Before you figure out how to get a visa to the UK, you should understand what kind of document it is and who should have it. The procedure for receiving paper has a number of nuances, which will also be discussed. So, let's start by defining the differences between a Schengen visa and a regular one.
Schengen or national visa?
For experienced travelers, a Schengen visa is usually open, and many believe that it is quite suitable for a trip to the UK. We hasten to disappoint you. Despite the fact that the country is a member of the European Union, a visa for its visit must be issued a national one. The difference between the latter and Schengen is that it does not make it possible to travel to partner countries.
If a person wants to visit other countries in addition to the UK, he must apply for two visas. One Schengen to visit a certain country, and another national in order to get to the United Kingdom.
How much visa is needed
Before you figure out how to get a visa to the UK, you should understand how much it is needed. Without a visa, you simply will not get into the country, so for any purpose it must be issued. For Russian citizens, the procedure is quite complicated, and therefore it is worth paying attention to various exchange programs, student and others. Of course, this does not eliminate the need for a visa, but it may make the process simpler.
There is an opinion that British employees are rather skeptical about Russians, and this only complicates the process of obtaining a document. In fact this is not true. Yes, the procedure is not simple, but not very complicated. After listening to different opinions, someone does not dare to draw up a document himself, but prefers to shift all concerns to the shoulders of specialized companies. This is not necessary, because sometimes personal treatment can facilitate the process. The article will consider the option of obtaining a visa yourself.
What are
Before you deal with the question of how to get a visa to the UK, you need to decide what type you need: a tourist, guest, transit, family visa or others. It depends on what documents you need to collect and for how long they will give you permission to visit the country.
Consider each type of visa in more detail.
Tourist
How to get a visa to the UK for a tourist? To do this, you need to know what restrictions are imposed on the holder of a tourist visa.
According to the document it is prohibited:
- Register marriage.
- Work.
- To receive any income.
- To study.
A visa is issued only so that a person can explore the sights and travel around the Kingdom. On it you can go to visit relatives, friends or just acquaintances.
Guest
A visa to the UK for Russians who have gathered to visit is issued as a tourist visa. They are really very similar. The document is issued for the same period as the tourist one, and has the same restrictions. It is better to issue it if the inviters are ready to host the guest and take all the expenses. In this case, the receiving party must also act as a guarantor that the person will return to his homeland. To get a guest visa, you need to provide additional documents to the standard package of papers.
Transit
A visa to the UK for Russians can be issued and transit. It is necessary if a person flies to another country with a transfer in the UK. Since 2014, the mandatory procedure for processing the document was approved. It is not needed only if the person does not plan to leave the international zone of the airport. To draw up a document, you need to pay a certain amount.
Visa-free transit is also allowed in cases where a person has a Schengen visa of Canada, America, Australia or New Zealand.
Working
Obtaining a visa to the UK must pass and those people who go to the country to work. It is made with the help of the employer of the host country. A visa requires that a person has sufficient qualifications and a decent education. A visa is issued for a period of one year, the upper limit is left to the discretion of the employer.
Student
Is it difficult to get a visa to the UK? Not especially if it is a student visa. It is issued for a year of study, after which it must be issued again. In fact, it’s worth it, because the education received in the United Kingdom is one of the best in the world. There are two types of student visas. One type is intended for those who take language courses and study in language schools, and the other is for students of higher and secondary educational institutions.
Family
Such a visa must be issued to people who have relatives in the UK. Such a document allows a foreigner to stay in the country for a rather long period. Independently a visa to the UK can be issued quickly enough, you just need to provide documents confirming kinship.
To conclude a marriage
A Russian will have to apply for such a visa if he plans to marry a citizen of the United Kingdom or a person who officially resides in the country. The validity of the visa is relatively short - only six months. During this time, a foreigner is required to register a marriage. When the procedure is completed, you can apply for a visa for the wife or husband.
Urgent
The document involves quick processing, while the type of visa is unimportant. What matters is how long it is requested. To draw up a document urgently, you need to choose a visa that is valid for six months or a year.
An urgent visa is done out of turn because a person pays a larger amount than with the standard procedure. It is important to remember that they can urgently consider a document only at the Moscow Visa Application Center. Other offices do not provide such a service.
What documents are needed
To apply for a UK visa yourself, you need to know what documents you need to provide. There are quite a lot of them, and this is due to the fact that the visa center staff must make sure that a person is traveling to the country with good intentions.
How many documents will be needed and what requirements will be presented to them depends to a large extent on what kind of visa a person wants. But still there is a basic list that does not change; new papers are only added to it in each individual case.
So, below is the main list of documents:
- Application for permission. It must be completed on the UK Embassy website in the immigration section. After the document is completed, it must be printed.
- Old passport. Provided if any.
- Passport, which will be valid for another six months after departure. Mandatory presence of blank pages in the document. This is necessary so that you can paste the visa.
