Apply for your UK Standard Visitor Visa online

Yes. The UK does not issue a separate tourist visa, visit visa, holiday visa or vacation visa — they are all names for the same document, the Standard Visitor visa. One application covers tourism, seeing family and friends, business meetings, short courses and private medical treatment, so you do not need to pick a category before you start.

It depends on your nationality. Citizens from "visa national" countries (such as China, India, and South Africa) must apply for a Standard Visitor Visa. Citizens from "non-visa national" countries (such as the US, Australia, and EU nations) usually need a UK ETA instead of a full visa. A third group needs neither — British and Irish citizens, and travelers who already hold UK immigration status. Use our visa checker to confirm which applies to your passport.

Yes. The Standard Visitor visa is a United Kingdom visa, so it covers England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland on a single application — there is no separate England visa or London visa to apply for. The Republic of Ireland is not part of the UK and has its own visa rules, so a trip to Dublin, for example, needs to be checked separately.

As an eVisa — a digital immigration status linked to your passport, which you view and share through your UKVI account. The UK no longer places a vignette (sticker) in your passport for a new visit visa. If you did not apply with an acceptable identity document, you also receive a form to accompany your eVisa and collect it from the Visa Application Centre before you travel. You still attend a biometric appointment there so your identity and documents can be checked.

Up to 6 months per visit in almost every case. Two kinds of visit can be longer: private medical treatment can be granted up to 11 months, and academics, senior doctors and dentists up to 12 months. Even if you hold a long-term 2, 5, or 10-year visa, you are still limited to 6 months per entry and cannot live in the UK through frequent successive visits.

You can apply from 3 months before your date of travel, and applications are not accepted earlier than that. You must apply for the visa from outside the United Kingdom — it cannot be applied for once you have already arrived, and it cannot be switched to from another UK immigration status. Extending a stay you are already on is a separate application, covered further down. Because a biometric appointment has to be booked and attended, applying as close to the 3-month mark as you can is the safest plan.

There is no paper form. The application is completed online, followed by a document upload and a biometric appointment. You can do it yourself: the government does not charge you to fill in its own form, but that is not the same as applying for free — the government visa fee still applies, and the government charges separately for support. iVisa is an independent service - you answer a simplified version of the same questions in your own language, we turn them into the English the Home Office requires, check them against your documents, flag and fix any issues, and file the official application for you.

After attending your biometrics appointment, the UK government typically makes a decision within 15 to 45 working days. With iVisa, we help you avoid errors that may delay your application by performing an expert review and ensuring all documents meet current Home Office standards.

You can study for up to 6 months, take recreational courses, and carry out a defined list of business activities such as meetings, conferences and negotiations. You cannot take paid or unpaid work for a UK company, be self-employed in the UK, or fill a role a UK worker would otherwise do. The one exception is a permitted paid engagement, which has to be arranged before you travel.

A long-term Standard Visitor visa keeps the same permissions but stays valid for 2, 5 or 10 years, so frequent visitors do not reapply for every trip. Each individual visit is still capped at 6 months. UKVI can grant a shorter validity than the one you paid for without refunding the difference, and a long-term visa issued to an under-18 stays valid for up to 6 months after they turn 18.

Yes. Every traveler, including infants, must have their own visa. You can easily manage applications for your entire family together through the iVisa platform.

Most Standard Visitor Visa applicants do not need an interview. However, you must attend a biometrics appointment in person to provide your fingerprints and a digital photograph.

Whether you need a visa depends on your nationality and whether you pass through UK Border Control. Airside Transit: Many visa-national citizens require a Direct Airside Transit Visa (DATV) even if they don't leave the airport. Landside Transit: If you must clear immigration to collect luggage, change airports, or stay overnight, you generally need a Transit Visitor Visa or a Standard Visitor Visa.

If denied, you will receive a "Refusal Letter" explaining the decision. Common reasons include "lack of ties to home country" or "unclear source of funds." Because government fees are non-refundable, iVisa’s review is designed to catch these issues before submission.

In most cases, no. A standard 6-month stay cannot be extended beyond 6 months in total. Extensions are limited to specific circumstances: a visit for private medical treatment can be extended by a further 6 months, and an academic can extend up to 12 months in total. If you were granted less than 6 months, you can apply to bring your total stay up to 6 months.

You bring your passport to your biometric appointment at a Visa Application Centre. Because the visa is now issued digitally, your passport is not kept so that a sticker can be placed inside it. You get it back the same day at the appointment, though other supporting documents may be held while your application is processed.