Before you start your Student visa application please check that you meet the UK immigration and eligibility requirements.
Student visa application guides
Our visa application guides show you the step-by-step process of applying for a visa from outside the UK. Please select the second guide if you have an EU/EEA/Swiss passport.
Applying from outside the UK: visa guide
Applying from outside the UK: visa guide for EU/EEA/Swiss
Where can you apply for a Student visa?
You can apply for a Student visa in your home country. Normally you cannot apply for a Student visa in another country unless you have been a resident there for some time.
When can you apply?
You can apply for a Student visa up to 6 months before your course starts when applying outside the UK. Your course start date is listed on your CAS.
You can apply when you have been issued your CAS and when you have met the other conditions for a Student visa.
You'll need to know about Student visa eligibility, Documents for a Student visa and Financial requirements, and you should find out about the deadlines to pay your deposit and apply for a CAS.
If you leave these processes too late, you may not receive your CAS in time and may not be able to apply for a Student visa.
A Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) is valid for 6 months when applying for your visa from outside of the UK.
If you're not able to arrive in the UK before the last date to enrol given on your CAS, then you should not apply for a Student visa.
Advertised processing times are normally three weeks for a Student visa, see the Gov.uk page for processing times. You may experience delays, so it is important to apply as soon as you have your CAS and meet the requirements. For information about application centre opening times and faster Priority and Super Priority services see the Gov.uk website.
Please note that the Student visa application is made on the date you pay for it (normally online) and not the date you submit your documents. This is important as many students must have the required money for 28 consecutive days and your bank statements must not be more than one month old at the time of application. Read more about the documents and money you need on our Documents page and our Financial Requirements and the 28 day rule page.
Applying online
You must make an online application for a Student visa.
Online student applications for EEA and Swiss students
Please note: The application process differs for EEA and Swiss Students with a biometric passport.
- You'll normally apply online and complete your application using the 'UK Immigration: ID Check' app to scan your identity document instead of visiting an application centre
- You'll receive your Student Immigration Status digitally, sometimes called a Student e-visa
- You won't be required to submit your passport and will not be issued with a visa sticker in your passport
- You'll use the View and prove service as evidence of your digital status
- Once you start the online Student visa application you will be directed towards the 'UK Immigration: ID Check' app if you have an EU, EEA or Swiss Passport
- You'll be asked whether you have a biometric passport and you or somebody else you know has an appropriate smart phone
- If you cannot apply using the 'UK Immigration: ID Check' app then you will need to attend an application centre as part of the application process and application centres are not available in all countries. See the normal process of applying described later for non-EEA and Swiss Students.
Please note that although much of the application process for an e-visa is done online this does not mean students with delayed Student visa Applications can arrive in the UK as a visitor and start a course while waiting for their Student digital status (e-visa). You must wait for your visa to be granted before travelling to the UK.
Online Student applications for students who are not from the EEA or Switzerland
- You will apply online, and you will be required to have your fingerprints and photo (biometric information) taken at a visa application centre
- You’ll be told what you need to do when you apply, so it is important to follow these instructions carefully.
- You will be issued with a 90 vignette in your passport which you will use to travel to the UK
- You will no longer be required to collect a BRP card when you arrive in the UK, UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) stopped producing these cards in October 2024
- You will be given instructions on accessing your Student Immigration Status digitally, your e-visa.
- When you arrive in the UK, you can use the View and prove service as evidence of your digital status
At the end of the online Student visa application form you'll be taken to the VFS Global website to organise your biometric appointment and submission of documents.
Application centres give advice about the process of booking and attending an appointment including whether Priority and Super Priority services are offered for faster visa processing. Some centres now offer the option of uploading scanned documents before the appointment.
At your biometric appointment your fingerprints and photograph will be taken and you will normally need to submit your documents, translations and passport. You can read more about the documents you will need on our Documents page.
At the appointment you may be required to take a credibility interview, or you may have a later interview on the phone. You should prepare in advance for the interview.
What are the basic visa application costs?
The current Student visa application fee is £490. It is usually charged in the local currency.
The current Student Immigration Health Surcharge is £776 per year and £388 for six months.
Currently, if you are studying for a three-year undergraduate degree, your Immigration Health Charge will be 2,716 (£776 x 3) + £388. If you are studying for an MSc programme, you would have to pay £1,164: £776 for your one-year course, plus £388 for the additional four months of leave granted after the course ends.
If your course lasts for less than six months, for instance, a pre-sessional or a semester study abroad programme, then you will not have to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge but should obtain your own health insurance.
If you are eligible to bring dependants on a Dependant Visa, the current application fee per dependant is £490. Dependants usually need to pay the same amount as you.
Visit the UK government website to calculate how much you will have to pay before applying.
If your family will be coming to the UK read the UKCISA information for dependants.
When can you come to the UK on a Student visa?
If you are granted a Student visa, the date on which you will be allowed to enter the UK depends on the length of the course, and the start date on your CAS. Please remember that your Entry Clearance visa or the e-visa have to be granted and become valid before you travel.
| Length of course | Arrival period |
|---|---|
| 6 months or longer | Up to 1 month before the course starts |
| Shorter than 6 months | 7 days before the course starts |
Pre-sessional course in preparation for a degree course | 1 month before your course starts |
Successful visa application
If your application is successful, you'll be sent an email or letter telling you about the conditions of your Student visa, this is known as your ‘Decision Letter’. Your decision letter will include:
- The length of your Student visa
- Your visa conditions
- Information on travelling to the UK and accessing your e-visa
Some nationals from Asia Pacific and China, known as APAC countries, will not receive a personal letter with these details but they will receive a generic letter.
