Documents you must provide
Eligibility
Apply
2. Eligibility
You must prove that you:
- have been offered a place on a course in the UK at an accepted place of study
- have enough money to support yourself without working or help from public funds, or that relatives and friends can support and house you
- can pay for your return or onward journey
If you’re under 18 you must also:
- have made arrangements for your travel and stay in the UK
- have permission from your parent or guardian to study in the UK
Where you can study
You must be accepted on a course with an education provider that holds a Tier 4 sponsor licence.
Otherwise your course will need to be held at an educational institution listed by one of the following:
- Accreditation Body for Language Services
- Accreditation Service for International Colleges
- Accreditation UK
- Bridge Schools Inspectorate
- British Accreditation Council
- Education and Training Inspectorate (in Northern Ireland)
- Estyn (in Wales)
- HM Inspectorate of Education (in Scotland)
- Independent Schools Inspectorate
- Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted)
- Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education
- Schools Inspection Service
Learning English as a foreign language
You must be at least 18 years old and accepted on a course to learn English as a foreign language if you’re applying for an 11 month Short-term study visa.
A mixed course, some of which is spent studying English, doesn’t count.
Visiting the UK as part of an overseas course
You can apply for a Short-term study visa if you’re at least 18 years old and studying at an overseas higher education institution and part of your course is in the UK.
Your institution must:
hold its own national accreditation
offer only part of its educational programme in the UK
offer programes that are equivalent to a UK degree
Researching in the UK for a short time
You can come to the UK for a short period of research if already enrolled on an overseas degree course.
To be eligible:
- your course must be equivalent to a UK degree
- you must be carrying out the research at a UK recognised body, or a body that receives public funding as a higher education institution
- you must be at least 18 years old