LONDON – The United Kingdom has been a dream destination for students who can join the top-ranked universities in the country and upgrade their education.
In this guide, we will take you through the procedure, eligibility, fee, and other necessary details regarding the study visa for the United Kingdom.
Eligibility
First of all, you can apply for a Student visa to study in the UK if your age is 16 or above and you have met the following conditions:
- You have been offered a place on a course by a licensed student sponsor
- You have enough money to support yourself and pay for your course – the amount will vary depending on your circumstances
- You can speak, read, write and understand English
- You have consent from your parents if you’re 16 or 17 – evidence is needed for applying
Timeline for Applying
When should you apply for a UK Study Visa depends on whether you are applying from within the UK or from outside the kingdom.
If you are applying from inside the UK, the official guidelines say that the earliest you can apply is 3 months before your course commences; the authorities would inform you about their decision regarding the visa within 8 weeks.
If you are applying from outside the UK, the earliest you can apply for a visa is 6 months before you start your course. In this case, you will usually get a decision on your visa within 3 weeks.
Moreover, you must apply before your current visa expires. It has also been directed that your new course must begin within 28 days of your current visa expiring.
Duration of stay allowed
The basic question regarding the student visa is how much time one can live in the UK on a study visa and it depends on the length of your course and what study you’ve already completed in the UK.
The official guidelines say that if you are 18 or over and your course is at degree level, you can usually stay in the UK for up to 5 years.
In case your course is below degree level, you can usually stay in the UK for up to 2 years.
You may be able to extend your visa if you’re eligible, for example, to continue your studies in the UK or switch to a Student visa from another visa if you’re already in the UK or switch to a Graduate visa to stay in the UK for at least 2 years after successfully completing your course.
It merits mentioning that the above duration is not final as the authorities consider multiple factors for allowing one to stay in the kingdom. The comprehensive guidelines in this regard can be viewed here.
Fee For UK Student Visa
For those applying from outside the UK, the fee is £363 to apply for a Student visa whereas £490 is charged to extend or switch to a Student visa from inside the UK.
It must be kept in mind that you must pay the visa fee for each person that joins you. Moreover, remember that it is the visa fee and does not include the university fee or course fee which you have to pay separately.
Besides the visa fee, an applicant will have to pay the healthcare surcharge as part of their application and its cost depends on how long the visa lasts.
UK Student Visa – What is allowed
On a UK student visa, you can study as well as work as a student union sabbatical officer. Moreover, you may be able to work but that depends on what you’re studying and whether you’re working in or out of term time.
UK Student Visa – What is not allowed
If you have secured a UK student visa, you can not claim public funds (benefits) and pensions.
Moreover, you can not work in certain jobs, for example as a professional sportsperson or sports coach. On a student visa, you can not be self-employed.
Besides, you are also not allowed to study at an academy or a local authority-funded school (also known as a maintained school).
If you are still confused about the terms of your visa, don’t worry as the authorities will inform you what you can and cannot do on a student visa if your application is successful.
Traveling to the UK
As far as traveling to the UK is concerned, it must be kept in mind that you can travel to the UK
before your course starts.
More specifically, you can travel to the UK, up to 1 week before the start of your course, if your course lasts 6 months or less.
If your course lasts more than 6 months, you can travel to the UK, up to 1 month before the start of the course.
Generally speaking, you must not travel to the UK before the start date given on your visa, no matter when your course starts.
Regarding the Course
The most important thing about the student visa is that one needs to enroll in a study course for traveling to the UK. In this aspect, you must have an unconditional offer of a place on a course with a licensed student sponsor.
According to the official guidelines, your education provider will send you a reference number (called a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS)) once they’ve offered you a place on the course.
It must be kept in mind that you need a CAS before you can apply for your visa as you must enter this reference number on your visa application.
Most importantly, you must apply for your visa within 6 months of receiving your CAS.
How Much Money is required
The UK Student Visa also needs proof of your financial stability. It means that you should be able to demonstrate that you have enough in your pocket to support yourself during the course of your studies.
As far as the course fee is concerned, you need enough money to pay for your course for 1 academic year (up to 9 months). The Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) mentions the amount you need to have for this purpose.
If you’ve been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months, you do not need to prove you have this money for your visa application.
Money needed to support yourself
This is a major amount that you need to have. For a UK student Visa, you’ll need to show you have enough money to support yourself except if you’ve been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months on the date of your application.
The exact amount of money needed depends on where you will be studying.