If you are an EEA or Swiss national who used the 'UK Immigration: ID check' app, then you'll receive your visa in the form of an online digital status (e-visa).
Everybody else will have their passports returned to them containing a sticker, the sticker is called a vignette. This sticker or vignette gives you the permission to arrive in the UK within a 90-day window, you will also be instructed on how to create and access your e-visa. You will not collect a BRP card as these have been discontinued, instead you will be given instructions on how to access your e-visa
If your course is less than six months, you will either be given a 90-day visa that you will use to travel to the UK with further instructions on activating an e-visa, or you will be given a vignette/sticker on your passport that covers the whole time you will be in the UK. It is important that you follow the instructions you are given in the letter/email you receive when your Student visa is issued.
Refusals
If your Student visa application is refused, it is important that you contact us immediately. You must inform the Student visa Compliance team by emailing [email protected].
See the UK Council for International Student Affairs Information about refusals.
If you've received a visa refusal because of a credibility interview the University can request a transcript of your interview from UK Visas and Immigration which may help you in an administrative review (appeal) application.
Contact Student Advice to discuss your next steps.
Arriving in the UK on a Student visa
Following a successful Student visa application and when you are preparing for your arrival in the UK, you may have questions about what to bring and what to expect. We've rounded up some key resources below.
- To find out about the enrolment process, see our Enrolment for new students page
- For advice about documents you need to bring and events to help you settle in, see our Enrolment for new international students page
- To find out what to do before you arrive and during your first few weeks at Westminster, see our New student checklist page
Useful information can also be found on the UKCISA website.
Entering the UK during the validity of your Student visa
When entering the UK, you'll normally see an Immigration Officer/Border Force officer who will check your permission to enter, ensuring you enter within the validity of your Student visa. You'll receive a date stamp in your passport, normally on the vignette. The stamp acts as proof that you have entered the UK in accordance with the rules of your visa.
Some nationals are able to come to the UK as visitors without first applying for a Visa. If you are normally able to do this, then do not enter as a visitor before your Student visa is valid as the University will not enrol you for a course that requires a Student visa. If you are an EEA or a Swiss student, you should not enter the UK as a visitor while you wait for a digital e-visa as you won't be able to enrol on a course and attend classes as a visitor. You could also risk your Student visa application being cancelled.
Some students can enter the UK via the eGates/ePassport gates if holding a current passport (with a biometric chip) from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, The United States of America, The EEA or Switzerland.
EGates are automated self-service barriers located at immigration checkpoints at UK airports. They are an alternative to seeing an Immigration officer/Border force officer. It's better to see an Immigration official/Border officer and request a stamp in your passport to prove that you've entered the UK during the validity of your visa rather than enter the UK via the eGates.
If you do enter via the eGates you'll need to keep evidence of the date that you entered the UK (such as flight tickets and or Boarding Passes) and provide these in addition to your other documents when you enrol.
How to organise your Student visa when you arrive in the UK
If you are an EEA or Swiss national who has used the 'UK Immigration: ID check' app and received your visa in the form of an online digital status/e-visa, then this can be shared with anyone who needs to check your visa status by using the View and prove service.
Stays of up to 6 months
If you're applying for a visa to come to the UK for 6 months or less, eg for a pre-sessional English language course or an Education Abroad Semester, your Student visa permission will be issued on a sticker/vignette and placed in your passport.
You will either be given a 90-day visa that you will use to travel to the UK with further instructions on activating an e-visa, or you will be given a vignette/sticker on your passport that covers the whole time you will be in the UK. It is important that you follow the instructions you are given in the letter/email you receive when your Student visa is issued.
Stays longer than 6 months
If you are applying for a Student visa to study a course which is more than 6 months long, your visa permission will initially be granted on a sticker in your passport. The visa in your passport will only be valid for 90 days.
You must travel to the UK within this 90-day period.
You will no longer be required to collect a BRP card as these were discontinued by UKVI in October 2024, instead when you arrive in the UK you must access your e-visa, you will be given instructions on how you can do this in the email/letter you received that confirmed your student visa application was successful. You will be able to view your e-visa using the View and prove service.
Student visa errors
When you receive notification of your Student visa Permission (whether this is a decision letter, vignette, or e-visa) you must always check for errors. If you feel that the information on your visa is not correct you must act quickly to correct the mistake.
The two most common Student visa errors are listed below:
- Most degree courses are more than a year long. Your student visa expiry date should be four months after the course end date on your CAS. If you receive a shorter visa then you may have an error.
- Most students on courses longer than 6 months should have a Student visa that allows them to work part-time for 20 hours a week (not 10). If you are told you can work less, then you may have an error.
The UK Council For International Student Affairs Website describes the processes for correcting errors including key deadlines. You can also email Student Advice.
If you see that there is an error on your e-visa, you can find information on how you can correct this on the Gov.uk website.
Dependents
If you are planning on bringing a family member with you to the UK as your dependant, please visit the UKCISA website for information about the application process and requirements.
Please also note that the rules relating to who can be your dependant whilst you are in the UK have changed from January 2024. You will no longer be able to bring dependants to join you in the UK if you are studying for a postgraduate degree (undergraduate degree students are also unable to bring dependants).
For further details, please see the overview of changes on the UKCISA website. Please note there are some exceptions for students who are already studying in the UK before this date.