Visa and Immigration Information

Find out if you need a visa or entry clearance to study in the UK and what to do when you arrive.

Important

Tier 4 General closed to new applicants on 5 October 2020. New students who wish to come to the UK for more than six months, or Tier 4 General students who wish to renew their visas, will now apply under the Student Route https://www.gov.uk/student-visa.

National of EEA or Switzerland

The UK left the European Union on 31 January 2020. On 31 December 2020, the transitional period came to an end and freedom of movement ceased. This means that EEA or Swiss nationals who do not have Settled or Pre-settled status may need to apply for a visa to enter the UK to study for more than six months from 1 January 2021.

Travelling to the UK

If you require a Student Visa to study in the UK, it is important that you should only travel to the UK once the student visa has been granted. You should receive an email or letter from the UK Visa and Immigration informing you of the decision for your visa application

If your passport is endorsed with an entry clearance visa, you should travel within the validity period as stated on the visa.

If you travel to the UK before your student visa is granted or outside the validity period on the visa, and you are allowed to enter the UK, you may not have the correct visa to undertake your programme of study.

Studying for longer than six months

The main immigration route for students is called Student Route. You will need a Student Route visa if you're studying in the UK for longer than six months.

Find out about applying for a Student Route visa from:

Standard visitor visa

If you're coming to the UK to study for a period of less than six months, you may be able to apply for a Standard Visitor visa.

Find out about applying for a Standard Visitor Visa from outside of the UK.

Graduate Route Visa

The Graduate Route will open to new applicants on 1 July 2021.

This new route will give students who complete their programmes from summer 2021 onwards the opportunity to apply to remain in the UK for 2 years (3 years for PhD students) to look for work.

Students who are in the UK on a student or Tier 4 visa who have recently completed their programmes will be able to apply. If you want to know more about the Graduate Route and the eligibility criteria, go to the Home Office website for further details. We will give further information on the application process on the Visa Support Team webpages when the route is launched.

Travelling to the UK – eGates

Students who hold a biometric passport from one of the following countries can take advantage of the eGates when travelling to the UK:

Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea or USA, The European Economic Area and Switzerland.

There will be eGates at the following port of entry:

Birmingham, East Midlands, London City, Luton, Stansted, Heathrow, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester, Newcastle, Bristol, Cardiff and Gatwick Airport, as well as Eurostar terminals in Brussels-Midi/ Zuid and Paris Gare du Nord.

Contact us

If you have any visa queries, you can contact us for help. Complete our enquiry form and select 'Student Resources and Records' followed by 'Visa Support' so your query comes straight to us.