Our Island Plan

Immigration Rules and Associated Policy

Latest Immigration Rules and Associated Policy notices

We have created a dedicated page to hold all important notices related to Immigration Rules and Associated Policies. The most recent notice will be at the top of the page.

Currently we have these notices in place:

Immigration Rules

The Immigration Rules are made by the Minister for Isle of Man Treasury and outline the practice to be followed in the administration of the Immigration Acts as extended to the Isle of Man for regulating the entry into and the stay of persons in the Isle of Man.

The Isle of Man Immigration Rules, whilst not identical to the United Kingdom (UK) Immigration Rules, are based on the UK Rules and are very similar. However, they are not identical and there are some provisions within the UK Rules that do not apply here and some in the Isle of Man Immigration Rules that do not apply in the UK. There are also, as in the UK, provisions within the Isle of Man Immigration Rules that apply only to Commonwealth citizens.

Sponsor Licensing Policy

The Sponsor Licensing policies are made by the Council of Ministers and outline the practice to be followed in the administration of sponsor licences for employers and academic institutions wishing to sponsor applicants on the Student, Child Student and Tier 5 routes.

Confirmation of Employment Policy

This policy sets out the conditions that must be met if an Appendix W migrant wishes to make a change in their employment circumstances.

Immigration Employer Compliance Policy

This policy sets out the conditions that an Employer must meet in order for a Confirmation of Employment to be considered.

Immigration Recognition of UK Visas Policy

This policy sets out the circumstances in which specified UK visas may be recognised in the Isle of Man, without requiring an application to be made under the Isle of Man Immigration Rules.

Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules

The Statement of Changes document sets out the changes to the Isle of Man Immigration Rules and the date on which the changes apply.

Global Business Mobility from 2 November 2026

The Isle of Man Immigration Service will be introducing the Global Business Mobility (GBM) route which will come in to operation on 2 November 2026 [SD 2026/0102] with the corresponding updated Sponsor Licensing Policy. The route will act as an umbrella introducing five temporary worker visa categories for businesses to temporarily transfer staff to the Isle of Man for specific roles, set up IoM branches and provide services under international trade agreements, with the different routes having specific skill, salary, and duration requirements.

In practice, the Global Business Mobility routes ensure the Island honours obligations in trade deals (for example, Word Trade Organisation of Free Trade Agreements) by allowing service suppliers and secondees to enter under agreed terms.

The five visa categories are:

  • Senior or Specialist Worker: For transferring senior managers or specialists to an existing Isle of Man branch

  • Expansion Worker: For senior managers/specialists setting up a new Isle of Man presence for an overseas business

  • Graduate Trainee: For those on a graduate training program within a company

  • Secondment Worker: For workers seconded to the Isle of Man under specific high-value contracts

  • Service Supplier: For contractual service suppliers or independent professionals under international trade agreements applicable to the Isle of Man.

Introducing the Global Business Mobility route will mean the current Intra-Company Transfer visa (ICT) within the Worker Migrant route will close to new applicants at the same time the Global Business Mobility route it introduced. Those already holding valid immigration leave under the current Intra-Company Transfer (ICT) Immigration Rules will remain on this route and any settlement rights available to them under paragraph 3.4 of Appendix W of the Immigration Rules will still apply.

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