1. Introduction
Talentvisa is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal data transparently and responsibly. This Privacy Policy explains what data we collect, why we collect it, how it is processed, and your rights under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
Please read this policy carefully. By using our website, taking an eligibility test, or submitting an enquiry, you acknowledge that you have read and understood the practices described here.
2. Who We Are
Talentvisa is the assessment and AI product brand operated in partnership with Sterling Law (sterling-law.co.uk), a Legal 500 recognised immigration law firm authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority under SRA №630147 and authorised under the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA, formerly OISC). Legal services are delivered through Sterling Law and its immigration brand Sterling Max (sterlingmax.co.uk).
Data Controller: Sterling Law, Temple Chambers, 3-7 Temple Avenue, London EC4Y 0DT
Contact: privacy@talentvisa.online · +44 20 7822 8535
3. Data We Collect
3a. Information You Provide
When you submit an enquiry, complete an eligibility test, or join a waitlist, we collect:
- Identity data: full name, email address, phone number (where provided)
- Eligibility data: the answers you give to the route-specific test, your indicative score and verdict, the section breakdown, and the path of questions you took
- Free-text answers: any open-text fields you complete (e.g. main field of research)
- Service interest: which package, consultation tier, AI report or sector you've enquired about
- Preferred channel: Email, Phone, WhatsApp or Telegram
3b. Technical Data
Automatically collected when you visit our website:
- IP address and browser user agent, collected server-side on form submission to help with spam prevention and audit
- UTM parameters (utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign), where present in the URL, for marketing attribution
- Page view timestamps and basic interaction events (test started, completed, abandoned), aggregated
3c. AI Assessment Interactions (when launched)
The Talentvisa AI strategy report (currently in waitlist) will transmit your follow-up answers, your CV and your LinkedIn URL to a large-language-model provider for processing inside a deterministic scoring rubric. Please do not include passport numbers, financial account details, or other highly sensitive identifiers in chat or upload fields. Inputs and outputs are stored on Sterling Law infrastructure for quality and audit purposes; they are not used to train third-party models.
4. How We Use Your Data
- Responding to your enquiry and delivering immigration consultancy through Sterling Law
- Producing your eligibility score, verdict and (when launched) AI strategy report
- Sending you the result of your test and any follow-up scheduled at your request
- Maintaining accurate professional records of business enquiries
- Analysing aggregated website performance and marketing effectiveness
- Preventing spam and fraudulent submissions
- Complying with legal and regulatory obligations (including SRA and IAA requirements)
5. Legal Bases for Processing (UK GDPR)
- Eligibility test & contact form data Contractual Necessity: required to respond to your enquiry and deliver services
- CRM / case-management storage Legitimate Interests: maintaining records of business enquiries and managing client relationships
- Analytics & marketing tracking Consent: only activated after you accept cookies via our consent banner
- AI assessment processing Legitimate Interests: providing an accurate, responsive eligibility tool to enquirers
- Spam & fraud prevention Legitimate Interests: protecting our services from malicious submissions
- Visa application processing Legal Obligation: required by immigration law and SRA / IAA regulatory requirements
6. Cookies
Non-essential cookies are only set after you click "Accept All" on our consent banner. If you click "Decline", only strictly necessary functionality remains active and no analytics or advertising cookies are set.
Essential (always active)
tv_admin: admin session token (only set if you sign into the admin area)talentvisa-cookies: stores your cookie consent preference (localStorage)
Analytics (consent required)
- Aggregated visit counters, anonymised; no third-party analytics tracker is currently active.
You can withdraw consent at any time by clearing your browser cookies and declining when the consent banner next appears.
7. Third-party Processors & Data Sharing
We only share your information with third parties when necessary for service delivery or legally required:
- Sterling Law: legal services and professional advice; acts as co-controller for immigration matters
- Sterling Max: Sterling Law's immigration brand for case delivery
- UK Home Office / UKVI: for visa applications, as required by law
- Endorsing bodies (Tech Nation, Royal Society, RAEng, British Academy, UKRI, Arts Council, RIBA, BFC, PACT): only the documents explicitly required for endorsement, with your authorisation
We never sell your personal data to third parties.
8. International Data Transfers
Where any of our processors are based outside the United Kingdom, we ensure all transfers of personal data are conducted under appropriate safeguards, including UK International Data Transfer Agreements (IDTAs) or Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs), in accordance with UK GDPR Article 46.
9. Data Retention
- Eligibility test results & contact enquiries: retained for 5 years from last interaction, or until you request deletion
- Engaged-client matter files: retained for 7 years following case closure, in line with SRA record-keeping requirements
- AI chat / report interactions: retained for 2 years on Sterling Law infrastructure
- Server logs (IP, user agent): 90 days
- Waitlist email addresses: retained until the AI report launches plus 90 days, or until you unsubscribe
10. Data Security
- All data is transmitted over HTTPS (TLS encryption)
- Access to our case-management systems is restricted to authorised Sterling Law personnel only
- Form submissions include spam scoring and rate-limiting to prevent malicious data entry
- Admin areas are protected by password authentication with HTTP-only session cookies
- We conduct regular reviews of our data processing practices and processor agreements
11. Your Rights Under UK GDPR
You have the following rights regarding your personal data:
- Right of Access (Art. 15): request a copy of all personal data we hold about you
- Right to Rectification (Art. 16): request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
- Right to Erasure (Art. 17): request deletion of your data where there is no lawful basis for continued processing
- Right to Restrict Processing (Art. 18): ask us to limit how we use your data while a dispute is resolved
- Right to Data Portability (Art. 20): receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
- Right to Object (Art. 21): object to processing based on legitimate interests; we will cease unless we can demonstrate compelling grounds
- Right to Withdraw Consent: withdraw analytics consent at any time by declining cookies, this does not affect the lawfulness of prior processing
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at privacy@talentvisa.online. We will respond within 30 days.
12. Complaints
If you are unhappy with how we handle your data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO):
13. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be indicated by an updated "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.
14. Contact Us
For any questions about this Privacy Policy or your personal data:
- Email: privacy@talentvisa.online
- Phone: +44 20 7822 8535
- Post: Sterling Law, Temple Chambers, 3-7 Temple Avenue, London EC4Y 0DT