The phrase “UK investor visa program” usually refers to immigration routes that allow wealthy individuals and entrepreneurs to secure residency in the United Kingdom by investing substantial funds or building a qualifying business. In 2025, the classic Tier 1 Investor Visa route that once allowed a direct investment of millions of pounds into UK assets is closed to new applicants, but the UK still offers several powerful “residency via investment and business activity” options that can lead to permanent residency and, ultimately, British citizenship. Nigerians and other non‑UK nationals with the right capital, skills, and business ideas can still build a long‑term life in the UK; they simply need to use the updated routes that the UK government now prefers for investors and founders.
Instead of passively parking money in government bonds or a managed portfolio, today’s UK investor pathways focus more on active entrepreneurship, innovation, job creation, and business expansion. This shift means that high‑net‑worth individuals, tech founders, and serious business owners can still move to the UK by investing, but they must do so through structured visa categories such as the Innovator Founder route, Skilled Worker self‑sponsorship, or a UK Expansion Worker arrangement for growing an overseas company into the UK market. For Nigerians, this is actually a strategic advantage: many successful professionals and entrepreneurs in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, and the diaspora already have viable business models or specialist skills that can plug directly into these routes.
For global investors, the attractions remain clear: the UK offers access to a world‑class financial system, strong rule of law, top universities for children, and excellent connectivity to Europe, North America, and Africa. For Nigerians in particular, UK residency by investment can also unlock easier travel, better access to international banking, and a safer, more predictable environment for family life and wealth planning. As long as you structure your investment and immigration plan within the current visa rules, the UK investor visa program is still very much alive—just in a new, more business‑driven form.
Is the UK Investor Visa still available in 2025?
Many people still search “UK investor visa program 2025” expecting to find the old Tier 1 Investor Visa, which once allowed residency in exchange for investing £2 million, £5 million, or £10 million in qualifying UK investments. That scheme was officially closed to new applicants, after concerns about source‑of‑funds checks, money laundering risks, and security issues around some investor profiles. Existing Tier 1 Investor Visa holders can still extend and settle under transitional rules, but no new Tier 1 Investor applications are being accepted. This is a crucial point: there is currently no direct, open “pay‑to‑stay” investor visa in the narrow sense that existed a few years ago, so any serious strategy must focus on the alternative business‑focused categories that remain.
However, the UK has not abandoned the idea of attracting wealthy foreign investors and ambitious founders. Instead, policy has moved towards “residency by investment plus innovation”, meaning you are expected to contribute to the UK economy through entrepreneurship, job creation, or strategic skills rather than simply investing passively in bonds. For example, the Innovator Founder Visa lets a qualifying entrepreneur obtain a three‑year route to Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) if they build and scale an endorsed, innovative UK business, while Skilled Worker and self‑sponsorship structures allow an investor to establish or acquire a UK company and then sponsor their own skilled role within it. These routes can still achieve the same end goal that Tier 1 Investors were using: UK permanent residency for the investor and their family, followed by citizenship after the usual residence requirements are met.
The old UK Investor Visa is useful as a benchmark because it shows the investment levels and timelines that traditionally led to settlement: historically, investing £2 million could lead to ILR in 5 years, £5 million in 3 years, and £10 million in 2 years, provided all other conditions were met. While those exact bands no longer apply to new applicants, they indicate the level of wealth the UK typically expects from a classic “investor” and help frame what serious “UK residency by investment” usually looks like. For Nigerian high‑net‑worth individuals, this means that while you may not need millions upfront for every route, you should still plan for substantial funds to cover business setup, operating costs, personal maintenance, and professional fees if you want a secure pathway to ILR.
Minimum investment and timeline to UK permanent residency
For Nigerian investors and professionals, understanding this change in mindset is essential. Rather than asking “How do I buy a UK investor visa?”, the smarter question in 2025 is “Which UK business or talent‑based route can I use to convert my capital, experience, and business plan into long‑term residency?” If you have at least tens of thousands of pounds to invest in a genuine venture, a solid professional track record, and the ability to meet English language and maintenance requirements, there are still realistic pathways to UK residency by investment, even though the classic Tier 1 Investor Visa has been closed. The rest of this guide can then walk through the main options—especially Innovator Founder, self‑sponsorship using the Skilled Worker route, and UK Expansion Worker arrangements—so you can see which structure best fits your goals, risk appetite, and available capital.
Under current routes, timelines to ILR are generally 3–5 years depending on the category and how well your business or sponsored role meets the immigration rules. Innovator Founder can offer a 3‑year accelerated route to ILR if the endorsed business meets growth, job creation, and innovation milestones, while Skilled Worker and self‑sponsored company routes usually lead to ILR after 5 years of continuous lawful residence. After obtaining ILR, most people can apply for British citizenship 12 months later, assuming they meet residence requirements, character checks, and language/knowledge tests, which means a realistic total journey of 4–6 years from first arrival to passport for a well‑planned “UK residency by investment” strategy.
