Student Route Visa

To be eligible to apply for a Student Route visa, you must obtain a total of 70 Points as follows:

• Demonstrating you have an offer from Ravensbourne and submitting a valid CAS number (Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies)
• You meet the minimum English Language requirements as outlined by UKVI
• You demonstrate you can financially support your studies and yourself with the sufficient funds, as outlined by UKVI

In addition, your application must not fall for refusal under any of the ‘general grounds for refusal’ rules. For example, you must not have any criminal convictions, adverse immigration history or have breached any conditions of a previous UK visa. For a complete list of the grounds for refusal please refer to Part 9 of the Immigration Rules-General Grounds for Refusal.  

We recommend that you start applying for your student visa at least three months before your course starts (usually this would be in June for September start). You can make a visa application outside of the UK up to 6 months before your course start date.

Please note, however, it is only possible to apply for a student visa after you have been issued a CAS number/CAS letter. Ravensbourne shall provide you with a CAS number if your request for a CAS is successful. 

For more information about UK visas and immigration, visit the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) and the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) websites.

More information

• You will study full time for an approved qualification;
• You meet the minimum English language requirements for your course
• You have not or will not exceed the ‘2 or 5 year cap’ on study in the UK (for programmes below Masters level);
• You meet the requirements for ‘academic progression’;
• You have paid your non-refundable Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) deposit which is 60% of the tuition fee (or we have told you that you are exempt from this payment);
• You meet the visa application requirements;
• You meet the financial requirements ( we will check this before we issue a Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies / CAS statement to you).

Please refer to the Student Route Visa Admissions Section of our website for the academic and English language requirements for admission.

Before Ravensbourne will issue a CAS, all applicants (including nationals from UKVI defined low risk countries' must meet the following conditions:

• You have formally accepted your unconditional offer;
• You have provided evidence of all qualifications as requested, if applicable;
• You have demonstrated and continue to demonstrate that you are a genuine student and have met all of UKVI's eligibility criteria;
• You have met  and continue to meet all of Ravensbourne's CAS eligibility criteria;
• You have provided a copy of the passport you intend to use to apply for your Student Route visa;
• You have submitted a completed CAS Request/Immigration History Form to us and it has been approved;
• You have provided evidence that you have sufficient funds to cover your tuition fees and living expenses during your studies. This evidence must be in the form of a bank statement (covering 28 consecutive days-finishing on the date of the closing balance) or other document confirming the funds available to you. Please read our Financial requirements guidance for further information on the requirements; and
• You have paid either the non-refundable CAS deposit (this amount is 60% of your tuition fee and will be credited to the total tuition fees), or your full tuition fees unless you are exempt from paying the CAS deposit (for example US Federal Student Loans recipients and some other fully funded students are exempt from paying the CAS deposit). Please visit the International tuition fees section of our website for more information on tuition fees and our CAS deposit refund policy.

Important note: A CAS is normally issued within five working days following the receipt of your CAS deposit and any outstanding required documents.

Issuing a CAS and/or a CAS Letter does not guarantee that an applicant will be successful in securing a UK visa/leave to remain permission. Ravensbourne is not responsible for any decisions made by the Home Office/UKVI and cannot accept any liability for an applicant failing to obtain a visa/leave to remain and/or for the consequences and/or losses (whether financial or otherwise) of such failure. Nor is Ravensbourne liable for the consequences of declining to issue a CAS/CAS Letter to an applicant on request.

Please refer to our CAS Issuance Policy and the Student Route Offer Holder Information section of our website for more information on the requirements for obtaining your CAS.

CAS Issue deadlines
The CAS issuance deadline will be a few weeks before the course start date, and will vary depending on which intake you have applied for and whether you are applying from inside or outside the UK. You will be contacting regarding the CAS issuance deadline closer to the time.

What you need to do

Once we have issued your CAS and you have received your CAS letter from us, you should be able to apply for your Student route visa.

Read the relevant visa application and financial requirements guidance for more information on the requirements and documentation you need to submit.

Financial requirements

Find information on the financial requirements you need to meet for your visa application. 

Applying for a visa outside of the UK

Applications for a Student Route entry clearance/visas should be made in your home country or country of lawful residence.

If you are applying for a Student Route visa, the earliest you can make your application is three months before the start date of your course. Please allow sufficient time for collating your documents and preparing your visa application.

Key points to remember before you begin your application:

• Carefully read and understand the UKVI Student Route Guidance
• Check that you meet all of UKVI’s requirements before applying including that your application does not come under the general grounds for refusal
• Check the visa application process and visa processing time for your specific country.
• Complete all sections of the application form fully and accurately
• Submit all the documents required for your application in the format specified by UKVI

Applying inside the UK

If you currently have a student visa and need to extend your stay in the UK as a Student Route visa holder either to continue your course or start a new course, you can apply for ‘Leave to Remain’.

