Prospective Student UK Visa — Are You Eligible?

A prospective student must show a genuine and realistic intention of undertaking a course of study that will meet the requirements of the rules. A prospective student will be granted leave to enter or remain for no more than six months.

Requirements

A prospective student is a person who intends to undertake studies in the UK but does not have complete arrangements for his course of study. This category includes:

• prospective student nurses but not postgraduate doctors or dentists; or
  
  
• overseas qualified nurses or midwives;
  
  
• those seeking to carry out a preparatory course before becoming a student nurse.
  
  

To qualify for admission as a prospective student, applicants must:

• demonstrate a genuine and realistic intention to undertake a course of study within 6 months of their date of entry;
  
  
• intend to leave the UK on completion of studies, or on expiry of leave to enter (unless applying for courses that lead to the award of a degree), if not able to meet the requirements for an extension of stay as a student; and
  
  
• be able to meet the costs of the intended course, accommodation and maintenance (including for dependants) while making arrangements to study and during the course of studies, without working or recourse to public funds.

Applicants must be able to demonstrate that they will start studies within 6 months of arrival in the UK. A vague intention to study for qualifications or to enter an unspecified university or other institution is insufficient.

Appeal

An student or potential student who is refused entry clearance as a student, which is for a course on which he has been accepted and is for more than 6 months, is entitled to appeal against the decision from abroad. If it is for less than six months or the student has not been accepted on a course at all, he or she has no right of appeal except on human rights or discrimination grounds.

Questions

Do I need a visa to study in the UK?

You will need a visa if you:

• are not an EEA national;
  
  
• are stateless (you don't have a nationality);
  
  
• hold a non-national travel document, or
  
  
• hold a passport issued by an authority that is not recognised in the UK.
  
  

What is meant by adequate maintenance?

Providing the level of maintenance is broadly equivalent to that of a person receiving income support and the associated benefits that normally accompany it (e.g. housing benefit, council tax relief, free school meals) then that will be considered to be adequate for the purposes of the immigration rules.

Maintenance can usually be provided by a third party sponsor such as a relative. However, third party support is not permissible in child cases.

What is meant by adequate accommodation?

Accommodation must be adequate for the person coming to the UK other than in the student category. For people seeking entry on a long-term basis there are two main considerations:

1. the sponsor/applicant must 'own or exclusively occupy' the proposed accommodation in family cases. Accommodation can be shared with other members of a family provided that at least part of the accommodation is for the exclusive use of the sponsor and his dependants. This may be as small as a separate bedroom but must be owned or legally occupied by the sponsor.
   
   
2. the proposed accommodation must not be overcrowded once the applicant arrives. A room must have a floor area larger than 50 Sq. ft. and normally used as a bedroom or living room. It relates number of rooms to number of persons, allowing for the fact that children aged between 1 and 10 years only count as half a person: 1 room = 2 persons, 2 rooms = 3 persons, 3 rooms = 5 persons, 4 rooms = 7.5 persons, and 5 rooms = 10 persons.
   
   

What is meant by Public Funds?

Under the Immigration Rules, if you want to travel to the UK you must be able to support yourself and live without claiming certain benefits.

Public funds are income-related benefits paid by the state. These include:

1. Housing - accommodation as a homeless person and accommodation from a local authority register;
   
   
2. Benefits - income support/Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, Housing Benefit, Council Tax Benefit, Attendance Allowance, Severe Disablement Allowance, Carer's Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, State Pension Credit, Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit.

Social housing, education, health care and benefits paid as a result of contributions such as incapacity benefit or contributory job seekers' allowance are not considered to be a public funds for the purposes of the Immigration Rules.

Can my family come with me?

The rules provide for the spouse and children of a student or prospective student to join the student or prospective student in the UK. They must show that:

• the couple are married
  
  
• the marriage is subsisting
  
  
• there will be maintenance and accommodation without the need for public funds
  
  
• they only intend to take employment as permitted under the rules
  
  
• any children are under the age of 18 and have not formed an independent family uni