Frequently Asked Questions:How to apply for a Tier 4 (General) visa

Frequently Asked Questions: how to apply for a Tier 4 (General) visa 1

• Iplanontravellinginthesummer.CanIapplyforaTier4visabeforeIgotravelling?............................... 2

• Thiswilltaketoolong.CanIapplyformyTier4visafromanothercountry,whichisnotmyhomecountry,whileIamtravelling?............................................................................................................................ 2

• CanIapplyforaTier4visaintheUK?................................................................................................................ 2

• Iamanon-visanational.WhycanInotstudymydegreecourseonastudentvisitorvisa,whichisstampedintomypassportattheUKportifarrival?.......................................................................................... 2

• CanIstudyattheUniversityofEdinburghonaGeneralvisitorvisa?............................................................... 2

• DoIneedtohaveaUKaddressbeforeIcanapplyforaTier4visa?............................................................... 2

• CanmyfamilycomeandvisitmewhenIamintheUK?................................................................................... 3

• CanmyfriendscomeandvisitmewhileIamintheUK?.................................................................................. 3

• ThesponsorlicencenumberoftheUniversityisonly9characters.Theformhasspacefor12–isthisright?........................................................................................................................................................... 3

• DoestheCASneedtobegiventotheBritishEmbassyonanofficialUniversityletter?................................. 3

• CansomeonecheckmyapplicationbeforeIsendittotheBritishEmbassy?................................................. 4

• CantheinternationalofficeliaisewiththeBritishConsulateinmycountryifthereissomethingwrongwithmyvisaapplicationorifmyapplicationisrefused?...................................................................... 4

• Ihavealreadygivenmyfingerprintsforavisainthepast–doIneedtogivethemagainaspartofthevisaprocess?................................................................................................................................................... 4

• Whatare“original”documents?......................................................................................................................... 4

• MyTier4visaexpiresbeforethedateofmygraduationceremony.WhatshouldIdo?................................ 4

Contents

Frequently Asked Questions: how to apply for a Tier 4 (General) visa 2

FrequentlyAskedQuestions:HowtoapplyforaTier4(General)visa

I plan on travelling in the summer. Can I apply for a Tier 4 visa before I go travelling?

You cannot apply for a Tier 4 visa more than 3monthsbefore the startof yourcourse.Whenyouapply for your visa, you must supply your originalpassport as one of the supporting documents.Yourpassportwillnotbereturnedtoyouuntiltheoutcomeofyourvisaapplicationhasbeendecided.Pleasetakethisintoconsiderationanddonotbookany travel until your passport and entry clearance(visa) are returned to you. UKVisas have publishedthe following continuously updated informationadvisingonprocessingtimesinyourcountry:www.ukvisas.gov.uk/en/howtoapply/processingtimes

You should allow around 28 working days totalturnaroundforthevisatobeissued.Atcertaintimesofyear,itcantakelonger.

This will take too long. Can I apply for my Tier 4 visa from another country, which is not my home country, while I am travelling?

YoumustapplyforyourTier4visafromthecountryin which you are resident or ‘living’. In certaincountriestheBritishConsulateorHighCommissionoffers a premiumor express service for Tier 4 visaapplications, meaning that your visa applicationis normally decided within 48 hours. If you are aresident of a country where the British Consulateoffers a premium service, this may be an optionforyou,sothatyoucangetyourpassportandvisaquicklybeforetravellingtotheUK.Thereisnormallyanextrachargeforthisservice.Tofindoutifyoucando this fromyourhomecountry,please follow thelinkbelow:www.visainfoservices.com/Pages/Welcome.aspx

Can I apply for a Tier 4 visa in the UK?

Youmustmake your initial Tier 4 visa applicationfrom your country of residence, regardless of yournationality.

OnceyouareintheUK,youmayneedtoextendyourexistingTier4visa.Forexample,ifyouwanttotakefurtherstudy.Youwouldnormallybeabletoextendyour Tier 4 visa fromwithin the UK, provided youmeetthecriteriaforthis.

I am a non-visa national. Why can I not study my degree course on a student visitor visa, which is stamped into my passport at the UK port if arrival?

A student visitor visa canonlybeused for specificcourseswhicharenolongerthansixmonthsintotal.A student visitor visacannotbeextendedandyoucannotswitchfromastudentvisitorvisatoaTier4visa.Youwillalsobeprohibitedfromtakinganykindof employment, paid or unpaid under the studentvisitorroute.

Can I study at the University of Edinburgh on a General visitor visa?

No.AgeneralvisitorvisaprohibitsstudyandwewillnotbeabletomatriculateyouifyouareintheUKonageneralvisitorvisa.

Do I need to have a UK address before I can apply for a Tier 4 visa?

YoudonotneedtohaveaUKaddressforthepurposeofyourTier4visaapplicationunlessyouare16or17yearsold.OntheAppendix8visaapplicationform,inSection2itasksfortheaddresswhereyouwillberesidingintheUK.Section2onlyneedstobecompletedbythosestudentswhoare16or17yearsold.Ifyouareolderthan17thenyoushouldskipsection2oftheAppendix8formandgostraighttoSection3.

Frequently Asked Questions: how to apply for a Tier 4 (General) visa 3

Can my family come and visit me when I am in the UK?

