The UK Ancestry Visa allows Commonwealth citizens who have a grandparent who was born in the UK to live and work in the UK for a period of up to five years.
This ancestry visa will open up the entire job market to you and will not carry the restrictions as a UK work permit.
To qualify you must:
- be a citizen of a Commonwealth country
- be at least 17 years old
- be able to work and intend to work
- have the ability to support yourself and any dependants without resorting to public funds
- have a grandparent who was born in the UK (including the republic of Ireland before 1922)
- be applying from outside of the UK
At the end of the five year period, you may be able to apply for settlement or indefinite leave to remain in the UK provided you still meet the requirements for the Ancestry visa and that you have spent five years in employment in the UK without a break.
The following countries are part of the Commonwealth Countries and citizens of these countries may be eligible to apply for the Ancestry Visa:
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Australia
- The Bahamas
- Bangladesh
- Barbados
- Belize
- Botswana
- Brunei Darussalam
- Cameroon
- Canada
- Cyprus
- Dominica
- Fiji Islands
- The Gambia
- Ghana
- Grenada
- Guyana
- India
- Jamaica
- Kenya
- Kiribati
- Lesotho
- Malawi
- Malaysia
- Maldives
- Malta
- Mauritius
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Nauru
- New Zealand
- Nigeria
- Pakistan
- Papua New Guinea
- Samoa
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Singapore
- Solomon Islands
- South Africa
- Sri Lanka
- St Kitts and Nevis
- St Lucia
- St Vincent and the Grenadines
- Swaziland
- Tonga
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Tuvalu
- Uganda
- United Kingdom
- United Republic of Tanzania
- Vanuatu
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
