Inside the UK and need a visa to start a new programme

You may be able to extend your Tier 4 visa to either:

• study another programme at the University of Hull following your current programme
• come to study at the University of Hull from another UK university

Whether or not you can make your next visa application in the UK may depend on your previous study, including where you studied your previous programme (Higher Education Institution, embedded college offering pathway institution, Further Education college), what visa you had while studying there, whether or not you completed your previous course, and the level of that programme. For further information please contact us at immigration@hull.ac.uk

When to apply

You must apply:

• within 6 months of getting a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS)
• before your current visa expires - but no more than 3 months before the course start date on your CAS
• before you can register onto your new programme of study

You can make your next visa application in the UK if your new programme starts within 28 days of your visa expiry date.

If the gap between your current visa expiry date and the start of the new programme is longer than 28 days, or if there are other conditions preventing you from applying in the UK, you will need to leave the UK before your visa expires and apply for your next Tier 4 visa from your home country or country of residence.

How to apply

There are three ways to submit your Tier 4 visa application depending on how quickly you want UKVI to decide your visa application.

Standard – it could take up to 8 weeks, but costs less. Original documents are submitted by post.  Biometric details (photos, fingerprints) are enrolled separately at extra cost.

Premium – a decision is made the same day (in most cases), but is more expensive. Original documents are checked and scanned during the appointment. Biometric details are enrolled during the appointment.

For Standard and Premium service, you can apply online.

Priority – a decision is usually made within 10 days, providing you comply with strict time restrictions. You must complete and submit a request form and receive a UKVI confirmation email with further instructions before you can proceed to completing your online application.

Whichever service you choose, please remember to download and print your Tier 4 Document checklist and/or Tier 4 application and submit these together with your original documents to the UKVI by post or in person.

Once you receive an offer from the University of Hull, you will need to confirm your acceptance of the offer. The details that you provide will then be used to generate your Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) statement that you need for your visa application. Please ensure that the email address (your own or your Agent’s) that you provide us with is correct.

Before the University of Hull can issue you with a CAS number, you must meet all of the conditions of your offer. This may include:

English language requirements

Check what evidence you can provide to meet the English language requirements.

A deposit for your tuition fees or evidence of sponsorship

International students undertaking a taught or research Masters or a PhD must pay a tuition deposit fee. It may take 5 working days for your deposit payment to be processed depending on the time of year.

Apart from the required tuition deposit, paying tuition fees to the University in advance is not a requirement of the visa process. If you choose to pay any additional fees to the University in advance, please ensure that your payment is reflected in your CAS statement.

If your studies are funded by a University approved financial sponsor, the deposit requirement will be waived upon receipt of the appropriate financial guarantee evidence.

If you are in receipt of the tuition fee scholarship or if you are our graduate progressing to another course with us, you do not need to pay a deposit.

An Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate (if your offer letter states you need one)

Generally, ATAS applications are processed within a month and are valid for six months. However, this process may take longer during the busy periods, and there is no premium/fast track processing option. It is therefore important to allow plenty of time to obtain the certificate since your CAS will not be generated until the ATAS clearance is received.

An ATAS application includes a statement outlining your area of research/study. This statement must be the same as agreed with your supervisor and held on file at the University of Hull. Please apply for your ATAS as soon as you receive your conditional offer.

When you will receive your CAS statement

You must have a CAS number in order to make your Tier 4 visa application.

Your CAS statement will be emailed to you by our Admissions Service once you accept your offer and meet all of the conditions of your programme.  It cannot be generated earlier than 4 months before your course start date and expires six months after the date of issue so you must make your visa application within this time. Your CAS will only be valid for study at the University of Hull and for a single visa application.

Check your CAS statement is correct

Please check your CAS email as soon as you receive it. Please ensure that all of the information on your CAS is correct, including personal, fees and course details. If you have been awarded a fee scholarship by the University of Hull or if you paid some or all of your tuition fees, and this information is incorrect or does not appear on your CAS, please contact the team that issued you with a CAS number as soon as possible and before you make your visa application.

Please note that any errors will normally be rectified by adding a note to your CAS record. This means that a new CAS will not be issued. Instead, you will receive an email confirming the corrections that have been made.

It is important to take extra time and care to ensure that your supporting documents meet relevant visa requirements to avoid any delays and/or refusals. See our guidance on documents to provide in your visa application. 

If you already have a Police Registration Certificate, make sure that it is up-to-date with details of your current address and your current visa.

The date of you visa application is the date you submit and pay your visa fee online. It is important that you have all the relevant documents in place before your complete your visa application online.

Please follow the online instructions and start your online visa application. Once you create your application, UKVI will send you an email with a link to your application. You can log in a later time to finish your application.

