Moving to the UK from Germany

You must provide evidence by compiling the required documents for the UK Home Office’s application process to determine whether you meet the eligibility criteria for migrating to the United Kingdom, such as sufficient financial means. Once you have completed your UK visa application online, you may need to attend an interview and/or biometric data appointment at a UK visa application centre.

At Total Law, we can help you navigate any changes and ensure the best possible chance of success. If you have any questions about UK immigration, including applying for a UK visa in Germany that you require, our team is happy to assist. We can also help with urgent visa applications reducing the processing time if you need to travel urgently.

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If you wish to emigrate to the UK from Germany, you should be aware of the points-based system. The system measures whether or not an applicant will qualify for certain UK visas (mostly pertaining to work visas).

You can gain points on the points-based system by:

• Receiving an offer of a job from a UK company that can offer sponsorship (20 points)
• Your prospective job is at the appropriate skill level for the role (20 points)
• Your English language ability is at least at the level of B1 (10 points)

These points, in particular, comprise your mandatory 50 points to be eligible for most visas. However, to take the Skilled Worker visa as an example, you must score at least 70 points on this system to successfully apply for it.

Other factors that may help you gain points include the academic level of your qualifications and meeting a minimum salary threshold at your new job.

Moving to the UK from Germany for Work

The Skilled Worker visa is the most common work visa for those hoping to reside in the UK long-term. It is available for those with the appropriate skills to be employed by a valid UK employer with a sponsorship licence.

As with many other visas, you will need to prove you meet the skill expectancy, demonstrate a minimum level of proficiency in speaking English, and prove you can financially sustain yourself during your stay in the United Kingdom.

Other types of work visas that may be available depending on if you meet the more specialised criteria include:

• Health and Care Worker Visa
• International Sportsperson Visa
• Minister of Religion Visa (T2)
• Scale-up Worker Visa
• Frontier Worker Permit
• Innovator Founder Visa

These visas offer long-term residency in the UK, though temporary work visas for specific cases are available.

Temporary Work in the UK from Germany

Temporary work visas in the UK include the Seasonal Worker Visa, Religious Worker Visa, and Youth Mobility Scheme Visa for 18-30 (for some countries, this can vary: 18-29 or 18-35).

Another category of work visa exists for those working for a company overseas that has a branch in the UK: the Global Business Mobility Visa. This visa may help you live and work in the UK for some years and can be extended.

However, you should be aware that these generally do not allow for a pathway to apply for settled status. These visas include:

• Senior or Specialist Worker Visa
• Overseas Domestic Worker Visa
• Graduate Trainee Visa
• Secondment Worker Visa
• Service Supplier Visa
• UK Expansion Worker Visa

On a Family Visa, you can move to the UK to join family members for more than 6 months. This category permits partners, children, or parents to join their family in the UK. The standard visa application fee for a Family Visa, including Spouse Visas, is £1,938 per person if applying from outside the UK and £1,321 if applying from within, excluding the mandatory healthcare surcharge of £1035 per adult and £776 per child or student.

This visa will typically only be available if the family member you are hoping to join in the UK is a British citizen or has settled status and is not only in the country temporarily, such as on a temporary worker or student visa. In this case, you will need to apply for a visitor visa to visit them, or you will need to apply separately for an eligible visa. Some visa types permit dependents, like the Skilled Worker Visa. If you wish to stay with them, you may apply to be added as a dependent on their visa.

The Spouse Visa is commonly applied for if you have an eligible partner in the UK. You must be able to offer substantial proof about the state of your relationship, such as having been together for at least 2 years before applying or can prove you will get married within 6 months of your arrival in the country. Other requirements include being able to financially sustain yourself and having access to suitable accommodation.

There are some special circumstances under which you could also apply if you do not meet the eligibility criteria, such as having a child living who is a British citizen and has lived there for at least 7 years.

You may stay for up to 33 months on this visa (or just the 6 months if applying as a fiancé), though you may extend this visa for 30 months.

If you wish to permanently reside in the UK with fewer conditions on your immigration status, you will need to qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain (permanent settlement).

If you wish to apply for settlement status, you must pay a fee of £3,029 per person and have your biometric information taken. You must present all valid information about yourself and inform the immigration authorities of any changes to your visa status. You should expect a response in approximately six months.

If you receive Indefinite Leave to Remain status, you may apply for British Citizenship after a further 12 months in the UK.

Indefinite Leave to Remain Through Work Visa Route

The most common way to apply is to meet the condition of having lived and worked for at least 5 years in the UK, though this can be as short as 3 years if you have been in the UK on an Innovator Founder Visa; the Global Talent Visa, or still possess an old Tier 1 Visa.

Indefinite Leave to Remain Through Relationship

Other ways you may apply for settlement include having a family member with settlement status in the UK; this may apply whether they are British citizens or have Indefinite Leave to Remain status. You may apply even if you are dependent on your partner’s or parent’s worker visa and they are also planning on applying for settlement status.

ILR – 10 year route

You may apply for settlement if you have lived in the UK for at least 10 years and meet additional criteria such as no criminal convictions or violations of your immigration status, no extended stays outside the UK exceeding 180 days in 12 months, and can demonstrably speak and write English and can financially sustain yourself. A required component is also passing the Life in the UK Test.

To apply for a Student visa, you must be at least 16 years of age, be able to speak English, have received an offer for a course of study by a licensed student sponsor, and sustain yourself financially during your stay in the UK. You should know that most UK degree courses require you to be at least 18 to apply, and if you are under this age, you must have parental consent to be able to apply.

You may apply for such studies at 16 as college and foundation courses at institutions offering them to minors who wish to continue to a 3+ year degree course. In such cases, your student visa may be extended to accommodate the entire length of your study.

You can apply up to 6 months before the start of the course of study if you apply from Germany and expect a response in 3 weeks or 3 months if you apply from within the United Kingdom with a response time of 8 weeks. The fee to apply will be £524.

You should be aware that there are restrictions on the amount of work an international student can undertake within the UK while on a student visa, so you may be expected to live off of savings or family support during the time you study. You may be expected to present proof of this during the application period.

When you graduate from a university in the UK while on a Student visa, you may have the option of switching your visa to a Graduate visa, allowing you to stay in the UK for 2 years without being legally required to work full-time. Should you wish to stay longer than these 2 years, you must find work during this time and apply for a work visa, such as a Skilled Worker visa. This will allow you to apply for settlement down the line.

You can now get dual citizenship in the UK and Germany, following the new law in 2024. If you should seek to gain British citizenship by staying in the UK long enough to gain settlement status and stay for a further 12 months to be eligible to apply, you may choose to retain your German citizenship and hold a passport for both nations.

Your asylum claim is less likely to be successful should you apply from an EU nation or ‘safe third country’, of which Germany is both. You may apply specifically to reunite if you have family in the UK. However, this will be at the subjective discretion of the UK immigration authorities’ decision. If your partner or child has asylum status in the UK and you are living in Germany, you may be able to join them under Family Reunification.