What is the High Potential Individual (HPI) Visa?
The HPI visa allows recent graduates from top-ranked non-UK universities to live and work in the UK for 2 years (or 3 years if holding a PhD) without needing an employer sponsor
This route is unsponsored, meaning no job offer is required before applying
Eligibility Criteria
1. Eligible University
The candidate’s degree must be awarded by a university that appears in the top 50 global rankings of at least two of the following:
- Times Higher Education
QS World University Rankings
Academic Ranking of World Universities
The list is updated yearly; the eligibility window is based on the year of graduation
Note: UK universities are not eligible under this route
2. Qualification & Timing
The degree must be at least equivalent to a UK bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree.
It must have been awarded within the last 5 years prior to application (based on Ecctis verification date).
3. English & Finance Requirements
The applicant must show English proficiency at CEFR level B1 (e.g., IELTS 4.0–5.0).
Must demonstrate funds of a minimum of £1,270 held for at least 28 consecutive days (unless already in the UK on a valid visa for 12+ months)
4. Other Conditions
Applicants must be 18 years or older at the time of application.
You must not have previously held or be eligible for the UK Graduate visa or Doctorate Extension Scheme
The University of Melbourne is currently on the UK High Potential Individual (HPI) visa eligible list (for degrees awarded between 1 November 2024 and 31 October 2025), and remains the only Australian university featured on that list
If they graduated from the University of Melbourne in the past 5 years (and their degree was awarded during a period when the university appeared in the top 50 rankings of at least two recognized systems), they qualify for the UK HPI visa.
This visa allows international graduates to live and work in the UK—without needing a job offer or sponsorship—for up to 2 years (or 3 years if holding a PhD)
Eligible Universities (for qualification period Nov 2024–Oct 2025)
- California Institute of Technology (Caltech) – USA
- Columbia University – USA
- Cornell University – USA
- Duke University – USA
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) – Switzerland
- ETH Zurich – Switzerland
- Fudan University – China
- Harvard University – USA
- Heidelberg University – Germany
- Johns Hopkins University – USA
- Karolinska Institute – Sweden
- Kyoto University – Japan
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) – USA
- McGill University – Canada
- Nanyang Technological University (NTU) – Singapore
- National University of Singapore – Singapore
- New York University (NYU) – USA
- Northwestern University – USA
- Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL) – France
- Peking University – China
- Princeton University – USA
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University – China
- Stanford University – USA
- Technical University of Munich – Germany
- The Chinese University of Hong Kong – Hong Kong
- Tsinghua University – China
- University of British Columbia – Canada
- University of California, Berkeley – USA
- University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) – USA
- University of California, San Diego – USA
- University of Chicago – USA
- University of Hong Kong – Hong Kong
- University of Melbourne – Australia (the only Australian institution on the list)
- University of Michigan–Ann Arbor – USA
- University of Munich (LMU Munich) – Germany
- University of Pennsylvania – USA
- University of Texas at Austin – USA
- University of Tokyo – Japan
- University of Toronto – Canada
- University of Washington – USA
- Yale University – USA
- Zhejiang University – China
- University of Melbourne_ Australia