- Copies of all necessary documents, and all pages must be copied.
- A photograph measuring 35 * 45 millimeters, which meets all the requirements.
- Confirmation that a person has enough money in his account to live in the country and then leave it. This can be a bank statement from the account for the last three months, a salary certificate for the last six months, a credit card statement, a tax or paper certificate confirming that a person has real estate.
- Social status paper. This includes a certificate of employment in which the position of a foreigner is indicated. The same document must confirm that the employer saves the workplace for the person. This can also include a certificate from an educational institution or a document confirming that the applicant has a legitimate business.
- Proof of marital status. This may be a certificate of divorce, the conclusion of a marriage, the death of one of the spouses.
- A document that confirms that a person has found a place to live. For confirmation, you can use the hotel reservation, an invitation from the host party or a rental agreement.
- Tickets on which a person is going to travel around the Kingdom and travel plan.
- A certificate stating that the foreigner does not have tuberculosis. This is necessary if a visa is needed for more than six months.
This is the main package of documents that must be provided in case you need to get a visa to the UK in Moscow or another city for a tourist trip.
Additional documents for a family or guest visa
How to get a visa to the UK on your own? For starters, it is recommended to collect all the necessary documents. You have already familiarized yourself with the standard package, now we will talk about what additional documents will be needed to obtain a guest or family visa.
First of all, the foreigner should have an invitation from the host on hand. A relative or just a friend can send it. Next, you need to provide data that confirm the status of the inviter. Such information includes a letter or a copy of the visa stamp, a copy of biometric data from the main document, and the name and surname must be indicated on it. In addition, so that there are no difficulties with applying for a visa, you must provide a document that confirms the possibility of financial expenses of the receiving party.
Work Visa Additions
Now it’s clear how to get a visa to the UK on your own. It was already mentioned above that for each visa additional documents are needed. What papers are in addition to a work visa? A person who is traveling to the country must have an invitation from a British company. It must be issued on letterhead, there you must specify the purpose of the visit and the date.
You must have papers with you that confirm the activities of the enterprise. A letter from the employer must be attached to the main package, in which the latter confirms the work experience and type of activity of the new employee. For the visa center staff to believe you, bring along a professional certificate or diploma confirming your education.
Documents for a student visa
Young people often ask about whether it is difficult to obtain a visa to the UK. They are interested in what needs to be added to the main documents if a student visa is issued. First of all, the applicant must have a letter from the educational institution in which the date of the start of training, duration, name of the course and the cost of training are indicated. A diploma of a previous education or an academic certificate is also attached to the package of papers. To obtain a visa, you must have a certificate of passing the language exam. If there is a person in the country who is ready to share expenses with the student, then you need to specify his data.
For marriage
How to get a visa to the UK in St. Petersburg or another city where the visa center is located, if you need to get married in the United Kingdom? You must provide a document to this institution that confirms that you have applied for a marriage. A receipt for the payment of fees related to the procedure should also be in the hands of the applicant. Details of marriage, a certificate of language proficiency, evidence that a foreigner is eighteen years old and has no other marriages - all this must be added to the main package of documents.
What you need for a transit visa
How to get a visa to the UK in St. Petersburg if you are traveling in transit through the country? You must provide the visa of the state of final residence and the route of the trip.
Translations
The information below applies to all types of visas. Each document that is submitted to the visa center must be translated into English. The translation must be signed by the translator. You can translate documents yourself, or you can contact the appropriate organization. In the latter case, at the end of each translation, contact details and the name, surname, patronymic of the translator should be indicated.
In regional visa centers, in addition to the originals, two copies of each document must be provided. If necessary, the applicant may be called to the embassy for a personal interview.
How to fill out a form
To obtain a UK visa, you must submit a completed application form to the visa center. The filling procedure takes time, and most importantly - attention. After all, it often depends on the questionnaire filling out whether a person will receive a visa or not. If discrepancies are found between the application and documents, the visa application will simply be rejected.
Here is what the document contains:
- Fields for entering passport data.
- The place where personal information will be indicated. This is called the data on early visits to the country, contacts, name, surname, middle name.
- Fields in which information about family members is entered.
- Lines in which data about relatives or friends in the Kingdom are written. Here you will also need to write the purpose of the visit and plans for hanging out.
- Field in which the applicant's place of work is indicated.
- Lines to be completed if the applicant has previously sought help from British doctors.
- A column in which additional information is indicated at the request of a foreigner.
Each section contains a large number of questions. If you answer them correctly, then the chances of obtaining a visa will greatly increase. It is better to turn to someone who knows the language for help in translating, otherwise there is a high probability that you will translate the questions incorrectly and answer accordingly, too.
Photo Requirements
Is it easy to get a visa to the UK? If you comply with all the requirements, it is quite simple. And there are quite a lot of them, even photography has its own standards.
