High Potential Individual Route

The High Potential Individual Route was launched on 30 May 2022 with the aim of attracting the ‘brightest and best to the UK’. Eligibility to the scheme is determined by the applicant’s educational achievements, requiring them to hold either a bachelor’s or postgraduate degree qualification from a non-UK top 50 global overseas university.

To be considered as a top 50 university, the non-UK institutions have to be included in the top 50 universities in at least two of the ranking systems listed below, with rankings updated annually:

1. Times Higher Education World University Rankings
2. Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings
3. The Academic Ranking of World Universities

Maintenance and English language requirements apply to the route and the applicant will be able to be joined by their dependants (partner/minor children). Those granted permission under this route will be granted a period of two (bachelor or master’s degree) or three (PhD) years permission to stay in the UK. The High Potential Individual (‘HPI’) route does not lead to settlement in the UK and therefore applicants will need to look to switch into another immigration route should they wish to remain in the UK beyond the expiry of their initial visa.

Those international graduates eligible for the scheme fair better than their peers graduating from UK universities. Whilst there is the UK Graduate visa route, only those currently in the UK on student visas who have successfully completed an eligible course during their last grant of permission of stay as a student are eligible to apply, whereas applicants to the HPI can apply up to five years after being awarded their qualification. Furthermore, those applying on the UK Graduate route are more restricted when it comes to being joined by their dependants, with only those dependants who are already in the UK as dependants on the main applicant’s student visa (or a child born in the UK during the validity of that visa) eligible to apply.