--- title: "United Kingdom BN(O) visa requirements 2026: 5-year stay" url: https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/bno-visa/ lang: en updated: 2026-10-11 --- United Kingdom · For your nationality or ancestry # United Kingdom BN(O) visa **First stay:** 5 yrs British National (Overseas) visa First checked against official sources on 11 Oct 2026 [Change log](https://settleanywhere.com/changes/) - **Savings needed:** £2,000 ≈ $2,640 (Savings of about GBP 2,000 (≈ $2,640) · Funds to support yourself and your family for 6 months, in addition to housing costs; about this amount for a single adult, more for families (about GBP3,100 for a couple with a child). A fee of GBP 206 (≈ $270) · Application fee for 2 years and 6 months; GBP285 for 5 years. A fee of GBP 2,587.5 (≈ $3,420) · Healthcare surcharge per adult for 2 years and 6 months; GBP5,175 for 5 years.) - **First stay:** 5 yrs (Either 2 years and 6 months or 5 years; extendable as many times as wanted.) - **Who can apply:** Ancestry or status (British nationals (overseas) from Hong Kong and their adult children born on or after 1 July 1979.) - **Tax angle:** Tax relief (Four-year Foreign Income and Gains (FIG) regime: Qualifying new UK residents can claim relief on eligible foreign income and gains for their first four tax years of UK residence after at least ten years of non-UK residence; regime replaced the remittance basis on 6 April 2025.) ## Key facts BN(O) visa is a for your nationality or ancestry route for United Kingdom. Checked 2026-10-11 against the official source. - **Government fees:** £206 ≈ $270 · £2,588 ≈ $3,420 - **First stay:** 5 yrs ## Cost, time and long term **Government fees: £206 ≈ $270 · £2,588 ≈ $3,420** - GBP 206 (≈ $270) Application fee for 2 years and 6 months; GBP285 (≈ $380) for 5 years. - GBP 2,587.5 (≈ $3,420) Healthcare surcharge per adult for 2 years and 6 months; GBP5,175 (≈ $6,840) for 5 years. **Shown, not spent: ~£2,000 ≈ $2,640** - GBP 2,000 (≈ $2,640) Funds to support yourself and your family for 6 months, in addition to housing costs; about this amount for a single adult, more for families (about GBP3,100 (≈ $4,100) for a couple with a child). **Renewal: Renewable** Extend as many times as you want once in the UK. [GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/british-national-overseas-bno-visa) **Permanent residence: After 5 years of residence** After 5 years in the UK you can apply for settlement. [GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/british-national-overseas-bno-visa) **Citizenship: After 6 years of residence** British citizenship needs 5 years living in the UK and then 12 months with settled status, so about 6 years on this route (no 12-month wait if married to a British citizen), with no more than 450 days outside the UK in the 5 years. [GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/apply-citizenship-indefinite-leave-to-remain) **Where to apply: Abroad or in-country** Apply from overseas (wait for a decision before travelling) or from inside the UK if your permanent home is in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Hong Kong. [GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/british-national-overseas-bno-visa) ### What you'll need #### Who can apply - The applicant is a British national (overseas), or an adult child of one born on or after 1 July 1979. - The applicant is 18 or older. - The applicant's permanent home is in Hong Kong when applying from outside the UK. #### What you must show - Enough money to pay for housing and to support the applicant and family for 6 months, at least the Income Support level. - Application fee of GBP206 (≈ $270) for 2.5 years or GBP285 (≈ $380) for 5 years, plus the healthcare surcharge for each family member. #### Steps 1. Apply online; apply from overseas but wait for the decision before travelling. #### After you arrive - Extend as many times as wanted; apply for settlement after 5 years in the UK. ## When you become tax resident How United Kingdom decides tax residence and treats foreign-source income, from its tax records. - **Stay on this route:** **Up to 5 years at first, renewable** - **Tax residence:** Statutory Residence Test. - **Foreign-source income:** **New-resident relief (4 years)** Qualifying new UK residents can claim relief on eligible foreign income and gains for their first four tax years of UK residence after at least ten years of non-UK residence; regime replaced the remittance basis on 6 April 2025. - **Special regime:** **Four-year Foreign Income and Gains regime** · Tax relief [All tax rules for United Kingdom](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/tax/) Tax records checked 12 Oct 2026 ## What you need to arrange - **Accommodation** Enough money to pay for housing and to support the applicant and family for 6 months, at least the