In order to do so, your new course must start within 28 days of the expiry of your permission to stay. If the gap between the expiry of your current visa/immigration permission and the start of your new course is more than 28 days then you must leave the UK and apply from your home country or country of lawful residence.

You must also meet the UKVI's 'Academic Progression' rule in order to make an application to extend your immigration permission (leave to remain), unless exempt.

Please note if you have a Student Visitor visa or Student Route (previously Tier 4) dependant visa it is usually not possible to move into the Student Route category from within the UK.

You should apply to extend your leave in the UK at least three months before your current visa expires and within six months of receiving a CAS from Ravensbourne. If you wait until your visa has already expired then you will be classed as an ‘over-stayer', which is a criminal offence.

Key points to remember before you begin your application:

• Carefully read and understand the Points Based System: Student Route
• Check that you meet all of UKVI’s requirements before applying including that your application does not come under the general grounds for refusal
• Review the guidance for applying to extend your UK immigration permission in the UK.
• Complete all sections of the application form fully and accurately
• Submit all the documents required for your application in the format specified by UKVI.

Credibility interviews

UKVI may require you to attend an interview as part of the visa/immigration permission application process. If you are required to attend a credibility interview, please inform the International Development Department as soon as possible. Please refer to the relevant visa guide for tips on attending a credibility interview.

Bringing your family with you to the UK

You can have dependants with you in the UK if:

1. You are government-sponsored and your course is full-time and longer than six months or
2. You are doing a postgraduate level full-time course of 12 months or longer at a publicly-funded Higher Education Institution or a 'UK recognised body' or
3. Your current or most recent immigration permission was as a Student Route applicant, Tier 4 (General) student or a pre-Tier 4 student on a full-time course longer than six months and all four bullet points below apply:
   1. Your permission is current or expired no more than three months before this immigration application
   2. Your new immigration application is for a full-time course that is longer than six months
   3. Your dependant already has Tier 4 dependant or 'student' dependant immigration permission (or it is the most recent immigration permission that they had, and it expired no more than three months before this application)
   4. You apply for immigration permission at the same time as your dependant

You must already have your Student Route immigration permission, or you must be applying for it in the same country where your dependant is making their application, at the same time as them.

Financial requirements for family members 

As part of your application/your family member's application you/they must submit evidence to show that you/they have held the required maintenance funds, currently £845 (i.e. £7,605) for up to nine months for each dependant. The evidence (e.g. bank statement) must be dated no more than 31 days before your application(s) is/are submitted.

If you qualify for ‘differentiation arrangements’, whilst you are not required to submit evidence of the maintenance funds with your visa application(s) you must ensure that you have this evidence to hand in the event that you are requested to provide it by UKVI. Please note if your dependant(s) do not submit their visa application(s) at the same time as you, they will be required to submit evidence that you/they have held the required maintenance funds for 28 consecutive days in a bank account with their visa application(s).

The final date of this 28 day period must not be more than 31 days before their visa application is made and must continue to be available to you/them after the application is made. Please refer to UKVI’s Student and Child Student casework guidance and UKVI's website for more information.

Need Help with your visa application?

Get in touch

Email: [email protected]

Book an online visa advice session to speak with the visa team.

As a Student Route visa holder, the Home Office/UKVI and Ravensbourne expect you to meet the terms and conditions of your immigration permission as defined by the UKVI.  It is your responsibility to comply with all your student responsibilities and failure to do so may result in Ravensbourne withdrawing its sponsorship of your student visa.

Please refer to the Terms & Conditions provided within your application.

If you applied for your visa from outside the UK, once your application for entry clearance/visa has been approved you should be issued with a short term visa endorsement in your passport. This is normally valid for either 30 days or 90 days and enables you to travel to the UK to collect your Biometric Residence Permit (BRP).

Please ensure that you check the details of your visa to ensure that all the details are correct, if you notice any errors please contact International Admission and/ or Compliance at Ravensbourne immediately by emailing:[email protected].

You should also be issued with a decision letter from the Home Office/UKVI providing details of the UK post office/UKVCAS centre you should collect your BRP from.

You must collect your BRP within ten days of arriving in the UK. Failure to collect your BRP within the required period could result in you being subject to a financial penalty or cancellation of your leave (this requirement has been waived during the COVID-19 period)

You can use your 30/90- day short term visa to enrol at Ravensbourne, however, you must provide us with your original BRP (electronic copy during COVID-19 period) once you have collected it from the post office. Please do not travel outside of the UK until you have collected your BRP unless you have an urgent reason for doing so.

If you submitted your Student Route immigration permission application from inside the UK you should be issued with a (BRP) and decision letter once a decision is made on your application.

Important note: Please upload a scanned copy to your online portal account or email us a scanned copy of your short-term visa, decision letter and BRP once you receive it/them.

