Student route: Your Student visa application

Before you apply

Before you can submit a Student route application, you will need your CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) from the University. Once you have it:

1. Check your CAS statement before you apply to make sure it is correct

If anything needs amending, or if you’ve changed your mind about where you would like to make your application from (e.g. inside or outside the UK), or about the course you would like to study, contact the team that issued your CAS as soon as possible. We will need to do some additional checks and if necessary, make amendments to your CAS before you can make your Student visa application. 

2. Ensure you are eligible to apply and meet all the requirements to make a Student route application

You will be required to confirm this to the Home Office when you submit the application. Read the Home Office guidance, information below and the UKCISA guidance again to make sure there have been no changes and that you understand all the requirements.

When and where you can apply

Once you are sure you are eligible to apply and your CAS is correct, you can get ready to submit your Student route application online.

We will have asked you where you were intending to make your Student visa application as part of your CAS application. If you have changed your mind about where you would like to apply, you must contact us before you submit your application. We will need to make sure you can apply where you would like to and make amendments to your CAS if necessary. 

Bringing family members (student dependants)

Most students cannot bring dependants to the UK. You may be eligible if:

• You’re government-sponsored and studying full-time for 6+ months
• You’re on a postgraduate course (9+ months) that started before 1 Jan 2024
• You’re studying a research-based higher degree (e.g. PhD, Integrated PhD, MAD/MSD, MPhil) that started on or after 1 Jan 2024

Note: MRes programmes do not qualify as research-based degrees.

You may also bring dependants if:

• Your current or recent Student visa expired less than 3 months ago; and
• Your new course is full-time and 6+ months; and
• Your dependant already has Student dependant permission (or is a child born since you were last granted your visa); and
• You’re applying at the same time as your dependant

For full details, see:

• UKCISA guidance
• gov.uk
• Immigration Rules: Appendix Student

If applying within the UK, SU Advice can help you prepare and submit your application.

Your finances and documents

See Student route: your finances for helpful information about meeting the financial requirements for your Student visa application.

ATAS certificate - some Postgraduate students

Some of our PhD students require an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) clearance certificate, depending on your degree subject. It usually takes 20 to 30 days to obtain an ATAS certificate from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) but delays are common during peak application periods

If you are a new Essex student, Admissions will let you know if you need an ATAS by including it as a condition in your offer.

If you need to extend your Student immigration permission to finish your current course, or you have changed course and now require ATAS clearance, you will need to obtain a new ATAS certificate before we can issue you with a CAS.

Visit the FCDO website for more information about ATAS requirements and read our ATAS page.

Tuberculosis (TB) test

If you're coming to the UK for more than six months and are a resident of any  listed country where tuberculosis is present, you are required by the UK government to have a TB test. If your test shows that you don’t have TB, you’ll be given a certificate which is valid for six months from the date of your x-ray. You must include this certificate with your Student visa application.

You shouldn’t need a TB certificate if:

• you’ve been in the UK for at least six months and are applying to extend your visa from within the UK
• you're applying overseas and have lived for at least six months in a country where TB screening isn't required by the UK

Translations

Any document not in English or Welsh must be accompanied by an official translation. Read the UKCISA guidance about evidence to find out more.

What else you need to know to complete your visa application form

When to travel to the UK if you are applying overseas

Do not travel before your Student visa is issued and valid.

When you have been issued with digital immigration status, you’ll be able to arrange your travel to the UK. The Home Office and the University advise against booking non-refundable travel until you receive the outcome to your Student visa application.

Do not arrive in the UK before the ‘valid from’ date on your Student immigration permission. If you arrive before your Student permission is valid, you may be refused entry or may be entered incorrectly as a Visitor and not allowed to study.

Once you have received the UKVI decision, you will have things to do; read our Student route outcome page to find out what you should do next.

Read our Coming to the UK page to find out what you should do before you travel and upon arriving in the UK.

Need help?

• The UKCISA webpages have helpful information.
• If you're inside the UK, book a document-checking workshop with SUAdvice team via their webpages.
• You can contact the UKCISA advice line or speak to an immigration lawyer if you have questions about applying from overseas.
• For CAS or course-specific questions: 
  • New students: Contact Admissions at visaquery@essex.ac.uk
  • Current students:  Contact our International Services team