The United Kingdom government will increase fees for a wide range of visas, residency applications, and citizenship processes from April 8, 2026, affecting Nigerians and other foreign nationals seeking to visit, study, work, or settle in the country.
The revised fee schedule, published by the UK Home Office and obtained by The Telegraph on Thursday, shows increases across almost all visa categories, including visit visas, student visas, work permits, settlement applications, and naturalisation fees.
The hikes come as Nigeria remains one of the largest sources of UK visa applicants, with hundreds of thousands of Nigerians applying annually for visit, student, and work visas.
- Short-term visit visas will rise from £127 to £135.
- Student visas will increase from £524 to £558.
- Permanent residency (indefinite leave to remain) will cost £3,226, up from £3,029.
- Naturalisation as a British citizen will rise from £1,605 to £1,709.
In a rare exception, the fee for registering a child as a British citizen will be reduced from £1,214 to £1,000. Some categories, such as the Tier 1 (Investor) visa and High Potential Individual visa, remain unchanged at £2,000 and £880, respectively.
Key Visa Fee Changes
Visit Visas
- Short-term (up to 6 months): £127 → £135
- Long-term (up to 2 years): £475 → £506
- Long-term (up to 5 years): £848 → £903
- Long-term (up to 10 years): £1,059 → £1,128
- Visiting academic (6–12 months): £220 → £234
- Private medical treatment (6–11 months): £220 → £234
- Direct airside transit: £39 → £41.50
- Landside transit: £70 → £74.50
Student Visas
- Student (main applicant and dependants): £524 → £558
- Child Student: £524 → £558
- Short-term student (English language, 6–11 months): £214 → £228
Work Visas
- Skilled Worker (up to 3 years): £769 → £819
- Skilled Worker (over 3 years): £1,519 → £1,618
- Skilled Worker (Health and Care, up to 3 years): £304 → £324
- Skilled Worker (Health and Care, over 3 years): £590 → £628
- Innovator Founder: £1,274 → £1,357
- Start-up: £465 → £495
- Scale-up: £880 → £937
- Graduate Route: £880 → £937
- High Potential Individual: £880 (unchanged)
Settlement & Indefinite Leave
- Route to settlement: £1,938 → £2,064
- Indefinite leave to remain: £3,029 → £3,226
- Visitor extension (in-country): £1,100 → £1,172
Travel Documents
- Certificate of travel (adult): £300 → £320
- Certificate of travel (child): £151 → £161
- Convention travel document (adult): £94.50 → £102
- Convention travel document (child): £61.50 → £66.50
Nationality & Citizenship
- Naturalisation (British citizenship): £1,605 → £1,709
- Registration as British citizen – adult: £1,446 → £1,540
- Registration as British citizen – child: £1,214 → £1,000 (reduced)
- Renunciation of nationality: £482 → £513
- Nationality review: £482 → £513
- Status Letter: £459 → £489
- Non-acquisition Letter: £459 → £489
The increases take effect in less than two weeks and are part of the UK government’s regular review of immigration fees, designed to cover administrative costs and services provided to applicants.
