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Pathway

UK Student Visa

United Kingdom Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

If you are at least 16 and an approved UK school or university accepts you onto an eligible course, you may qualify for a Student visa. The institution issues a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies, or CAS. You must meet the English, money, and study requirements. Your permission is linked to the course and institution.

Course
An eligible course and sponsorship certificate from an approved institution
Funds
Unpaid course fees plus up to 9 months of required living costs, normally held for 28 days
English
Normally B2 for degree-level study or B1 below degree level

Summary

This is a study route for eligible further or higher education in the UK. It is not a permanent route by itself, but it can lead to the UK Graduate visa or later work routes after study.

Sponsorship is one part of the Student application
  1. Check the sponsor and course Verify the licensed institution and the details on the CAS.
  2. Check the application position Review course, English, genuine-study, and current entry-clearance restrictions for the applicant.
  3. Prepare the financial evidence Calculate unpaid tuition and location-based maintenance, including the applicable funds-holding rules.
  4. Apply and follow the grant conditions After approval, check the eVisa's work limits and plan any later immigration route.

A CAS does not guarantee a visa. The page's nationality-specific entry-clearance restrictions and exceptions must be checked before relying on sponsorship.

Could this pathway work for you?

Eligibility

English is normally B2 for degree-level study and B1 below degree level. The applicant must show unpaid course fees stated on the CAS plus living costs for up to nine months: £1,529 per month in London or £1,171 outside London. Funds normally must be held for 28 consecutive days ending within 31 days of application; Some applicants must meet the funds rule but do not initially submit financial evidence. An in-country applicant with at least 12 months of UK permission, or a qualifying student-union sabbatical officer, is treated as meeting the financial requirement.

The fee is £558 plus the immigration health surcharge. Maximum study time is usually five years at degree level and two below, with listed exceptions. A current visa brake requires refusal of an entry-clearance application submitted from 26 March 2026 by a main Student applicant applying as a national of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar or Sudan, even with a CAS. It does not cancel an existing visa or prevent an eligible in-country application and does not apply to the separate Child Student route.

What This Route Allows

Work depends on the sponsor and course. A full-time degree-level student at a compliant higher-education provider is commonly allowed 20 hours a week in term and full-time in vacations; below-degree study commonly allows 10 hours; some courses allow none. The eVisa states the condition. Work placements have separate limits.

Dependents are now limited mainly to a government-sponsored student on a full-time course of at least six months, or a full-time postgraduate student on a course of at least nine months that, if starting from 1 January 2024, is a PhD/doctorate or research-based higher degree. Each dependent needs additional funds: £845 per month in London or £680 outside, up to nine months.

What This Route Is Not

It is not a settlement route. Students cannot normally be self-employed, fill a permanent full-time vacancy, work as a professional sportsperson or entertainer, or claim public funds. A course offer without a valid CAS is insufficient. Work limits include paid and voluntary work together.

Next Steps

  1. Verify the institution and route on the sponsor register and inspect every CAS field.
  2. Calculate funds using the study location and keep clean 28-day bank evidence.
  3. Confirm whether dependents are allowed before paying fees or making travel plans.
  4. After grant, check the eVisa's work limit and report passport or sponsor changes; plan Graduate or another route before expiry.

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Sources