A Youth Mobility visa allows folks aged 18-30 (or 35 for some nations) to reside and work within the UK, normally for as much as two years. It was referred to as the “working holiday-maker scheme” and a few folks should name it that. Crucially, there isn’t any requirement to have an employer to sponsor a Youth Mobility visa and even for the applicant to essentially intend to work within the UK, which makes it rather more versatile than different work visa routes.
The massive downside to the Youth Mobility visa is that it’s only obtainable to residents of a choose checklist of 13 nations (plus British abroad territories). The opposite necessities for this visa are in Appendix Youth Mobility Scheme to the immigration guidelines and there may be additionally some steering on the scheme for Dwelling Workplace employees.
The guidelines for Indian residents, who had been added to the scheme for the primary time in 2022 and have been capable of submit functions from early 2023, are extra restrictive than for different nationalities.
Most important necessities
Nationality
Appendix Youth Mobility Scheme says at YMS 1.3:
The applicant should be one of many following:
(a) a British Abroad Citizen, British Abroad Territories Citizen or British Nationwide (Abroad); or
(b) a nationwide or citizen of a rustic or the holder of a passport issued by a territory, listed in Appendix Youth Mobility Scheme: eligible nationals.
The overwhelming majority of the take-up is from residents of the 13 nations listed in Appendix Youth Mobility Scheme: eligible nationals. Just one individual with one of many uncommon types of British nationality listed at (a) has been issued with a Youth Mobility visa within the 12 months ending December 2024.
Every nation has an annual quota of Youth Mobility visas that may be granted to its residents.
In 2025, the nations and quotas had been:
- Andorra – 100 locations
- Australia – 42,000 locations
- Canada – 10,000 locations
- Hong Kong – 1,000 locations
- Iceland – 1,000 locations
- India – 3,000 locations
- Japan – 6,000 locations
- Monaco – 1,000 locations
- New Zealand – 9,500 locations
- Republic of Korea – 5,000 locations
- San Marino – 1,000 locations
- Taiwan – 1,000 locations
- Uruguay – 500 locations
The impact of the cap on potential candidates varies relying on the applicant’s nation of nationality. Australia, New Zealand and Canada have massive allocations that are by no means stuffed. For instance, even pre-pandemic round 9,000 – 10,000 Youth Mobility visas had been issued to Australians yearly, nicely beneath the then 30,000 quota. Now the quota has been raised to 42,000 however within the 12 months ending September 2025, in accordance with Dwelling Workplace statistics solely 8,588 functions had been made by Australians and eight,396 granted. Quotas are sometimes devised subsequent to up to date commerce offers.
Against this, the Dwelling Workplace operates a lottery for candidates from Taiwan and Hong Kong to handle demand. The primary poll for the 2026 scheme opens at 00:01am on 10 February 2026 and closes at 00:01am on Thursday 12 February 2026. Candidates register their curiosity by e-mail and the Dwelling Workplace distributes “invites to use” at random.
There’s additionally a unique lottery for Indian residents.
Age
Candidates should be aged 18 to 30 (or 35 for nationals of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Korea). Candidates who’re 17 can apply however solely get entry clearance from their 18th birthday. If a person turns 31 (or 36) after the visa is issued, they may stay eligible to stay within the UK for so long as their visa is legitimate.
Upkeep
Candidates should reveal that they’ve financial savings of £2,530 as required by YMS 5.1. That is calculated utilizing the alternate fee on the date the appliance was submitted. The detailed guidelines on upkeep for this route are in Appendix Finance, which says:
Funds could also be held in any type of private financial institution or constructing society account (together with present, deposit, financial savings, pension from which the funds could be withdrawn or funding account) supplied the account permits the funds to be accessed instantly.
The applicant will need to have had the funds in such an account for not less than 28 days main as much as their utility.
Particular guidelines for Indian residents
Indian residents supposedly certified for the Youth Mobility Scheme for the primary time in 2022 however the a lot anticipated Indian Younger Professionals Scheme poll opened for the primary time on 28 February 2023.
The primary poll of 2026 has not but opened. Final 12 months it opened on 18 February 2025 and particulars of the poll had been printed per week that on this web page, so an replace could be anticipated shortly. The summer time poll in 2025 opened on 22 July and closed on 24 July.
Indians making use of for what’s being branded the “Younger Professionals Scheme” might want to have some {qualifications} or expertise not required for residents of the opposite Youth Mobility nations. They should fulfill paragraph YMS 4.2 of the Appendix:
The applicant should:
(a) have been issued with an invite to use in accordance with the invitation to use preparations set out in Appendix Youth Mobility Scheme: eligible nationals; and
(b) have made their utility throughout the time period laid out in that invitation to use; and
(c) present the distinctive utility quantity for that invitation to use; and
(d) present a neighborhood police certificates or a police clearance certificates that has been issued not more than 6 months earlier than the date of utility; and
(e) maintain a qualification equal to or above RQF degree 6.
Refusals
Half Suitability applies. As well as, there are different causes for refusing a Youth Mobility utility.
First, you can’t get a Youth Mobility visa twice. Should you apply a second time then you can be refused even should you nonetheless meet the opposite necessities. Importantly, although, this solely applies should you really frolicked within the UK on the visa, so if somebody applies for and will get a Youth Mobility visa however decides to not use it, then they might nonetheless get one other one the next 12 months in the event that they wished.
Second, candidates should not have kids beneath the age of 18 who reside with them or are financially depending on them.
Situations
Profitable candidates get two years’ entry clearance. For many, there isn’t any risk of renewing the visa and no risk of making use of for indefinite go away to stay. Individuals might nevertheless be capable of lengthen their keep within the UK by switching to a different visa, resembling a Expert Employee visa.
Nonetheless, there may be an exception for nationals of Australia, Canada and New Zealand who’re capable of apply to increase their visa for an additional 12 months, as much as a complete of three years steady residence within the UK beneath the Youth Mobility Scheme. The cap on the variety of functions (listed above) doesn’t apply to these in nation visa extensions.
As with virtually all different routes, entry clearance can be granted topic to a no recourse to public funds situation.
There are only a few limits on what a profitable applicant can do with their two years within the UK and no requirement to do something in any respect.
A few choose types of work are prohibited. Youth Mobility visa holders can not work as an expert sportsperson/coach. There are additionally some barely weird constraints on self-employment:
(b) no self-employment, besides the place the next situations are met:
(i) the individual has no premises which they personal, aside from their dwelling, from which they perform their enterprise; and
(ii) the entire worth of any gear used within the enterprise doesn’t exceed £5,000; and
(iii) the applicant has no staff
Youth Mobility visa holders can even use their two years to review within the UK (apart from programs which require an Educational Expertise Approval Scheme clearance certificates).
Making an utility
The necessities for a Youth Mobility visa are a lot simpler to fulfil than virtually every other UK immigration route. It is usually cheaper than most, with a £319 utility charge and a decreased fee of the immigration well being surcharge (£776 per 12 months moderately than £1,035). That makes the entire value of the two-year visa £1,871.
Functions are made on-line. Unsurprisingly, the success fee may be very excessive. Within the 12 months ending September 2025, 21,351 out of 21,898 functions had been granted.
This text was initially printed in November 2020 and has been up to date most not too long ago by Sonia Lenegan in order that it’s appropriate as of the brand new date of publication proven.
