From 15 July 2025, non-Europeans granted UK entry clearance in work and certain other routes will no longer receive a visa sticker in their passport. Instead, the approval email will tell the applicant to set up a UKVI account to access their eVisa. This streamlines the process, but employers and applicants should be on alert to identify and resolve potential eVisa issues.
The process change is reported in the Home Office's eVisa guidance. See the chapter titled 'If you're applying for a visa overseas'.
Who benefits from the change?
Non-European nationals are impacted if they are applying under the following immigration routes:
- Skilled Worker (including Health and Care)
- Global Business Mobility
- Global Talent
- International Sportsperson
- Temporary Worker (including Creative Workers and Government Authorised Exchange)
- Youth Mobility Scheme
- Student (including short-term up to 11 months)
Dependent partners and children will continue to receive a visa vignette (sticker) in their passport, valid for up to 90 days. If their stay is longer than 90 days, they will also be granted an eVisa, in line with the current procedure.
Eligible Europeans can continue to apply for an eVisa straight away using the 'UK Immigration: ID Check' app.
What does this change mean for applicants?
- You do not need to hand over your passport to the visa application centre, because UKVI will not place a visa sticker inside it.
- You do not need to revisit the visa application centre to collect your passport or have it couriered to you.
- You do not need a blank page in your passport.
- You can choose to travel within your home country or abroad while your application is pending. We suggest staying close to the visa application centre as you may be requested to attend an interview at short notice. If you need to visit the UK while your application is pending, seek legal advice first.
- You will be issued with an eVisa, which confirms the full duration of your immigration status.
- You should complete the steps in our pre-travel checklistbefore
you travel to the UK. This includes:
- Creating a UKVI account (if you don't already have one)
- Logging into your UKVI account
- Checking your details are correct
- Linking your passport to your eVisa before you travel (if it's not already linked)
- Obtaining an 'S' share code to show your carrier in the event your eVisa does not display correctly while travelling
What does this change mean for employers?
- You should check that applicants have followed the steps in the pre-travel checklist. This should ensure they experience hassle-free travel to the UK.
- You must complete an online right to work check against an eVisa.
- You should update your immigration and right to work check policies to make sure that your staff follow the correct process to complete a compliant right to work check.
- If you are advising on the application process yourself and if workers are applying with family members, remind them that the process is different for dependants, who must continue to attend a visa application centre, hand over their passport and have a visa sticker placed inside.
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.
