Tier 4: Application Guide

Transcription

1 Tier 4: Application Guide Index Page l Contents 1 Introduction. When to make a visa application 2 The CAS document 3 Documents needed to make a visa application 4 Documents needed to make a visa application 5 Tuition fees and living expenses 6 Tuition fees and living expenses 7 Official financial sponsorship 8 Bank statements 9 Bank statements 10 Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) 11 Applications including dependants 12 Submitting the visa application to the Home Office 13 Links Page 0 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

2 Tier 4: Application Guide Special note: Immigration health surcharge All Tier 4 applications require payment of an immigration health surcharge. The charge is 150 per year of visa issued to you. If the charge is not paid correctly, your visa application may be invalid or refused so it is highly important. ISAS will explain to you how this works when you attend our Tier 4 visa workshop. Disclaimer The information in this guide does not cover all of the Home Office s Tier 4 policy and or the immigration rules. It aims to cover most common scenarios relevant to University of Greenwich students, but is not exhaustive. The guide provides our current interpretation of Home Office requirements for the Tier 4 (General) student visa application at the time of writing. It is designed to help students extending their student visa in the UK and is intended to supplement but not replace the Home Office Tier 4 Policy Guidance document, which is available at: Visa applicants must check information on the Home Office website for subsequent changes to policy and requirements. When to make a visa application Preparing for a Tier 4 visa takes quite a lot of work and time and you should start preparing at least 3 months before your current visa expires. If you wait until it is too late, you may find that you cannot make your visa application as you cannot get the documents you need in time. If you need to extend your visa because you need more time to continue studying on the same course, there is no limit on how early you can apply. Come to speak with us for advice if you are not sure when will be the best time to apply. If you are applying for a visa extension near to the end of your studies, you must make the visa application before you hand in your last piece of work. If you try to make a visa extension application after you have completed all of your work, it is very unlikely to be successful. If you are applying for a visa extension to do a new course with the University of Greenwich, you can only apply in the 3 months before the new course starts. Additionally, the gap between your visa expiry date and the new course start date cannot be more than 28 days. The University requires you to make your new visa application before you can start the course. Protecting your legal status In all cases you must submit your visa application to the Home Office before the date of your visa expiry, if you are extending your visa from inside the UK. You should always seek urgent advice if you believe that you may not be able to make the application in time. See page 12 of this guide for more detailed information about what the official date of your application is. Speak to us for advice where necessary. Page 1 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

3 CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies) What is a CAS? The CAS is a virtual electronic document which shows information about you and your course and also shows your CAS number. Without the CAS number, you cannot get a Tier 4 visa. How do I get a CAS? Before you are issued a CAS, it is necessary for you to do the following things: 1) If your course requires an ATAS certificate, you must make a new ATAS application. See page 10 of this guide. 2) Fill in a CAS request form online at: (Speak to your Student Centre if you need advice regarding this). If you are due to start a new course, speak to the International Office about your CAS instead of filling in the form linked above. Contact details for the International Office are as follows: international@greenwich.ac.uk / ) Attend one of our Tier 4 workshop sessions. Book a place by contacting your Student Centre. 4) Show us the bank statements / other documents you intend to use with your visa application so we can check that you will not be likely to fall for a visa refusal. How does my CAS work? Before issuing a CAS to you, the Directorate of Student Affairs firstly has to 1) carefully check all of the relevant information, 2) check that you have taken the above steps and 3) receive confirmation from your Faculty that your attendance is satisfactory. If these things are in place, information is then sent to the Home Office about you and your course. The Home Office then send a unique CAS reference number for you to the university. The university then sends this to you in a CAS confirmation . The CAS is important because it tells you your CAS reference number and also tells you what information has already been sent to the Home Office. It is very important to make sure that the information you write in your Tier 4 application form matches the information in the CAS you receive from the university. Because the CAS is an electronic document, you do not get a paper CAS document from the university. The CAS contains a copy of all of the information which has already been provided to the Home Office. You may want to print this for your own reference, but you do not have to. What happens if my information changes after I request my CAS? The CAS will not automatically update. It is very important that you inform us if something changes. For example, if you pay more tuition fees after the CAS has been issued. Does the CAS expire? The CAS is valid for six months. So, you need to use your CAS within a six month period after it is issued. If you use the CAS any time within the six month period it will not expire whilst your application is being processed. Page 2 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

