Moving to the UK from China: Complete Guide

Visa Routes for Chinese Nationals

China is on the UK's visa national list, so a Chinese passport holder needs a visa for any stay, including a short visit. The £20 electronic travel authorisation is not open to visa nationals. Holders of a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport are the exception named in that appendix and do take the authorisation instead.

Student Visa

The Student visa costs £558. You need a confirmation of acceptance for studies from a licensed institution, and you must show money for living costs on top of your unpaid tuition: £1,529 a month for study in London or £1,171 a month outside London, for up to 9 months. The money must have been held for 28 consecutive days, ending no more than 31 days before you apply.

After your degree, the Graduate route gives 2 years of work permission without a sponsor, or 3 years after a PhD. For applications made on or after 1 January 2027 that 2-year period shortens to 18 months. Time on the Graduate route does not count towards settlement, so people who want to stay longer switch to a Skilled Worker visa.

Skilled Worker Visa

The Skilled Worker visa is used by Chinese professionals in finance, technology, academia, and other sectors. You need a Certificate of Sponsorship from a UK employer with a sponsor licence, and the job must pay at least £41,700 a year or the going rate for the occupation code, whichever is higher. Since 22 July 2025 a new applicant's job must sit at degree level (RQF 6), unless the occupation code is on the Immigration Salary List or the Temporary Shortage List. A job on the Immigration Salary List has a lower salary floor of £33,400 and a lower visa fee, but the full going rate for the code still applies; roles reached through the Temporary Shortage List cannot bring dependants.

If you change employer or move to a different job, you need a new certificate of sponsorship and permission from the Home Office before you start. Submitting the application is not enough: GOV.UK says to wait until the application is decided.

Global Talent Visa

The Global Talent visa is used by Chinese academics, researchers, and professionals recognised as leaders or emerging leaders in their field. No job offer is required. This route is particularly relevant for those in STEM fields, arts, and digital technology.

Spouse and Family Visa

The Spouse visa is used by Chinese nationals joining partners in the UK. The UK sponsor must meet the £29,000 financial requirement.

Chinese Document Requirements

Document Legalisation and Apostille

China joined the Hague Apostille Convention on 7 November 2023, which simplified the document legalisation process. The new process:

1. Notarisation. Have your documents notarised by a Chinese notary public (公证处). The notary verifies the document's authenticity and issues a notarial certificate.
2. MFA apostille. Submit the notarised document to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) or its provincial/local offices for apostille. Neither the Home Office nor the ministry publishes a processing time on GOV.UK, so this guide gives none.

Note: Before China joined the Hague Convention, documents needed to be legalised first by the MFA and then by the British Embassy. The apostille has replaced that two-step process. The UK is also in the convention, so a UK document going the other way is apostilled by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: see GOV.UK on getting a document legalised.

Common documents that need apostille:

• Birth certificate (出生证明)
• Marriage certificate (结婚证)
• Degree certificate and transcript
• Police certificate (无犯罪记录证明)
• Employment certificate

Criminal Record Certificate

Most applications do not need one. GOV.UK asks for a criminal record certificate from a Skilled Worker applying from outside the UK whose job is in education, healthcare, therapy or social services. Where it is needed, the Chinese document is the Certificate of No Criminal Conviction (无犯罪记录证明), issued by the local Public Security Bureau:

1. Apply at the Exit-Entry Administration of your local Public Security Bureau.
2. Bring your household registration booklet (户口簿), national identity card, and passport.
3. Have the certificate notarised and apostilled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for use abroad.

Neither the Home Office nor the bureau publishes a processing time on GOV.UK, so this guide gives none.

Financial Documents

Key points for financial evidence from China:

• Bank statements from major Chinese banks (ICBC, Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank of China, etc.) are accepted. Statements must be stamped by the bank.
• Money held in a currency other than pounds is converted to pounds for the date of the application. Exchange rates move, so this guide gives no yuan figure.
• For a Student visa you must show your unpaid tuition plus £1,529 a month for study in London or £1,171 a month outside London, for up to 9 months. The money must have been held for 28 consecutive days, ending no more than 31 days before you apply.
• Parent-sponsored applications (very common for Chinese students) require a sponsorship letter, proof of the parent-child relationship (hukou showing parent's name, or birth certificate), and the parent's bank statements.
• China limits how much foreign currency an individual may buy each year, through the State Administration of Foreign Exchange. The quota is set by that administration rather than by the Home Office, so check the current figure with your bank. A university admission letter can support a request to buy currency above the ordinary quota for tuition and living costs.

Tuberculosis Test

China is on the Home Office tuberculosis testing list. You need a certificate if you are coming for 6 months or more and have lived in China, or another listed country, for 6 months or more within the last 6 months. GOV.UK publishes the current list of approved clinics in China, which covers several cities. The certificate is valid for 6 months from the date of the x-ray. Each clinic publishes its own fee, so this guide gives no price.

English Language Requirement

China is not on the Home Office list of majority English-speaking countries, so an approved secure English language test is needed unless you are exempt:

• Student visa: CEFR B1 below degree level, CEFR B2 at degree level and above. A university may ask for more than the visa rule requires.
• Skilled Worker: CEFR B2 for a new application since 8 January 2026; B1 is still accepted on an extension of the same route
• Partner visa, first application: CEFR A1
• Settlement: CEFR B1, rising to B2 from 26 March 2027 on several routes

Only a test taken with a provider on the Home Office approved list counts, and it must be taken at one of that provider's approved centres. A university may accept a different qualification for admission; the visa requirement is separate and must still be met.

A degree taught in English can meet the requirement instead of a test. The degree must be recognised by Ecctis as equivalent to a UK bachelor's degree or above, and if it was awarded outside a majority English-speaking country Ecctis must also confirm it was taught in English.

