Specialist legal advice for overseas and multinational businesses using the Global Business Mobility routes, including Senior or Specialist Worker, Graduate Trainee, UK Expansion Worker, Service Supplier and Secondment Worker visas.
The Global Business Mobility (GBM) routes allow overseas businesses to send eligible workers to the UK for specific temporary business purposes.
These routes are designed for international organisations that need to transfer senior or specialist employees, develop graduate talent, establish a UK presence, fulfil qualifying service contracts or second workers to the UK as part of a high-value commercial arrangement.
There are currently five Global Business Mobility routes:
Each route has its own sponsorship, overseas employment, skill, salary and commercial requirements.
The Global Business Mobility framework is therefore not a single visa. It is a group of specialist sponsored routes intended for different types of international business activity.
These routes are generally temporary and do not themselves lead directly to settlement in the UK.
At Knights & Shah Solicitors, we advise overseas businesses, UK sponsors and international workers on Global Business Mobility strategy, Sponsor Licence requirements, Certificates of Sponsorship, eligibility, compliance and worker applications.
Global Business Mobility is a Home Office immigration framework for overseas workers undertaking temporary assignments in the UK.
The routes are intended for workers based outside the UK who are coming here for a specific business purpose connected with an overseas organisation.
This can include:
The correct route depends upon the relationship between the overseas business, UK organisation, worker and commercial activity.
The Senior or Specialist Worker route is designed for senior managers and specialist employees who are being temporarily assigned to a UK business linked to their overseas employer.
It effectively replaced the former Intra-Company Transfer route.
This route can be useful for multinational organisations that need to transfer experienced personnel into their UK operations.
The worker must generally satisfy requirements concerning:
The UK sponsor and overseas employer must normally be connected through the appropriate common ownership, control or qualifying joint venture relationship.
The Senior or Specialist Worker route does not itself lead directly to settlement.
The Graduate Trainee route is intended for employees of an overseas business who are participating in a structured graduate training programme leading towards a senior management or specialist position.
The worker must undertake a qualifying placement with a linked UK business as part of that programme.
This is not simply a general route for recent graduates.
The applicant should already be employed by the overseas organisation and must be participating in a genuine graduate training programme.
The role in the UK must also satisfy the relevant skill and salary requirements.
For multinational businesses with structured international graduate schemes, this route can provide a lawful mechanism for temporary UK placements.
The UK Expansion Worker route is designed for overseas businesses that have not yet begun trading in the UK and want to send senior managers or specialist employees here to establish their UK operation.
It replaced the former sole representative provisions of the Representative of an Overseas Business route for most new business expansion cases.
The route can potentially be used to establish:
The overseas business must satisfy specific requirements and the worker must normally be a senior manager or specialist employee.
The UK Expansion Worker route is particularly technical because the business may need to obtain a Sponsor Licence before it has fully established UK trading operations.
The structure of the overseas business, its UK expansion plans, key personnel and sponsorship arrangements should therefore be considered carefully from the outset.
The Service Supplier route is intended for certain overseas workers providing services in the UK under an eligible international trade agreement.
It can apply to:
The services being provided must fall within the scope of an international trade agreement that applies to the relevant sector and activity.
This is therefore a highly specialised immigration route.
Having a commercial contract with a UK business does not automatically establish eligibility.
The underlying international agreement, sector, occupation, worker’s experience and sponsorship arrangements all need to be checked.
The Secondment Worker route is for employees of overseas businesses being seconded to the UK as part of a qualifying high-value contract or investment.
The arrangement must satisfy the specific requirements of the route.
This can be relevant where an overseas business and UK organisation have entered into a significant commercial arrangement requiring temporary transfer of overseas employees into the UK.
The Secondment Worker route is not intended for ordinary recruitment or general intra-company transfers.
The commercial contract, sponsor relationship and worker’s overseas employment position all need to satisfy the relevant requirements.
For applications made on or after 8 April 2026, the overseas work requirement for Secondment Workers was reduced from 12 months to 6 months.
Yes.
All five Global Business Mobility routes operate through the sponsorship system.
The worker must have a valid Certificate of Sponsorship assigned by an organisation authorised to sponsor under the relevant GBM route.
The sponsor must hold the correct type of Sponsor Licence.
Simply having a Skilled Worker Sponsor Licence does not necessarily mean that an organisation can automatically sponsor workers under every Global Business Mobility route.
The licence must cover the route concerned.
An organisation wishing to sponsor GBM workers generally needs the appropriate Home Office Sponsor Licence.
The requirements depend upon the particular route.
For example:
The Home Office may examine:
The correct sponsorship structure should therefore be established before workers are assigned Certificates of Sponsorship.
Every Global Business Mobility worker needs a valid Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS).
The CoS is an electronic record containing information about the proposed UK assignment.
It may include:
The Home Office will check the Certificate of Sponsorship when determining the worker’s application.
The information entered should therefore correspond with the genuine UK assignment.
Errors can affect both the worker’s immigration application and the sponsor’s compliance position.
