How to move to Scotland as an American
Ever since moving to Scotland in 2017, I’m frequently asked by friends, friends of friends, and even friends of my mom’s hairdresser: “How can I do the same?”
Let me preface this by pointing out that regardless of how easy and sexy influencers make it look, unless you have the cash reserves of a Russian oligarch or recent familial connections moving overseas is likely to be one of the most expensive and stressful decisions that a person can make, and therefore should not be undertaken lightly.
That said, the polarization of politics in the United States contrasted with dreamy depictions of Scotland on TV and in films in recent years has lead to rising interest in starting a new life in the land of whisky, lochs, and unicorns.
But before you buy a kilt, you have a lot of expensive hoops to jump through. If you are serious about relocation to Scotland, I’ve put together this guide based on the questions I get most often about how to go about it.
Scottish visa basics
With few exceptions, in order to visit or relocate to another country, you first need a visa.
A visa is either a document issued to you after making a formal application or applicable terms upon entry that allows foreign citizens and potentially their family members or dependents to visit or live in another country often for the purposes of studying, working, tourism, or volunteering.
Different countries have different types of visas for these purposes and they all come with conditions and limitations that must be adhered to.
You may have travelled overseas before without ever applying for a tourist visa, but whether you realized it or not, you were likely granted entry under the conditions of a visitor or tourist visa.
It also may come as a surprise to some, but Scotland does not have its own visa rules. As a member country of the United Kingdom, entry in to Scotland falls within the purview of the UK Home Office. What this means is that for those wishing to move to Scotland, the Home Office processes visas centrally under the same rules as they do for Wales, England, and Northern Ireland.
How to relocate to Scotland legally
There are several ways that a person can relocate to Scotland, or elsewhere in the UK on a long-term basis.
The avenue that I am asked about most often is the possibility of applying for and getting a job offer in Scotland remotely. Though understandably the most attractive method to get a visa, it is unfortunately the least likely way that you will gain lawful entry into Scotland long term.
Employment visas require Scottish companies to take on thousands of pounds of extra fees each time they sponsor a foreign worker, there are ongoing regulatory headaches for human resources departments, and sometimes costly immigration solicitors must be consulted in order to ensure that such a sponsorship is successful.
Obviously with all these additional resources required, most small and medium sized companies find themselves excluded from even considering sponsoring longer term work visas. The exception is short term or seasonal visas available for mostly for manual or hospitality labor, but these aren’t viable for long-term relocation and for the purposes of this article, I will set them aside, but you can learn more about them here.
For the remaining companies that have the means, committing to sponsoring a worker for one year and committing those extra expenses means that any foreign worker is going to cost thousands of pounds more per year than their local counterparts with no guarantees for the employer that said employee will meet the expectations of any probationary period.
That said, never say never! I recommend anyone considering a move to Scotland, particularly those with STEM or healthcare qualifications have a look at the list of shortage occupations here. If you have these skills and can get an interview with the National Health Service or the right company, there is some additional flexibility in the process.
A more likely way to get a work visa from within the United States is to work for a large international company with offices in both the the US and Scotland. I have a couple of friends who have successfully used this method to move to London. They worked for the US office for a couple of years and then sought transfers.
London of course has its fair share of international companies, but Scotland does as well including Ernst & Young, Amazon, and JP Morgan.
It is worth noting, as I have been asked about this possibility as well, that it is illegal to enter Scotland or elsewhere in the UK on a tourist visa with the intent of applying for jobs and overstaying. Might you find employment this way? Perhaps, but both you and your employer would be breaking the law and you may find yourself removed from the UK and unable to return in future.
For those with the means and desire, one of the best ways to relocate to Scotland is to study by attending university, getting a master’s degree, or another type of approved course.
Student visas allow the holder and sometimes their dependents to move to Scotland for the purpose of studying and generally allow one to hold a part-time job with limited weekly hours.
These visas also allow the holder to remain in Scotland for a period between 2 and 5 years once their studies are complete, giving you ample time to find employment and hopefully, further visa sponsorship by an employer.
