Can I move to Jersey, Channel Islands? Who can live here and what it takes

What limits you is the housing law, which gives you a residential status deciding what you can rent or buy and which jobs you can do. There is no bank balance test and no £30 million rule; the only wealth-based routes are high value residency (taxable income above £1.25 million a year) and the Skilled High Earner route (£250,000 a year of Jersey-taxable income from your own business). Almost everyone else, including EU citizens arriving now, needs immigration permission, usually a work permit applied for by an employer.

Two systems decide whether you can move here: immigration rules, which only matter if you are not British or Irish, and the Control of Housing and Work (Jersey) Law 2012, which applies to everyone. Here is how both work as of October 2026.

British and Irish citizens: yes, you can move

British and Irish citizens need no immigration permission to live or work in Jersey. The island is part of the Common Travel Area with the same border standards as the UK, so you need only photo ID, not a passport, to arrive from the UK.

What you do need is a registration card. Everyone aged 16 and over must register as a resident; gov.je calls it one of the first things to do on arrival but sets no fixed deadline. You register online with your passport, expected earnings and any licence paperwork from your employer, and receive a social security number and a card showing your status. You need a new card when you move house or change job.

The card costs £88.15 for Standard, Licensed and Licensed for Lease Only status and is free for Entitled statuses and anyone 18 or under. For a British arrival, that is the only official charge for becoming a resident.

The real constraint: housing and work status

Your status decides where you can live and work. Since 14 September 2026 the status formerly called Registered is called Standard. Only the name changed, and the homes Standard residents can rent are still called Registered property.

The salary levels come from November 2025 guidance, which exempts some shortage roles. If you are Licensed, you can live almost anywhere from day one. Otherwise you start as Standard, compete for a smaller pool of Registered rentals, and wait five years for open access to jobs and ten for full housing rights. Our housing qualifications guide has the detail.

How much money do you need to move to Jersey?

There is no minimum bank balance, income or net worth test for British or Irish citizens. The real question is whether you can afford to settle in. Numbeo's crowd-sourced average rent for a one-bed flat in central St Helier was about £1,380 a month in October 2026. You pay full GP fees until you get a health card after six months' contributions, and hospital care beyond the Emergency Department is chargeable for your first six months if working, or 12 months if not, unless you are Licensed or Licensed for Lease Only. Our cost of living guide has full budgets.

The £30 million myth and the high value route

You do not need £30 million to live in Jersey. That figure appears in no law, guidance or published criteria. The only route with a wealth test is high value residency (formerly 2(1)(e)), and it is optional. It gives a newcomer Entitled status from day one, so they can buy any home without the ten-year wait. About 260 families live here under it, says gov.je.

Since the 14 September 2026 reforms, status is granted under Regulation 5 where the Housing and Work Control Panel recommends it on economic or social grounds. The law sets no financial thresholds, but law firms reported these policy indicators in September 2026:

• expected taxable income above £1.25 million a year in Jersey for at least ten years, which gives a strong presumption of approval subject to due diligence;
• philanthropy of at least £100,000 a year, or an equivalent contribution of time;
• property value thresholds, which the Panel is reported to be reviewing, possibly to apply only after approval.

The tax deal is unchanged: 20 per cent on the first £1.25 million of worldwide income and 1 per cent above that (Jersey property income stays at 20 per cent), with a minimum annual contribution of £250,000. The one-off fee is £10,506.25 (as of 1 January 2026), paid after approval. Locate Jersey says decisions usually take no more than 15 working days, and Collas Crill reports there is no longer a cap on approvals.

Locate Jersey's criteria page lists assets over £10 million and a house of at least £3.5 million, and Collas Crill's guide, updated on 20 October 2026, still gives personal wealth over £10 million as a requirement. Assume it applies and confirm with Locate Jersey.

The Skilled High Earner route (April 2026)

Introduced in April 2026, this route is for people who will run their own Jersey business. You must:

• not already be resident, own Jersey residential property or hold any status;
• set up a Jersey business of any type (you need not employ anyone) and work in it more than 25 hours a week;
• earn Jersey-taxable income of at least £250,000 a year for ten years or until you become Entitled;
• buy or lease only property worth £2 million or more;
• commit to an economic or social benefit, such as mentoring, local investment or charity work.

You get Licensed status through a business licence, reviewed after five years, leading to Entitled status after ten. Tax is the normal 20 per cent, and one law firm notes you cannot later switch to high value residency.

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens

Jersey ran its own EU Settlement Scheme for people living here by the end of 2020; the deadline for most was 30 June 2021. With settled or pre-settled status you need no work permit, and nor do family members with status through you. Late applications need reasonable grounds, and joining family members must have been family before 31 December 2020.

Moving now without that status, you are treated like any other non-British national and need immigration permission, usually a work permit.

Everyone else: work permits, visas and family routes

Jersey's visa rules mirror the UK's and you apply through the UK visa process, but the Jersey Customs and Immigration Service decides. The headline rules:

• Work permits. Your employer applies for a named person in a named role. Long-term permits need a job at RQF level 3 or above, paid at least the published threshold or going rate. They last up to three years at first and count towards settlement. Temporary permits of 9 or 12 months, for sectors such as hospitality, do not count and do not allow dependants. You then apply for a visa on GOV.UK.
• Dependants. On a long-term permit of more than 12 months you can bring a partner and children under 18 if your income can support them without public funds.
• Family visas. If your partner is British, Irish or settled, you can apply from outside Jersey as a spouse, civil partner, partner of two years or fiancé(e). There is no fixed income figure: your net income after rent must exceed income support levels for a similar household. The visa lasts 2 years and 9 months; processing usually takes about 12 weeks.
• Settlement. After five years' continuous lawful residence you can apply for indefinite leave to remain.
• Visitors. Since 23 April 2026 some nationalities need an Electronic Travel Authorisation to visit.

Under the housing law, a partner of someone Entitled, Licensed or Licensed for Lease Only can get Entitled for Work Only status, opening up any job.

How long can a UK citizen stay?

For immigration, as long as you like: British and Irish citizens have no time limit. Once you begin to be ordinarily resident you need a registration card, and gov.je treats a newcomer with no other status as Standard after three months. For tax, moving here to live makes you resident from the day you arrive. With accommodation available to you here, even one night can make you resident for that year, and averaging more than 90 nights a year over four years makes you resident from year five. See our tax guide.

Routes at a glance

For your own case, ask the Customer and Local Services hub, the Jersey Customs and Immigration Service (01534 448000), Locate Jersey (01534 440604) or a Jersey advocate.

Frequently asked questions