Visa Fees Reimbursement Scheme launched

A boost to the Clean Energy, Life Sciences, and Digital and Technologies sectors.

We welcome the launch of the government's new “Visa Fees Reimbursement Scheme for Scale Ups” (VFRS4SU), which is a targeted grant scheme to help UK scale ups in Clean Energy, Life Sciences, and Digital and Technologies hire internationally, by reimbursing eligible visa application fees for specialist hires and their dependants. 

The funding is specifically for successful scale-ups, rather than recent start-ups. Grants will operate on a reimbursement basis, rather than funding for future projects, and will be allocated to organisations which meet the following criteria:

• A UK-based enterprise that has achieved an average annualised growth rate exceeding 20 per cent in either employment or turnover over a continuous three-year period (the observation period);
• already has at least 10 employees at the beginning of the observation period and has a valid UK bank account;
• operates in at least one of the three priority sectors in the scope, as defined in the Industrial Strategy IS-8 Sectors list (Clean Energy, Life Sciences and Digital & Technology);
• holds a valid UK sponsor licence;
• recruited the relevant workers under the Skilled Worker, Global Talent, and Scale Up visa routes; and
• passes the Department for Business and Trade's due diligence and assurance checks.

The relevant costs must have been incurred on or after 9 June 2026, with a maximum award of £5,000 for each international hire. There is also an annual cap of £25,000 per business. Applications will open from tomorrow (16 June 2026), with decisions expected to be received within around six weeks.

On a more cautious note, reimbursement is notably not available if the employees used other immigration routes than the ones in scope, such as family visas or UK Ancestry. The funding offered is also unlikely to cover all the immigration costs which would be incurred; with the recent soar in UKVI fees, a 3 year visa for a Skilled Worker with a spouse and one child can easily exceed £12,500 in basic application costs, not including the Immigration Skills Charge.

The Immigration Team at Stone King has a wealth of experience supporting clients in the relevant sectors and would be pleased to assist with questions from businesses who are interested in the scheme.