What documents should a sponsor provide to support a general visitor's application?
This page explains what documents you may need to supply to support your general visitor's application.
The documents we need will depend on the circumstances of the case. We may ask you to send us:
- evidence of your own immigration status in the United Kingdom; and
- a letter of sponsorship explaining your relationship to the person who is applying, the purpose of the visit and where your general visitor will stay.
If you will provide financial support and accommodation for your general visitor and/or pay for his/her travel to the United Kingdom, you should send us the following as evidence that you are able to do so:
- copies of your bank or building society statements and payslips for the last six months; or
- a copy of your savings account book.
If you are sponsoring a person for the purposes of business, we may ask you to send us a letter from your company outlining the links between your companies, and explain what your visitor will be doing and whether your company is paying for the trip.
Will it help if you act as a guarantor for your general visitor?
You cannot guarantee that the person you are sponsoring will leave at the end of his/her visit. If we decide that your general visitor cannot enter the United Kingdom, it does not mean that we doubt what you have told us. It is because, under the immigration rules, it is the general visitor who must satisfy the entry clearance officer or the immigration officer (or both) that he/she qualifies for entry.