Student Visas
Immigration and Visas
We are pleased to announce that St George International is a UK Border Agency approved education provider and appears on the Register of Sponsors as a Grade A sponsor.
This means that we are licenced to accept bookings for English language courses and University Foundation courses and provide visa support for candidates who need to apply for a student visa under Tier 4 of the Points Based System.
» For students who wish to come to the UK for 6 months or more
» For students who wish to come to the UK for fewer than 6 months
Visas for courses of 6 months or more
If you come from a Visa National country and you would like to take a course at St George International for 6 months or more, you'll need to apply for a Student Visa (otherwise known as a General Student Visa or an Adult Student Visa) which allows you to study a long-term English Course or University Foundation Course in the UK.
The UK Border Agency has recently made many changes to the entire visa system – which is now called the Points Based System. The Points Based System is divided into 5 categories (“tiers”) depending on the reason the applicant has for entering the UK – for students, the category is known as Tier 4.
The number of educational institutions which are allowed to accept students with Tier 4 visas has been greatly reduced, and those schools who have been approved to do so by the UK Border Agency have been placed on a new list called the Register of Sponsors. These schools have also been graded "A" or "B" depending on the strength of their systems. You will be pleased to know that St George International has been successful in joining the Register of Sponsors, and we are delighted to report that we received an "A" grade. Our sponsor licence number is 0HV124MN6.
In order to apply for a Student Visa, you must now have a sponsor, so you need to first select a school or college which appears on the UKBA Register of Sponsors, such as St George International. Schools and colleges which do not appear on the register cannot provide support for you to apply for a Student Visa.
Please apply for your course, which can be one of our many English language courses, or our University Foundation Course, and ask us to produce a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) for. A CAS is not a letter but a personal code number which is generated for you on the UK Border Agency website by your sponsor school or college. We will then send you your CAS by email, and you should quote it when you apply for your visa. In order to produce a CAS for you, we will need from you:
- Your course application, showing which course you wish to follow, the date when you wish to commence your course, and the number of weeks you wish to study for
- A copy of the personal details page of your passport.
- Official documents (translated into English by a professional translator) proving that your level is high enough for the course you have selected. If you have chosen to take one of our English language courses, this should be a document showing your English language level (if possible, an internationally recognised examination certificate, such as IELTS). If you wish to enrol on our University Foundation Course, you should send us proof of your English language level and your academic level (maybe a certificate and transcript from your university or high school.) In order to apply for a Student Visa to attend one of our General English courses, you will need to prove that your English language level is at least B1 on the Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of languages (CEF.)
- You should pay us a deposit of £500.00. You should pay the rest of your fees after you have received your visa. If you fail to receive a visa, we will refund to you £250 if you have booked a course only, and £150 if you have booked both a course and accommodation. Before we can make a refund you must show us a copy of your official refusal notice first.
When you apply for your Student Visa, you should quote your CAS number on your application, and submit the originals of any documents that you have shown us as proof of your level. You also need to prove that you have enough money to pay your course fees and your living costs in the UK (the UK Border Agency calls this your maintenance funds.) You will be expected to show that you have the course fees minus your deposit, and £800 per month for your maintenance in London (£600 if you choose to study outside London) – for example with a recent bank statement or letter from your bank.
To receive your Student Visa, you need to achieve 40 points in the Point Based System. Having a valid CAS from St George International with supporting documents will give you 30 points, and being able to prove that you can afford your course fees and maintenance will give you another 10 points.
When you arrive at our school, you will have a number of responsibilities:
- You must give us a copy of your passport, visa and ID card if you have one.
- You must tell us your address in the UK and your contact details, including email and telephone number – and update us whenever these change.
- You must attend your lessons regularly for the duration of your course.
For full details please visit the UK Border Agency website at: http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk
On occasions, the rules and regulations may be altered, and any such changes will be published on this website.
Visas for courses lasting fewer than 6 months
If you come from a Visa National country and you would like to take a course at St George International for fewer than 6 months, you may choose to apply for one of two different visa types: a Student Visitor Visa or a Student Visa
The UK Border Agency has recently made many changes to the entire visa system – which is now called the Points Based System. The Points Based System is divided into 5 categories (“tiers”) depending on the reason the applicant has for entering the UK – for students, the category is known as Tier 4 and effects applications for Student Visas only. Applications for Student Visitor Visas are not affected by the new rules.
