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UK Creative Worker Visa

The Creative Worker visa is for overseas artists, entertainers and other creative professionals coming to the UK for sponsored temporary work.

 

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What is the UK Creative Worker Visa?

The Creative Worker visa is a temporary work visa for foreign nationals who want to work in the UK’s creative sector. It is for people who can make a unique contribution to the UK’s creative life, such as an artist, dancer, musician, entertainer, or model contributing to the UK’s fashion industry.

The Creative Worker Visa is a sponsored route. This means that before applying, you will need a job offer from a licensed sponsor and a valid Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS).

The visa normally lasts for the sponsored work period, with a little extra time before and after it, but the initial grant cannot exceed 12 months in total. For an applicant with a single creative engagement in the UK, this means that the visa duration is normally the length of the job on the Certificate of Sponsorship plus up to 14 days before and 14 days after, or 12 months, whichever is shorter.

The Creative Worker Visa route does not lead to settlement in the UK, but it can be extended. A dependent partner and dependent children can also apply on this route. If a person is already in the UK on a different visa, they cannot switch into the Creative Worker route. Instead, they must apply from outside the UK or use the concession route if they qualify.

On a Creative Worker visa, a person can work in the job they are sponsored for, do supplementary employment, and study. A person cannot access public funds or fill a permanent position, even temporarily.

Creative Worker visa requirements

Creative Worker visa requirements for applicants

To qualify for a Creative Worker visa, you must:

    • Make a unique contribution to creative life in the UK: Your sponsor must show the role appears in Appendix Skilled Occupations and that you will make a unique contribution to the UK’s creative life. For example, this can be demonstrated by showing that you are internationally renowned or are required for continuity.
    • Have been offered an eligible Creative Worker job and have a valid Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS): The CoS must have been issued no more than three months before the date of application.
    • Genuinely intend, and be able, to do the sponsored role: You must not intend to take other employment except where permitted.
    • Be paid at least the appropriate minimum rate, unless you are a model, musician or circus performer: The applicable rate is normally set by Equity, PACT or BECTU. It can vary depending on the occupation, type of production and, in some cases, the production budget or working arrangements. National Minimum Wage rules must also be met where applicable.
    • Have at least £1,270 in savings for a consecutive 28-day period ending no more than 31 days before applying for the visa, unless you are exempt.

Creative Worker visa requirements for sponsors

To sponsor a Creative Worker, an employer must:

  • Have a current valid sponsor licence: and be authorised by the Home Office to sponsor the job under the Creative Worker route.
  • Demonstrate that the role complies with the relevant Code of Practice: A Creative Worker visa Code of Practice is a set of Home Office rules that tells a sponsor how to recruit for a specific creative role before hiring someone from abroad.  There are Codes of Practice for seven areas: ballet, dancers in dance forms other than ballet, performers in film and television, performers in opera, performers in theatre, workers in film and television, and models in the fashion industry. Where a relevant Code exists, the sponsor must comply with it; where there is no Code, different eligibility requirements apply.
  • Not use the route to fill a permanent position: including on a temporary basis, and
  • Make sure the job pays sufficiently: at least the National Minimum Wage and adheres to the UK Working Time Regulations.

What is the Creative Worker visa concession route?

The Creative Worker visa concession route allows certain people to enter the UK for a short creative engagement without first obtaining entry clearance. It can be used as long as you:

  • Have a valid certificate of sponsorship
  • Otherwise meet the requirements to be granted permission as a Creative Worker
  • Are coming to work in the UK for 3 months or less, and
  • Do not normally need a visa to enter the UK as a visitor

Depending on your nationality, you may not need a visa if you are eligible for the concession route, but you may still need an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) before travelling to the UK.

Can you extend a Creative Worker visa?

You can extend a Creative Worker visa. You must apply before your current visa expires, be physically present in the UK when you apply, and continue to meet all standard eligibility requirements. How long the visa can be extended depends on whether the applicant stays with the same sponsor or moves to a new one:

  • When extending with the same sponsor: You can extend by up to 12 months at a time, but not beyond the period on your new Certificate of Sponsorship plus 14 days or the overall 24-month maximum for this route, whichever is shorter. For example, if a musician has already spent 20 months in the UK as a Creative Worker, she can only extend her visa by 4 months, because the route has a 24-month limit and only 4 months are left.
  • When extending with a new sponsor: Your extension is capped at the duration of your new CoS plus 14 days, or remaining time within the standard 12-month maximum for this route, whichever is shorter. A person who has already spent 12 months on the Creative Worker route cannot extend further by changing sponsor. They will need to apply for a fresh visa from outside the UK if they want to continue.

If you originally entered under the Creative Worker visa concession, you cannot extend it because the route does not allow extension.

How to apply for a Creative Worker visa

To apply for a creative worker visa, you will need to complete the following steps:

  1. Apply online: If this is your first application for a Creative Worker Visa and you are applying from outside the UK, you will need to complete the online Creative Worker visa application form. If you are extending an existing visa from inside the UK, complete the Creative Worker visa: Extend your visa application form.
  2. Pay the fee: The visa application fee and the Health Surcharge are paid as part of the application.
  3. Verify identity: Depending on circumstances, you may be able to use the UK Immigration: ID Check app or attends in-person biometrics at a visa application centre.
  4. Wait for a decision: A decision is usually made within 3 weeks for applications from outside the UK, and 8 weeks for applications from inside the UK. When you apply you may be offered the option to pay for a faster decision.

You can apply up to three months before your expected start date.

What documents do I need to submit for a Creative Worker visa?

As a Creative Worker visa applicant, you will normally need to provide the following information:

  • A valid passport or other travel document
  • Certificate of Sponsorship reference number
  • Evidence of funds of at least £1,270, unless the sponsor certifies maintenance or the applicant is exempt
  • A valid tuberculosis test certificate, if from a country where this is required

However, there may be additional documents you need to provide or will be requested by the Home Office, depending on your specific circumstances.

 

References:

GOV.UK: Creative Worker visa (Temporary Work)

GOV.UK: Worker and Temporary Workers: guidance for sponsors: sponsor a Creative Worker

GOV.UK: Immigration Rules Appendix Temporary Work – Creative Worker

FAQs about Creative Worker visa.

There is no English language requirement for the Creative Worker visa.

Yes, you can work for your sponsor in the job on your Certificate of Sponsorship, and you can also do a second job for up to 20 hours per week. That second job must either be in the same sector and at the same level as your main job, or be a role on the Skilled Worker immigration salary list. You cannot start your own business. Where you have consecutive engagements with different sponsors, each sponsor must assign its own Certificate of Sponsorship.

Yes, entertainment staff, including the personal or technical staff or members of the production team of an artist, entertainer or musician, can be sponsored on the Creative Worker route. They must attend the same event as the artist, entertainer, or musician they support.

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