The official guidelines say that you will need either £1,334 per month (for up to 9 months) for courses in London or £1,023 per month (for up to 9 months) for courses outside London.
In case you are boarding at a residential independent school, you’ll need to pay boarding fees instead and the amount you need to pay will be on your CAS.
For the fee mentioned above, London means the City of London and the 32 London boroughs.
Another important thing that you should know is when you should have this money. The guidelines say that you must have this money (mentioned above) for at least 28 consecutive days. The end date of the 28-day period must be within 31 days of the date you apply for your visa.
For instance, if you submit your application on 1 January 2021, you’d have to show that the funds were in your bank account for at least the 28-day period ending on 1 December.
In case you have a student loan or financial sponsorship, you’ll need to provide evidence of this from your loan or sponsorship entity.
The financial requirements are waived if you’ve had a UK visa for 12 months prior to the date of your Student visa application – you must currently be in the UK.
Moreover, you are also exempted from the financial requirements mentioned above if you’re applying as a student union sabbatical officer or in case you’re applying as a postgraduate doctor or dentist on a recognized foundation program.
Furthermore, you do not need to prove you have enough money to support yourself if you’re a British national overseas or from some of the selected countries mentioned here.
English Language Proficiency
If you are from outside UK and generally belong to an underdeveloped country, you will need to show that you have command over the English language.
You can prove your knowledge of English by passing a Secure English Language Test (SELT) from an approved provider. The list of approved providers can be seen here.
Moreover, you can also prove that you have command over the language by having a GCSE, A level, Scottish National Qualification level 4 or 5, Scottish Higher or Advanced Higher in English, gained through study at a UK school that you began when you were under 18.
The applicant must prove they can read, write, speak and understand English to a certain level on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) scale.
If you are studying for a degree level or above, the language proficiency required is equivalent to CEFR level B2 and in case you are studying below degree level, CEFR level B1 is required. To know more on this, you can read this guide.
Documents Needed for applying
When you apply for your Student visa, the following documents are needed:
- Passport or other valid travel documentation
- Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) from your course provider
- Proof that you have enough money to support yourself and pay for your course
- A valid ATAS (Academic Technology Approval Scheme) certificate if your course and nationality require it
- Proof of parental or other legal guardian consent and your relation with them if you’re under 18
- Tuberculosis test results
- Written consent for your application from your financial sponsor if you’ve received sponsorship for your course fees and living costs in the last 12 months
As far as the consent for those under 18 is concerned, it must include their consent for the visa application, their living and care arrangements in the UK, as well as their travel to the UK.
Moreover, the applicant needs to provide a copy of their birth certificate (or another government-issued document) that shows the names of their parents.
It should be stressed that additional documents might be needed depending on your circumstances; however, officially the documents elaborated above are needed for any case.
How to Apply
To apply for the UK Student Visa, check whether you are eligible (as per the criteria elaborated above), gather all the documents including Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS), and apply online for the visa.
If you are applying from outside the UK, you’ll need to prove your identity. For this purpose, you could be asked to give your fingerprints and a photograph (biometric information) at a visa application centre
or use the ‘UK Immigration: ID Check’ app to scan your identity document.
For identification, the applicant will be told what they need to do when they apply. It is not necessary to apply in one go as you can save your form and complete it later.
Decision on your application
The UK immigration authorities have stated officially that the applicant usually gets a decision on their visa application within 3 weeks but one can pay to get a faster decision though this fast-track service might not be available for all.
After you apply
After you have applied online, you’ll be contacted if your application is complex and will take longer, in cases including if your supporting documents need to be verified or you need to attend an interview or the circumstances warrant more time.
You can change something in your application after you’ve sent it but for that, you can contact UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI).
If your application is successful, you’ll get either a biometric residence permit if you gave your biometric information at a visa application center or you can get a digital immigration status which you can view and prove online if you used the ‘UK Immigration: ID Check’ app.
Withdrawing application
You can ask to withdraw your application by contacting UKVI but your fee will only be refunded if UKVI has not started processing your application.
Can a partner join a student on Student Visa?
The UK authorities say that your partner and children (‘dependants’) may be able to apply to come to the UK or stay longer in the UK if you are one of the following:
- A government-sponsored student starting a course that lasts longer than 6 months
- A full-time student on a postgraduate level course (RQF level 7 or above) that lasts 9 months or longer
As per the official guidelines, if your postgraduate level course starts on or after 1 January 2024, it must be either a PhD or other doctorate (RQF level 8) or a research-based higher degree.
