion of five years, the main applicant can apply for the indefinite or for permanent residence. If you leave the UK, your visa will be expired, but you can apply for another from your home country.