What should be the picture? Here are the requirements:
- The photograph must be in color and must be done no earlier than a month before the filing of the documents.
- The background can only be cream or light gray.
- The person in the frame should be alone.
- The size of the picture must be observed - 35 * 45 millimeters.
- You need to look into the camera, your face should not display any emotions.
- From the chin to the crown, the distance should be maintained at 29 or 34 millimeters.
- In the picture it is impossible for a person to be wearing glasses, with a hairdo, in a headdress and other accessories that cover his face.
- As for the headgear, it is permissible only for religious reasons.
- Children are also photographed alone, parents in the frame are not allowed.
- A child under one year old can be photographed with his eyes closed.
- Kids under six do not have to look at the camera.
Visa for a child
Is it difficult to get a UK visa for a kid? No more complicated than issuing an adult document, you just need to remember about additional papers. These include a birth certificate and consent to the departure of one of the parents if the child is traveling with only one representative. The consent must indicate the country of travel and dates. Be sure to notarize such a document.
Action algorithm
How to get a transit visa to the UK? Just like any other species. In order to have the right document on hand, it is important to understand the sequence of actions.
Before you get a tourist visa to the UK (or another type of document), you need to register on the official website of the embassy of the country. There you will need to select the type of visa and fill out the application form. Once it is full, you need to confirm the data. Do not forget to check all the written information so that inattention does not cause a failure. Next, you need to submit an electronic application and choose the time to visit the visa center. The next step is to pay the cost of the visa. After all the actions are completed, it remains only to wait for the invitation to be sent. There must be a number in it, it is for him that a person will come to the visa center and hand over documents.
When the invitation is received, you need to come to the center at the appointed time and hand over the documents. Be sure to bring a printed application form with you.
The main problem in applying for a visa is that knowledge of English is required. If you do not speak the language, then it is better to contact intermediaries so that the translation is done correctly.
Online clearance
When there is no time to look for where to get a visa to the UK in Moscow or other cities, you can try to apply online. To do this, you need to leave a request on a special site, after which the managers will contact you and advise. The next step will be the transfer of documents, they can be handed over by courier, sent by e-mail or delivered personally to the office. . , . . .
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How much is
The cost of a visa depends on what type of document is needed and how much it takes. For example, a short-term visa will cost no more than half a year $ 135 (8900 rubles). The most expensive visa is for a period of ten years. To draw it up, you have to pay 1,172 dollars (77,400 rubles). A document with a five-year term costs $ 935 (61,800 rubles), and a visa, which is issued for two years, costs $ 515 (34 thousand rubles).
The bride will be forced to spend 135 dollars (8900 rubles) on registration, while a document for transit trips will cost only 89 dollars (5800 rubles). Moreover, both of these documents are valid for six months.
If a person needs to get an urgent visa, then he simply pays on top of the consular fee of one hundred British pounds (8700 rubles).
If you are denied an application, then the money paid for the consular fee will not be returned. By the way, the amount of the fee is fixed and does not depend on the ruble exchange rate.
Why refuse
Now it’s clear how to get a work visa to the UK and beyond. But is it possible to be refused a document? This situation arises quite often, and there are certain reasons for this. Let's look at them:
- The documents and questionnaire provided provide different information.
- The questionnaire is filled out incorrectly.
- Documents that have been submitted to the visa application center are not credible.
- The passport already has stamps of rejection by countries within the European Union or English-speaking states.
- Earlier, the regime of stay in the country was violated.
- The man did not provide evidence that he would return.
As you can see, in order to refuse a visa, very good reasons are not needed. By and large, it all depends on who will check the documents.
How to learn about readiness
It is only natural that a person who is waiting for a decision on his question is impatient. But you can not be tormented by the unknown, but go to the website of the visa center. There you can track at what stage the application is and find out the address where you get a visa to the UK.
Conclusion
As you can see, in order to apply for a UK visa on your own, you will have to work hard. But to do this is necessary. Of course, it is much more convenient to delegate the procedure to specialized services, but what can be more reliable than personal contact. Moreover, the employees of the visa center prefer to personally speak with the applicant. So they can make up the correct impression of the character who wants to visit the Kingdom. With a personal visit, the employee is much more likely to like than when an outsider deals with your documents. In addition, this will save you money.
Great Britain is a country where laws and traditions are highly respected. Therefore, if you go there, be prepared for the fact that the smallest stain on your reputation will serve as the expulsion from the country. If you want to continue to visit the United Kingdom, then take the paperwork very seriously. Indeed, in the event of a refusal, it is unlikely you will be able to obtain a visa again. The British are very scrupulous about this issue, and the presence of at least one stamp with a refusal will serve as an excuse not to let a person into the country in the future.
Believe me, this state is worth it to go through all the difficulties of applying for a visa. It is there that you can feel the real English spirit and atmosphere, because this is what travelers most often go for. In addition, in England it is prestigious to work and study.