You must send information about your organisation, which must include:

• which faith or religion you belong to

• details of your parent organisation (if any) and how you are connected to them

• a hierarchy chart, where applicable, that shows where you are in the hierarchy

• the size of your adult congregation

• the number of clergy you currently employ, where applicable

• addresses of your regular meeting places

• your scheduled days and hours of worship

If there is a set hierarchy within your faith, you must send a letter of support from the head of your faith body organisation (or their nominated legal representative) which confirms that you are part of that organisation.

Where applicable, you must send a copy of your ‘Form 76’ from the General Register Office giving authorisation for the use of a building as a place of worship.

Where applicable, you must send a copy of ‘Form 78’ from the General Register Office giving authorisation for marriages to be performed at a place of worship. Alternatively, if you are listed on Places of worship registered for marriage on GOV.UK, indicate this in your application to be checked.

You must send at least one of the following documents. The evidence must clearly show you are linked by common ownership or control, or through a joint venture agreement, to a qualifying overseas business:

• an affidavit or a statutory declaration signed by a senior partner or senior executive within the UK entity, identifying all of the connected entities both in the UK and overseas

• most recent audited accounts or an audited annual report of the head office or parent company, if this clearly shows the link between the 2 entities – if either document is available to view online, you can simply provide a covering email or letter stating which website it is available on and the Home Office will view the information online

• if you are a UK establishment of an overseas company, you need only need the Companies House reference number for the UK establishment and the Home Office will check this online

• if either entity is registered on the London Stock Exchange or one of the FCA-approved international stock exchanges, a notarised statement by the company secretary of the organisation, clearly setting out the global corporate structure with ownership percentages of each related corporate entity detailed

• certified copy of the share register or equivalent of one or other of the entities showing ownership by the entity, or a copy of the share registers of both entities clearly showing the common parent company

• certified copy of the agreement clearly naming both entities as parties to, or one entity as a party to and the other entity as the subject of, the agreement which allows one entity to control the composition of the other entity’s board

• certified copy of the agreement clearly naming both entities as parties to, or one entity as a party to and the other entity as the subject of, the agreement which allows one entity to cast or control the casting of more than half the maximum number of votes that might be cast at a general meeting of the other entity

• certified copy of the joint venture agreement clearly naming both entities as parties to the agreement, or one entity as a party to, and the other entity as the entity formed by, that agreement

• certified copy of the agreement clearly naming both entities as parties to, or one entity as a party to and the other entity as the entity formed by, that agreement (where the agreement would constitute a joint venture agreement other than for the fact that joint venture agreements are not permitted in the country of operation, or one of the entities is not permitted to enter into joint ventures in the country of operation)

• certified copy of the agreement which clearly shows that both entities can use a trademark which is registered or established under the laws of the UK and the jurisdiction of the other entity’s country of operation – this is only applicable to accountancy or law firms only

• certified copy of the agreement which clearly shows that both entities can operate under the same name in the UK and in the jurisdiction of the other entity’s country of operation – this is only applicable to accountancy or law firms only

• Articles of Association of either entity, or both entities, if these clearly show the link between the two companies

Unless an exception applies, you must send evidence specified under each of the 4 numbered headings below. This will count as 4 documents. Where a combination of documents is specified under a heading, this will count as one document.

You must also send any mandatory documents listed above and on the previous page if they are relevant to your business.

Any documents not in English or Welsh must be accompanied by a certified translation.

Exception for Japanese and Australian businesses

You do not have to send the documents listed under (2)(b) below (evidence you have been trading overseas for at least 3 years) if you are either:

• a Japanese business expanding to the UK under the UK-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement

• an Australian business expanding to the UK under the Free Trade Agreement between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Australia

You must still submit the evidence listed under (1), (2)(a), (3) and (4).

You should be aware that if you do not submit the evidence under (2)(b), you will only be permitted to sponsor one person at a time. If you wish to sponsor more than one person at a time, you must also submit the evidence under (2)(b).

Exceptions for businesses listed on specified stock exchanges

You do not need to send all of the documents listed under (2), (3) or (4) below if your overseas business is listed on either:

• the London Stock Exchange Main Market or AIM market

• an international stock exchange that the Financial Conduct Authority considers to have an equivalent level of regulation to UK markets

You must provide your application which exception applies to you and provide with any necessary information to confirm this (such as a link to the relevant online listing).

You must also send all of the following:

• proof of your UK footprint, as specified under (1) below

• a summary of your planned expansion to the UK

• information about your overseas business, as specified under (3)(b)(i) below – you do not need to send any other evidence listed under (3)

1) Proof of your UK ‘footprint’

You must show you have a UK footprint by providing one of the following documents:

• proof you have registered a UK branch or wholly-owned subsidiary of your overseas company with Companies House (you need only provide your Companies House reference number); or

• evidence you have bought or leased business premises in the UK (such as a lease agreement or proof of purchase)

2) Evidence of your overseas trading presence

Unless an exception (above) applies, you must submit the documents listed under (a) and (b) below.

(a) Evidence of trading overseas for at least 12 months before the date of your application

One document under sub-paragraph (i) below and one document under sub-paragraph (ii).

