Immigration Rules

From:
Home Office
Published
25 February 2016
Updated:
30 January 2023, see all updates
  1. Contents

Immigration Rules Appendix Visitor: Permitted Activities

Permitted Activities for Visitors

  1. PA 1. Visitors are permitted to undertake the following activities:
Visitor type Visitors of this type can
(a) Standard Visitor do all permitted activities in Appendix Visitor: Permitted Activities, except Visitors under the Approved Destination Status Agreement may only do the activities in PA 2(a).
(b) Marriage/Civil Partnership Visitor marry or form a civil partnership, or give notice of marriage or civil partnership and do all permitted activities in Appendix Visitor: Permitted Activities, other than study as described in PA 17.
(c) Permitted Paid Engagement Visitor do the permitted paid engagements in Appendix V: Visitor at V13.3. and all permitted activities in Appendix Visitor: Permitted Activities other than study as described in PA 17 and transit as described in PA 18.
(d) Transit Visitor transit the UK as described in PA 18.

Tourism and Leisure

  1. PA 2. A Visitor may:
    1. (a) visit friends and family and / or come to the UK for a holiday; and
    2. (b) take part in educational exchanges or visits with a state funded school or academy or independent school; and
    3. (c) attend recreational courses (not English Language training) for a maximum of 30 days.

Volunteering

  1. PA 3. A Visitor may undertake volunteering provided it lasts no more than 30 days in total and is for a charity that is registered with either the Charity Commission for England and Wales; the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland; or the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator.

General Business Activities

  1. PA 4. A Visitor may:
    1. (a) attend meetings, conferences, seminars, interviews; and
    2. (b) give a one-off or short series of talks and speeches provided these are not organised as commercial events and will not make a profit for the organiser; and
    3. (c) negotiate and sign deals and contracts; and
    4. (d) attend trade fairs, for promotional work only, provided the Visitor is not directly selling; and
    5. (e) carry out site visits and inspections; and
    6. (f) gather information for their employment overseas; and
    7. (g) be briefed on the requirements of a UK based customer, provided any work for the customer is done outside of the UK.

Intra-corporate Activities

  1. PA 5. An employee of an overseas based company may:
    1. (a) advise and consult; and
    2. (b) trouble-shoot; and
    3. (c) provide training; and
    4. (d) share skills and knowledge;
  2. on a specific internal project with UK employees of the same corporate group, provided no work is carried out directly with clients.
  1. PA 6. An internal auditor may carry out regulatory or financial audits at a UK branch of the same group of companies as the Visitor’s employer overseas.

Manufacture and supply of goods to the UK

  1. PA 7. An employee of an overseas company may install, dismantle, repair, service or advise on machinery, equipment, computer software or hardware (or train UK based workers to provide these services) where there is a contract of purchase, supply or lease with a UK company or organisation and either:
    1. (a) the overseas company is the manufacturer or supplier; or
    2. (b) the overseas company is part of a contractual arrangement for after sales services agreed at the time of the sale or lease, including in a warranty or other service contract incidental to the sale or lease.

Clients of UK export companies

  1. PA 8. A client of a UK export company may be seconded to the UK company in order to oversee the requirements for goods and services that are being provided under contract by the UK company or its subsidiary company, provided the two companies are not part of the same group.

Overseas roles requiring specific activities in the UK

  1. PA 9.1. Individuals employed outside the UK may visit the UK to take part in the following activities in relation to their employment overseas:
    1. (a) a translator and/or interpreter may translate and/or interpret in the UK as an employee of an enterprise located overseas; or
    2. (b) personal assistants and bodyguards may support an overseas business person in carrying out permitted activities, provided they will attend the same event(s) as the business person and are employed by them outside the UK. They must not be providing personal care or domestic work for the business person; or
    3. (c) a tour group courier, contracted to a company with its headquarters outside the UK, who is entering and departing the UK with a tour group organised by their company; or
    4. (d) a journalist, correspondent, producer or cameraman gathering information for an overseas publication, programme or film; or
    5. (e) archaeologists taking part in a one-off archaeological excavation; or
    6. (f) a professor from an overseas academic institution accompanying students to the UK as part of a study abroad programme, may provide a small amount of teaching to the students at the host organisation providing this does not amount to filling a permanent teaching role for that institution; or
    7. (g) market researchers and analysts may conduct market research or analysis for an enterprise located outside the UK.
  1. PA 9.2. Drivers on a genuine international route between the UK and a country outside the UK may:
    1. (a) deliver or collect goods or passengers from a country outside the UK to the UK; and
    2. (b) undertake cabotage operations.
  1. PA 9.3. Drivers under PA 9.2. must be employed or contracted to an operator registered in a country outside the UK or be a self-employed operator and driver based outside the UK and the operator must hold an International Operators Licence or be operating on an own account basis.