Income Support level - **Money to show** This route asks for savings of ~£2,000 ≈ $2,640. Taken from this route's requirements above. The authority's own list is the one that counts. **Full official text** Visa for British nationals (overseas) from Hong Kong, and their adult children born on or after 1 July 1979, to live, work and study in the UK for 2.5 or 5 years, with settlement possible after 5 years. (source 1) #### What you must show and pay - Savings of about GBP 2,000 (≈ $2,640) · Funds to support yourself and your family for 6 months, in addition to housing costs; about this amount for a single adult, more for families (about GBP3,100 (≈ $4,100) for a couple with a child). (source 1) - A fee of GBP 206 (≈ $270) · Application fee for 2 years and 6 months; GBP285 (≈ $380) for 5 years. (source 1) - A fee of GBP 2,587.5 (≈ $3,420) · Healthcare surcharge per adult for 2 years and 6 months; GBP5,175 (≈ $6,840) for 5 years. (source 1) #### Requirements - The applicant is a British national (overseas), or an adult child of one born on or after 1 July 1979. (source 1) - The applicant is 18 or older. (source 1) - The applicant's permanent home is in Hong Kong when applying from outside the UK. (source 1) - Enough money to pay for housing and to support the applicant and family for 6 months, at least the Income Support level. (source 1) - Application fee of GBP206 (≈ $270) for 2.5 years or GBP285 (≈ $380) for 5 years, plus the healthcare surcharge for each family member. (source 1) - Apply online; apply from overseas but wait for the decision before travelling. (source 1) - Extend as many times as wanted; apply for settlement after 5 years in the UK. (source 1) #### Stay - Either 2 years and 6 months or 5 years; extendable as many times as wanted. - First stay: 30 to 60 months, decided case by case. - Renewable, subject to the conditions in force at renewal. #### Nationality British nationals (overseas) from Hong Kong and their adult children born on or after 1 July 1979. #### Work Work (except as a professional sportsperson or coach) and study. #### Family Partner, children under 18 and some dependent adult relatives can apply as dependants; each pays the fee and healthcare surcharge. Checked 2026-10-11 ## Official sources 1. [British National (Overseas) visa](https://www.gov.uk/british-national-overseas-bno-visa) · GOV.UK (Home Office, UK Visas and Immigration) · checked 2026-10-11 2. [Apply for citizenship if you have indefinite leave to remain or settled status](https://www.gov.uk/apply-citizenship-indefinite-leave-to-remain) · GOV.UK (Home Office) · checked 2026-10-11 ## BN(O) visa and its alternatives | Route | Money needed | Stay | Work | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | BN(O) visa | – | 5 yr, renewable | – | | [British citizenship by descent](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/citizenship-by-descent/) | – | – | – | | [UK Ancestry visa](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/ancestry-visa/) | – | 5 yr, renewable | Yes | | [CPLP residence](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/portugal/cplp-residence-87a/) Portugal | – | 2 yr, renewable | – | | [Spanish nationality by descent and option](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/spain/citizenship-by-descent-and-option/) Spain | – | – | – | ## Questions people ask ### How much money do I need for the BN(O) visa? Savings of about GBP 2,000 (≈ $2,640). Funds to support yourself and your family for 6 months, in addition to housing costs; about this amount for a single adult, more for families (about GBP3,100 (≈ $4,100) for a couple with a child). A fee of GBP 206 (≈ $270). Application fee for 2 years and 6 months; GBP285 (≈ $380) for 5 years. A fee of GBP 2,587.5 (≈ $3,420). Healthcare surcharge per adult for 2 years and 6 months; GBP5,175 (≈ $6,840) for 5 years. ### How long can I stay on the BN(O) visa? Either 2 years and 6 months or 5 years; extendable as many times as wanted. ### Can I work on the BN(O) visa? Work (except as a professional sportsperson or coach) and study. ### Can I bring my family on the BN(O) visa? Partner, children under 18 and some dependent adult relatives can apply as dependants; each pays the fee and healthcare surcharge. ### Does the BN(O) visa lead to permanent residence in United Kingdom? Time on the BN(O) visa counts toward permanent residence in United Kingdom, which the rules allow after 5 years of residence. Time on the BN(O) visa counts toward citizenship, which the rules allow after 6 years of residence. ### Is there a tax break for BN(O) visa holders in United Kingdom? Four-year Foreign Income and Gains (FIG) regime: Qualifying new UK residents can claim relief on eligible foreign income and gains for their first four tax years of UK residence after at least ten years of non-UK residence; regime replaced the