Include a Paid Leave statement from employer when applying for UK visit visa?

You are an Iraqi national applying for a UK Standard Visitor Visa and you want to know if you should include a so-called 'paid leave statement' from your employer as part of your evidence.

Is it necessary to provide "paid leave statement" from my current employer when applying for a UK visit visa for a 5-day-visit?

It is not 'necessary' in the sense that the only 'necessary' evidence is a passport and photos. But having said that, yes, you should include such a statement IF

• the statement passes their muster as high quality (fundamental);
• the employer is established and reputable (critical);
• the employer is ready to take a phone enquiry;
• you can prove that it is not a forgery (critical); and
• the info dovetails with your bank statements.

If any of these fail, it can spell doom. Iraqi nationals are one of the highest risk of visa applicants, look at this letter from the Home Office (selected at random from my personal archives)...

This goes on all the time so you should be prepared to give spotless evidence about your current circumstances and lifestyle. The more relevant (and 'hard') evidence you can provide, the more favourable the outlook.

Note: the length of your proposed visit does not reduce the risk of absconding because that is a constant. Even a visit of 1 second is enough to go underground once you clear controls. Instead the visit length should sync up with income and lifestyle and most importantly, the premise.