Legacy endorsing bodies in 2026: five removals and what to check

Most founders never need to think about the legacy endorsing bodies. They are the organisations that endorsed applicants on the old Start-up and Innovator routes, and GOV.UK is clear that they do not take new applications. But if one of them endorsed you, the steady removal of names from that list during 2026 is directly relevant to your next extension or your settlement application.

This article sets out what changed on the legacy list in 2026, what the caseworker guidance says legacy bodies can still do, and the questions an existing legacy endorsee should be asking now.

The 2026 removals timeline

The GOV.UK endorsing bodies page carries a change log. Every legacy removal recorded in 2026, as checked on 22 October 2026:

Beyond the 5 August note, this article does not set out reasons for individual removals, and we do not speculate about them. The point for an endorsee is the effect, not the reason, unless the Home Office tells you otherwise.

For context, the Business Endorsing Bodies list (UK Endorsing Services, Innovator International and Envestors Limited) has not changed since 2024. For a wider view of what moved on the page this year, see endorsing body list changes in 2026.

What legacy bodies can still do

GOV.UK describes legacy bodies as able only to maintain and monitor existing endorsees, and asks people not to approach them unless they are an existing endorsee. The caseworker guidance sets out exactly which letters a caseworker will accept from them:

• New-business letters — only if issued before 13 April 2023 for the Innovator route, and the applicant previously held Start-up permission with the same body.
• Same-business letters — only if the applicant has, or in the previous 12 months had, Innovator Founder permission with the same body.
• Settlement letters — only if the legacy body is the same body as the last grant.

The common thread is continuity with the same body. A legacy endorsee is tied to that organisation for any further letter. When that organisation leaves the list, the continuity is broken.

If your legacy body has been removed

The caseworker guidance covers two situations.

You have a pending application. If the body was removed for wrongdoing and the applicant was complicit, the application is rejected as invalid. Otherwise, the caseworker writes to the applicant allowing 90 days to obtain a new valid endorsement. The same 90 days applies if the body voluntarily surrendered its status. If no new endorsement arrives within 90 days, the application is rejected.

You already have leave. Leave may be cancelled where an endorsing body loses its status. Unless the applicant was complicit, they are normally allowed to find another endorsing body first. Where the body was removed without wrongdoing by the applicant, or voluntarily surrendered, leave is cancelled to 90 days.

Both scenarios are covered in more depth in what happens when an endorsing body leaves the list.

A checklist for existing legacy endorsees

If a legacy body endorsed you, work through these questions now, not when your current leave is about to expire.

1. Is my endorsing body still on the GOV.UK legacy list? Check the page and its change log directly.
2. When does my current permission end, and what will I apply for next? An extension needs a same-business endorsement; settlement needs a settlement endorsement letter.
3. Does the letter I will need meet the "same body" rule? If your body has gone, it cannot issue it.
4. Is my business evidence in order? Same-business endorsement requires the business to be active, trading and sustainable, with significant achievements against the most recently agreed plan, registered at Companies House with you listed as a director or member. If your last permission was Innovator Founder, you must have attended at least two contact point meetings.
5. Have I had any contact from the Home Office or my body? Any letter about cancellation, or a request under paragraph 39D, has its own deadlines. A 39D request for information must be answered within 28 calendar days.
6. Who would I approach instead? Shortlist from UK Endorsing Services, Innovator International and Envestors Limited. See switching endorsing body mid-endorsement.

Planning for settlement as a legacy endorsee

Settlement needs an endorsement letter no more than three months old confirming, among other things, significant achievements against the plan, that the business is active, trading and sustainable for at least the next 12 months, and that at least two of seven growth criteria are met. The last permission must be Innovator Founder. The guidance accepts legacy body settlement letters only if they come from the same body as the last grant.

If your legacy body is still listed, that rule may be workable. If it has been removed, or you think it might be, take specific advice early on how you would obtain a valid settlement letter. For the growth criteria, see the two-of-seven growth criteria.

Sources and further reading

• GOV.UK — Endorsing bodies: Innovator Founder and Scale-up visas
• GOV.UK — Innovator Founder caseworker guidance
• GOV.UK — Immigration Rules Appendix Innovator Founder
• GOV.UK — Indefinite leave to remain (Innovator Founder)

Key takeaways

• Five legacy bodies left the GOV.UK list in 2026: Community and Business Partners, Innovate Britain, MedCity, NatWest Entrepreneur Accelerator and SFC Capital.
• Legacy bodies take no new applicants and can only issue letters to their own existing endorsees under strict "same body" conditions.
• If your body is removed, a pending application gets 90 days to find a new endorsement; existing leave is normally cancelled to 90 days unless you were complicit.
• Check your body's status, your leave expiry and your next letter now, not at the deadline.
• If you need to re-test your business case for a new endorser, run a free assessment.

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