(i) One of the following:

• corporate or business bank statements showing active transactions for services or goods received or provided covering a period of at least 12 months before the date of your application; or

• audited or unaudited accounts or, where your business is not required to file such accounts, a balance sheet along with a profit and loss statement for the most recent financial year (as defined by laws applicable to the overseas business), together with an accountant’s certificate of confirmation – this certificate should include confirmation of the accountant’s registration with any appropriate regulatory body in the country in which those accounts have been produced

(ii) One of the following:

• copies of contracts for goods or services covering at least the 12-month period before the date of application; or

• evidence of advertising for services or goods offered by your overseas business

(b) Evidence your business was trading overseas 3 years before the date of application – this should be at least one of the following:

• business accounts for the relevant period (these must be audited if required by the applicable laws in the jurisdiction in which your business is based)

• corporate or business bank statements for the relevant period

• contracts for goods and services for the relevant period

• annual reports and investor information for the relevant period

• any other credible evidence to show you were actively trading during this period

3) Evidence of your planned expansion to the UK

Unless an exception applies,  one document listed under (a) and two listed under (b) below.

(a) Evidence of your capability to fund your planned expansion, which must show that you have funds available to cover the initial costs for the first 12 months, as projected in your expansion plan – at least one of the following:

• corporate or business bank statements showing transactions from the 12-month period before the date of application (if not already submitted under 2(a)(i) above)

• a letter from your corporate banking provider, setting out the dealings it has had with you, including the nature and duration of those dealings

(b) Evidence of your expansion plans – unless an exception applies, you must send at least 2 of the following:

(i) A summary of your overseas business, which must include all of the following:

• information about which sector, or sectors, you operate in

• a current hierarchy chart for the overseas business detailing any owner, director and board members and the total number of employees

• information about any jobs you intend to fill in the UK, including the job title, occupation code, and salary

(ii) A business plan or other document summarising the last 12 months’ activity of the overseas company, its financial position, reasons for expansion, the proposed overall investment in the UK and projected operating costs or expenditure for at least the first 12 months of operating in the UK.

(iii) Evidence of market research conducted and detailed reasoning for choosing the UK as a viable market to expand to (if not included in the business plan).

(iv) Where the expansion is subject to a shareholder vote process, as detailed in the company’s original articles of incorporation or equivalent, you must send evidence that this process has been followed (this may form part of the company’s filed accounts).

(v) Where the evidence under (3)(b)(ii) or (3)(b)(iii) above has been produced either wholly or in part by a third party (for example, where market research was outsourced to a specialist company) you must also include certified copies of the contract or agreement for that piece of work with the third party.

4) Other documents

Unless an exception applies, you must also send at least one of the following:

• annual reports and investor information

• evidence of engagement with, or advice sought from, specialist advice companies, such as company formation businesses, relocation firms, UK corporate law services, tax services, or the British Chamber of Commerce

• details of any recruitment campaigns you have run, or plan to run, in the UK for employees of the UK business once trading begins

• Articles of Association (or equivalent document) for your overseas business

• details of any tendering or other process where any activity relating to your business expansion plan, such as the commission of market research, has been conducted by an independent third party

• any document listed below.

 Education Institutions Sponsoring Students

If there are any documents listed above, you must provide them.

You must also demonstrate that you meet the requirements of the Student sponsor guidance.

You must provide all the following documentation:

• proof that you are based in the UK

• proof that you are operating and trading lawfully in the UK

• proof that you have registered for VAT with HM Revenue and Customs where required to do so

• a written record of a fire risk assessment conducted by a competent person

• evidence to show that you have appropriate planning permission or local planning authority consent to operate the relevant type or class of organisation at your trading address

• any documentation which is required to demonstrate that your sites, exceptional arrangements and/or partnerships, where applicable, meet all of the relevant requirements of the ‘Sites and teaching partnerships’ section of Document 1 of the Student sponsor guidance

If you are a new independent school, you must send evidence that you have been formally registered by the relevant Government Department in your country as follows:

• England: your School Number, issued by the Department for Education

• Scotland: your Scottish Executive Education Department code

• Northern Ireland: your confirmation of registration letter from the Department of Education Northern Ireland, School Governance Team

• Wales: your confirmation of registration letter from the Welsh Assembly Government, School Governance Team, which will include your unique school reference number

If you are an overseas HEI offering short-term ‘study abroad’ programmes in your own premises in the UK to students who are enrolled in their home country, you must provide all of the following:

• overseas accreditation, which can be confirmed by Ecctis (formerly UK NARIC), that your programmes are UK Higher Education equivalents; this overseas accreditation must be from a nationally recognised accrediting body clearly stating their name and be accompanied by a certified copy of the appropriate web page for the institution showing that accreditation

• proof that you only teach part of your programmes in the UK – the information you provide should verify that students are studying in the UK for no more than 50% of the total length of the course and must include either of the following:

  • original letter from the home campus confirming the above

  • original brochure/leaflet/catalogue confirming the above

  • certified copy of appropriate information from the institutional web site confirming the above

• proof that you have full legal control of the premises you use – such as original or certified copy of licence, lease, or proof of ownership

If you offer study abroad programmes on a franchise basis via a third party in the UK, you will need to ensure that the private provider you are linked with meets our educational oversight requirements and send evidence of the contractual agreement.

If you do not have a minimum of 4 documents listed above, please provide any of the documents listed below to bring you up to the minimum 4 documents required: