Traveller guides

Business travel to the UK

A short business trip to Britain usually needs no work visa, but the rules on what you can do are specific. Here is what the visitor rules allow, how the main conference centres connect to rail, and the practical pages to read next.

Facts checked 2 November 2026 against the sources listed at the end. Britlens is independent: see our editorial policy.

The arched iron and glass roof of Manchester Central, a former railway station now a convention centre
Photo: Colin Park, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Rules are summarised from GOV.UK on the date shown. They change, and they are not legal advice: check GOV.UK for your own case before you book.

What you can do as a business visitor

Business visitors come in as Standard Visitors and can usually stay up to six months. [1] If you are not paid by a UK-based organisation or client, you can: [2]

  • attend interviews, meetings, conferences and seminars
  • negotiate and sign deals and contracts
  • attend trade fairs to promote your business, but not sell
  • carry out site visits and inspections
  • get work-related training if you are employed overseas
  • give a one-off or short series of talks that are not commercial events

You cannot do paid or unpaid work for a UK company, unless it is a permitted paid engagement. [1] The rules also allow you to keep working remotely for your overseas employer while in the UK, as long as that is not the main purpose of the visit. [3]

ETA or visa

Depending on your nationality you will need a Standard Visitor visa, an electronic travel authorisation (ETA), or neither. [1] An ETA costs £20 and covers visits of up to six months; apply only on GOV.UK, because other sites charge more. [4] Our ETA and visa guide and entry requirements explain the steps.

VAT and shopping

There is no VAT refund for visitors on goods bought in shops in England, Scotland or Wales. You can only buy tax-free in Great Britain if the shop delivers the goods straight to an address outside the UK. [5] Northern Ireland is different: some shops there offer VAT refunds on a VAT 407(NI) form if you take the goods out of Northern Ireland and the EU within three months. [5]

If your company wants to reclaim UK VAT on hotels or conference fees, that is a business claim made through HMRC, not at the airport; ask your finance team.

Main conference centres and how to get there

Conference centres and their nearest rail links
VenueCityGetting there
ExCeL LondonLondon DocklandsCustom House station (Elizabeth line and DLR) for the West Entrance; Prince Regent (DLR) for the East Entrance [6]
ICC BirminghamBirminghamShort walk from the three city-centre stations, New Street the closest; tram stop at Centenary Square [7]
Manchester CentralManchesterIn the former Manchester Central railway station, in the city centre [8]
EICCEdinburghIn the Exchange District in Edinburgh's west end [9]
SEC CentreGlasgowScotland's largest exhibition centre, by the Clyde at Finnieston [10]
ICC BelfastBelfastTwo minutes' walk from Lanyon Place station [11]
Metrolink tram at St Peter's Square stop in central Manchester
Photo: G-13114, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

City guides: London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Belfast city centre.

Getting around and staying connected

Glass-walled railway station concourse at Heathrow Terminal 5
Photo: Ewan Munro from London, UK, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Quick answers

Do I need a work visa to attend a conference in the UK?

No, as long as you are not paid by a UK organisation: attending conferences and meetings is a permitted business activity for Standard Visitors. [2]

Can I get VAT back on shopping in London?

Not in shops in Great Britain, unless the shop delivers the goods to an address outside the UK. [5]

Related guides

Sources

Read on the dates shown. Rules, dates and services change: check the source before you rely on it. Pages marked “not read” refused automated access, so we state nothing from them.

  1. Visit the UK as a Standard Visitor (opens in new tab), GOV.UK (UK Visas and Immigration), read 2 November 2026
  2. Visit the UK as a Standard Visitor: visit on business (opens in new tab), GOV.UK, read 2 November 2026
  3. Immigration Rules Appendix Visitor: permitted activities (opens in new tab), GOV.UK (Home Office), read 2 November 2026
  4. Get an electronic travel authorisation (ETA) (opens in new tab), GOV.UK, read 2 November 2026
  5. Tax on shopping and services: tax-free shopping (opens in new tab), GOV.UK, read 2 November 2026
  6. Getting here (opens in new tab), ExCeL London, read 2 November 2026
  7. The ICC Birmingham (opens in new tab), ICC Birmingham, read 2 November 2026
  8. Manchester Central Convention Complex (opens in new tab), Wikipedia, read 2 November 2026
  9. Edinburgh International Conference Centre (opens in new tab), Wikipedia, read 2 November 2026
  10. SEC Centre (opens in new tab), Wikipedia, read 2 November 2026
  11. ICC Belfast (opens in new tab), ICC Belfast, read 2 November 2026