This extended period that you can remain post-study is a recent and really significant change compared to when I completed my own studies. In my day (I know, I’m giving old lady vibes), I had a mere four months to find a job. Unsurprisingly, under those stringent conditions, the UK’s institutions began losing international students (and their money) to universities in Australia and Canada and thus the decision to extend that period was made.
The list of types of courses you can study is available on the Home Office website here.
Fortunately for those with the desire to study, Scotland boasts some of the oldest and most well respected intitutions in the world!
Each has its own reputation for excelling in certain academic areas, so I recommend you do your research depending on what you want to study. You can see a full list of Scotland’s universities and links on the Scottish government’s website here.
In addition to self-funding or borrowing to attend a course, you may be surprised to learn that you can find scholarships specifically for Americans to help ease the burden of those hefty course fees.
There are private organizations that offer funding, as well as the Scottish government’s own Saltire Scholarship program, and universities themselves offer scholarships to encourage attendance by international students.
For some of these scholarships, you’ll want to start planning and applying long before you apply for the university itself as deadlines vary. In my case, I found that by the time I had been accepted into university, it was too late to apply for some of the better known scholarships, but I was able to get a scholarship from my university that covered about one-third of my course fees.
When saving and planning how much to borrow, do not overlook the cost of living! You will have to demonstrate to the Home Office that you have the funds to afford rent, bills, and food for the duration of your course. As I mentioned, you can work part-time up to 20 hours per week, but that will not cover your expenses.
Cost of living in Scotland compared the US
Fortunately, the cost of living in the UK is is generally slightly lower than in the US, according to this article. And the cost of living in Scotland is lower than in England.
It’s difficult to quantify a 1 to 1 comparison of the difference in cost of living. It of course depends largely on where you live now and what part of Scotland you plan to live in. That said, I’ll talk about a few key areas to consider.
First of all, you don’t have to worry about health insurance, doctor’s visits or prescriptions in Scotland. These are all free in Scotland under the NHS or National Health Service.
Scotland also has great public transit options including busses and trains, and its cities are generally very pedestrian friendly so unlike most places in the US you can easily choose not to drive and eliminate the costs associated with owning a vehicle. Trains can be pricy, but if you are a student you can get discounted rail and bus passes.
Cell phone bills are less expensive in Scotland. I pay £20 a month and have more data than I need. When I first moved I was shocked at how inexpensive cell phone service is compared to the eye watering amount I used to shell out in the states.
Food is also really affordable and I found my grocery bills to be significantly lower than when I lived in the US. I eat a bit posher these days, but as a single student I could comfortably live off £20 a week for groceries and that included lots of healthy fruits and vegetables. Between myself and my partner, we generally spend between £40-£60 a week on groceries, but that total also includes beer and wine.
Rent varies from city to city. Edinburgh has some of the most expensive rent in Scotland, but depending on how simply you want to live and your location, you could find a humble room to rent monthly for as little as £300. That’s under $400 USD! On the high end for a 3-bedroom flat to yourself in a swanky neighbourhood, you could expect to pay upwards of £2,500 or $3,000 USD. Curious about how rent varies in the city or village you want to move to? Check out the website Gumtree.com. It’s like the UK version of Craigslist.
For those coming to study, you should also be aware that UK universities don’t maintain large dorms in the way that their US counterparts do, but you will likely find some student halls run by your university as well as options for privately owned student accommodation nearby.
Visa fees in the UK
Let’s talk visa fees.
Whether you’re studying or working, the UK has some of the most expensive visa fees in the world.
For students, these fees are relatively moderate, about $500. For those lucky enough to find a job, you’ll be spending up to $2,000 for your application.
And the fees don’t stop there.
Though you won’t pay for medical costs in Scotland once you arrive, you will have to pay what’s called an Immigration Health Surcharge at the time that you apply for your visa. Essentially this is a fee that you pay in order to access the National Health Service.
Scots have been paying into the NHS from their taxes from the moment they start working, so it’s understandable that you will be asked to contribute something at the outset. The amount you owe is calculated based on the length of your visa. It’s approximately $800 a year. So for a 2 year stay, budget for $1,600. When you compare this to health care costs in the US, it’s a bargain. Just be aware that if you switch visa types there’s no credit for what you’ve already paid and you won’t get a refund if you decide to leave the UK early.
