A Renewed Chapter in UK-India Relations:
Empowering People, Partnerships & Possibilities

When Prime Minister Keir Starmer landed in Mumbai on his first official visit to India (October 2025), the message from London was clear: this is a reset, not just in trade, but in how the UK and India connect – through people.

The agenda spans commerce, education, climate, security – but the heartbeat of progress lies in mobility, talent, and inclusion.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has arrived in Mumbai leading a ~125-member trade mission of CEOs, university leaders and cultural institutions to operationalise the recently signed UK–India trade deal. He has also made clear that new visa concessions are not part of this visit’s agenda.

• Partnerships first, policy steady: The programme emphasises trade, investment, research and sector collaboration-a pro-growth signal for UK-India ties even as immigration rules remain unchanged for now.
• No fresh visa promises (today): Starmer reiterated there will be no additional visa quota or new routes tied to this trade mission. Mobility continues via existing lawful pathways (Students/Graduate, Skilled Worker, GBM: Expansion Worker, Innovator Founder, etc.).
• What tends to follow: Historically, education/research MOUs, industry linkages and airline capacity spur real opportunity-placements, secondments, and hiring-within current rules, not through sudden concessions.

• Education & research ties: Delegation includes university vice-chancellors; expect activity around joint programmes, remote learning footprints and India partnerships-useful for student and graduate route planning.
• Business & innovation: Mission momentum + tariff changes can create new demand for UK-based roles in manufacturing, tech, consumer, aviation and services-typically filled through compliant hiring (Skilled Worker) and GBM: Expansion Worker for Indian businesses setting up in Britain.
• Itinerary proof points: Day-one Mumbai agenda showcased business/cultural outreach (e.g., studio visits, sector meets) ahead of Delhi talks with PM Modi-an implementation-focused arc rather than policy rewrites.

• Align intake timing with funding/CAS readiness; prepare for credibility interviews and ensure documents are appropriate for your visa application.
• Track university-industry tie-ups announced off the mission; these often map to placements and research roles.

• Map your profile to current shortage/eligible occupations and salary thresholds; keep Right to work/UKVI documentation tight for faster onboarding through existing routes.

• If exploring the UK, structure a GBM: Expansion Worker roadmap (entity setup → sponsor licence → CoS → arrival → conversion path) and build an Appendix D-ready compliance file from day zero.

We help you turn headlines into action-route selection, eligibility checks, documentation, and compliance-so you can move with confidence while rules change.

Book a consultation with our UK visa experts to discuss your UK study, work or business plan.

We have offices in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru, and our visa experts can guide you through the entire UK visa application.