Hi I have been accepted to do 4 weeks volunteer work at Kew Gardens. I've been informed that I need a Standard Visitor Visa but I have also read that this visa does not allow unpaid work.
I'm heading over from Australia and just need some clarification on what type of visa I need.
You need a "Temporary Worker - Charity Worker visa (Tier 5)" to work as a volunteer for a charity, which Kew Gardens basically is.
The UK government website for Standard Visitor Visas explicitly says
You cannot:
- do paid or unpaid work
- [some other things]
so that definitely isn't the right visa.
The more detailed guidance says (on page 22):
Volunteering
Appendix 3 allows visitors to undertake volunteering (not voluntary work) provided volunteering is not the main purpose of the visit, it is for a registered charity and will be for no longer than 30 days in total. Where an individual is looking to come to the UK as a visitor specifically to volunteer they must be refused. Volunteering and voluntary workers are provided for in the Tier 5 Charity worker route of the points-based system.
The volunteering is the purpose of your visit (though it is less than 30 days), so you need a Tier 5 visa.