Work-related training

  1. PA 10.1. Overseas graduates from medical, dental or nursing schools may:
    1. (a) undertake clinical attachments or dental observer posts provided these are unpaid and involve no treatment of patients, where the additional requirements of Appendix V: Visitor at V 11.1. are also met; and
    2. (b) take the following test/examination in the UK:
      1. (i) the Professional and Linguistic Assessment Board test, where the additional requirements of Appendix V: Visitor at V 11.2. are also met; or
      2. (ii) the Objective Structured Clinical Examinations for overseas, where the additional requirements of Appendix V: Visitor at V 11.3. are also met.
  1. PA 10.2. Employees of an overseas company or organisation may receive training from a UK based company or organisation in work practices and techniques which are required for the Visitor’s employment overseas and not available in their home country.
  1. PA 10.3. An employee of an overseas based training company may deliver a short series of training to employees of a UK based company, where the trainer is employed by an overseas business contracted to deliver global training to the international corporate group to which the UK based company belongs.

Science and academia

  1. PA 11.1. Scientists and researchers may:
    1. (a) gather information and facts for a specific project which directly relates to their employment overseas, or conduct independent research; and
    2. (b) share knowledge or advise on an international project that is being led from the UK, provided the Visitor is not carrying out research in the UK.
  1. PA 11.2. Academics may:
    1. (a) take part in formal exchange arrangements with UK counterparts (including doctors); and
    2. (b) carry out research for their own purposes if they are on sabbatical leave from their home institution; and
    3. (c) if they are an eminent senior doctor or dentist, take part in research, teaching or clinical practice provided this does not amount to filling a permanent teaching post.

Legal

  1. PA 12.1. An expert witness may visit the UK to give evidence in a UK court; other witnesses may attend a court hearing in the UK if summoned in person by a UK court.
  1. PA 12.2. An overseas lawyer may advise a UK based client on specific international litigation and/or an international transaction.

Religion

  1. PA 13. Religious workers overseas may visit the UK to preach or do pastoral work.

Creative

  1. PA 14.1. An artist, entertainer, or musician may:
    1. (a) give performances as an individual or as part of a group; and
    2. (b) take part in competitions or auditions; and
    3. (c) make personal appearances and take part in promotional activities; and
    4. (d) take part in one or more cultural events or festivals on the list of permit free festivals in Appendix Visitor: Permit Free Festival List.
  1. PA 14.2. Personal or technical staff or members of the production team of an artist, entertainer or musician may support the activities in PA 14.1. or Appendix V: Visitor at V13.3 (e) provided they are attending the same event as the artist, entertainer or musician, and are employed to work for them outside of the UK.
  1. PA.14.3. Film crew (actor, producer, director or technician) employed by an overseas company may visit the UK to take part in a location shoot for a film or programme or other media content that is produced and financed overseas.

Sports

  1. PA 15.1. A sports person may:
    1. (a) take part in a sports tournament or sports event as an individual or part of a team; and
    2. (b) make personal appearances and take part in promotional activities; and
    3. (c) take part in trials provided they are not in front of a paying audience; and
    4. (d) take part in short periods of training provided they are not being paid by a UK sporting body; and
    5. (e) join an amateur team or club to gain experience in a particular sport if they are an amateur in that sport.
  1. PA 15.2. Personal or technical staff of the sports person may support the activities in PA 15.1. or in Appendix V: Visitor at V 13.3.(f), if they are attending the same event as the sports person. Personal or technical staff of the sports person must be employed to work for the sports person outside the UK.
  1. PA 15.3. Sports officials may support a sports tournament or sports event, where they have been invited by either:
    1. (a) a sports organisation, agent, or broadcaster based in the UK; or
    2. (b) a sports person with permission as a Visitor undertaking the activities in PA 15.1. or in Appendix V: Visitor at V 13.3.(f), at the same sports tournament or sports event.

Medical treatment and organ donation

  1. PA 16.1. A Visitor may receive private medical treatment provided the additional requirements at Appendix V: Visitor at V 7.1. to V 7.3. are also met.
  1. PA.16.2. A Visitor may act as an organ donor or be assessed as a potential organ donor to an identified recipient in the UK, provided the additional requirements at Appendix V: Visitor at V 8.1. to V 8.4. are also met.

Study as a Visitor

  1. PA 17. A Visitor may study for up to six months providing the requirements of V 9.1. to V 9.5. are met.

Transit

  1. PA 18. A Visitor may transit the UK, provided they meet the requirements of Appendix V: Visitor at V 14.1. and V 14.2.