On 12 March 2025, the Home Office unveiled its latest Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules. This introduces various amendments to the Global Talent route, which will impact creative workers applying under the Arts and Culture sub-category, including Architecture, Fashion Design and Film & TV.
The Statement of Changes, HC 733 contains various amendments prompted by requests from Arts Council England, PACT, the British Fashion Council (BFC), and RIBA. These aim to streamline and standardise the application process for creative workers seeking to work and reside long-term in the UK. Other changes are clarifications of existing policy intentions or intended to facilitate operational improvements.
If you are collating evidence now, ahead of an imminent endorsement application, you should note that the changes to endorsement criteria come into effect on 9 April 2025.
Key changes to general evidential requirements
- New CV Requirement: If you are seeking endorsement under an Arts and Culture sector where this requirement does not currently apply, you will now need to submit a CV to help sub-endorsing bodies assess your career stage. This change mirrors an earlier 2023 update to the Arts and Culture requirements to ensure uniformity across all sectors.
- Letters of Support: These must be from organisations or individuals with whom you have directly collaborated in your area of expertise. This ensures that the support letters across sub-endorsers are consistent, and more clearly establishes the relevance of the skillset you claim as your area of expertise.
Amendments to British Fashion Council sub-endorser requirements for Fashion Design
- Media Recognition: You must provide evidence of media recognition for work produced as a contributing designer, not just as an individual. This highlights the importance of collaborative achievements in the fashion industry.
- International Counterpart Validation: When citing support and sponsorship from an international counterpart of the BFC, the sub-endorser will determine if the organisation is equivalent in scope and standing to the BFC.
- Letters of Support: The BFC will now accept the third letter of support from an individual with expertise in your field, aligning with other arts-linked sectors.
Amendments to PACT sub-endorser requirements for Film & TV
- Awards Criteria: Awards in Film & TV must be won for your individual work. This is to make clear that awards given to groups or specific productions cannot be used to qualify under the PACT endorsement criteria. However, exceptionally, group awards may be considered if you can demonstrate a significant contribution to winning or being nominated for any of the Main Awards in the last 10 years.
- Award Titles: Many of the Golden Globe awards have been renamed to reflect the current titles used by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Prizes awarded under previous names remain valid.
- Notable Industry Recognition Awards List: Evidence must now come from at least two separate productions to ensure a broad range of evidence.
Amendment to Digital Technology application process
In a technical change in effect for endorsement applications submitted from 4 August 2025, the separate external application form for digital technology applicants will be removed. The Global Talent Endorsement – Stage 1 form has been amended to incorporate the requirements for these applicants.
Amendment to qualification criteria for settlement under the Global Talent route
From 9 April 2025, an amendment is made to clarify that only time spent as a main applicant (not dependant) in the work routes can be counted to meet the three- or five-year continuous qualifying period required for settlement.
Conclusion
These updates to the Immigration Rules reflect the Home Office's commitment to maintaining a robust and consistent framework for the Global Talent route, ensuring that the UK's creative industries continue to attract top international talent. Please get in touch with a member of our Immigration Team if you need more detailed information on these changes or assistance with a potential Global Talent application.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