The GBM routes are intended primarily for people already working for an overseas business.
Most routes therefore include an overseas employment requirement.
The precise period and conditions differ depending upon the route and worker.
This is particularly important when planning international transfers.
An employee who has only recently joined an overseas group company may not necessarily qualify immediately for the intended GBM route.
There can also be exemptions or different requirements depending upon factors such as salary, route or the particular assignment.
The worker’s overseas employment history should therefore be checked before sponsorship is assigned.
GBM workers must generally undertake employment meeting the skill requirements of the relevant route.
The proposed occupation should be assigned the appropriate occupation code.
Employers should consider:
An occupation code should reflect the genuine role.
It should not be selected simply because it appears to satisfy immigration requirements.
UKVI can examine whether the worker is genuinely performing the sponsored job.
Salary requirements vary between the different GBM routes.
For routes such as Senior or Specialist Worker, Graduate Trainee and UK Expansion Worker, both general salary thresholds and occupation-based going rates can be relevant.
The Home Office updated GBM salary thresholds in July 2025 and continues to apply route-specific salary requirements under the current framework.
The correct salary assessment can depend upon:
Businesses should therefore avoid relying upon one generic GBM salary figure.
The applicable threshold should be checked against the current rules at the time of sponsorship.
The Home Office must also be satisfied that the applicant genuinely intends to undertake the role for which they are being sponsored.
Current 2026 guidance refers to this as the genuine intention requirement.
UKVI may consider whether:
Artificial arrangements created mainly to secure immigration permission can create serious problems.
GBM applicants may need to satisfy a maintenance requirement unless an exemption applies.
In some cases, the sponsor may be able to certify maintenance on the Certificate of Sponsorship.
Applicants who have already been lawfully present in the UK for the relevant period may also be exempt from providing the standard evidence.
The precise financial requirement depends upon the route and circumstances.
Dependants can also be subject to separate financial requirements.
Eligible partners and dependent children can generally apply to accompany or join a Global Business Mobility worker, subject to the requirements of the relevant route.
A dependant application may involve evidence relating to:
Family planning should be considered alongside the main worker application, particularly where the assignment is expected to last several years.
The maximum period depends upon the Global Business Mobility route.
Different limits apply to:
Some routes also impose limits on the total amount of time a worker can spend in GBM categories over a specified period.
For example, a worker cannot necessarily continue switching between temporary GBM categories indefinitely.
Employers planning longer assignments should therefore consider maximum stay rules at the beginning rather than waiting until the employee approaches the end of their visa.
No.
The Global Business Mobility routes are not direct settlement routes.
Time spent solely in these routes does not create a direct GBM pathway to Indefinite Leave to Remain.
This is an important distinction from routes such as Skilled Worker.
Where an employee’s long-term objective is settlement, the business and worker may need to consider whether switching into another immigration route is possible and appropriate.
The best route therefore depends not only upon the immediate assignment but also upon the worker’s longer-term plans.
This is a common strategic question.
GBM routes are designed for particular temporary international business assignments.
They are useful where the worker remains closely connected to an overseas business and is being transferred or assigned to the UK for a specific commercial purpose.
The Skilled Worker route is intended for eligible long-term employment with an approved UK sponsor.
It can provide a direct route towards settlement where the relevant requirements are met.
For an international company, the correct route depends upon:
GBM should not automatically be selected simply because the employee already works overseas for the business.
In-country switching depends upon the particular route and the applicant’s existing immigration status.
Some categories of immigration permission prevent switching into certain GBM routes from inside the UK.
Applicants should therefore establish whether they are permitted to make an in-country application before sponsorship is assigned.
Where switching is not permitted, the worker may need to leave the UK and apply for entry clearance from overseas.
Once the worker has been sponsored, the employer remains subject to Home Office compliance duties.
These can include:
The sponsor must also ensure that the underlying business relationship supporting the GBM route remains valid.
For example, changes to group structure, ownership, contracts or expansion plans can have immigration consequences.
Problems can arise where:
The technical nature of the GBM framework makes early planning particularly important.
A typical GBM case can involve:
Establish the commercial reason for the UK assignment.
Confirm that the overseas and UK organisations satisfy the route-specific relationship requirements.
Ensure the UK organisation has the appropriate Sponsor Licence.
Review overseas employment, occupation, skill level, salary and immigration history.
Ensure the CoS accurately reflects the proposed assignment.
Compile the required identity, employment, financial and supporting evidence.
The worker applies for the relevant GBM visa.
The sponsor carries out Right to Work checks and continues meeting its sponsorship duties.
At Knights & Shah Solicitors, we advise international businesses and workers on all five Global Business Mobility routes.
We can assist with:
Our focus is to identify the route that reflects the genuine commercial purpose of the UK assignment, while ensuring that the business and worker satisfy the immigration and sponsorship requirements.
If you require advice contact Knights & Shah Solicitors.
We provide clear, solicitor led advice, strategic case planning and robust court representation to protect our clients.
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