Visa Requirements
Most students will need a visa to study at UWC Atlantic except for British and Irish nationals and those who have a (Pre)-settled status.
There are two types of Visas, a Child Student and Student Visa. UWC Atlantic can sponsor students under both the Child Student and Student visa routes. Our Admissions team will be able to inform you which is the correct visa for you but if you are unsure of your visa requirements, the UK government website has more detailed information.
UWC Atlantic can sponsor students under both the Child Student and Student visa routes.
Our Admissions team will be able to inform you which is the correct visa for you but if you are unsure of your visa requirements, the UK government website has more detailed information.
The earliest you can apply for a visa is 6 months before you start your course. It can take up to 4 weeks for you to get a decision. Some countries have a fast track service, which is highly recommended if you apply late. Please bear in mind UWC Atlantic cannot expedite the process.
You will need to send the following documents to the college before applying for the visa:
- A scan of the photo page of your passport
- A scan of your birth certificate (and its official translation - no exceptions)
- A scan of your most recent school transcript (and its official translation - no exceptions). For the visa application, provisional results or mock Exams results are not accepted.
- A scan of the parents' consent letter found on Open Apply.
- A certificate of an approved English Language exam: if you are 18 or over at the time of applying, and from a non-majority English-speaking country, you must sit an approved English test before you get the visa. For detailed information, please visit this website
If you want to learn more about the process, here is a talk our Admissions Team gave on this topic and here is a useful summary of the process.
We recommend you apply for your visa using the ‘UK Immigration: ID Check’ app. Alternatively, you can apply via an Application Visa Centre. Both ways can take up to 3 weeks and countries differ in terms of times, please be patient as delays are commonplace.
If you use the UK Immigration: ID Check’ app, you will get an electronic visa. If you go to an Application Visa Centre, you will receive a visa card.
If you are applying with an EU/EEA passport, this document is very useful.
If any document you are required to submit is not in English, e.g. your birth certificate, school transcript/record you must have it translated officially by a legal translator. A lot of visas are rejected when this is ignored.
Please read these Translation Guidelines if you have to translate these documents. (Please note Chinese birth certificates must be translated).
Depending on where you are from, you will have to show evidence of sufficient funds to pay for the course fees for the first academic year. This information can be found in the Financial Statement sent to your family.
Some countries do not have to meet this requirement:
See list of countries which do not need to show this evidence.
Even if your country is not on this list, we still highly recommend that you pay the fees for the first year in advance. This will make the visa process go smoothly.
If you have a full scholarship, you will not need to show financial evidence. If you have a partial scholarship, you will have to show financial evidence of the portion not covered by the bursary.
If you choose to submit bank statements or certificate of deposit, there are many requirements to meet. Please read these 3 documents before considering this option:
- Bank statements for visa applications - Are yours ready to send?
- Example of Certificate of Deposit
- Example Bank Statement.
IMPORTANT: If you are going to pay the first year fees in advance, please do so at the time of sending the documents to the college to avoid delays.
Once the Admissions team has received all the documents above and the deposit has been received, they will send you a CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies number) and a letter. The number is generated by the Home Office, is valid for 6 months and can only be used once. If an application is refused, a new CAS will be required.
With this CAS number, you can start the application online.
Remember to choose the correct visa type:
General Student or Child Student (this will appear on the letter from the college).
It costs £490 to apply for a Student visa from outside the UK.
ALL STUDENTS have to pay for this, please find more information here. Even if you are under 18 years old, you will need to pay for this in order to apply. This will be entitled to free NHS hospital treatment in the UK on the same basis as an ordinarily resident person. This will apply from the date your visa is granted until it expires.
The fee is £776 per-person per year. The IHS fee is calculated on the overall length of time of your visa.
Whilst issuing Student visas the Home Office usually adds an extra period at the end of your visa. This additional period varies between 7 days to 4 months, depending on the overall duration of the course. You can use the calculator on the GOV.UK website to find out how much you will need to pay:
Prior to making your visa application, students from certain countries are required to obtain a clear Tuberculosis Screening Test result. You can find specific details about your home country online here.
If you need this test, you must get it from a clinic which is on the UK Visas and Immigration Authority’s list of approved TB Testing Clinics.
As part of your visa application, you are required to provide your biometric information (fingerprints and facial image). Your visa application will not be processed until you have provided the necessary biometric information.
EU/EEA students can download an application to complete this. Search ‘UK Immigration: ID Check’ in your App store. Please notice the app will not work until you have started an application on GOV.UK.
Nationals of certain countries can do this online. You will be told what you need to do when you apply. You may have to go to the nearest visa application centre for this.
As part of your visa application, you may be requested to attend a short video interview with the Home Office. The purpose of the interview is to check that the applicant is a genuine student, so they may ask you some questions about your course, why you chose to study it, etc. These are some examples of questions and appropriate answers.
You will be contacted if your application is complex and will take longer, for example because:
- Your supporting documents need to be verified (always have translations ready)
- You need to attend an interview
- Of your personal circumstances (for example if you have a criminal conviction)
If you need to change something in your application after you’ve sent it, please contact UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI).
HIGHLY IMPORTANT: always check your junk inbox as Home Office emails may end up there. Many visas have been rejected because of lack of response.
You can ask to withdraw your application by contacting UKVI. Your fee will only be refunded if UKVI has not started processing your application.
EU/EEA students: if you used the ‘UK Immigration- ID Check’ app, you will get a digital immigration status which you can view and prove online. Please send it to studentenrolment@uwcatlantic.org as soon as possible.
Students from the rest of the world: you will get your passport back with a vignette (sticker) and a letter which you will need to have at arrival.
Please note the vignette is only valid for 3 months and it is what lets you get in the country.
Once at the college, you will get your biometric residence permit, also known as the BRP (an example for a famous fictional face!). This is a card that you will use for getting in and out of the UK.
How do you get your BRP?
It will not be sent to your address, it will be sent to the College.
Please use the code we give you in your visa application to send it to the College.
Towards the end of the application, you will be asked for the BRP Collection Location, please select ALTERNATIVE COLLECTION POINT and be sure to type in the following ACL Code - 2SC682. This will save you a trip to Cardiff!
IMPORTANT: If you come from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea or the USA, you must use the college ACL code (2SC682), as we will not be able to arrange collection of your BRP on your behalf, you will have to travel to Cardiff to get it in person.
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