remittance basis on 6 April 2025. It's separate from the visa and has its own conditions. ## Tax Special regime ### [Four-year Foreign Income and Gains (FIG) regime](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/tax/#tax-gb-fig-new-resident) Tax relief Foreign-source income: New-resident relief (4 years) **Details** - Who: UK tax resident under the Statutory Residence Test Qualifying new UK residents can claim relief on eligible foreign income and gains for their first four tax years of UK residence after at least ten years of non-UK residence; regime replaced the remittance basis on 6 April 2025. #### Taxed on Claimed eligible foreign income and gains arising in the first four UK tax-resident years after at least ten years’ non-UK residence. Examples include foreign trade conducted wholly outside the UK, overseas property-business profits, non-UK dividends and foreign interest. Foreign employment earnings and specified employment income are outside FIG. #### Who it applies to - UK tax resident under the Statutory Residence Test. - Within the first 4 years of UK tax residence after at least 10 years as non-UK resident. - Claim made annually; unused years do not roll over; temporary years abroad are skipped. - If the 4 years began before 6 April 2025, claims are available from 2025 to 2026 to the last year of the period. #### Exclusions - UK-source income stays taxable. - Foreign earnings and foreign specific employment income are not eligible, though Overseas Workday Relief may apply. - A claim loses Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax tax-free allowances, Marriage Allowance, Married Couples Allowance and Blind Person's Allowance. #### Tax residence Qualifying resident means UK tax resident under the Statutory Residence Test and within the first four years of UK residence after at least a 10-year period as non-UK tax resident. #### Visas Immigration permission does not qualify anyone; eligibility is tax residence only. #### Other taxes National Insurance, VAT, payroll, UK-source income, treaties and home-country taxes are outside the claim. Checked against official sources on 10 Oct 2026 [Change log](https://settleanywhere.com/changes/) [Full page →](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/tax/) ## More in United Kingdom [Global Talent](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/global-talent/) [High Potential Individual](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/high-potential-individual/) [India Young Professionals visa](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/india-young-professionals/) [Youth Mobility Scheme](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/youth-mobility-scheme/) [Innovator Founder](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/innovator-founder/) [UK Expansion Worker visa](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/uk-expansion-worker/) [Health and Care Worker visa](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/health-care-worker/) [Scale-up Worker](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/united-kingdom/scale-up-worker/) ## Nationality or ancestry visas elsewhere [🇷🇸 Serbian origin residence](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/serbia/serbian-origin-residence/) [🇦🇲 Special residence status](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/armenia/special-residence-status/) [🇲🇰 Macedonian origin residence](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/north-macedonia/origin/) [🇱🇮 EEA residence lottery](https://settleanywhere.com/countries/liechtenstein/eea-lottery-residence/) ≈ USD figures are approximate: daily reference rates from ExchangeRate-API, dated 12 Oct 2026, refreshed when the site is updated. ## How this was checked **Checked on 2026-10-11 against 2 official sources.** Status: verified against the official sources. Every figure on this page comes from the official source it links to. The record was researched against these sources, then reviewed separately, with special attention to effective dates and amendments. Where a source does not state something, the page leaves it out. 1. [British National (Overseas) visa](https://www.gov.uk/british-national-overseas-bno-visa) · GOV.UK (Home Office, UK Visas and Immigration) · checked 2026-10-11 2. [Apply for citizenship if you have indefinite leave to remain or settled status](https://www.gov.uk/apply-citizenship-indefinite-leave-to-remain) · GOV.UK (Home Office) · checked 2026-10-11 Tracked since 2026-10-11. Rule changes and corrections are listed on the [changes page](https://settleanywhere.com/changes/), and the [methodology page](https://settleanywhere.com/methodology/) explains how facts are checked. Found something out of date? Email [contact@stayglobe.app](mailto:contact@stayglobe.app?subject=Correction) with a link to the official source.