4 Other documents needed to make a Tier 4 Application Below is a list of the documents which are needed to make a Tier 4 application in the UK. Some documents only apply to certain people. These have a star (*) by them. Note that all documents must be originals and not copies. Photocopied and scanned documents are not accepted by the Home Office and would leave you at risk of a visa refusal. *Certificate(s) or transcripts. If your CAS statement lists any of your qualifications, you need to include the original copies of the certificates or transcripts for these qualifications with your Tier 4 application. You will usually only need to show qualifications when you are new to a course. You must very carefully check your CAS statement, under the Evidence Required section. If the CAS doesn t list any of your qualifications, you should not need to provide any however, please read the important note below. *English Language qualifications. You only need to give English language qualifications with your visa application if they are listed in your CAS. Read your CAS very carefully. If we have not written down any English language qualification in it, you do not need to provide one. If we have written a qualification down, you must provide it with the visa application. Bank statements or a Bank letter covering a 28 day period (see the section on Fees, living expenses and bank statements in this guide for advice about bank statements and bank letters). Two photographs taken within the past month. You should take care that your photographs meet the Home Office requirements as your application will be returned to you as invalid if they don t. You are strongly recommended to check your photos are correct by referring to the guidance on photos at GOV.UK : Your passport(s). You need to include your current passport and any other passports you have used to travel to the UK with. Please talk to one of the International Student Advisers if you have a problem with providing your passport/s. *Your UK biometric ID card (if you have been issued one). This is called a BRP / Biometric Residence Permit by the Home Office. Some students have one of these, others don t. It just depends when and where your most recent visa was issued and what type of visa it is. *Police Registration Certificate. If your current visa stamp, sticker or card states that you need to register with the police, you must include your up-to-date registration certificate. This certificate should show your current address. *ATAS Certificate. If you are studying certain taught programmes or in some areas of research degrees, you will need to submit an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate with your application. *Letter from official financial sponsor. You must provide this if you receive official financial sponsorship or in some cases if you received sponsorship previously but are self-funding now. See the information on page 7 of this guide about official financial sponsorship Page 3 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

5 *Official translations of any documents not fully in English or Welsh. These translations must include details of the translator s credentials; and confirmation that it is an accurate translation; and the translator / translation company s contact details. (Home Office Tier 4 Policy Guidance). Translations must also be dated and include the original signature of the translator or an authorised official of the translation company. If the translation does not include the above information, your application is likely to be refused so it is important to take care with translations. *Evidence of Change of Name. If you have ever changed your name you need to include official evidence of your previous name. An old passport, a birth certificate or a marriage certificate would all be acceptable forms of evidence. *Other documents. In some situations, it may be necessary to give extra documents with your visa application. For example if you have a criminal offence / traffic offence, documents relating to that; or if your situation is particularly complicated you may need to include a letter explaining it. Always get advice if you think there are other documents you may need to put in but you are not sure. Page 4 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

6 Tuition Fees and Living Expenses You need to show a specific amount of money is in your bank account for a continuous 28 day period before making your Tier 4 application. If the correct funds are not in your account for a full 28 day period, the visa application is refused. The correct level of money must run until the closing balance date of the statement. The closing balance date of the bank statement you provide must fall either on or before the date of the visa application. The date of the visa application is the date that you submit the application form online and pay the fee. It is not the date you post your documents or attend a visa application appointment. The immigration rules say that you must be able to show that you have enough money to study and meet your living costs whilst you are in the UK when you apply for a Tier 4 visa. So you must show that you have a specific amount of money when you make a Tier 4 application. See below for guidance on how to calculate how much money you will need to show. There are two parts to the total amount you need to show: Tuition fee due for current year Living costs ('Maintenance') Ammount required to be demonstrated in your bank account Tuition fees You must show that you have the money to pay for any outstanding fees for this whole academic year. Your CAS will show how much money is left to pay to the university in the current year. If your CAS shows that no outstanding tuition fee is owed to the university for the current academic year, then you do not need to show fees in your bank account. Living expenses ( maintenance ) In addition to the tuition fees, you have to show that you have a certain amount of money to support yourself for a fixed period of time into the future for your living costs. People studying in the London area have to show 1265 per month, for a certain number of months and people studying Outside London have to show 1015 for a certain Page 5 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

