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What evidence can I supply?
You should send any supporting documents to the person you are sponsoring so that they can include them with their visa application. Please do not send any documents direct to the visa section.
There are no hard and fast rules about what documents you should produce when sponsoring a visitor to the UK. You may want to produce evidence of your own immigration status in the UK, and there are some other things you can do, particularly if the visit is for a special reason.
If the visit is for a holiday and you are a relative or a friend, a letter of sponsorship explaining your relationship to the applicant and why the visit is taking place at this particular time may be helpful.
If the visit is for a special family occasion (for example, celebrating a wedding, a birth or an important anniversary), an invitation giving details of the event, when and where it is to take place, and a letter of sponsorship would be helpful. If the person you are sponsoring is not a close relative or is one of several people invited to the occasion, it would be helpful to know why the applicant was chosen to attend.
If you are offering to provide support and accommodation, or to pay for travel to the UK, you must provide evidence of your ability to do so. The following would be helpful.
A letter of sponsorship giving details of your occupation and salary and how you will provide support and accommodation for the applicant. There is no need to have this letter certified (in other words, signed) before a solicitor or commissioner for oaths to confirm it is genuine.
Evidence of your ability to pay for the trip, such as copies of your last six months' bank or building society statements and salary slips. If you receive public funds, the Entry Clearance Officer will need to consider carefully how long you will be able to support other people on your limited means. You will not be able to get extra public funds to support the applicant.
A letter from your employer granting leave of absence from your job for a specified period. The letter should also say how long you have been employed by that employer and in what job(s)
If you are self-employed, evidence of your business activities and financial standing
Evidence of any property you own in your home country
If you are a student, a letter from your school or college stating which course you are on, its start and finish dates and the dates of the vacation during which you intend to visit the UK
It may also help if you can show that you have family or social ties and responsibilities to return to
Evidence of any firm travel plans you have made
Rules (vi) and (vii) are about financing your stay and your journey home (or to your next destination). You must be able to show that you have somewhere to stay and enough money to pay all your expenses while you are in the UK, or that your sponsor is able and willing to help you. Remember that the cost of living in the UK may be very different to the cost of living at home. Among the documents that may help are:
Bank statements going back over a period of several months
Evidence of other savings available to you
A letter in which your sponsor agrees to support you while you are in the UK and to give you a place to stay. You will also need to show that your sponsor is capable of supporting you, perhaps by providing bank statements and pay slips.