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Immigration Solicitors
Immigration decisions affect families, careers and business plans. Start with your purpose, current permission and immigration history, then identify the UK route and evidence that fit your circumstances.
Sources checked on . This general information does not assess your individual circumstances.
Immigration advice for individuals and businesses
An immigration application is more than choosing a visa name. Where you apply, the permission you already hold, your family circumstances and the work or study you intend to do can all affect the requirements. Rules also change: an older application or a friend’s experience may not be a reliable guide to your position.
Highfin’s existing immigration material covers personal and business matters, including visa applications, sponsorship, settlement, citizenship and challenges to decisions. You can ask the firm to consider your circumstances and confirm whether it can assist with the particular matter. This page does not confirm a retainer or promise an outcome.
Explore the area relevant to your matter
Personal applications and employer sponsorship raise different questions. A worker may need both an eligible sponsored job and their own visa; an employer’s licence alone does not give someone permission to work. For family matters, the sponsor’s immigration status determines whether the family-visa rules or a dependant route may be relevant.
Settlement and British citizenship are separate applications with their own requirements. A route that permits a temporary stay should not be treated as a guarantee of settlement.
What to establish before applying
The official visa checker can help identify entry requirements for a proposed journey, including whether a visa or electronic travel authorisation may be needed. It is a starting point, not an assessment of a complex immigration history.
A useful initial account identifies the application you are considering and any issue that may change the route. Keep the original wording of a refusal or Home Office request: different decisions can have different remedies.
- Your nationality, current location and intended purpose of coming to or staying in the UK.
- Your existing permission, expiry date and any previous applications or refusals.
- Relevant family relationships, job offer, sponsor or course details.
- Any decision, document request or appointment carrying a deadline.
Preparing an enquiry to Highfin
Explain the result you want to achieve and the current stage of the matter. For example, an employer deciding whether to recruit overseas needs a different assessment from a worker with a certificate of sponsorship, or a family responding to a refusal.
Ask about the scope of advice, what evidence should be reviewed and who would be responsible for the work before giving instructions. If there is an approaching deadline, identify it clearly; the enquiry form cannot receive submissions. Do not send highly sensitive documents through the initial enquiry form.
Official guidance
- Costs depend on the route
- Government application charges, the immigration health surcharge where applicable, and any agreed legal fees are separate costs. Exemptions or concessions depend on the application; no private fee quotation is provided here.
- Agree the work before instructing
- Ask Highfin to confirm the proposed work, exclusions, responsibility for documents and applicable VAT or disbursements. The Immigration fees page is also awaiting review.
- A decision is not guaranteed
- The Home Office decides applications. Eligibility, evidence and any relevant exceptions must be assessed for the particular application; advice cannot guarantee approval.
Frequently asked questions
Your questions
Can one visa cover every reason for coming to the UK?
No. Visiting, studying, working and joining family involve different routes and conditions. The purpose of the stay and your personal circumstances determine which requirements need to be considered.
Does a sponsor licence mean a worker already has a visa?
No. The employer’s licence and the worker’s immigration permission are separate. Sponsorship does not guarantee that the worker’s visa application will succeed.
Is settlement the same as citizenship?
No. Indefinite leave to remain is permission to settle in the UK. British citizenship has a separate application and eligibility requirements.
What if an application has been refused?
The decision letter is the starting point. Depending on the decision and your circumstances, an appeal, administrative review or another challenge may be relevant. Do not assume every refusal carries the same remedy or deadline.
Your next step · Immigration
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Enquire about Immigration using the Contact page enquiry section.
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