UK Visa Without Sponsors 2023: Which Visa Can You Apply For With No Sponsorship And How?

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Updated January 2023

The United Kingdom is a popular country that draws visitors looking to settle down in the country. The UK also issues several visas, and you can easily choose what’s right for you based on your circumstances. However, several visas mandate sponsorship for entry, which may not always be easy to acquire. 

Looking for sponsor-free UK visas? We’ve got you covered. Keep reading to find out what types of UK visas are available without sponsors and how to get them. 

UK visas without sponsors

Visit visas, family visas, and graduate visas do not require a sponsor in the UK.

It is solely the work visas that require sponsorship in the UK. Most work visa, especially long-term ones, requires sponsorship for the application process. This refers to a ‘certificate of sponsorship’ from your employer with information about the role you’ve been offered in the UK. 

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However, for certain visas, this sponsorship is not required. Below are the visas which don’t require a UK sponsor:

Short-term work visas

• Youth Mobility Scheme visa
• Graduate visa

Investor, business development and talent visas

• Innovator visa
• Start-up visa
• Apply for the Global Talent visa

Other work visas 

• UK Ancestry visa
• Get an exempt vignette
• Frontier Worker permit
• British National (Overseas) visa
• Overseas Domestic Worker visa
• Representative of an Overseas Business visa
• Turkish Businessperson visa
• Turkish Worker visa

How to apply for sponsor-free UK visa?

Just like every other visa application, you must apply online. How you apply depends on whether you’re:

• outside the UK and are coming to the UK
• inside the UK and extending your current visa
• inside the UK and switching from a different visa

If you want to change your job or employer, you must apply to update your visa. You can include your partner and children in your application to stay in the UK if they are eligible.