In the run up to the end of the January 2022 transfer window, we recently considered the various routes for those outside of the UK to enter the UK to work, specifically in the context of football.
In particular, we looked at the International Sportsperson route and Governing Body Endorsements (GBE).
In our latest sports immigration article, we consider how the Visitor Visa rules can be utilised for short-term entry into the UK in a football context.
Visitor Visa
For those players and club personnel who do not meet the GBE criteria for an International Sportsperson Visa, and where there are no family-based routes available that would give individuals the ability to live and work in the UK (such as an Ancestry Visa or Spouse Visa), Clubs may be inclined to consider using the Visitor Visa route where short-term, limited entry is required.
The Standard Visitor route is for a person who wishes to visit the UK for a temporary period, usually for up to six months. Whilst in the UK as a visitor, they can undertake “Permitted Activities”. There are specific Permitted Activities relating to sports persons whereby the sports person may:
- take part in a sports tournament or sports event as an individual or part of a team; and
- make personal appearances and take part in promotional activities; and
- take part in trials provided they are not in front of a paying audience; and
- take part in short periods of training provided they are not being paid by a UK sporting body; and
- join an amateur team or club to gain experience in a particular sport if they are an amateur in that sport.
Equally as important, personal or technical staff of the sports person, or sports officials, may support the sports person’s Permitted Activities, if they are attending the same event as the sports person however, the personal or technical staff of the sports person must be employed to work for the sports person outside the UK.
Visitors can also carry out general business activities during visits to the UK such as negotiating and signing deals and contracts so this route is perfect for those wishing to enter to negotiate and sign contracts, leave the UK at the end of their visit and then re-enter on a longer term immigration route such as the International Sportsperson route.
The Visitor Visa rules specifically prohibit visitors undertaking work in the UK, to include taking employment and/or doing work for an organisation or business in the UK. It is worth noting that the Caseworker Guidance that accompanies the Visitor rules specifically states that taking part in a "professional domestic championship or league, including where one or more of the fixtures takes place outside the UK" is classed as employment (whether this is paid or not) and therefore falls within the prohibited activities.
Further, the visitor must not receive payment from a UK source for any activities undertaken in the UK, except for in particular circumstances, including reasonable expenses to cover the cost of their travel and subsistence; prize money; or where they are entering on the basis of a Permitted Paid engagement (more on this below).
Caution must therefore be exercised to ensure that the activities that the sports person is carrying out do not amount to work and/or employment.
Permitted Paid Engagements (‘PPE’)
In a sports context, a Professional Sportsperson can enter the UK for a period of one month, in order to carry out a permitted Paid Engagement – essentially, entering the UK to carry out an activity directly relating to their profession, where they have been invited by a sports organisation, agent, or broadcaster based in the UK.
The PPE must be arranged before the visitor travels to the UK and relate directly to the visitor’s area of expertise and occupation overseas.
Whether entering as a Standard Visitor or under the PPE route, visitors must be able to demonstrate that they are a genuine visitor, not seek to live in the UK through successive visits and hold an intention to leave the UK at the end of their visit.
The example used in our previous article of Manchester United’s interim manager, Ralf Rangnick, can help put the above into some context. It is likely that when Rangnick first arrived in the UK he entered as a visitor, pending the outcome of his visa application. If this was the case, in line with the restrictions of a Visitor Visa, Rangnick would not have been permitted to undertake any work for Manchester United which may explain why he was unable to lead the team in its fixture against Arsenal, back in December of last year.
In addition, assuming this is correct, Rangnick would not have been able to change his visa status within the UK once his visa application under the International Sportsperson category was granted; instead, he would have needed to have left the UK and formally re-entered on his new visa. There can be risks with this approach, for example, if on entry as a visitor, the entry clearance officer does not believe the individual has a genuine intention to leave once the purpose of their visit has concluded.
For more information, please do not hesitate to contact Arshia Hashmi or Matthew Lavelle in our Sports Sector team.