Applying and Giving Biometrics

After completing your application on GOV.UK, you book an appointment at a visa application centre to have your fingerprints and photograph taken. The centres in China are run by a commercial partner on the Home Office's behalf; the booking system tells you which are open, and where the priority services are offered, when you apply. Appointments fill up around the start of the academic year, so book as soon as you have applied.

Decision Times

These are the service standards GOV.UK publishes for applications made outside the UK. They are not guarantees, and the Home Office does not publish separate times per country or per-country refusal rates.

• Student visa: 3 weeks
• Skilled Worker and other work visas: 3 weeks
• Partner, spouse, parent or child visa: 12 weeks
• Standard Visitor visa: 3 weeks

The priority service costs £500 and gives a decision usually within 5 working days, or 30 working days for family visas and citizenship. The super priority service costs £1,000. See our processing time guide.

What It Costs

The Home Office publishes its fees in pounds. It does not publish a yuan price, and the exchange rate it applies is the rate on the day you pay, so this guide gives no conversion.

• Student visa: £558
• Skilled Worker visa, applying from outside the UK: £819 for 3 years or less, £1,618 for more than 3 years
• Partner visa, applying from outside the UK: £2,064 per person
• Standard Visitor visa: £135 for 6 months, £506 for 2 years, £903 for 5 years, £1,128 for 10 years
• Healthcare surcharge: £1,035 a year, or £776 a year for students, their dependants and anyone under 18
• Settlement: £3,226 for each person
• Naturalisation: £1,709 plus a £130 ceremony fee

GOV.UK publishes no price for an English language test, a tuberculosis test, or notarisation and apostille; the providers, clinics and authorities set their own. See our UK visa fees guide.

Healthcare

Paying the healthcare surcharge does not make the National Health Service free. It buys care on the same basis as a UK resident, so you then pay what a resident pays. In England that is £9.90 for a prescription and dental charges of £27.90, £76.60 or £332.10 depending on the band of treatment. Prescriptions are free in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Common Issues for Chinese Applicants

• The genuine student requirement. The Immigration Rules require the Home Office to be satisfied that you are a genuine student who intends to study the course on your confirmation of acceptance. You may be interviewed and asked about the course, the institution and how you will fund your studies.
• Foreign exchange limits. China caps how much foreign currency an individual may buy in a year. If tuition and living costs exceed the quota, plan purchases in advance and keep evidence that the money is genuinely available to you.
• Document name consistency. Chinese names in pinyin can be formatted differently across documents (e.g., "ZHANG San" vs "Zhang, San" vs "SAN ZHANG"). Ensure your passport name is used consistently in all visa documents. If your birth certificate shows Chinese characters only, the notarised translation must match the pinyin on your passport.
• Timing of the confirmation of acceptance for studies. A conditional offer that depends on final exam results delays the confirmation of acceptance, and you cannot apply without it. From outside the UK you can apply up to 6 months before the course starts.
• Living costs on a Student visa. You must show £1,529 a month for study in London or £1,171 a month outside London, for up to 9 months, on top of any tuition you have not yet paid. Money you have already paid the university is recorded on the confirmation of acceptance for studies and does not have to be shown again.

Practical Points

The Chinese Community in the UK

Chinese Students and Scholars Association chapters run at most UK universities and offer orientation and practical help. Long-standing Chinese communities are found in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool and Edinburgh, with Chinese supermarkets, community groups and cultural organisations in each. The Home Office does not publish a count of Chinese nationals resident in the UK, so this guide gives none.

Banking and Money

Open a UK bank account soon after arriving; a bank will normally ask for your passport, your share code proving your immigration status, and proof of a UK address. Chinese mobile payment apps are not generally accepted in the UK, so plan how you will move money, and check the Chinese rules on sending money abroad before you rely on a transfer.

First Steps After Arrival

• Set up or sign in to your UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account and check your online immigration status. There is no card to collect: biometric residence permits stopped being issued at the end of 2024.
• Apply for a National Insurance number if you plan to work.
• Register with a doctor (GP surgery).
• Open a bank account.

Police registration has ended. Chinese nationals used to have to register with the police within 7 days of arriving, pay a fee, and carry a certificate. That scheme ended on 4 August 2022. Nobody has to register on arrival or after being given permission to stay longer, and an existing certificate does not need updating. Older visa stickers and welcome packs still carry the old wording, but the condition is no longer in force — see the guide to police registration and why it ended. Telling the Home Office about a change of circumstance is a separate duty that still applies.

Path to Settlement and Citizenship

A Skilled Worker can apply for settlement (indefinite leave to remain) after 5 years, at a fee of £3,226 for each person. Time on a Student visa or the Graduate route does not count towards that 5 years, so people switch to a route that does. You must pass the Life in the UK test and meet English at B1, rising to B2 from 26 March 2027 on the Skilled Worker and several other routes. Twelve months after receiving settlement you can apply for British citizenship, which costs £1,709 plus a £130 ceremony fee.

China does not recognise dual nationality under its Nationality Law. If you naturalise as a British citizen, you automatically lose your Chinese citizenship under Chinese law. This is a significant decision with major practical implications (including property ownership, inheritance, family visits, and re-entry to China). Many Chinese nationals in the UK keep settlement rather than naturalise for this reason. This guide sets out the published rules and does not advise either way; a regulated immigration adviser and a Chinese lawyer can advise on your own position.

Next Steps

If you are a prospective student, secure your offer and confirmation of acceptance for studies first, then get documents notarised and apostilled, book the tuberculosis test, and sit an approved English test if your course or route needs one.

For official information, visit GOV.UK.

Related guides:

• Student visa: complete guide
• Graduate route: complete guide
• Skilled Worker visa: complete guide
• UK visa fees: complete breakdown
• English language tests for UK visas

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