UK Student Visa Requirements

To apply for a UK Student visa, applicants must meet the latest eligibility requirements of 2023 as mentioned in Appendix Student of the Immigration Rules.

The UK Student visa allows overseas students to come to and study in the UK if they have been offered a place on a course by a Home Office approved educational institution. This visa has replaced the Tier 4 (General) student visa.

Contact our Student visa lawyer now on 0161 989 9370 to get legal advice about how to apply for a UK Student visa and information about eligibility requirements.

Table of Contents

• What are the requirements for a UK Student visa?
• Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS)
• Course requirements
• Financial requirements
• English language requirements
• Documents required for the Student visa UK
• Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
• Need legal advice or help from an immigration lawyer?

What are the requirements for a UK Student visa?

To qualify for a UK Student visa, you should meet the following requirements of the Immigration Rule:

• Use the correct UK Student visa application form
• You must have a valid CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies)
• You must be a genuine student and meet the genuineness test for a student visa
• You must select an eligible course to study in the UK
• You must meet funds and financial requirements
• You must meet the English language requirements
• You must meet Tuberculosis (TB) test requirements (if applicable)

You must not apply for your Student visa more than 3 months before the start date of the course stated on your CAS certificate (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies).

Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS)

If you are applying for a UK Student visa, you must have a valid CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) certificate.

According to Immigration Rules, the student must satisfy the following requirements for the Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) to be valid:

• The CAS must have been issued by a student sponsor whose licence is still valid on the date on which the application is decided;
• The CAS must not have been issued by the student sponsor more than 6 months before the date of application;
• The CAS must not have been used in a previous application which was either granted or refused (but could have been relied upon in a previous application which was rejected as invalid, made void or withdrawn);
• The student sponsor must not have withdrawn the offer to the applicant after the date that the Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) was issued;
• The Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies must contain the necessary information to confirm all the following requirements are met:
  • the course requirement
  • the Approved qualification requirement
  • the level of study requirement
  • the place of study requirement
• The CAS must state the cost of accommodation and fees (and any payment already made) so that the financial requirement can be assessed;
• The CAS must show how the English language requirement has been met, and where the sponsor has assessed the applicant’s language ability and must include the information in ST 13.3. and ST 13.4.
• The student sponsor must provide all the following information about the course of study on the Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies:
  • title of the course
  • the academic level of the course
  • course start and end dates
  • hours of study per week, including confirmation on whether the course, is part-time or full-time
  • the address of the main place of study
  • the cost of accommodation and fees
  • if the student sponsor has assessed the applicant by use of one or more references, the Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies Checking Service entry must include details of the references assessed
  • if the course involves a work placement, details of any work placement relating to the course
  • if the course will be provided by an education provider that is not the student sponsor, details of the partner institution; and
  • if the ATAS requirement in Annex ATAS applies
  • confirmation if the course is a recognised Foundation Programme for postgraduate doctors or dentists, and requires a certificate from the Postgraduate Dean
  • a statement of how the student sponsor has assessed the applicant’s English language ability including, where relevant, the applicant’s English language test scores in all four components (reading, writing, speaking and listening)
  • if the course is part of a study abroad programme, the name and address of the partner institution
  • if the applicant is applying for a full-time, salaried, elected executive position as a Student Union Sabbatical Officer and is part-way through their studies or being sponsored to fill the position in the academic year immediately after their graduation
  • if it was issued for the Doctorate Extension Scheme, that it was issued within 60 days of the expected end date of a course leading to the award of a PhD and the applicant is sponsored by a higher education provider with a track record of compliance
  • if the applicant has previously been granted permission as a Student, confirmation that the new course meets requirements concerning academic progress as from the previous course of study undertaken as required by ST 14.1. to ST 14.5.

