Destination — completed
Category — completed
Passport — completed
Checklist

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Open Government Licence v3.0 — read the licenceContains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: GOV.UK.

The eligibility criteria, steps, information you'll need to apply, required documents, fees/timing, and glossary source links below are drawn from official government sources, reproduced under the licence(s) above. Vibistic's own commentary — the scope note, freshness notes, and "what changed" entries — is separate and not government content.

Standard Visitor (tourism, up to 6 months)

Destination: United Kingdom
Category: Standard Visitor (tourism, up to 6 months)
Passport: India

This is the checklist for the scenario you selected, not a personalized assessment — general information, not immigration advice.

Vibistic couldn't automatically confirm the official guidance behind this checklist is still current. Use the official source links below to check directly.

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What changed

Updated 2026-07-26

Added the marriage/civil-partnership restriction to "What this visa covers" — the source doesn't allow marrying or registering a civil partnership while on this visa, which wasn't stated here before. Vibistic clarification
Corrected "What this visa covers" to note the permitted-paid-engagement exception to the no-work restriction, matching what the source page actually says. Vibistic clarification

Preparing for: Me

Each traveler's checked steps and document readiness are tracked separately here to help you prepare. Depending on official guidance, each traveler may need a separate application, fee, appointment, or evidence — check the relevant official guidance for each person. Tracking preparation here does not change how any application is actually handled.

Print blank checklist

"Print or save as PDF" includes your current checked-off progress. "Print blank checklist" opens a copy with nothing checked, for sharing. Check "Print all travelers" above (when tracking more than one) to include everyone in either option.

Fee and timing

Official application fee: £135 — Standard visitor visa (up to 6 months)

Source: Standard Visitor· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22 · Check the live official figure

Earliest you can apply: 3 months before you travel
Published decision time: Usually 3 weeks

Source: Standard Visitor· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22 · Check the live official figure

Tell us your intended travel date and we'll work out the official earliest-application date, plus a suggested date to start preparing.

Report a problem with this fee/timing information

Information you'll need to apply

A worksheet for what the official online application is likely to ask for, so you can have it ready before you start — this isn't the application form itself, and nothing you note here is saved or sent anywhere.

You'll be asked for this

The dates you plan to travel to the UK
Where you'll be staying during your visit
How much you think your trip will cost
Your current home address and how long you've lived there
Your parents' names and dates of birth, if known
How much you earn in a year, if you have an income
Details of any criminal, civil, or immigration offences you may have committed

Depending on your circumstances, you might also need this

Details of your travel history for the past 10 years
Your employer's address and telephone number
Your partner's name, date of birth, and passport number
The name and address of anyone paying for your trip
The name, address, and passport number of any family members you have in the UK

Source: Standard Visitor · Open Government Licence v3.0

Documents to prepare

0 of 7 preparation items resolved

Documents: 0/3 · Application steps: 0/4

Required
1. Valid passport or travel documentRequired
  Proves your identity and nationality, and must be valid for the whole of your stay.
  Form: Original document · Stage: Visa application centre appointment
  Details
  Some passport holders may need to provide alternative evidence of their identity and nationality instead.
  Documents and information you'll need to apply · 1. Travel document (passport) · Report a problem
Supporting
1. Evidence of fundsSupporting
  Supports that you have access to enough funds for your trip, as part of the genuine visitor / sufficient funds requirement.
  Form: Certified translation or Digital image · Stage: Online application
  Details
  Examples: bank statements or building society books that detail the origin of the funds held, or proof of earnings such as a letter from your employer confirming employment details. Not mandatory — not sending one of these is not itself a reason for refusal. This bullet is general (not conditioned on your visit's purpose), unlike the employer/education-provider examples under 'personal-circumstances-evidence' below.
  2. Demonstrating personal circumstances · Introduction (digital images and translations) · Report a problem
2. Evidence of your personal circumstancesSupporting
  Supports that you are a genuine visitor who will leave at the end of your visit — e.g. your travel history and residence status.
  Form: Certified translation or Digital image · Stage: Online application
  Details
  Examples: copies of previous passports showing your travel history, or confirmation of your legal residence if you're not a national of the country you're applying from (or your right to reside there isn't shown in your passport). Not mandatory.
  2. Demonstrating personal circumstances · Introduction (digital images and translations) · Report a problem

Documents not normally useful

Documents not normally useful as evidence
Some types of documents are less useful as evidence for this kind of application: bank statements or letters issued more than 1 year before your application, credit card statements, driving licence, educational certificates not listed as required for your visa, evidence of car ownership, personal photographs, notarial certificates, business cards, hotel bookings, flight bookings (unless transiting), photocopies of bank cards, certificates relating to leisure activities (e.g. sports trophies), travel insurance, your sponsor's utility bills, and your sponsor's council tax bills.
13. Documents you should not use as evidence · Report a problem

Your application checklist

Apply online
Costs £135 for up to 6 months (fee current as of when this was last verified — check the link for the live figure). Apply up to 3 months before travelling.
Go →
Report a problem
Gather your documents
Travel dates, accommodation, trip cost, address history, and income details — plus certified translations for anything not in English or Welsh.
Report a problem
Book a visa application centre appointment
You'll need this for identity checks, biometrics (photo + fingerprints), and to hand in your documents.
Go →
Report a problem
Track or continue a saved application
Go →
Report a problem

Eligibility context

Do you need a visa?

