Higher education from the United Kingdom will add great value to your life, particularly because of their reputation for world-class research. The quality of education provided by the UK Education System stands out in the world & it enhances your skills, critical thinking, & motivates you to drive forward your career. Additionally, you will also experience a uniquely multicultural environment that is necessary to be a part of today’s global workforce. To study full-time in the United Kingdom, you must apply for a UK student visa that is issued by the Immigration & Visa Department. In the following article, we shall let you know everything you need to know before applying for a UK student visa.
Eligibility:
There are generally two categories to apply for the UK student visa. They are:
Tier 4 (Gen) student: Students must be at least 16 years or older to apply for this category.
Tier 4 (Child) student: Student must be between 4 to 17 years to apply in this category.
Please note that if your course is for less than six months, you will need a student visitor visa. Or if you are yet to be accepted by an institution, you can apply for a prospective student visa.
Other eligibility criteria include:
- You must have been offered a place on a course in a recognized school or university in the United Kingdom.
- You can speak/read/write/understand English.
- You have enough money to support yourself & pay for your course.
- You are from a country that is not in the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.
- You must have proof of identity to submit wherever required.
Please note that your education provider will send you a reference number called a Confirmation of Acceptance for Students (CAS) once they’ve offered you a place on a course.
You will have to enter this in your visa application.
Exception for the English Language Test:
You do not need to prove your knowledge of English if one of the following applies to you:
1. You are a national of Canada, NZ, Australia, USA, Ireland, & some other countries mentioned by the UK immigration department.
2. You have studied in the UK before as a Tier 4 (Child) student.
3. You are applying to come to the UK for a study abroad program as part of a university degree course in the USA.
Documents Required:
You will need the following documents to apply for the UK student visa:
1. Proof of Identity
2. Proof of Acceptance
3. Proof of Financial Support
4. Proof of Parental Consent (For minors only)
5. Proof of English Proficiency (If applicable)
6. ATAS Document (If applicable)
7. Additional Documents (If required)
Details of all these documents are given below:
1. Proof of Identity:
You and any of your family members who come with you to the United Kingdom must carry a current passport or other valid travel documentation. You will also require to submit your colored passport size photographs.
2. Proof of Acceptance:
You will need to prove that you have been accepted at a recognized school or university in the United Kingdom by submitting any supportive letter/certificate of the same.
3. Proof of Financial Support:
This is universal for every country. You will be required to show proof of your financial strength to apply for a UK student visa. You must have enough money to support you, your family members who come with you, & cover your tuition fees.
4. Proof of Parental Consent:
If you are under 18 years old and neither of your parents is coming with you to the United Kingdom, you will be required to submit proof of consent signed by your parents or legal guardian.
Additionally, you should also provide proof of your relationship with your parents/legal guardians.
5. Proof of English Proficiency:
You must submit proof of English Proficiency Tests that must be on the approved Secure English Language Testing (SELT) list.
The visa office works with their providers to ensure as many people as possible to have access to a SELT test point.
However, if there is no SELT test point in the country where you live, you will have to travel to another country to take a SELT test.
6. ATAS Document:
Students who are intending to study at postgraduate level in certain sensitive subjects, knowledge of which could be used in programs to develop weapons of mass destruction, are required to apply for an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate before they can study in the United Kingdom.
7. Additional Documents
The immigration department may ask for other documents from you depending upon your case. It may either be a character certificate or a medical exam document.
How to apply?
Before you apply, please gather all the supporting documents that are necessary to complete the UK student visa application. The visa office also recommends international students to apply at least 3 months before the course begins for a seamless & smooth process.
Steps to apply:
You can apply for a UK student visa online. Since the UK visa & immigration department is very strict during the evaluation process, make sure you avoid filling the form incorrectly.
Step 1: Create an account or sign in to the official website of UK Visa & Immigration.
Step 2: Upload all the supporting documents wherever asked. Your online form will contain every instruction. Follow them thoroughly.
Step 3: You will need to have your fingerprint & photograph taken at a visa application center to get a ‘Biometric Residence Permit’ as part of your application. You can collect your biometric details from the visa application center that is nearest to you.
Step 4: Don’t lie anywhere in the form or upload forged/fraudulent documents, or else you may face a ban of 10 years from the UK.
Step 5: Pay the visa application charge of £348 and a healthcare surcharge that is approximately around £300 for one year.
Please note that the application fee & healthcare surcharge are subjected to change from year to year. So make sure you confirm the latest fees from the official website before proceeding with your application.
What happens after you apply?
After you apply for your UK student visa, it is processed within 3 weeks (15 working days). You can continue to check your visa status on online tracking systems.
If the visa officers ask for any additional document or notify about a possible error, you will receive notification regarding the same in your tracker.
Additionally, you may also be required to appear for an interview where they will ask details about your reason for coming to the UK, education history, after-study plans, immigration history, financial circumstances, & other personal details.
Make sure you do not lie in your interview, or if they catch you lying, you may face consequences.
If the visa officers are satisfied, your application for the UK student visa will get approved. If not, the visa officers will send you detailed notification/mail as to why your application was rejected by them.
Generally, the application gets rejected under the following circumstances:
- Missing Documents
- Unsuccessful credibility interview
- Failure to meet any eligibility criteria
- Not attaching an ATAS clearance certificate (if your course is subject to ATAS)
- Not showing the sufficient proof that you have enough money to support yourself while studying in the United Kingdom.
Arriving in the UK
Once your application for the UK student visa is approved, you can prepare for your arrival in the United Kingdom.
After you arrive, you will pass through immigration control. There are two queues: one is for the EU & Swiss Nationals, and the other one is for everyone else. When your turn comes, a border force officer will look at your passport and visa. You must carry all the documents in paper form in your carry-on baggage.
Once satisfied, the border force officer will stamp in your passport and allow you to enter the United Kingdom.
Please note that if you carry £10,000 or equivalent in any currency (cash, cheque, or banker’s draft), you must declare it to the border force officer.
The United Kingdom is among the world’s most popular destination for higher education. Reportedly, around 500,000 International students enroll each year in different UK universities.
While the application process for the UK student visa is hectic & difficult to pass through, but if you clear it, it will be worth the effort.
You can check for Australia Student Visa , Canada Student Visa US Student Visa
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