To play in the Premier League, a player needs a Governing Body Endorsement from the FA
A player who holds neither British nor Irish nationality needs a Governing Body Endorsement, or GBE, from the Football Association before he can play in the Premier League, unless he has permanent residence in the UK or a similar status. The GBE is a separate process from the Home Office visa. Under the FA's 2026/27 criteria, a player who does not get an automatic pass through the share of national-team matches he has played is judged on points: 15 or more is a pass, and a player on 10 to 14 can in some cases be referred to the Exceptions Panel. Someone who has spent the 12 months before the application at the same club in one of the big five leagues and played at least 30% of the minutes gets 18 points or more, even without any international appearances. An Atlético player comes out at 17 or more, provided he was named in a league or continental matchday squad in the 12 months before applying, was also named in a league matchday squad the season before, and the team finished high enough to qualify for the Champions League proper. The sections below explain how the points are awarded and what players who fell short did in practice.
What people usually call a work permit is made up of two separate steps. First the FA issues the GBE, which recognises the player as an elite player who will make a significant contribution to the top level of the game in the UK. Then the club assigns him a Certificate of Sponsorship and the player applies to the Home Office for a visa. Permission to stay comes from the Home Office, but without a GBE that application cannot go ahead.
Since Brexit, EU nationals have needed a GBE as well, starting with the January 2021 transfer window, so Spanish and French players now go through the same assessment as players from South America or Asia. A club can register a player without a GBE, but he cannot play in matches, train or turn out in friendlies. The criteria in force are the 2026/27 version, which took effect on 15 June 2026, and every points figure in this article comes from it. The FA intends to publish a revised version before the summer 2027 transfer window.
A regular in a big-five league reaches 15 points even without international appearances
The first thing the FA looks at is how often the player appears for his national team. If the country is in the top 10 of the FIFA ranking as aggregated by the FA, playing in 30% or more of its matches over the last 24 months is an automatic pass. Only competitive internationals count, as a rule, and for young players born on or after 1 January 2005 the period is 12 months. For countries ranked 11th to 20th the bar is 40%, for 21st to 30th it is 60%, and for 31st to 50th it is 70%. Countries ranked 51st or lower get no automatic pass at all.
A player who misses out on an automatic pass is scored on six criteria, and a total of 15 or more is a pass. The share of national-team matches played, minutes in continental competitions, the previous club's league position and its progress in continental competition all earn points, but the two that move the total most are the Band of the player's league and his share of minutes in domestic league football.
| Band | Main leagues | Points for the league's Band | Points for domestic league minutes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 1 | Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, Ligue 1 | 12 | 12 to 6 (down to 30–39%) |
| Band 2 | Portugal's top flight, Eredivisie, Belgium's top flight, Brazil's Série A, Championship | 10 | 10 to 4 (down to 30–39%) |
| Band 3 | MLS, Argentina's top flight, Liga MX, Turkey's Süper Lig, Scottish Premiership | 8 | 8 to 2 (down to 30–39%) |
| Band 4 | J1 League, La Liga 2, 2. Bundesliga and others, 13 leagues in all | 6 | 6 to 1 (down to 40–49%) |
| Band 5 | K League 1, Serie B, League One and others, 11 leagues in all | 4 | 4 to 1 (down to 60–69%) |
| Band 6 | All other leagues | 2 | 2 to 1 (down to 80–89%) |
The Band points count if, in the 12 months before the application, the player was named in that club's matchday squad at least once for a league or continental match. The minutes points peak at 90% of minutes or more and drop by a point for every ten-percentage-point step below that, so 80–89% is worth one point less, 70–79% two points less, and so on. Below the lowest range shown in the table the player scores nothing. Young players can also earn points for their first-team debut, and only the higher of those and the minutes points counts.
A player who has spent the 12 months before applying at the same club in one of the big five leagues gets 18 points even at 30–39% of the minutes, 6 for minutes and 12 for the Band, and the score goes up as his share of minutes moves into a higher range. The 2026/27 version moved Brazil's Série A up to Band 2 and the J1 League up to Band 4. With 12 months at the same club before applying and 90% or more of the minutes, a Série A player gets 20 points, while a J1 player stops at 12.
Players short of 15 points still have the Exceptions Panel and ESC places
A player on 10 to 14 points can be referred to the Exceptions Panel if the club can show that he would have reached 15 had it not been for exceptional circumstances. The panel has three members, one of them a lawyer who chairs it, and even when it recommends an endorsement the FA is under no obligation to grant one. After a refusal, the club cannot apply again for that player's GBE in the same transfer window unless his circumstances change. Young players born on or after 1 January 2005 can be put before the panel on the grounds of outstanding potential, even if they do not have enough points.
For players who still fall short, there are Elite Significant Contribution places, known as ESC places. From the 2026/27 version onwards they are open only to players born on or after 1 January 2003, and the club has to show the FA that the player is elite and will make a significant contribution. A Premier League club can hold at most four at any one time, and how many it gets depends on things such as the share of minutes played by players eligible for England.
Players without enough points have turned to the Exceptions Panel or a loan abroad
When Diego Costa, formerly of Atlético de Madrid, joined Wolverhampton Wanderers in September 2022, his first application came in under 15 points, and reports at the time cited a lack of international appearances as the reason. Wolves asked for the Exceptions Panel to look at the case, and after the panel's review the endorsement was granted in the end. Costa had been a free agent since January that year, when his contract with Atlético Mineiro in Brazil was terminated.
In the summer of 2021 Brighton signed Kaoru Mitoma and loaned him to Union Saint-Gilloise in Belgium. A local paper reported at the time that it was hoped the loan would earn him the points he needed for a work permit to play in England.
An Atlético regular is well placed to reach the FA's points threshold
In La Liga's top division, a first team can register no more than three non-EU foreign players, as a rule. In England, every foreign player is assessed individually for a GBE. How the big five leagues differ is set out in the column comparing their non-EU player rules.
For example, a player moving from Atlético to the Premier League gets 12 points for the Band of his league if he was named in a matchday squad at least once for a league or continental match in the 12 months before applying. If he was also named in a league matchday squad at least once the season before and the team finished high enough to qualify for the Champions League proper, he adds 5 for his previous club's league position, or 6 if they won the league, which takes him to 17 or more. Points for his minutes and for how far the team went in the Champions League come on top of that.