United Kingdom (UK)

In our latest blog we talked about opening a branch in the United Kingdom through UK sole representative visa. As stated, some of the major benefits of having a Representative of an Overseas Visa Business Plan include:

* You do not have to show a specified amount of investment;

* You do not have to employ two new members of staff as part of the visa extension requirement; and

* UK sole representative visa program may lead to Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) and even a British Passport.

Remember that UK sole representative visa applicants should also show that the subsidiary or branch office has not been launched exclusively for the reason of facilitating the entry and stay of the UK sole representative visa applicant. 

If you are applying for a UK sole representative visa, you must provide a detailed business plan that meets the requirements. One of the most important documents needed when applying for a sole representative visa is a comprehensive business plan.

The UK sole representative visa business plan is so critical because it documents that the subsidiary or branch you wish to set up or for which you will become a senior executive is sustainable. It supports the fact that the UK sole representative visa applicant will be able to stimulate the UK economy.

The UK sole representative visa business plan that is made a part of the sole representative visa application must demonstrate that the applicant has the requisite skills, talent, background, knowledge, and resources to successfully start and grow a subsidiary or branch that provides real products and services. In short, it must be as professional as you intend for the business to be. Make no mistake; it must represent the UK sole representative visa applicant.

WHAT YOUR SOLE REPRESENTATIVE VISA BUSINESS PLAN MUST INCLUDE

Each UK sole representative visa business plan is unique and there are no templates that will guarantee your approval.  The UK sole representative visa business plan will more than likely be 15-20 pages in length and include informative charts, tables, images and graphs that will aid in giving the reader a better understanding of the business. At a minimum, the document must include:

• An executive summary: The UK sole representative visa business plan needs to start with an executive summary of the subsidiary or branch office’s business, and include the parent company structure. Within the structure should be information about the number of staff the overseas business (parent company) has, the history of the parent company and whether it has been recently set up as well as financial statements of the parent company trading presence and business activities. Also, it should mention the purpose of UK Branch.
• A company description: Your UK sole representative visa business plan will contain a detailed description of your business. The plan will also include an in-depth description of the business operations.
• A description of the subsidiary or branch’s products and/or services: UK sole representative visa business plan also need to contain a description of the product or service that is being offered.
• A market and industry analysis as well as the challenges: such as pitfalls of the BREXIT or any ongoing or foreseen economic recession.
• A competitive analysis as well as marketing and sales plan: UK sole representative visa business plan should provide a comprehensive analysis of the market you will be operating in.
• A management and organization section: You need to explain why you are well-suited to apply for the UK sole representative visa. Education, industry experience, and immigration history of the applicant of the applicant.
• A financial discussion that includes a 3-5-year financial forecast: Your UK sole representative visa business plan will also contain an estimate of your subsidiary or branch’s income in the 5-year future. This includes assumptions on income and expenses within the 5 years.

IMPORTANT UK SOLE REPRESENTATIVE VISA BUSINESS PLANNING TIPS FOR APPLICANTS

Here are some UK sole representative visa business plan tips for applicants:

• Do not wait until the last minute. To be safe, allow 2-3 weeks to get this done right.
• Do not attempt to do this yourself. This document requires a professional.
• Remember that the UK sole representative visa business plan and the rest of the application must be consistent with each other.
• Not only must the plan be written in English, it must be written in Business English.

Every UK sole representative visa applicant will enhance their chances of success by allowing plenty of time, getting help from a specialist who will put the applicant’s interests first and, if applying for a sole representative visa, develop a first class business plan that will distinguish the applicant as a capable, successful business person.

Do you need help?

If you already have a draft of your UK sole representative visa business plan, but need recommendation as to whether the document meets the sole representative visa criteria, we offer our visa business plan review service. 

If you would rather to outsource the writing of the business plan to our QICMS team, we will collect detailed information about your parent company, the foundation behind the UK representative branch and the long term vision of the company and would then transform this information into UK Visa Immigration compliant business plan. 

If you wish to attain UK Permanent Residency with UK sole representative visa, you can contact us .