Route dossier
Keep the route visual before reading the mechanics.
Country context, document questions, source trail, and brief handoff stay visible before the dense rule sections begin.
01
Route context
Keep United Kingdom context visible while reading Scale-up Worker Visa as a route file, not a standalone promise.
02
Evidence file
Separate income, sponsor, capital, family, timing, and renewal evidence before interpreting the route.
03
Source trail
gov.uk anchors the route facts, while field-level source notes stay available for review.
04
Brief handoff
Carry official ukvi fee baseline and open questions into a profile-specific prep report.
Profile Lens Applicants with a sponsor-backed, employer-led, or nominated route
Profile review depends on sponsor quality, employer continuity, and route-specific labor-market conditions.
Processing Time 3 Months Avg
Average total cycle based on current pack assumptions, not a service-time promise.
Salary Threshold £39,400/yr
Must also meet the occupation going rate where it is higher; lower-salary rules start from £33,400 where the route rules allow them.
Long-Term Outcome 5 Year Track
The current pathway pack tracks an ILR planning horizon from 5 years, depending on route mechanics and continued route requirements.
Pathway briefing board
Use the route page to prepare a cleaner research brief.
This page should help you separate stable public route facts from profile-dependent assumptions before you spend time optimizing for the wrong pathway.
Rule anchorStart with the official route rule, then mark what still depends on the applicant.
60 pathway fields are organized around gov.uk, so the page can support source reading without turning the route into a personal conclusion.
Evidence packetOrganize evidence by category before interpreting strength.
Use this route profile to prepare income, sponsor, capital, family, timing, and renewal facts as separate lanes instead of treating the pathway summary as a filing plan.
Cost and timingKeep fees, timing, and status horizon in the same brief.
Official UKVI Fee Baseline is tracked at £937, with adjacent costs kept separate from profile evidence. United Kingdom planning should also preserve renewal and long-term residence questions for a professional conversation.
Base Requirements
Profile Evidence
Typical baseline: Bachelor education, 0+ years of relevant experience, and applicant age usually within 18-45.
Language or Communication Threshold
English proof required: B1 equivalent or accepted alternative evidence.
Employer or Offer Dependency
A sponsored job should usually meet £39,400 per year or the occupation going rate, whichever is higher; lower-salary rule bands can start from £33,400.
Passport or identity document
Use the current passport or identity document to anchor names, expiry dates, family links, and travel history questions.
Route-specific document
Verify this route-specific document against the official checklist before treating the file as complete.
Process & Mechanics
Step 1
Initial route setup and evidence preparation • Typical duration 1-3 weeks.
Step 2
Employer, sponsor, or nomination processing • Typical duration 1-2 weeks.
Step 3
Adjudication, compliance checks, and next-step readiness • Typical duration 24-28 weeks.
Sponsorship Mechanics
The current pack tracks a licensed UK sponsor and Certificate of Sponsorship requirement, with the CoS used within 3 months, and sponsor-certified maintenance as an alternative to the applicant showing personal funds.
Sponsored Entry Gate
Scale-up starts closer to Skilled Worker than many people expect. Applicants need a licensed scale-up sponsor, a recognized occupation code, a CoS used within 3 months, and a salary of at least £39,400 or the going rate, whichever is higher. The sponsored role must last at least 6 months.
Scale-up Timing
Initial Scale-up grants are 2 years. After the first 6 months, the route becomes much looser operationally. Extensions then run for 3 years at a time where the route rules are met, with current decision standards of about 3 weeks outside the UK and 8 weeks inside the UK.
6-Month Freedom Split
During the first 6 months, changing employer still requires a visa update that can be filed up to 3 months before the new start date, and the new job should not start until that update is granted. If the applicant has been in the UK for less than one year, they should also expect the wider evidence set to be checked again. After that point, holders can change or stop their job without telling the Home Office. Additional work, including self-employment, is allowed.
Unsponsored Extension Gate
Extensions do not need a new sponsor or CoS, but they are not automatic. The key gate is earnings history: current packs track annualized thresholds of £39,100, with older bands at £36,300 and £33,000 depending on the last CoS date. Those earnings usually need to be met during at least half of the most recent Scale-up stay. Self-employed earnings do not count toward that minimum because the qualifying salary has to be paid through PAYE.
Settlement Bridge
Scale-up can still lead to ILR after 5 years. The route is unusually flexible because that qualifying period can combine Scale-up time with other long-term work routes such as Skilled Worker and Global Talent, rather than requiring a single uninterrupted Scale-up-only history.
Switching Boundaries
Scale-up can be filed from inside or outside the UK, but in-country switching is not open from every status. The current pack tracks barred switching from visit visa, short-term student visa, Parent of a Child Student visa, seasonal worker visa, plus 3 additional barred statuses. Students switching in-country normally need to have completed the sponsored course, or have a job start date after the course has finished, unless they are PhD students with at least 24 months of full-time study.