7 number of months. Read below to understand how to calculate the amount you need to show. Greenwich campus and Avery Hill campus students are classed as in the London area so must show 1265 per month multiplied by a fixed amount of months. Medway students are classed as outside the London area so must show 1015 per month multiplied by a fixed amount of months. Note that it doesn t matter where you live; it s where you study that is important for this calculation. How do I know how many months of living costs I need to show to the Home Office? The amount of months you need to demonstrate is dictated by how many more months of study you must take in order to complete your programme of study at the university. To calculate the amount you need to show, you take the amount of months remaining on the course and multiply this by either 1265 or 1015, depending on if you are a Greenwich, Avery Hill or Medway student. The Home Office will calculate the amount you need to show by looking at the month in which you make the visa application and the course end date in your CAS document. Part months are rounded up to whole months. You should note that the maximum amount that ever needs to be shown is 9 months. This is because there is an upper limit of 9 months funds which needs to be shown. Examples Greenwich campus student making a visa extension application. Calculation period = 12 months from date of visa application to the end date of study 9 x 1265 = Medway campus student making a visa extension application. Calculation period = 16 months from date of visa application to the end date of study 9 x 1015 = 9135 Avery Hill campus student making a visa extension application. Calculation period = 4 months from date of visa application to the end date of study 4 x 1265 = 5060 Remember The amount you need to show in your bank account as calculated above, must be in the account for a continuous 28 day period Official Financial Sponsorship See page 7 of this guide if you are receiving funding for your study from an official sponsor. If your official sponsorship covers all fees and maintenance you may not need to show funds in your own bank statement. Page 6 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

8 Official Financial Sponsorship An official financial sponsor is defined by the Home Office as: the UK Government, your home government, the British Council or any international organisation, international company, university or an independent school. Financial sponsorship from your family or friends is not classed as official financial sponsorship for Tier 4 applications. Consent of a government sponsor Important: Firstly, if you receive sponsorship from your government, you must include evidence that that your government consents to you making the visa extension application in the UK. Without this, the Home Office would refuse the visa application. Evidence of funding / sponsorship If you have an official financial sponsor and they will pay for all or part of you fees or living expenses, then you can deduct what they pay you for the year from the amount you have to show the Home Office. For an explanation of the amount you are expected to show, see the last section (page 5). If official financial sponsorship covers all of the amount you need to show, the Home Office say that you do not need to demonstrate any extra funds in your own bank account (unless you have dependants if you have dependants see the information on dependants in this guide). If the money does not cover the whole amount you need to show, then you need to show the remaining money in your own bank account (see next section). If you receive official financial sponsorship, you will have to provide evidence with your Tier 4 application of this sponsorship in order to be granted a visa. If you are sponsored by the University of Greenwich, information about your financial sponsorship will be written in your CAS document and you will not need an additional paper letter from the university. If you are sponsored by one of the other types of official sponsor as listed above, you will need to provide an official letter. You will need to check the Home Office Tier 4 policy guidance to see what information must be included in this letter in order that it is accepted. Speak to an International Student Adviser if you are unsure. Special note for students who received Official Financial Sponsorship from a Government previously but are now self-funding Please note, if you received official financial sponsorship from a government at any time during the last 12 months but you are funding your own study now, you need to show your own bank statements to prove you have the correct funds (see next section). However, you still have to get a letter from the government sponsor confirming that they give consent for you to make this visa application. If you do not give this consent letter, your application will be refused. Page 7 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

9 Bank Statements According to the Home Office requirements, your bank statement must have the following features. If it does not; in our experience you are most likely to get a visa refusal: Your statement must show the name and logo of your bank The statement must be dated Example Bank Your statement must show your name and account number Anne Example Account number: Balance carried forward Date Item Credit Debit Balance ATM Transfer ATM Visa Visa ATM Transfer Closing balance The statement must cover a 28 day period. The balance must be at or above the amount you need to show for fees and living expenses for a continuous 28 days The closing balance must be dated no more than 31 days before the date of your visa application. The date of the visa application is the date that you submit the application form online and pay the fee. It is not the date you post your documents or attend a visa application appointment. You must provide original bank statements which cover a 28 day period. Scanned, faxed or copied documents will not be accepted. You can ask your bank to print statements for you in a local branch but each page must contain all of the information specified above and be printed on the bank s letterhead paper. If your bank print you statements at the counter which are not on official letter headed paper, each page must be stamped by the bank or the bank must provide a letter confirming their authenticity. You can also use printouts from online banking, but each page must be stamped as authentic by your bank and contain all of the information as described above. Alternatively, the bank can provide a letter confirming their authenticity. Some banks will be happy to stamp statements, others do not offer this service. ISAS recommends Page 8 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

