This page covers eligibility, endorsement, settlement, what the visa costs, and exactly how lenders assess sporting income.
Understanding the International Sportsperson visa
Who qualifies, which governing body endorses your sport, why your visa ends when your contract does, what it costs, and what it takes to settle.
What is the International Sportsperson visa?
The International Sportsperson visa lets elite athletes and coaches who are established internationally in their sport come to the UK to compete or coach for a UK club or sports organisation that holds a sponsor licence. It needs two separate approvals: an endorsement from your sport’s governing body, and a Certificate of Sponsorship from your employer.
Who is eligible?
- An endorsement from your sport’s approved governing body, confirming that you are elite, established internationally, and will make a significant contribution to your sport at the highest level in the UK
- A Certificate of Sponsorship from a UK club or sports organisation with a sponsor licence, setting out your role, your pay and how long your contract runs
- Pay of at least the National Minimum Wage. There is no Home Office salary threshold to enter on this route; your governing body’s endorsement criteria are the real test
- £1,270 in savings, held for 28 days in a row, unless your club certifies your maintenance or you have already been in the UK on a visa for 12 months
- English at level A1 if you apply for more than 12 months, unless you are a national of an exempt country such as the USA, Canada, Australia or New Zealand
Which governing body endorses your sport?
Each sport on the Home Office’s approved list has one governing body that decides endorsement, and in several sports that body depends on which part of the UK you will play in. Every body agrees its own criteria with the Home Office, so what counts as elite in cricket is not what counts in football.
Football (England)
The Football AssociationScotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each have their own football association.
Rugby union (England)
Rugby Football UnionThe Scottish Rugby Union, the Welsh Rugby Union and the IRFU (Ulster Branch) cover the rest of the UK.
Rugby league
Rugby Football League
Cricket (England and Wales)
England and Wales Cricket BoardCricket Scotland and Cricket Ireland cover Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Tennis (lawn tennis)
Lawn Tennis Association
Athletics
UK Athletics
Sport not on the list
The approved list names the Home Office as the endorsing body for every sport it does not name. Golf is one example: it has no governing body on the list, so a golfer applies for endorsement to the Home Office itself.
Football’s places for promising players
The Football Association scores overseas players on international appearances, minutes played and the standard of the club and league they are coming from.
A player who falls short of the points can still be endorsed if the club shows they are elite and will make a significant contribution, through what the FA calls an Elite Significant Contribution place. For the 2026/27 season, Premier League and Championship clubs have up to four of these places at any one time, and League One and League Two clubs up to two, depending on how many minutes each club gives English-qualified players.
How long does it last?
How long you get depends on what you apply for and on your contract. Apply for 12 months or less and that is the most you get, with no English test. Apply for longer and the grant can run to 3 years. Either way, it never runs more than 14 days past the end of the contract on your Certificate of Sponsorship. To stay on, you need a renewed endorsement and a new Certificate of Sponsorship, and you can extend by up to 3 years at a time.
- Yr 0–2
Your clearest window
More than 12 months left on your contract, and so on your visa. This is the stretch most lender criteria are written around.
- Yr 2–3
The final year
Under 12 months left on both, because they end together. Some lenders pause here, which is also when clubs open renewal talks. A signed extension changes the picture.
Key dates
- Yr 0Contract starts. Visa granted to 14 days after the contract ends, for up to 3 years
- Yr 212 months left on your contract and your visa
- Yr 3Contract ends. Staying needs a renewed endorsement and a new Certificate of Sponsorship
What’s the route to settlement?
Five years in the UK can lead to Indefinite Leave to Remain on this route. The conditions are specific, and two of them catch people out: the salary test counts basic pay only, and a run of short grants never qualifies on its own.
- Five continuous years in the UK. Time on the Skilled Worker, Global Talent, Innovator Founder, Scale-up and T2 Minister of Religion routes can count toward it; time on the old Tier 5 (Creative and Sporting) visa cannot
- At least one of your International Sportsperson grants lasted more than 12 months
- Your club confirms it still needs you and pays you at least £35,800 a year in basic pay. Bonuses, appearance fees and other incentive pay do not count, and nor does anything paid for hours over 48 a week
- No more than 180 days outside the UK in any 12-month period
- English at level B1, rising to B2 for applications made on or after 26 March 2027, and a pass in the Life in the UK test
The government’s earned-settlement proposals, announced on 20 November 2025 and consulted on until 12 February 2026, would raise the standard qualifying period towards ten years for many routes. No outcome has been published, and the Immigration Rules for this route still say five years. If a settlement date is part of your reason for buying, check gov.uk before you plan around it.
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What are the fees?
The fee depends on how long you apply for, and on whether you apply from abroad or from inside the UK to extend or switch. Each family member pays it separately. On top of it comes the Immigration Health Surcharge, charged for every year of the visa, which is usually the larger number.
| Length applied for | From outside the UK | From inside the UK |
|---|---|---|
| 12 months or less | From outside the UK£340 | From inside the UK£340 |
| More than 12 months | From outside the UK£819 | From inside the UK£943 |
Fees per person, as set on 8 April 2026 and unchanged in the Home Office table that takes effect on 8 October 2026. Add the Immigration Health Surcharge, usually £1,035 for each year of the visa. A decision within five working days costs £500 more, and by the end of the next working day £1,000 more, where either is offered.
Can I bring my family, and can I take other work?
Your partner and children under 18 can join you as dependants. Unless your club certifies their maintenance, each needs savings held for 28 days: £285 for a partner, £315 for one child and £200 for each further child. They can work in any job except as a sportsperson or coach.
