You will have seen our numerous updates on the ever-changing UK immigration climate this year. In June there have been some more positive announcements that, in theory, should benefit certain employers. This includes the announcement of a new Concierge Service; a Visa Fee Reimbursement Scheme for Scale-Ups; and a fast-track referral route for UK Expansion Worker sponsor licence applications from the Office for Investment (OfI).
In this article, Alex Christen and Jake Hayward provide a round-up of these changes and services, and consider what opportunity may arise for UK businesses, sponsors, and the growing opportunity for small businesses to access global talent more easily.
The new Concierge Service for scale-ups
In an effort to improve the UK’s international competitiveness, on the 9th of June, the Department for Business and Trade (“DBT) made an announcement that the UK will be introducing a Bespoke concierge service (“The Service”). The intention for The Service is to assist companies of the future to grow and stay in the UK in quest to nurture the UK’s first trillion-dollar firm.
The Government has looked to “replicate the successes of other nations like France, Singapore, and the US,” where schemes have been introduced to assist scale-ups with great effect. It appears that inspiration may have been drawn from frameworks like the French Talent Passport – an instrument that aids in streamlining the recruitment of international talent, therefore accelerating the growth of promising businesses. It has been recognised that
“too often innovative companies are forced to prove themselves overseas before they can secure public sector contracts at home – which is why the Business Secretary has been clear that British companies can scale with the support of government.”
This was only emphasised through Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves stating that:
“We are backing the UK’s most ambitious firms to start, scale, and stay here – with the finance, talent and support they need to succeed. Working in partnership with industry, we are making sure Britain is the best place in the world not just to start a business, but to grow a world-leading one.”.
The Service will be developed as it progresses in practice, with particular input from both entrepreneurs and investors. It is not entirely clear what this support will look like in practice and it is not limited to Scale Up sponsors or those looking to apply for a licence under that route, but it has been suggested that it will:
- Help to unlock deals, unblock delays, and create jobs;
- Assist with regulation, access to finance, procurement, other barriers to growth or access to global talent; and
- Generally, tackle issues facing promising firms in the country.
What is of particular interest to us is that in tandem with this announcement, the government has also expressed interest in new measures to boost access to global talent. This comes in the form of two new schemes:
1. Visa fee reimbursement for scale-ups in digital and tech, life sciences, and clean energy; and
2. An OfI fast-track referral for a UK Expansion Worker sponsor licence
Visa fee reimbursement
This grant is being introduced to reduce cost barriers for UK businesses to hire international talent by reimbursing visa fees for eligible hires and their dependents, therefore improving the speed of recruitment and development for sectors integral to the UK’s growth. Qualifying businesses can apply for funding up to £25,000.00 a year, with a maximum award of £5,000.00 for each international hire and their dependants.
Applications are subject to the following eligibility requirements:
- The business must be a UK-based “Scale-Up” operating in at least one of Clean Energy; Life Sciences; and/or Digital and Technologies, as defined in the Industrial Strategy IS-8 Sectors list. The scheme defines ‘Scale-Ups’ as enterprises that achieve “annualised growth rate exceeding 20 per cent in either employment or turnover over a continuous three-year period (the observation period), starting with at least 10 employees at the beginning of this period”;
- Hold a valid UK visa sponsor licence;
- Have already established a presence in the UK. This is defined as including being registered with Companies House or overseas branch with physical presence in the UK;
- Recruit eligible hire(s) under the Skilled Worker, Global Talent, and Scale Up visa routes;
- Pass the Department for Business and Trade’s standard due diligence and assurance checks prior to grant award; and
- Have a valid UK bank account to receive reimbursements.
The opening date of this scheme was the 9th of June 2026, 9:00am, and it will close on the 1st of March 2027, 11:59pm (Midnight). Any application for reimbursement must be registered and submitted through the Grants Hub portal, this will be considered by the DBT. Any costs incurred before the date the application was submitted will not be eligible. Applicants will be informed of the outcome of their application within 30 working days of submission; payment will then be issued afterwards for any successful applications.
Businesses who meet the eligibility criteria are encouraged to consider applying for the scheme given the significant costs savings involved.
Sponsor fast track route from the OfI
In order to establish a new UK branch or subsidiary, many overseas companies may be thinking of applying for a UK Expansion Worker sponsor licence. This is notoriously a hard route to obtain a licence under given the extensive supporting evidence that must be sent with the application, and strict eligibility criteria. However it provides a route to sponsorship where there is no active trading presence in the UK at the point of application (whereas this is a strict requirement for the Skilled Worker route).
To support the ongoing intention to attract talent to UK soil, the OfI has announced that businesses that they are continuing to support may be able to get a faster decision on their UK Expansion Worker sponsor licence from the Home Office. If accepted, processing time may be cut down from the publicised 8 weeks to 10 working days. This is very welcome news for eligible businesses given that the process time for Expansion Worker sponsor licence in practice is far longer.
In order to be eligible, a business must:
- Be receiving ongoing support from the OfI;
- Operate in one of the eight sectors identified as a priority under the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy which can be seen here
- Meet at least one of the following growth criteria:
- Has received at least £1 million venture capital or institutional investment;
- Has committed at least £2 million capital investment for UK expansion; and/or
- Is part of a government-recognised, high-growth programme (for example, the Global Entrepreneur Programme)
Any business that seeks support from the OfI regarding this will be subject to due diligence checks. The business will also be obliged to produce data that will be scrutinised against past business performance and market benchmarks before any referrals are made to the Home Office. Businesses will specifically need to provide:
- A breakdown of UK setup costs, which is explicitly requested to be genuine, well planned and plausible;
- A month-by-month breakdown covering the first 12 months of operational costs related to UK expansion; and
- A forecast and rationale for future revenue in the UK
This new fast track route is a further indictment on the UK’s current intention to nurture and imbed high potential businesses into the economy and in principle provides much needed support for those looking to expand into the UK. However the eligibility criteria and required documents do at first sight seem complex, and specialist advice may still need to be taken for those wishing to make use of the scheme.
How can we help?
If you would like to discuss how these new initiatives may support your business and your recruitment and growth strategies, please feel free to contact our immigration team today.
Alex Christen
Partner
Business Immigration, Employment, Employment Investigations, Equality & Diversity, International
Alex is a Partner in our Employment and Immigration team. Alex leads the business immigration team, successfully supporting companies and individuals with immigration issues, including understandin... Read More
Jake Hayward is a Trainee Solicitor in our Employment and Immigration team. Jake studied both LLB Law and his LPC LLM at Swansea University.... Read More