In the event that your visa application is refused. Please inform us immediately by emailing: [email protected], providing us with a copy of the decision letter.

Please refer to our Visa refusal guide for more information.

To ensure that you have everything you need to get through the UK border as efficiently as possible, please sure that you carry the following in your hand luggage for easy access:

• Your current passport with your short term visa
• Your completed landing card
• The CAS letter you received from Ravensbourne with your CAS number and details about your course/programme of study
• Your TB test certificate, if applicable, and any other medical documentation, the bank statement you submitted with your visa application and details of where you are staying in the UK as the Immigration Officer may ask to see this information.

Important note: You must not enter the UK before the ‘valid from’ date detailed on your short-term visa endorsement.

Please inform us once you have confirmed your date of travel to the UK

Getting to Ravensbourne

Please refer to the Student Route visa offer holder section of our page.

Responsibilities once you arrive at Ravensbourne:

• Collect your Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) from the designated Post Office stated in your decision letter within 10 days of arriving in the UK (different during the COVID-19 period)
• Register with the Police within 7 days of your arrival in the UK, visa approval if you applied from within the UK if it is stated in your visa vignette or decision letter
• Provide the Admissions/Visa compliance team with your original current passport, 30/90 day short term visa and BRP (if available), original academic qualifications and English language test results (if applicable) during enrolment/registration
• Attend in-person enrolment
• Attend the International Student Orientation programme
• Attend all your classes and other course-related mandatory sessions as well as any scheduled sessions with your tutor or relevant Ravensbourne staff, to comply with the conditions of your Student visa. 

Please refer to the Student Route visa offer holder section for more information on what to do before and after your arrival in the UK/Ravensbourne.

Correcting the error before travelling to the UK

Please contact the Visa Application Centre where you made your application or UKVI by completing the email form. When completing the form please state what the error is (e.g. incorrect work condition, sponsor licence number, expiry date etc) and that you would like to have it corrected before you travel to the UK. You should also include the date of your intended travel to the UK.

If you decide to correct your visa before travelling to the UK, please forward the response/instructions you receive from UKVI on how to get the correction made to the UKVI Compliance Team.

Correcting your visa/BRP after travelling to the UK 

Alternatively, you could travel to the UK and then correct your short-term visa. It is likely that you will also need to correct your BRP also if it is available.

Correcting your short-term visa endorsement after travelling to the UK

Contact UKVI International Sheffield.

In the email explain to them that your visa endorsement is in correct (e.g. incorrect work condition, expiry date, sponsor number etc). Please provide them with a scanned copy of your visa endorsement and the decision letter.

Correcting your BRP

You can have the error corrected by completing the online form to notify UKVI of the error within 10 working days from the date you collected it from the Post Office, otherwise you may have to apply and pay for a replacement BRP. You should provide as many of the following details as possible: full name, date of birth, nationality, passport number, BRP reference number, case reference number and the exact nature of the error on the BRP.

Once you have submitted the online form to report the error UKVI should send you instructions on what to do next. Please note that you should take a copy of both sides of the incorrect BRP for your records before returning it to UKVI.

The application to replace your BRP is quite straightforward, however if you have any questions about the application form, please contact the Migrant Helpline on 0300 123 2241. Please ensure that you correct your BRP as soon as possible.

UKVI will inform you whether you are required to apply for a new BRP. 

If there is an error with the length or conditions of your visa and you applied for your visa from inside the UK OR  you did not report an error on your BRP within the 10 days as required by, you will need to submit an administrative review request in order for it to be corrected. Once you receive your new BRP provide it to the Tier 4 Compliance team so that we can update our records.

Replacing lost or stolen immigration documents

If your BRP is lost, stolen or damaged while you are in the UK

You will need to report the loss to the police and ask them for a reference number. You must also report the loss/theft to UKVI via their online reporting form. You must then apply for a replacement BRP using the BRP (RC) form. You will need to apply within three months if it was lost/stolen.

If you fail to apply within the 3 months deadline you can be fined up to £1,00 and made to leave the UK. UKVI advises that it could take up to eight weeks for an application to be processed unless you use their expedited services.

The application to replace your BRP is quite straightforward, however, if you have any questions about the application process please email us.

If your visa/BRP is lost or stolen whilst you are outside the UK
You will need to apply immediately for a Tier 4 'replacement BRP' visa before returning to the UK (more information).

It is crucial that you do not attempt to travel to the UK until you have received your temporary BRP confirming your student visa, if you enter the UK as a visitor your student visa may be cancelled and you will be required to leave the UK in order to reapply for a new Student Route visa which will, of course, disrupt your studies.

If you lose your Visa/BRP whilst overseas you need to contact the Visa Compliance team ASAP.

If you lose your passport please contact your local embassy/consulate in the UK or the country where it was lost for advice on replacing it.

Once you receive your new BRP and/or passport please bring it to the Compliance team so that we can update our records.