Comment by tuvistavie

In general, I'd say UK visa process and cost are quite terrible, to say the least. However, for the global talent, the harder part is to get endorsement, after which it should be relatively straightforward. A friend of mine recently got his through the research route and the process seems to have been quite smooth. I think it took about a month or so. For reference, he is finishing a PhD in a top US university and has a good amount of peer reviewed research.