Below is a simplified overview of typical capital expectations and ILR timelines for key business‑ and investment‑linked routes (these are indicative, not legal thresholds):
For Nigerian investors, “minimum investment” should be thought of in layers: initial business funding, ongoing operating capital, personal savings for you and your dependants, and professional costs such as immigration lawyers and accountants. Many serious applicants from Nigeria planning an Innovator Founder or self‑sponsorship strategy budget at least tens of thousands of pounds in liquid funds, with higher reserves if they want a more robust, lower‑risk operation in competitive sectors like tech, healthcare, consulting, or education. Beyond the headline amounts, the UK authorities place heavy emphasis on the lawful source of funds, credible business models, and genuine job creation or economic value, so a solid paper trail and well‑structured business plan matter just as much as the raw investment figure.
The main “UK investor visa program” options in 2025 work more like business‑ and talent‑based routes that can still lead to UK residency and, later, citizenship, especially for Nigerians who can combine capital with real business activity.
Innovator Founder: fastest “investor-style” route
The Innovator Founder visa is currently the closest thing to a UK residency‑by‑investment route, but it is based on building an innovative, scalable business rather than just investing passively. You need an endorsed business idea that is innovative, viable, and scalable, plus an endorsement letter from a Home Office‑approved endorsing body and a credible plan to create jobs and growth in the UK.
- Stay: Granted for 3 years, with the possibility to apply directly for ILR after those 3 years if your business meets strict success criteria such as job creation, revenue growth, or investment raised.
- For Nigerians: There is dedicated guidance and support targeted at Nigerian entrepreneurs, but you must still meet English language requirements, have enough funds to support yourself and your dependants, and show lawful source of funds for your business capital.
Self‑sponsorship via Skilled Worker
There is no official “self‑sponsorship visa”, but you can obtain a Skilled Worker visa sponsored by a UK company that you own or control, which is widely used as an active investor route. This structure typically involves registering a UK company, applying for a Skilled Worker sponsor licence, assigning yourself a Certificate of Sponsorship for a genuine skilled role, and then applying for the Skilled Worker visa at the standard salary thresholds.
- Investment logic: There is no fixed minimum investment, but your company must be financially viable, pay you at least the required salary (often around or above £41,700 per year or the “going rate” for your role), and comply with all sponsor duties.
- Timeline: After 5 years on a Skilled Worker visa (including self‑sponsorship), you can usually apply for ILR and then citizenship, provided residence and other conditions are met, making this a realistic investor‑operator route for Nigerians running real UK businesses.
UK Expansion Worker: expand a Nigerian business
The UK Expansion Worker visa allows an overseas business that is not yet trading in the UK to send a senior manager or specialist to set up a UK branch or subsidiary. Applicants must be employed by the overseas business, work in an eligible skilled role, and usually earn at least about £52,500 per year or the going rate, whichever is higher.
- Nature of the route: This visa is designed as a temporary expansion tool rather than a direct settlement route; it usually allows up to 2 years in the UK with no ILR from this category alone, but you can later switch into routes like Skilled Worker that lead to settlement.
- For Nigerian companies: Well‑established Nigerian businesses with at least 3 years of trading history and serious plans for a UK presence can use Expansion Worker as a first step, then transition the founder or key staff into longer‑term routes once the UK entity is up and running.
A Nigerian investor in 2025 can still use the “UK investor visa program” concept by following a structured, step‑by‑step plan that turns capital, skills, and a business idea into a long‑term UK residency and eventual citizenship pathway.
Step 1: Choose your main route
The first decision is whether you are coming as an innovative founder, a company director/self‑sponsored worker, or as a senior staff member expanding an existing Nigerian business. Innovator Founder suits Nigerians with a genuinely new product or scalable startup idea that can win endorsement, while self‑sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route works better for established professionals who want to run a consulting, services, or trading company in the UK. Expansion Worker is ideal when you already own or manage a successful Nigerian company and want to open a UK branch or subsidiary, starting with a temporary expansion visa and later switching into a settlement‑leading category.
As you choose, think about your realistic investment capacity, risk appetite, and skills: Innovator Founder may require more innovation and scrutiny but can give a 3‑year fast track to ILR, whereas self‑sponsorship and Skilled Worker typically take 5 years but can be more straightforward commercially if you already have paying clients or a clear UK market. For the purposes of keyword targeting, this is where you naturally bring in phrases like “UK investor visa program for Nigerians”, “UK residency by investment routes”, and “self‑sponsorship visa UK” when explaining each path to readers.