You can take a second job of up to 20 hours a week, in the same profession as your main job or one on the Skilled Worker immigration salary list, and you can do unpaid voluntary work. You can also play for your national team in the UK and work as a guest sports broadcaster. You cannot start or run a business.
Getting a mortgage on an International Sportsperson visa
What lenders weigh on this route, which parts of your pay each of them counts, how much you could borrow, and the problems we solve most often.
Can I get a mortgage on an International Sportsperson visa?
Yes. Lenders do not need you to hold Indefinite Leave to Remain, and elite sportspeople are often high earners. The difficulty is the shape of the pay rather than the amount: fixed-term contracts, bonus-heavy pay, appearance fees and image-rights arrangements do not fit a standard affordability check. On this route more than most, the lender you approach decides what you can borrow.
What matters most to lenders on this route
- How long your contract has left, and how likely it is to be renewed. Your visa ends when your contract does, so a lender reads the two as one date
- How your pay is made up: basic salary against bonuses, appearance fees and image-rights income. Some lenders count only the guaranteed basic salary
- The size of your deposit, which is often larger on this route and sometimes funded by a signing-on fee. A bigger deposit opens more lenders
- Your age and career stage, which matter most in contact sports with shorter careers. Some lenders limit how far into the future they will lend
Which parts of your pay count?
A sporting pay packet usually has three parts: a basic salary, bonuses and appearance fees paid per win, per appearance or per target, and image-rights income that is often paid to your own company. The Home Office and lenders each count a different share of it, and knowing which reading you are getting explains most of the answers you will hear.
| Who is counting | Basic salary | Bonuses and appearance fees | Image rights | In short |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home Office settlement testFixed by the Immigration Rules | SalaryBasic salaryCounts | BonusesBonuses and appearance feesNot counted | Image rightsImage rightsNot counted | Basic salary only, and it must reach £35,800 a year. The rules leave out bonuses, appearance fees and image rights. |
| Most high-street lendersThe usual pattern | SalaryBasic salaryCounts | BonusesBonuses and appearance feesIn part | Image rightsImage rightsNot counted | Basic salary at 4–4.5×, plus a share of bonuses and appearance fees once you have a track record. Image rights rarely count without company accounts. |
| Specialist lendersThe usual pattern | SalaryBasic salaryCounts | BonusesBonuses and appearance feesIn part | Image rightsImage rightsIn part | Basic salary in full. Bonuses and appearance fees are read against your contract and payment history, and image rights case by case from company accounts. |
Lender criteria vary and change often, which is why the two lender rows describe a pattern rather than a rule. Part of a broker’s job on this route is finding the lender whose reading of your contract is the fullest.
How much can I borrow?
It depends almost entirely on which parts of your pay are counted. Where a lender counts only your guaranteed basic salary, the standard 4–4.5× income multiple applies to that figure. Some private banks and specialist lenders offer mortgages for professional sportspeople that take a broader view, counting verified bonus and endorsement income as well, which can support much higher borrowing for established, higher-earning athletes. Use our eligibility calculator for an instant estimate on your basic salary.
Documents you’ll need
- Passport and your eVisa share code
- Your governing body endorsement letter and Certificate of Sponsorship reference
- Your full playing or coaching contract, including the bonus and appearance fee schedules
- 3–6 months of bank statements
- Confirmation from your accountant or agent of any other income, such as image rights, where it applies
- Proof of deposit
- Your UK credit report — check yours with checkmyfile(opens in a new tab)
Common challenges, and how we solve them
“My contract is only two years. Will lenders worry about that?”
Some will. Others are set up to lend against shorter, high-value sporting contracts, and we know which is which.
“Most of my income is bonuses and appearance fees, not basic salary.”
We work with lenders and specialist underwriters who look at the whole of your pay with the right supporting evidence, rather than only the guaranteed part.
“I have just transferred to a UK club and have no UK credit history.”
That is common on this route. We work with lenders used to assessing recently arrived, high-earning sportspeople on exactly that basis.
“My agent handles a lot of my income structuring.”
Bring your agent or accountant into the conversation early. Clean, well-documented income evidence makes a real difference to which lenders will consider you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need Indefinite Leave to Remain to get a mortgage as a professional athlete on this visa?
No. UK lenders on our panel offer mortgages to International Sportsperson visa holders based on income, contract terms and deposit, without requiring ILR.
What is the minimum salary for the International Sportsperson visa?
There is no single salary threshold to get the visa. Your job must pay at least the National Minimum Wage, and your sport’s governing body sets its own endorsement criteria. The figure that matters later is for settlement: your basic salary needs to be at least £35,800 a year, not counting bonuses or appearance fees.
How long until I can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain on this visa?
After five years’ continuous residence in the UK, as the rules stand in September 2026, provided at least one of your International Sportsperson grants lasted more than 12 months. Time on some other routes, including Skilled Worker and Global Talent, can count toward the five years; time on the old Tier 5 (Creative and Sporting) visa does not.
Can bonuses and appearance fees be used towards a mortgage application?
It depends on the lender. Some count only guaranteed basic salary; specialist lenders experienced with professional athletes may consider verified bonus, appearance fee and image-rights income as part of a fuller affordability assessment.
Can I take a second job while on an International Sportsperson visa?
Yes, for up to 20 hours a week, in the same profession as your main job or in one on the Skilled Worker immigration salary list. Unpaid voluntary work is also allowed.
Still have a question? Read our full FAQs or ask us directly.
Further reading
