[Exceptional Talent] Rejected, Appealed & Endorsed

Stage 1
1

Hi everyone - I’d like to share my experience with you regarding my GT visa application.
Timeline:

  • Applied: Aug 4
  • Rejected: Aug 11
  • Appealed: Sept 2
  • Endorsed: Sept 27

Background:
I am working for one of the largest Fintech companies in Silicon Valley in partnerships. ex-FANG (big tech). ex-Unicorn. 10+ years of experience. Top UK business school grad.

To be honest, I was quite surprised my initial application for exceptional talent was rejected. The pro forma suggested that I did not meet the mandatory criteria AND one of the two optional criteria. Fragomen helped me with my appeal and addressed the specific feedback from the assessor.

Lessons learned:

  1. Do not assume the assessor understands your field - explain your contributions extremely clearly; help them check the boxes.
  2. Trust the professionals - my appeal would not have been successful without Fragomen. Yes, good lawyers aren’t cheap but they are worth it.
  3. Do the prep work well - I prepared a 24 page doc to Fragomen and highlighted what the assessor got wrong. This gave my lawyer a much better understanding of what we could call out in the appeal form, which has a very low word limit.

I’d like to thank all of those in this forum who have spent time providing feedback to me with my application. Also, best wishes to all the applicants! I hope you all get endorsed.

3 Likes
2

Thanks for sharing your experience @viciv
Congratulations on the GTV
What was the reason for rejecting your application at first place. It would be very helpful to understand at what circumstances the appeal would help.

3

The reasons were very specific to my application IMO. You’ll get a pro forma with detailed reasons. The appeal would help if you could match your evidence submitted to the reasons they rejected you. Broadly, I had to highlight:

  • product innovation: why products I launched were innovative
  • external presence: conferences I spoke at were higher profile than what the assessor thought
  • salary: high salary was one of the requirements
  • motivation: why I demonstrated strong tie to the UK
2 Likes
4

Thank you. It helps.

5

HI @viciv do you mind sharing the connection to your lawyer?