Step 2: Prepare funds, documents, and business plan
After selecting a route, the next layer is financial and documentary preparation: you must show lawful source of funds, sufficient capital for business activities, and personal maintenance for you and any dependants. Typical documents include bank statements, business registration papers, tax returns, financial statements from your Nigerian company, proof of shareholding, and contracts or letters of intent from potential UK clients, all of which help prove that your investment and business plan are genuine and sustainable.
At the same time, you will need a detailed business plan that explains your market, revenue model, job creation, and competitive advantage, especially for Innovator Founder where an endorsing body must be convinced that your idea is innovative, viable, and scalable. Nigerians should also pay attention to English language proof (for example, IELTS or an approved English‑taught degree) and to the specific maintenance fund thresholds required by each visa category so there are no surprises at the application stage.
Step 3: Apply for the visa, build your UK presence, and plan for ILR
Once your business structure, documents, and finances are in order, you submit the visa application online, attend biometrics, and, if required, a visa interview at the UK Visa Application Centre in Nigeria or your country of residence. For self‑sponsorship and Skilled Worker, this follows the grant of a sponsor licence to your UK company and the issuance of a Certificate of Sponsorship, while for Innovator Founder it follows the endorsement letter confirming your innovative business proposal.
After visa approval and arrival in the UK, the focus shifts from “getting in” to “staying in and qualifying for ILR”: this means actually running the business, paying yourself at or above the required salary if you are a sponsored worker, keeping clean immigration records, and meeting job creation, revenue, or growth benchmarks where required. Over 3–5 years, consistent compliance and economic contribution can then position you to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain and, around one year later, British citizenship—delivering the full promise of the modern “UK investor visa program” for Nigerians and other global investors who combine genuine investment with real business activity.
Tax, banking and risk for UK residency by investment
Any realistic “UK investor visa program” plan must consider UK tax, international banking, and compliance risks, not just visa rules. Moving to the UK and becoming tax resident may expose part of your global income and gains to UK tax, depending on your residence and domicile status, so wealthy Nigerians and other investors often seek advice on UK remittance rules, double tax treaties, and how to structure assets before relocating. Opening UK bank accounts or working with international private banks also requires strong Anti‑Money Laundering (AML) checks and documentary proof of your lawful source of funds, which is why clean financial records and transparent business structures are critical for any residency‑by‑investment strategy.
There are also immigration‑specific risks: weak or copy‑paste business plans, inflated revenue projections, and vague job‑creation promises can lead to Innovator Founder refusals or non‑renewal at ILR stage, while misuse of self‑sponsorship (for example, sham roles or failure to pay the required salary) can cause Skilled Worker compliance actions or licence revocation. For Nigerian investors especially, working with regulated UK immigration advisers, accountants, and corporate service providers can significantly reduce these risks and help align your “UK residency by investment” plan with both immigration rules and long‑term wealth planning goals.
Quick FAQs on the UK investor visa program (for Nigerians and global investors)
1. Is there still a UK investor visa program in 2025?
The old Tier 1 Investor Visa is closed to new applicants, but the UK still effectively offers a “residency by investment and business activity” ecosystem through Innovator Founder, self‑sponsorship via Skilled Worker, and UK Expansion Worker leading into settlement‑friendly routes.
2. What is the minimum investment for UK residency by investment now?
There is no single fixed figure like the former £2 million threshold, but serious plans typically involve at least tens of thousands of pounds in business capital, plus personal maintenance funds and professional fees, with higher budgets improving your chances of building a strong, compliant UK operation.
3. How long does it take to get UK permanent residency by investment?
Innovator Founder can lead to ILR in as little as 3 years if the endorsed business hits defined growth and job‑creation targets, while self‑sponsored Skilled Workers usually qualify for ILR after 5 years; from ILR, investors can typically apply for British citizenship after a further 12 months, totalling about 4–6 years overall.
4. Can Nigerians bring their families on these routes?
Yes, main applicants under Innovator Founder, Skilled Worker (including self‑sponsorship), and most relevant business routes can usually bring a spouse or partner and dependent children, who can live and, in many cases, work or study in the UK and later qualify for ILR and citizenship alongside the main applicant.
5. Is there such a thing as “UK citizenship by investment”?
The UK does not sell citizenship directly, but an investor or entrepreneur can obtain UK citizenship after first securing a qualifying visa, living lawfully for 3–5 years to obtain ILR, then spending a further year in the UK before applying for naturalisation—this is why “UK citizenship by investment” is best understood as “citizenship via a business‑ or investment‑based route over time.”