The Global Talent Visa is available for creative practitioners, cultural workers, and international experts to live and work in the UK and benefit from and contribute to UK cultural life.
RIBA has been working with Arts Council England, in partnership with the Home Office and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport to develop assessment criteria for the Global Talent visa for architecture applicants.
Global Talent visa application decisions are made by the Home Office (UK Visas and Immigration). A number of specialist sector organisations assess applications and make endorsements in partnership with Arts Council England. RIBA has operated in this role since 2019, assessing applications for recognised or emerging leaders in architecture.
This guidance is provided for general information and explanatory purposes only – if you wish to make an application for a Global Talent visa, you should consult the Home Office’s guidance for applicants for more detailed guidance on your own individual application and circumstances.
More information on other visa routes available can be found on the UK Visas and Immigration website.
Who is the Global Talent visa for?
The visa is an immigration route into the United Kingdom and applicants may apply for a Global Talent visa if they have been endorsed in their field as either:
- a recognised leader (Global Talent); or
- an emerging leader (Global Promise)
Architecture applicants of Global Talent will have established themselves as producing work of outstanding quality which has been published, presented or exhibited internationally and have won international awards for excellence in architecture.
Architecture applicants of Global Promise will have exhibited a developing track record of work of outstanding quality and may have won or been nominated/shortlisted for national or international awards for excellence in architecture.
What criteria do I need to meet?
RIBA has worked in partnership with the Home Office and Arts Council England to develop a set of specialist assessment criteria for Global Talent visas for architecture applicants. These criteria are designed to be consistent with Arts Council England’s broader criteria for arts and culture applicants and have been agreed by the Home Office.
If you wish to be considered as a Global Talent visa applicant in architecture, you must be able to demonstrate that you are established as a leader and/or an internationally recognised expert in the field.
Detailed guidance for architecture applicants can be found on the Home Office website.
Please note: In order to practise using the title ‘architect’ in the UK, you must first register with the Architects Registration Board (ARB). More information on registration can be found on ARB’s website.