The number of educational institutions which are allowed to accept students with Tier 4 visas has been greatly reduced, and those schools who have been approved to do so by the UK Border Agency have been placed on a new list called the Register of Sponsors. These schools have also been graded "A" or "B" depending on the strength of their systems. You will be pleased to know that St George International has been successful in joining the Register of Sponsors, and we are delighted to report that we received an "A" grade. Our sponsor licence number is 0HV124MN6.
Student Visitor Visa
If you are planning to study in the UK for fewer than 6 months, you may choose to apply for a Student Visitor Visa. The process of applying for a Student Visitor Visa has not been changed by the UK Border Agency’s new rules, you do not need a sponsor, and you will not apply through Tier 4 of the Point Based System.
You should ask us to send you a special letter supporting your application for a Student Visitor Visa. In order to do this, you should send us:
- Your course application, showing which course you wish to follow, the date when you wish to commence your course, and the number of weeks you wish to study for
- A copy of the personal details page of your passport.
- Your deposit of £500. If you fail to receive a visa, we will refund to you £250 if you have booked a course only, and £150 if you have booked both a course and accommodation. Before we can make a refund you must show us a copy of your official refusal notice first.
- If you are applying for a Student Visitor Visa, you do not need to send us documents proving your level.
Student Visa
If you wish to study for fewer than 6 months, you may also choose to apply for a Student Visa, which will give you certain benefits (for example, you will be able to work part-time in the UK and you will also be able to extend your visa without leaving the UK.) In order to apply for a Student Visa, you must now have a sponsor, so you need to first select a school or college which appears on the UKBA Register of Sponsors, such as St George International. Schools and colleges which do not appear on the register cannot provide support for you to apply for a Student Visa.
Please apply for your course, which can be one of our many English language courses, or our University Foundation Course, and ask us to produce a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) for. A CAS is not a letter but a personal code number which is generated for you on the UK Border Agency website by your sponsor school or college. We will then send you your CAS by email, and you should quote it when you apply for your visa. In order to produce a CAS for you, we will need from you:
- Your course application, showing which course you wish to follow, the date when you wish to commence your course, and the number of weeks you wish to study for
- A copy of the personal details page of your passport.
- Official documents (translated into English by a professional translator) proving that your level is high enough for the course you have selected. If you have chosen to take one of our English language courses, this should be a document showing your English language level (if possible, an internationally recognised examination certificate, such as IELTS). If you wish to enroll on our University Foundation Course, you should send us proof of your English language level and your academic level (maybe a certificate and transcript from your university or high school.) In order to apply for a Student Visa to attend one of our General English courses, you will need to prove that your English language level is at least B1 on the Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of languages (CEF.)
- You should pay us a deposit of £500.00. You should pay the rest of your fees after you have received your visa. If you fail to receive a visa, we will refund to you £250 if you have booked a course only, and £150 if you have booked both a course and accommodation. Before we can make a refund you must show us a copy of your official refusal notice first.
When you apply for your Student Visa, you should quote your CAS number on your application, and submit the originals of any documents that you have shown us as proof of your level. You also need to prove that you have enough money to pay your course fees and your living costs in the UK (the UK Border Agency calls this your maintenance funds.) You will be expected to show that you have the course fees minus your deposit, and £800 per month for your maintenance in London (£600 if you choose to study outside London) – for example with a recent bank statement or letter from your bank.
To receive your Student Visa, you need to achieve 40 points in the Point Based System. Having a valid CAS from St George International will give you 30 points, and being able to prove that you can afford your course fees and maintenance will give you another 10 points.
When you arrive at our school, you will have a number of responsibilities:
- You must give us a copy of your passport, visa and ID card if you have one.
- You must tell us your address in the UK and your contact details, including email and telephone number – and update us whenever these change.
- You must attend your lessons regularly for the duration of your course.
For full details please visit the UK Border Agency website at: http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/
On occasions, the rules and regulations may be altered, and any such changes will be published on this website.
Support Staff in SGI
| Tommi, SGI Business manager is here to provide you with help and information in order to make student visa process as easy as possible. |
