Visas &
immigration

When completing your visa application, you will be required to complete a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) section.  

Select the Alternative Collection Screen and enter the following ACL CODE 3HE282.  

Your BRP card will be delivered to the university. You can collect your Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) card from the University during your in-person Enrolment. 

Whenever you are in unfamiliar surroundings take particular care of your belongings including your passport and Biometric Residence Permit. There is no requirement for you to carry your BRP and passport around with you, so often it is safer to leave these important documents at home and carry another form of photo ID such as the International Student Identity Card, or Yoti Citizencard; you can always have digital copies of these documents on your phone if you need to refer to them. BRPs can get lost or stolen.

• If you’re in the UK, please report it as lost or stolen then apply for a replacement.
• If you’re outside the UK, please report your lost or stolen BRP outside of the UK. You’ll need to apply for replacement BRP visa to re-enter the UK. Once you’re back in the UK, you can then apply for the replacement BRP.

If you wish to defer temporarily (i.e. take a break from your studies) or withdraw permanently, please contact your school administrator for more information.  

Once the decision has been finalised, your student visa will be curtailed accordingly once UWL’s Compliance team has notified the Home Office of your interruption or withdrawal. The Home Office will issue you with the curtailment letter, normally by email, notifying you of the expiry date of the 60 days period for you to leave the UK.  

When you are ready to return to your studies from the interruption, you will need to request a new CAS to make a new student visa application to continue your studies at UWL. Contacting your School Administrator is the best way to begin the process of requesting a new CAS. 

As part of your student visa conditions, it is vital that you engage with your studies and attend all scheduled online or on-campus classes. The University is required to monitor the attendance of sponsored students and inform the UKVI if the student has stopped engaging and withdraw sponsorship.  The policy is set out in the Attendance and Engagement Monitoring Policy.  

Please ensure that you inform the university if you will be absent during term time; you’ll need to seek an authorised absence and complete the authorised absence form for approval. If you have been absent for any unavoidable reason, you must provide a doctor’s letter, where possible.  

You should contact your course leader or school administrator to inform them of any unavoidable absence or to request the authorised absence form.  

If you require additional time to complete your studies, please get in touch with the Student Advice team about the requirements for extending your current Student leave.  The Compliance team will decide whether you are eligible for a new CAS, and then Student Advice will be able to assist you with the process of extending your visa from within the UK.  

Students must complete and submit a Visa Extension Form, which is available from the School Administration Centre, at least one month in advance of the visa expiry date, although students should be advised to apply as early as possible. 

Students on full-time postgraduate research courses may be able to bring their dependants with them to the UK on a student dependent visa. According to the UK Immigration Rules, dependants are the following family members: 

• your husband, wife or civil partner 
• your unmarried partner 
• your child under 18 years old – including if they were born in the UK during your stay 

To check the eligibility and requirements for the student dependent visa, please visit the Government website and UKCISA website for further information.  

If you want members of your family or friends to visit you, then they will need to apply for a standard visitor visa in advance of their travel to the UK if they’re a visa national.

Please note that we cannot provide a template of an invitation letter to support your family members’/ friends’ Standard Visitor Visa applications. You would need to write your own invitation letter to your family and friends inviting them to visit you and provide this to your family and friends along with your Student Status letter as a supporting document.  

We suggest that the invitation letter includes the below information:  

• Who you are inviting and your relationship to them  
• The reason they are visiting the UK  
• The proposed length of stay in the UK   
• The accommodation arrangement made for your parents and whether you will be covering their expenses while they’re in the UK. If you are covering their expenses, you would also need to provide your bank statements in support of their visa applications to show that you can afford to host them.  

In addition to your invitation letter, we would strongly recommend that you provide a Student Status letter confirming that you are currently enrolled on a course at UWL. Please contact the School Administration Office at studentletters@uwl.ac.uk to request the Student Status Letter.    

International students on a Student visa can travel in and out of the UK during the approved vacation periods. If you wish to travel within the Schengen area and required a Schengen visa, please refer to UKCISA’s dedicated guidance ‘Travel in Europe’ for detailed information about what documents you may need. 

The condition attached on your visa regarding employment relates to the number of hours you can work and the type of occupation.

• You cannot work more than 20 hours during term-time
• You can work full-time during your vacations
• You cannot be self-employed (This includes gig economy work – for more details, visit UKCISA's blog on this topic)
• You cannot work for a company where you also hold a statutory role
• You cannot be employed in a full time in a permanent vacancy
• You cannot be employed as a doctor or dentist in training
• You cannot be employed as a professional sportsperson or entertainer.

Not complying with the above is an offence of illegal working under Immigration Act 1971 s 24B, as amended by the Immigration Act 2016

If you are found to be working in excess of these hours, the UKVI may cancel your leave, or refuse to grant you an extension of leave.  If this happens, you could also experience problems with future applications for entry clearance to come to the UK.

You may be able to undertake a full-time work placement if it is an assessed part of your course.  However, the work placement must meet certain requirements.

Please check the UKCISA website for up-to-date information regarding immigration rules and working hours, as this is regularly updated in line with policy changes.

If you need further advice and support, please contact the Student Money & Immigration Advice team by booking an appointment on the Student Hub, or emailing studentadvice@uwl.ac.uk.