What Founders Have To Expect In the UK’s Entrepreneur Visa Interview

by: Damon Culbert

Published on: March 15, 2018

If you’re applying for the Tier 1 Entrepreneur visa to bring your business to the UK, you’ll have to successfully pass an interview with a Home Office official. As leading experts and advisors to UK immigration solicitors, the Immigration Advice Service offers personal and exceptional advice on how to gain your Tier 1 visa. This article will give you some ideas about questions to expect and what you need to know to answer them.

Before applying for the Tier 1 Entrepreneur visa, it is important to note that the interview is just one part of a long and complex application. Seeking the advice of an experienced, specialist immigration solicitor is highly recommended.

Qualifications & Experience

The Home Office will want to know why you’re the right person to start or take over this business. Proving that your past experiences are relevant to the position is very important. They will be looking for previous experience in the industry that you’re going into, as well as relevant skills that will make your business a success. Consider specific, industry-related skills as well as general, transferable skills to sell yourself in the best possible way.

Your Business Plan

An important question to have the answer to is who wrote the business plan? The Home Office specialises in spotting genuine applications, so you will need to know your business plan inside and out. Your business plan will most likely be created with the help of other professionals, but you need to be able to answer any question given to you about every detail. The interviewer will also want to know about the location of your business, as well as how many employees and clients you have. These questions assess your understanding of UK employment laws.

The ‘Genuine Entrepreneur’ Test

The ‘genuine entrepreneur’ test shouldn’t worry you if you are a real entrepreneur. But the Home Office will expect you to have a lot of research about your business and the industry you are moving in to. Questions such as what are your financial projections? or how did you gather the investment for your application? are asked to make sure that you are aware of the necessary steps to making a successful business in the UK. Making sure that you have as much documentation on the accounts, investment, and your own savings to support yourself will also help you greatly in achieving a successful application.

Motivation

Why have you chosen the UK? Have you considered any other countries? This is another way of testing your research, as well as the authenticity of your application. These questions should be covered in the research of your business plan. It is important to know the answers and have them ready to show you know your stuff.

Some of the documentation you will need:

A current passport or other valid travel identification
Evidence of the investment funds available to you
A business plan
Evidence that you can support yourself during your stay
Proof that you meet the English language requirement
Your tuberculosis test results (if you’re from a country where you have to take the test)
A criminal record certificate from any country you have stayed in for a total of 12 months or more over the last 10 years

To get professional advice on your application for a Tier 1 Entrepreneur visa, you can contact the Immigration Advice Service to speak directly to a qualified immigration lawyer.

_________

Sharing is caring!