Tier 4 online application has 6 sections. Please only complete Sections 1 and 2 if you would like your application and documents to be checked by our immigration team

Once you have completed your online application (but before you confirmed it at the end of Stage 2 and paid your online fee) and prepared all of your documents, please email immigration@hull.ac.uk  to request a Tier 4 document checking appointment. Please quote your name and student number and allow us at least a few days to offer an appointment as it is not always possible to offer an appointment at short notice.

Please bring all of your original documents, your laptop/ tablet and your log-in details for your application and document check.

If you plan to apply for your new visa without our assistance, please contact our Visa Compliance Team at vct@hull.ac.uk to check what documents they need to see before you submit these to UKVI and what you need in order to register.

Submit your completed visa application and all your original supporting documents. If your documents are ready, we will guide you through this stage during our meeting.

If, as a result of your visa application, you will be staying in the UK for 6 months or more, you will need to pay a healthcare charge, unless you are exempt.

You will be automatically directed to a website to check your details and to pay your IHS charge as part of your online Tier 4 visa application. Please ensure that all your details are correct. You will need to pay £150 per year of your intended stay in UK. The total amount payable will be based on the full length of your visa which is usually longer than the length of your programme of study.

You will be allocated an IHS reference number that should appear on your document checklist and your Tier 4 application form.

If you submit your application documents in person using the Premium Service, your biometric details will be enrolled during your appointment.

If you submit your application using the Priority or Standard Service you should receive a biometrics letter after you sent your documents to the UKVI. Please follow the instructions in the letter and enrol your biometric details as soon as possible and within the allowed time (as per the UKVI letter). This can be done at participating Post Offices.

You may be interviewed by the UK Visas and Immigration as part of your Tier 4 visa application or upon your arrival to the UK. The purpose of the interview is to check whether you are a genuine student and have an adequate level of English.

You may be asked questions about how and why you chose the University of Hull and your programme of study, who is funding your studies, comment on your education or employment history, future plans, and other relevant topics.

The Home Office may telephone you or send you an email asking you to attend your interview. Please ensure that you check your emails on a regular basis (inbox and junk or spam folders). You could be interviewed in person, by Skype or by telephone.

It is important to answer all of the questions to the best of your knowledge as you may be refused a visa or entry to the UK if the Immigration Officer finds that you are not a genuine student or your English is not good enough. If this happens, please contact our Immigration Team (immigration@hull.ac.uk) with details of your interview as soon as possible.

You need to register on your programme at the start of your programme and before its last registration date (also known as latest start date). You cannot start attending your classes until you formally register with us.

Documents that you need to provide during your registration

• Your original valid passport
• Your original valid visa/BRP card allowing you to study in the UK OR your current Tier 4 visa/BRP issued using your University of Hull CAS number
  • If you are in the UK and have to apply for a new visa before you can register on your programme of study at the University of Hull, please contact our Visa Compliance Team to find out how they can check your original documents before you send these to UKVI.
  • If you sent your original passport and visa to the UKVI for an extension before you registered on your programme of study, please notify our Visa Compliance Team as soon as possible. They will need your permission to contact UKVI to check what visa application you have made and whether you are allowed to study while waiting for your visa application to be decided.
  • Your original qualifications listed on your CAS in the section ‘Evidence provided’ unless these have already been checked by our Admissions Service
  • ATAS certificate (if applicable) for your programme of study
  • Evidence that you submitted your visa application before your current visa expired (if relevant). This is applicable to students who made their visa applications in the UK before the start of their programme and are still waiting for a UKVI’s decision.
    • Depending on the visa application that you made, it could be a copy of your Tier 4 Document checklist, application form and a special delivery receipt, UKVI acknowledgement/biometrics letter.
    • Our Visa Compliance Team may also need your permission to contact the UKVI to check what visa application you have made and whether you are allowed to study while waiting for your visa application to be decided.

Late registration

There may be instances when, due to circumstances outside of your control, you may not be able to register at the start of your programme. It is important to check with your school what your latest date is for you to join the programme and whether you can arrive and register before it.

If you need more time, you must apply to your school to extend your last registration date. Your application will only be approved if there are exceptional circumstances for the delay and if the University believes that your late arrival and registration will not have a negative impact on your academic progress and successful completion of your programme.

In some cases, you will need to consider a deferral (postponing the start of your programme till our next available start date) to ensure that you do not miss a significant part of your programme of study.

Non-registration for Tier 4 General visa holders

The University of Hull, as your Tier 4 visa sponsor, is obliged to notify UKVI if you do not register by your last registration date. This will have serious implications on your visa application (if it is still under consideration) or on your Tier 4 visa (if it has already been issued). Therefore, it is extremely important to contact your school, Immigration Team and our Visa Compliance Team as soon as you realise that you are unable to register in time.