5 Essential Criteria of UK High Potential Individual Visa

Sanjay Yadav
[Published 21 Aug, 2024 | 11:24 AM]
About Author - 5 min read
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The UK High Potential Individual Visa is an unsponsored pathway for academically elite overseas graduates and highly skilled seeking to boost their skills and experience in the UK.

The HPI Visa is an elite immigration pathway and the applicants must have received overseas academic qualification at the Degree level from a top global University.

Requirements for UK High Potential Individual Visa

Apart from the five essential criteria that must be fulfilled by the applicants, they are also required to secure seventy points.

1. Educational Criteria

To qualify for the UK HPI Visa, applicants must have received overseas academic qualification at the Degree or Master’s level from a top global University in the last 5 years. The University must be included in the Global Universities List of the Home Office by the date when the degree was conferred.

The list of the qualified institutions abroad is prepared by the Home Office from diverse global ranking systems inclusive of:

• The Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings
• The  Global University Rankings - Higher Education Times
• The Academic Ranking of World Universities

2. English Language Criteria

Applicants are required to possess comprehension and communication skills in the English language at a specified level. This is on par with the CEFR - Common European Framework of Reference for Languages scale. It implies the ability to listen, speak, write, and read at the Intermediate/B1 Level.

HPI Visa applicants can satisfy the criteria for the English language in diverse ways such as IELTS, PTE, etc.

3. Financial Criteria

In order to qualify for the UK HPI Visa, applicants are required to demonstrate that they have the ability to support themselves upon arrival in the UK without depending on public funds.

The implication is that they have to demonstrate cash funds of a minimum of £1,270 while filing the application. Applicants have to prove that they have possessed these funds for at least 28 days or more not beyond 31 days of filing their application.

If the applicant is already living in the UK and applying for transitioning to the HPI Visa, they are not required to demonstrate funds. For this, they must have resided in the UK for at least 1 year.

4. Suitability Criteria

The suitability criteria are inclusive of aspects like immigration history and character. The application will be refused if the suitability criteria are not fulfilled. Part Nine of the Immigration Rules outlines grounds for rejection that must be noted by all the HPI Visa applicants.

Instances include where:

• The presence of the applicant is regarded as not conducive to the public welfare owing to character, conduct, associations, or other factors
• The applicant has been subject to a deportation or exclusion order
• Grounds of criminality are applicable including criminal offences and convictions
• The applicant has offered misrepresentations and false data in their application
• The applicant has earlier violated the immigration rules (excluding the overstay duration that can be ignored as per the immigration rules paragraph 39 E)

Applicants who are residing in the UK already should not have violated immigration laws in the UK and should not be on immigration bail.

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5. Validity Criteria

Prior to the assessment of the eligibility and suitability criteria, the application has to be regarded as valid. The Home Office will assess the application to ensure that the accurate form has been used. It will also confirm the accuracy and relevance of the supporting documents that have been submitted and that payment of accurate fees has been made.

If a caseworker assesses that the validity criteria have not been fulfilled, they have to make a decision if the applicant has to be asked for extra information or just the application. They can also decide to go ahead with the application processing with the existing information.

Further, it is also not permitted for an applicant to have earlier received permission through any of the following:

• The Student Doctorate Extension Scheme
• The Graduate Pathway
• The High Potential Individual Pathway

If you are inclined to apply for UK PR Visa or UK HPI Visa, contact Immigration Experts at the Best UK Immigration Consultants in India - Nationwide Visas.

Read more:- Who is eligible for the Indian Young Professional Scheme Visa?