Yes. India is on the UK's Visa National List, so you need entry clearance (a visa) in advance of travel — this route isn't available as an ETA-only or visa-free visit (narrow exceptions exist separately in the Immigration Rules).

Source: Immigration Rules Appendix Visitor Visa National List · Open Government Licence v3.0

What this visa covers

Tourism, seeing family or friends, transit, and certain other permitted activities, for up to 6 months. No paid or unpaid work for a UK company or as a self-employed person — other than a specific 'permitted paid engagement' activity or event — no claiming public funds, no living in the UK long-term via repeat visits, and no marrying or registering a civil partnership (a separate Marriage Visitor visa covers that).

Source: Standard Visitor · Open Government Licence v3.0

The genuine visitor requirement (Immigration Rules, Appendix V, V4.2)

The decision maker must be satisfied you will leave at the end of the visit, are genuinely visiting for a permitted purpose, and have sufficient funds for the trip (your own, or a third party's under specific conditions) without working or accessing public funds.

Source: Immigration Rules Appendix V Visitor · Open Government Licence v3.0

This assumes: an adult, ordinary passport holder, resident in and applying from India, self-funding their own trip, visiting for up to 6 months. If that doesn't match your situation, some of this may not apply.

This is general information about the UK's published Standard Visitor visa requirements, not individual immigration advice. It doesn't tell you whether you personally qualify — you decide whether to apply.

Glossary

Plain-language explanations of terms you'll see above. These explain what a term means — they don't change what it means, and they're not a personalized assessment of your situation.

Entry clearance: The visa itself — permission to travel to the UK, checked and granted before you arrive.
More detail on Entry clearance
Entry clearance is the process UK Entry Clearance Officers use to check, before someone arrives, whether they meet the Immigration Rules for entry to the UK — it's commonly just called a 'visa'. For visa nationals it's issued as a visa (often an eVisa or vignette sticker); for non-visa nationals it can be issued as an entry certificate instead.
Source: Ecb3 What Is Entry Clearance· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22
Visa national: Someone who must get a visa before travelling to the UK, based on their nationality or travel document.
More detail on Visa national
If your nationality (or certain other criteria, such as the type of travel document you hold) puts you on the UK's Visa National List, you need entry clearance in advance of travel for any purpose — a visa-free or on-arrival route isn't an option for you.
Source: Immigration Rules Appendix Visitor Visa National List· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22
Biometrics: Your fingerprints and a photo of your face, collected as part of your application.
More detail on Biometrics
Biometric information means data about your physical characteristics — for a visa application this means a digital photograph of your face and a scan of your fingerprints. Biometrics are used to confirm your identity and check your application against other records.
Source: Biometric Information Introduction Accessible· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22
Sponsor: Someone in the UK — often a family member or employer — who supports your visit, usually financially.
More detail on Sponsor
A sponsor is a third party — a friend, family member, or employer, for example — supporting your visit, most often financially. If an individual is sponsoring you, they must show they have enough funds to support both themselves (and anyone who depends on them) and you, and must be legally in the UK.
Source: Immigration Rules Appendix V Visitor· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22
Certified translation: An official translation of a document, with written confirmation it's accurate.
More detail on Certified translation
If a supporting document isn't in English or Welsh, you need a full translation the Home Office can independently verify. The translator (or translation company) must confirm in writing that it's a true and accurate translation of the original document.
Source: Guide To Supporting Documents Visiting The Uk· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22
Public funds: Certain UK state benefits and housing support — visitors generally can't claim them.
More detail on Public funds
For immigration purposes, 'public funds' is a specific, defined list of benefits and services set out in section 115 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 and paragraph 6 of the Immigration Rules — things like Universal Credit and Housing Benefit. It doesn't mean everything state-funded: NHS treatment and compulsory-age school education, for example, aren't 'public funds' for this purpose.
Source: Public Funds Accessible· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22
Permitted activity: Something you're officially allowed to do while visiting on this route.
More detail on Permitted activity
Permitted activities are the specific things Appendix Visitor: Permitted Activities says a Standard Visitor may do — tourism, seeing family, or certain business activities, for example. Doing something outside this list can put you outside the terms of your visit.
Source: Immigration Rules Appendix Visitor Permitted Activities· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22
Onward journey: Your travel away from the UK after your visit — you need to show you can pay for it.
More detail on Onward journey
As a genuine visitor, you must be able to cover the cost of your return or onward journey — leaving the UK for home or your next destination — without working or claiming public funds, either yourself or through funding from someone else.
Source: Immigration Rules Appendix V Visitor· Open Government Licence v3.0 · last verified 2026-07-22