Yes, your familymemberswouldneed toapply foraFamilyvisitorvisafromtheBritishConsulate/HighCommissionintheircountry.TheywouldapplyusingformVAF1B.Theywillnormallyneedtoprovidethefollowing documents with their Family visitor visaapplication:• Paymentforvisaapplication• Originalpassport(s)• Onerecentpassportsizedphotograph• Evidence of your familymember(s) employmentor other means of financial support e.g. recentpayslips and letter from employer authorisingabsence

• Evidenceofyourfamilymember(s)totalmonthlyincome from all sources e.g. friends, family,property,savingsetc

• A letterof invitation fromyou statingwhenyouwould like your family to visit and giving theaddressofwheretheywillbestaying.

• ProofthatyouareastudentintheUK.Youcangetaconfirmationofstudentstatusletterfromyourschoolorcollegeoffice.

• A photocopy of your passport pages, showingyourpersonaldetails,yourcurrentUKvisaandthemost recent immigration stamp from theBritishAuthorities.

For further information, please follow the linkbelow:www.ukvisas.gov.uk/en/howtoapply/infs/inf2visitors#564054582

Can my friends come and visit me while I am in the UK?

Yes, your friends would need to apply for Generalvisitor visa from the British Consulate/ HighCommissionintheircountry.TheywouldapplyusingformVAF1A.TheywillnormallyneedtoprovidethefollowingdocumentswiththeirGeneralvisitorvisaapplication:• Paymentforvisaapplication• Originalpassport(s)• Onerecentpassportsizedphotograph

• A letterof invitation fromyou statingwhenyouwould like your friend(s) to visit and giving theaddressofwheretheywillbestaying.

• ProofthatyouareastudentintheUK.Youcangetaconfirmationofstudentstatusletterfromyourschoolorcollegeoffice.

• A photocopy of your passport pages, showingyourpersonaldetails,yourcurrentUKvisaandthemost recent immigration stamp from theBritishAuthorities.

• Evidence of your friends’ employment or othermeans of financial support e.g. recent payslipsandletterfromemployerauthorisingabsence

• Evidence of your friends’ total monthly incomefrom all sources e.g. friends, family, property,savingsetc

• Planneditinerary• Detailsofanyflight/hotelbookingsetc

For further information, please follow the linkbelow:www.ukvisas.gov.uk/en/howtoapply/infs/inf2visitors#564054582

The sponsor licence number of the University is only 9 characters. The form has space for 12 – is this right?

Yes. The University’s sponsor licence number is23CYGN5K3.Thisisshorterthanthesectionontheformallowsfor,butthenumberisstillcorrect.

SomeUniversities/Collegeshavelongernumbers.

Does the CAS need to be given to the British Embassy on an official University letter?

No-weemailyouwiththedetailsofyourCAS.YouneedonlywritetheCASnumberontheapplicationform.ThereisnorequirementintheUKimmigrationrulesfortheCAStobeaformalletterfromtheUniversity.

FrequentlyAskedQuestions:HowtoapplyforaTier4(General)visa

Frequently Asked Questions: how to apply for a Tier 4 (General) visa 4

Can someone check my application before I send it to the British Embassy?

TheInternationalOfficecannotcheckthatyouroriginaldocumentsaresuitablefromafaxoranemail.WedohoweverprovidedetailedinformationonhowtoapplyforaUKTier4GeneralVisa.ItisyourresponsibilitytomakeyourvisaapplicationtocometotheUKandtherefore,westronglyadvisethatyoutakethetimetoreadtheinformation.

Invariouscountries,thereareUKvisaagenciesthatcancheckandhandleyourvisaapplication.Thisisnormallyforafee.Youshouldcheckcarefullythattheyareareputablecompanybeforehandingoverresponsibilityforyourapplicationtothem.

Can the international office liaise with the British Consulate in my country if there is something wrong with my visa application or if my application is refused?

TheInternationalOfficemaintainscontactwithvariousBritishdiplomaticmissions.Theseareonlyusedforinformationsharingpurposes.WearenotinthepositiontoinstructvisaofficestoissuevisasortospeedupdecisionmakingandarenotabletointerveneinanapplicationmadeoutsideoftheUK.

I have already given my fingerprints for a visa in the past – do I need to give them again as part of the visa process?

Biometricdatacollection(fingerprintsandabiometricphotograph)arepartoftheUKvisaprocess.Eachtimeyouapplyforavisa,youwillneedtogivethesedetails.

What are “original” documents?

Originaldocumentsarethefirstversionofthedocument.Inthecaseofdegreecertificates/transcripts,thesearetheactualdocumentsreleasedbytheUniversity.Forbankstatements/letters,thesearebankstatementsorlettersprintedontheheadedpaperofthebank.

My Tier 4 visa expires before the date of my graduation ceremony. What should I do?

IfyouhavefinishedstudyingitisnotpossibletoextendyourTier4visasimplyforthepurposeofattendingyourgraduationceremony.IfyourTier4visaexpiresbeforethedateofyourgraduationceremony,thenyouwillneedtothinkaboutwhatyouwishtodobeforeyourcurrentvisaexpires.

IfyouareplanningtoworkintheUK,thenyoushouldlookatthedifferentvisaoptions:www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/working

However,ifyouONLYwanttostayintheUKtoattendyourgraduationceremony,thenyouwillneedtoobtainaGeneralvisitorvisa.Ifyouareavisanational,youwillneedtoreturntoyourhomecountrytoapplyfortheGeneralvisitorvisa.Ifyouareanon-visanational,thentheGeneralvisitorvisacanbestampedintoyourpassportonentrytotheUK.Youcancheckifyouareavisaornon-visanationalhere:www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/general-info/non-visa-nationals

FrequentlyAskedQuestions:HowtoapplyforaTier4(General)visa

Version 2 March 2012Published by The University of Edinburgh, The International Office, 57 George Square - EH8 9JU, Edinburgh