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Academic Visitors

Academic Visitors are a sub-group of the Business Visitor category. To qualify as an Academic Visitor, the applicant must be able to produce evidence that they have been working in a Higher Education Institution overseas, or in the field of their academic expertise immediately before seeking entry to the UK as an Academic Visitor. 

Recent graduates, people on sabbatical leave from private research companies, named researchers on grants, those giving a lecture/ lectures (except for those giving one unpaid lecture, who may be able to enter as a Business Visitor) and sponsored researchers do not qualify as Academic Visitors and should find an alternative immigration route.

Academic Visitors may come to the UK for a maximum of 12 months.

Permissable activities

To qualify as an Academic Visitors, migrants must be:

• a person on leave from an overseas academic institution who wishes to come to the UK to make use of their leave to carry out their own private research (e.g. to carry out research for a book, for example);
• an academic (including doctors) taking part in arranged exchanges e.g. where a university here is collaborating with an overseas university on research and exchanges personnel for some or all of the duration of the project. Any salary should continue to be paid by the academic's own overseas institution;
• an academic coming to share knowledge or experience or to hold informal discussions with UK counterparts (but not conducting research on University hosted projects);
• an academic who is taking part in a single conference or seminar that is not a commercial or non-profit venture
• eminent senior doctors and dentists, (i.e. those considered to be top of their field of expertise) coming to take part in research, teaching or clinical practice.

Academics coming to the University to collaborate with University staff on University-hosted formal research projects are likely to be classed as sponsored researchers and would require a Tier 5 Certificate of Sponsorship.

Restrictions

As well as satisfying immigration officers that they are taking part in one or more of the above permissable activities, those intending to enter the UK as Academic Visitors must also satisfy immigration officers that they:

• only want to visit the United Kingdom for up to twelve months;
• intend to leave the UK at the end of the period of the visit;
• can maintain and accommodate themselves (and any dependants) without using public funds;
• can meet the cost of an onward or return journey;
• will not receive pay from a UK source (although payment of reasonable expenses to cover the cost of travel and subsistance from a UK source is permitted);
• do not intend to live in the UK for extended periods through frequent or successive visits;
• do not intend to take paid or unpaid employment;
• do not intend to produce goods or provide services within the UK;
• do not intend to undertake a course of study;
• are not a child under the age of 18;
• do not intend to marry or form a civil partnership;
• do not intend to give notice of a marriage or civil partnership;
• do not intend to receive private medical treatment;
• are not in transit to a country outside the common travel area.

Application process

Academic Visitors who are not visa nationals and who are coming to the UK for less than six months do not require an Academic Visitor visa in advance of travel to the UK. However, they must announce the purpose of their visit (i.e. as an Academic Visitor) to immigration officers at the UK port of entry and satisfy the immigration officers that they meet the Academic Visitor requirements. If the migrant satisfies immigration officers that they meet the Academic Visitor requirements they will be approved entry to the UK as an Academic Visitor.

Academic Visitors who are visa nationals, or who are not visa nationals but intend to come to the UK for longer than six months, do require a visa in advance of travel to the UK. Academic Visitors who require a visa in advance of travel to the UK can find further information on how to apply for an Academic Visitor visa on the UK Border Agency website.

All Academic Visitors (regardless of whether they require a visa in advance of travel to the UK, or not) will require a letter of invitation from the host department/ college to present with their visa application (for those who require a visa in advance of travel) or to immigration officers at the port of entry (for those who do not require a visa in advance of travel).

The Work Permits Desk has produced an Academic visitor template letter of invitation (42kb) that can be copied onto department/faculty headed paper and amended accordingly. The Work Permits Desk has also produced an Academic visitor (doctors) template letter of invitation (42kb) for eminent senior doctors that can be copied onto department/faculty headed paper and amended accordingly.

Please note that a letter of invitation will not guarantee a successful visa application/ successful entry to the UK. This decision is made solely by immigration officers overseas and/or at the UK port of entry.

Migrants, particularly those who do not require a visa in advance of travel, are strongly advised to raise any queries/concerns with their nearest Visa Application Centre/British Embassy to avoid potention problems at immigration on arrival to the UK.

It is also recommend that if another organisation is providing funding for the visit, that organisation should also be asked to provide similar written assurances to those outlined in the template letters above (otherwise the consulates may try to insist that because there is a 'sponsor' the visitor would require a Tier 5 temporary worker visa).

It is worth noting that some consulates seem unwilling to grant academic visitor visas, regardless of whether or not the person meets the criteria. We therefore recommend that the person checks with the consulate whether the above documents will be sufficient well in advance of travel dates.

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