Once you’ve paid for your visa you can also expect to pay for little extras like Biometrics appointment and you also have the option to expedite the decision.
All in on the higher end, you’ll be spending $3,600 for a 2-year visa for a single person. If you plan to move with a spouse or children, you’ll need to budget for much more.
What to expect from the UK visa process
So you’ve got the money sorted. What’s the process like?
The visa application is completed online. You will be asked a series of questions and to provide basic biographical information about yourself and your international travel history. You will also have to answer questions about any criminal record that you have and my personal favourite, a few wild card question about whether you’ve dabbled in genocide or attempted to overthrow a government.
In addition to the online questions, you will have to upload and/or bring certain documents with you to an application center.
For example, if you are applying for a student visa, you will have to provide confirmation that you have been offered a position at a Scottish university or other insitution via CAS letter that your sponsoring institution will issue to you.
You will also have to provide evidence that you have sufficient funds to pay for your course and support yourself during your stay. The Home Office wants to ensure that once you arrive you won’t be a burden, and as a foreigner, you won’t be eligible for any welfare programs should you fall on hard times. For that reason, I don’t recommend that you apply for you visa until you have all your funding ready to go and easily accessible.
Depending on the type of visa you’re applying for, when you make your application, a decision times can range from 3–12 weeks if there are no complicating factors. I’ve spoken to Americans recently and there is currently a longer delay due to the war in Ukraine and the prioritization of refugee applications.
I have applied for 3 different types of visas in my time here without the help of a solicitor so I have a few pieces of advice on how to be successful in your application:
1. Read and re-read the instructions and accompanying documentation very carefully
Visa applications can be incredibly complicated. The UK government provides a lot of PDF guides on how to answer questions and what forms of documentation are or are not acceptable.
Go slow. Take your time when reviewing the guidance on how to answer questions. It’s better to get it right than rush your answers and potentially create delays for yourself.
No one from the Home Office is going to ring you or hold your hand if you made a mistake. You will either be denied or receive a dreaded letter that they need more information. If that happens it will be really difficult to know when or if your visa will be approved.
2. Where possible, provide more documentation and evidence than is required
Your goal when applying for a visa should be to make it easy for them to say yes. Don’t overwhelm them with irrelevant documentation, but give them more than enough evidence.
On my most recent visa I was asked to provide two pieces of evidence of my address. I chose to provide five. Would my visa have been approved if I had done the bare minumum? Maybe. Probably. Who knows? But you don’t want to find yourself in a back and forth with the Home Office. Doing so can add months of time onto the process and significantly disrupt your life. I have one friend who ended up with an 8-month delay to her visa due to discrepancies. She was ultimately successful, but it wasn’t a pleasant experience.
3. Look for support and guidance online
Repeat after me: The UK Home Office is not helpful. It’s sad, but true.
There is a phone number that you can call, but no one is going to give you a helpful answer. In fact no one is going to give you any information that isn’t already on their website.
If you need additional help but don’t want to pay a lawyer, find help online. Google the question. Immigration lawyers in the UK often have helpful, up to date, and best of all free information on their websites that answers your hypothetical questions or simply explain the information on the Home Office website in a way that’s much easier to understand.
Seek advice on Reddit and Facebook. This is a stressful and frustrating process. At times you may feel like you’re doing something illegal, even if you aren’t. It’s a strange feeling and the best way I can describe it is that you are subjecting yourself to voluntary government scrutiny and it isn’t a comfortable feeling. Unless you have friends or colleagues who have endured the visa process, few people in your social circle will understand or be able to offer support.
The subreddit ukvisa is a safe place to ask questions with anonymity, but please read the rules and search the threads to see if the question you have has already been answered.
There are also Facebook groups such as this one which is specifically for Americans who are applying for UK visas. From experience, engaging with others in groups like these can be helpful for your mental health in addition to helping you with your questions.
If you found this helpful, please leave me a comment and feel free to ask any other questions you have about moving to Scotland or visas. I’m not a lawyer, but I will do my best to help.