Evidence Workbench
RequiredPassport or identity document
Use the current passport or identity document to anchor names, expiry dates, family links, and travel history questions.
RequiredRoute-specific document
Verify this route-specific document against the official checklist before treating the file as complete.
RequiredRoute-specific document
Verify this route-specific document against the official checklist before treating the file as complete.
If applicableBank or funds statements (if applicable)
Match payslips, invoices, deposits, and bank statements so the route income or funds basis can be rechecked.
Consultation Prep Questions
Sponsor factsSponsor file
Which employer, occupation, salary, nomination, or sponsorship facts must be source-checked before relying on the route?
Role changesRole continuity
What happens if the employer, role, salary, work location, or occupation code changes during the status period?
Status horizonLong-term transition
Which renewal or settlement rules should be mapped before treating the job offer as a durable mobility plan?
Field Provenance
| Field | Source | Confidence | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Route status | GOV.UK Scale-up Worker visaOfficial | highWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 |
| Official route page | GOV.UK Scale-up Worker visaOfficial | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 |
| Annual salary threshold | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Occupation going-rate requirement | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Licensed sponsor requirement | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Certificate of Sponsorship | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| CoS validity window | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Occupation requirement | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 |
Show 52 additional provenance fields
| Field | Source | Confidence | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maintenance funds | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| ILR minimum horizon | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Sponsor-certified maintenance | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Decision time outside the UK | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Decision time inside the UK | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Update visa for new employer | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Wait for updated permission before new job | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Language threshold | GOV.UK Scale-up Worker visaOfficial Support | highMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
| Job offer requirement | GOV.UK Scale-up Worker visaOfficial Support | highMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
| Average timeline | PathwayMatch editorial estimateDerived Internal | mediumWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 |
| UKVI fee baseline | highWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 | |
| UKVI fee components | highWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 | |
| Immigration Health Surcharge | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| Government fee | GOV.UK Scale-up Worker visaOfficial Support | highWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-16 |
| DIY cost estimate | PathwayMatch editorial estimateDerived Internal | mediumMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
| Assisted cost estimate | PathwayMatch editorial assisted-cost estimateDerived Internal | lowMonthly | 2026-05-05 |
| costs / biometrics_usd | PathwayMatch editorial estimateDerived Internal | mediumMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
| costs / eca_usd | PathwayMatch editorial estimateDerived Internal | mediumMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
| government_fee_components_gbp / application_fee | highWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 | |
| government_fee_components_gbp / ihs_2_years | highWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 | |
| government_fee_components_gbp / ihs_3_years | highWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 | |
| costs / government_fee_note | GOV.UK Scale-up Worker visa: how much it costsOfficial Support | highWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 |
| costs / language_test_usd | PathwayMatch editorial estimateDerived Internal | mediumMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
| lawyer_fee_usd / max | PathwayMatch editorial professional-fee estimateDerived Internal | lowWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 |
| lawyer_fee_usd / min | PathwayMatch editorial professional-fee estimateDerived Internal | lowWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 |
| costs / medical_exam_usd | PathwayMatch editorial estimateDerived Internal | mediumMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
| requirements / change_job_notification_required | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / education_min | GOV.UK Scale-up Worker visaOfficial Support | highMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
| requirements / evidence_recheck_if_in_uk_less_than_year | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / extension_earnings_half_stay_required | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / extension_earnings_threshold_2024_gbp | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / extension_earnings_threshold_current_gbp | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / extension_earnings_threshold_legacy_gbp | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / extension_grant_years | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / extension_self_employed_earnings_counted | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / extension_without_new_sponsor_allowed | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / initial_grant_years | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| language / test | GOV.UK Scale-up Worker visaOfficial Support | highMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
| requirements / maintenance_funds_exempt_after_months_in_uk | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / maintenance_funds_held_days | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / maintenance_funds_window_days | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / professional_sportsperson_prohibited | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / public_funds_allowed | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / self_employment_allowed | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / settlement_combination_routes_allowed | Appendix Scale-upOfficial | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 |
| requirements / sponsored_work_months_min | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / student_switch_job_start_after_course_allowed | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / student_switch_phd_months_min | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / switch_barred_statuses | highWeekly / Triggered | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / switch_inside_uk_allowed | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| requirements / update_visa_new_job_apply_months_before_start | highMonthly | 2026-05-05 | |
| scoring | PathwayMatch editorial scoring summaryDerived Internal | mediumMonthly | 2026-05-16 |
Analytical Tradeoffs
Advantages
Creates a direct route through employer, sponsor, or nomination mechanics.
United Kingdom currently tracks a 6-year citizenship horizon.
Considerations
Sponsor continuity and employment conditions remain a live dependency.
Tax residency design can materially affect the real value of the route after arrival.
Document timing, appointments, and execution quality can stretch the effective timeline.
Next step
Do not stop at the route page. Turn it into profile-specific questions.
Review this route against income, family, timeline, evidence prep, tax exposure, and long-term residence goals before treating it as your likely path.