The UK Entrepreneurship and Exceptional Talent Visas are somewhat alike but actually different in terms of the requirements needed to get the Visa. Right off the bat, the Entrepreneurship Visa is somewhat pricey to apply for but if you’ve got your money right – you can get this Visa. The Tier 1 Entrepreneur Visa is a visa scheme that allows international business people with access to between £50,000 and £200,000 in funds available for investment to enter the UK in order to start or takeover a business solely or as a partner while the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent Visa is a visa scheme that allows exceptionally talented people in different fields to come work, live and create businesses, startups, products or services that will boost the UK economy. There must be some type of entrepreneurial spark or willingness to “create” within both applicant as both Visa are for creators and innovators, in my humble opinion. I currently hold the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent Visa under Tech Nation and if you want to learn how I got my endorsement, you should check out my post “How I Got and How To Get A UK Tech Nation Exceptional Talent Visa Endorsement” . I woke up today and felt like comparing both with a sole aim of helping someone in the research stage.
Tier 1 Entrepreneurship vs Exceptional Talent Visa.
These are the things I feel are important to compare, there are obviously more things to compare between each Visa but these ones I have tackled below standouts and are more important to note in my opinion.
1. Application Fees.
The current application fee for the Tier 1 Entrepreneurship Visa is £1,277 if applying outside the UK and £1,021 if applying within the UK while the application fee for the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent Visa is £608 (£456 for stage 1 and £152 for stage 2) [This prices were last checked on 12/07/208] The application fee for each are far apart. It is cheaper to apply for the exceptional talent Visa but it is obviously much harder to get this visa compared to the entrepreneur visa. The price range are not too far from one another. I am assuming anyone in the process of applying to move to the UK must have some money in the bank to handle all the expenses and future expenses the application process will entail.
2. How Long Does It Take?
The Tier 1 Exceptional Talent Visa takes a much longer time to get. The first stage for endorsement can take up to 8weeks and if successful, the second stage can take up to 3weeks which adds up to possible 11weeks of wait. (Mind you, you can get your decisions faster but those are the advised times by the Home Office) The Tier 1 Entrepreneurship Visa only takes up to 3 weeks to get your decision.
3. Length of Years Granted.
If successful, you can get up to 5years and 4months under the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent visa but only 3years if successful under the Entrepreneurship Visa. You can apply to extend both Visas but since you can apply for indefinite leave to remain if you’ve been in the UK for 5 years, the Exceptional Talent Visa is stronger here because you would need to apply for 2 years extension for the entrepreneurship visa and then apply for indefinite leave to remain after 5 years. Its still the same anyways but there would be a cost when you want to apply for an additional 2years after your 3years has been exhausted under the entrepreneurship visa, this is avoided under the exceptional talent visa. The good thing though is that both Visas can lead towards getting an indefinite leave to remain in the UK.
4. Residency.
As stated above, with the Tier 1 exceptional talent visa, after your 5 years, its straight forward to apply to get indefinite leave to remain and for the Tier 1 Entrepreneurship Visa, you will need to apply for an additional 2 years extension after your 3 years has been exhausted. Both leads to indefinite leave to remain and residency. Since you don’t need to extend but rather apply for residency for the exceptional talent visa, things are straight forward. However, to apply to extend your Visa under the entrepreneurship visa, things get a little bit interesting. You can apply to extend if you:
- meet the eligibility requirements
- registered as a director or as self-employed no more than 6 months after the date you were given permission to stay in the UK under a Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa
- can prove you’ve been self-employed, a member of a partnership or working as a director of a business 3 months before you apply
- created at least 2 full time jobs that have existed for at least 12 months
You must also have invested into 1 or more UK businesses either:
- £200,000 in cash
- £50,000 in cash if your initial application was based on having funds from an approved funding source
5. Dependants.
No one should be allowed to stay alone, both Visas allows you to bring dependants (your partner and/or your child). The dependants under the Tier 1 Entrepreneurship Visa have to also show proof of funds showing they can live in the UK while dependants under the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent do not need to show this.
6. Work Freedom.
Both Visas allows you to work, that’s a good thing. However, the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent Visa has more freedom. Under the exceptional talent Visa, you can work for yourself, for an employer or do voluntary work but the Entrepreneurship Visa only allows you to be take over or set up a business, be self employed (has some conditions) and you cannot be employed to a company – you have either run or takeover a business. Obviously, since you are getting an Entrepreneurship Visa, you will not be working for another company. As an exceptional talent, you can work under any company of your choice
7. Requirements To Apply.
It is safe to say that the requirements to apply for the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent Visa is crazier than the Entrepreneurship Visa. For you to get a Visa saying you a “World Leading Exceptional Talent”, a lot has to go into it, this is why it is splitted into 2 stages instead of 1 visa stage like the latter. The stage one for the Exceptional Talent Visa is basically a stage where you are applying to get endorsed by the competent body that has been assigned by the Home Office to be in charge of sorting out and bringing in exceptionally talented people in various fields. If you are into tech and would like to know the requirements for the stage one, be sure to check this post of mine. The second stage is as simple as only applying for your Visa with the endorsement letter gotten, your passport and maybe a Tuberculosis test result if you are from a country where that is required. It is as simple as that. Since the entrepreneurship Visa is centered around the fact that you are coming to put some money into a business to boost the UK economy, one of the most important requirements is showing proof of access to £50,000 or £200,000 that is disposable to the business. You would also need to show proficiency in English language which you don’t have to show for the Exceptional Talent Visa and also show that you can support yourself during your stay in the UK – which you don’t also have to show for the Tier1 Exceptional Talent Visa. These are my comparisons, are you currently thinking of applying for either of them? Lets talk in the comment section if you have any addition or want to add to the post.
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