Course requirements

The application must be for a course which is one of the following:

• a full-time course at degree level or above that leads to an approved qualification; or
• the full-time course below degree level involving a minimum of 15 hours per week of organised daytime study (08:00 to 18:00, Monday to Friday) that leads to an approved qualification; or
• a full-time course involving a minimum of 15 hours per week of organised daytime study that is a pre-sessional course; or
• a part-time course above degree level that leads to an approved qualification where the Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) has been issued by a higher education provider with a track record of compliance; or
• a full-time course at degree level or above that is recognised by UK NARIC as being equivalent to a UK higher education course where the Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies has been assigned by an overseas higher education institution or a higher education provider with a track record of compliance.

If the course is an Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA) qualification or an ACCA Foundations in Accountancy qualification, the student sponsor must be an ACCA approved learning partner – student tuition at either Gold or Platinum level.

If the Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) requirement in Appendix ATAS applies, the applicant must have a valid ATAS certificate for the course and provide it with the Student visa application.

Courses you can study

UK Student visa applicants must have an unconditional offer of a place on a course with a licensed student sponsor. They can do one of the following courses:

• a full-time course leading to a qualification that’s below degree level (RQF level 3, 4 or 5) with at least 15 hours a week of organised daytime study
• a full-time course leading to a qualification that’s degree level or above (RQF level 6, 7 or 8)
• a full-time course at degree level or above (RQF level 6,7 or 8) that’s equivalent to a UK higher education course and is being delivered as part of a longer course overseas
• a part-time course leading to a qualification that’s above degree level (RQF level 7 or above)
• a recognised foundation programme for postgraduate doctors or dentists
• an English language course at level B2 or above in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages

You can also apply for this visa if you're taking up a full-time elected position as a Student Union Sabbatical Officer.

You may also need an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate if you’re studying or researching sensitive topics at RQF level 7 or above.

Place of study requirement

All study that forms part of the course of study must take place on the premises of the student sponsor or a partner institution unless the applicant is on a course-related work placement, a study abroad programme overseas, or a pre-sessional course.

Financial requirements

To apply for a UK Student visa, you must meet the financial requirement to prove that you have sufficient funds to pay the full course fees as stated on CAS.

Depending on your circumstances and the type of course, you must have enough money to pay for your course and support yourself during your stay in the UK.

If studying in London, you should have sufficient funds to pay any outstanding course fees as stated on the CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies), and £1,334 for each month of the course (up to a maximum of 9 months).

If studying outside London then you should have sufficient funds to pay any outstanding course fees as stated on the CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies), and £1,023 for each month of the course (up to a maximum of 9 months).

If the applicant is applying for entry clearance or permission to stay and is applying as a Student Union Sabbatical Officer or to study on a recognised foundation programme as a doctor or dentist in training, they will meet the financial requirement and do not need to show funds.

Bank statement for student visa

The bank statement(s) or evidence you use to show funds have been held for 28 days must be from the 31 days before you submit your application. The 28 days is calculated by counting back from the date of the closing balance on the most recent financial evidence.

UK Student visa 28-day rule

You must show the funds have been held for 28 days unless you are relying on a student loan or official financial sponsorship.

English language requirements

To apply for a UK Student visa, international students must meet the English language requirements to prove that they can understand English to a certain level.

The applicant must show English language ability on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages ( CEFR ) scale in all four components (reading, writing, speaking and listening) of at least:

• level B2 is required if your course is at the UK bachelor's degree level or above; or
• level B1 is required, where the applicant is studying a pre-sessional course or a course below UK Bachelor’s degree level.

If the student sponsor has assessed that the Student meets the English language requirement, they must state this and the method of assessment on the CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies).

Read the guidance for the English language requirements for UK Student visa applications.

Documents required for the Student visa UK

The applicants will need to provide several documents in support of their UK Student visa application depending on their personal circumstances.

You must provide the following documents when you apply for a UK Student visa:

• Your current valid passport
• CAS letter from your course provider (licensed student sponsor)
• Evidence of that you have enough money to pay the course fee and support yourself
• Your TB (Tuberculosis) test results

Read the guidance for the full list of documents you'll need to provide in support of your Student visa application.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)