The Street Dancer visa – Street Dance your way to the UK
Nick Nason, solicitor at Edgewater Legal, frequently provides advice to clients applying under the Global Talent immigration route. Below, he explains how street dancers might qualify.
Street dancers recognised as exceptionally talented, or showing exceptional promise, may be eligible to apply for a UK visa.
To qualify, you must have been professionally engaged in performing outstanding street dance in at least 2 countries within the last 5 years, or (if you are at an early stage in your career) you must show a developing track record in one country.
It may also be possible to apply for the visa if you contribute to the creation and delivery of street dance e.g. choreographers, programmers/promoters, directors or producers.
Visa outline
The Global Talent visa permits you to live and work in the UK for a maximum of 5 years – but you can choose how long – and is a pathway to applying for settlement (and British citizenship after that).
First, you need to be endorsed by Arts Council England. This application is made by completing an online form, and providing supporting evidence to show you meet the criteria.
Once endorsed by Arts Council England, you can then go on to make the visa application.
People endorsed under the Exceptional Talent route may be entitled to apply for accelerated settlement after only 3 years. Those at an early stage in their career – Exceptional Promise – are usually eligible after 5 years.
The main criteria
To prove you meet the criteria, you need three letters of recommendation, two of which should be from well-established organisations that you have worked with, acknowledged as experts within the world of street dance, at least one of which is based in the UK.
The third letter must be from another leading organisation within street dance, or, alternatively, an individual you have worked with, with recognised experience in the field.
If you are endorsed as an Exceptional Talent, you must also show that you meet two of the following three criteria:
- Two or more examples of significant media recognition (individually or contribution to a group) from at least two countries
- Winning (or significantly contributing to winning) at least one international award for excellence
- Proof of professional performances considered internationally significant within the sphere of street dance
Those with Exceptional Promise must show that they meet two out of the following:
- Two examples of recent media recognition for your work as an individual, or as a named member of a group or as a contributor
- Winning, or significantly contributing to winning, or significantly contributing to being nominated or shortlisted for, or being nominated or shortlisted for, at least one international award for excellence
- Professional performances recognised within street dance
Whether you have Exceptional Promise or Exceptional Talent, you must also provide your CV setting out your career to date.
What is significant media recognition?
The evidence should usually be in the form of detailed independent critiques, reviews or critical evaluations of your individual work, from credible arts and culture critics in well-established, internationally recognised media outlets, in at least two countries.
Recognised media outlets such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio or websites are allowed. It is important to note that if you are relying on Exceptional Talent, evidence from blogs or social media is not acceptable.
For Exceptional Promise, blogs may be accepted but only if they are prominent, sufficiently well-established, have a significant number of reviews available, and are written by credible arts and culture critics.
All media recognition must have been received within the five years prior to the application date and must be for work that had already taken place at the time of the article’s publication.
Arts Council England provides further guidance on exactly what is considered to be ‘significant media recognition’, and it is worth reviewing this before applying.
What counts as an international award?
The award win (or nomination if applying under Exceptional Promise) should demonstrate significant recognition of your status as a leader (or emerging leader) within street dance. It should have been awarded within the last 5 years. There is no specific list of qualifying awards.
If you have not won (or been nominated for) an award as an individual, you can provide evidence of having made a significant contribution to an award win/nomination by another individual, or group, that you worked with instead.
If you are doing this, then, along with the award evidence, you must include a supporting document from the individual that won (or was nominated), or from a senior person that has responsibility for the group that won, which details the significant contribution you made to the work that won the award.
What can be provided as proof of performances?
You can provide things like programmes, adverts, posters, or listings for past events in which you took part.
Videos and photographs can also be provided, but you must ensure that you also submit supporting information verifying your participation, and confirming when and where the engagement took place. The guidance states that videos or photographs alone will not be acceptable.
Further information as to the kind of evidence that can be provided are set out in the Arts Council England guidance.
If you are looking for further information or assistance regarding this visa, please do not hesitate to contact us at Edgewater Legal.