The Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Order 2016 (SI 2016 No. 177) sets the maximum amounts the Home Office can charge for different types of visa applications. Up until 8 March 2022, the most that could be charged for a visit visa was £95.

This has now been increased to £130.

The explanatory memo to the Immigration and Nationality (Fees) (Amendment) Order 2022 (SI 2022 No. 233) says that this has been done

… in order to increase the department’s flexibility to pursue fee changes in future Regulations, as well as — in the case of visit visas — to better reflect the cost of processing applications.

There is also a suggestion that the fee is being increased to “help support the funding of the wider borders and migration system”.

The actual amounts charged for each type of visa are set by separate regulations which are usually updated in April each year. These regulations still put the visit visa fee at £95, but it is likely that won’t be the case for much longer. The fact that the Home Office has just increased the maximum amount they can charge for a visit visa makes it likely we’ll see an increase in in the actual charge April 2022.

The maximum amount that can be charged for a student visa is also increasing by £10, from £480 to £490. The current fee is £348 for an application made outside the UK and £475 for an application made inside the UK.