10 that if you are having difficulty getting statements stamped that you try one of three things: 1) Print the relevant pages from the Tier 4 Policy Guidance document (available at or this leaflet and take them to the bank. 2) Visit a different branch of your bank. Some branches have different local policies. 3) Ask your bank for a letter (see below). Bank Letters You can provide a letter from the bank instead of bank statements. If you are providing a letter from your bank it must include: Your name The account number The bank s name and logo The date of the letter Confirmation that you have held the correct amount of money that applies to you, covering any outstanding fees and the maintenance figure, for a 28 day period. Financial documents showing foreign currency If your financial documents show currency other than English sterling, the Home Office will expect you to write the closing balance on the documents in pounds sterling. You should use the OANDA website to convert currency: It is also very important to be aware that statements from banks from certain countries are not accepted by the Home Office and will lead to a visa refusal. If your statement comes from one of these countries, you need to check the Home Office s website to see if the bank you use in that country is accepted: Cameroon, India, Ghana, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Iran, Philippines, Sri Lanka Providing Parents Bank Statements You can use parents bank statements to prove that you have sufficient funds available. It is not possible to use bank statements of other family members only parents documents will be accepted. Bank statements provided from parents must be original and must meet the same requirements as other bank statements, as explained above. However it is not sufficient to provide just bank statements. Students using parents bank statements must also provide: -A birth certificate, showing the name(s) of the parent(s) on the bank statements (or adoption certificate if you are adopted). -A letter from your parent(s) confirming that they are your parent(s) and that they give their consent to you using the money in their account for your studies in the UK. The letter must be signed and dated. If you are using your parent s bank statements, but do not provide a birth certificate and a letter from your parent your visa application is likely to be refused. Page 9 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

11 ATAS Academic Technology Approval Scheme ATAS clearance is a special type of background check / clearance which some students need to complete before they can apply for a Tier 4 visa. If your course carries certain JACS codes, this means that you need to apply for ATAS clearance. It can take a month or even longer for ATAS clearance to be processed and you cannot proceed with a visa application until an ATAS clearance certificate is issued. If you require ATAS, it is therefore very important to apply for it as early as possible. The ATAS application and information is found here: If you apply for ATAS clearance and are successful, you will be issued with an ATAS certificate by . You are required to print this information and submit it with your other documents for the visa application. How to find out if you need ATAS clearance If you are studying at undergraduate level you do not need ATAS clearance. If you are studying a taught Masters programme, you need ATAS clearance if you are studying on the following two programmes: MSc Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering (JACS code H300) or MEng Mechanical Engineering (JACS code H300). Students undertaking a research degree (Masters by Research, MPhil, PhD or a professional doctorate) may require ATAS clearance depending upon their particular areas of research. Please read below. Research students (MRes, MPhil, PhD) If you are about to start a research degree: Once an interview has taken place and a verbal offer has been made, you and your supervisor will need to provide a research summary of up to 1200 characters (including spaces), which details the main purpose of the research and the research methods being used. A JACS code will be allocated by the Post Graduate Research Office and this will determine whether you need an ATAS clearance certificate or not. Your official offer letter from the university will be issued and will confirm if you need ATAS clearance. It will also provide guidance on how to apply for ATAS. Please note: Throughout your research degree, if the area of research changes significantly, you need to seek advice from the Post Graduate Research Office, with regards to whether a new JACS code and therefore new ATAS clearance is needed. If you are applying for a visa extension to continue with a research degree If you are applying for a visa extension to continue an MRes, MPhil or PhD programme and you previously provided an ATAS certificate with the previous visa application, you need to apply for a new ATAS clearance certificate. You need a new ATAS clearance certificate whether the area of research has changed or not. If you are applying to continue with an MRes, MPhil or PhD and you previously did not need an ATAS clearance certificate at the start of your research programme, you must check whether you require one now. You should not assume that you do not. Queries can be made to the Post Graduate Research Office at: postgraduateresearch_admissions@gre.ac.uk Page 10 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

12 Applications Including Dependants If you are applying with dependants (your spouse, civil partner, partner or children) then you need to complete an additional application form for each dependant. At the beginning of your Tier 4 application you will notice an option to declare if you have dependants applying at the same time as you. When you select yes to this, an extra form for each dependant will appear alongside your form. You can get advice from ISAS on this application form if you need to. The fee for dependants applications is currently 439 per dependant for postal applications and 839 per dependant for in person appointments. How much additional money do I need to show for my dependants for living costs? The Home Office say that you must show additional money for the living expenses ( maintenance ) of your dependants. This money must be in a bank account in your name or the name of your dependant. If you (the student) are a Greenwich or Avery Hill campus student, then each of your dependants need to show 845 per month for a fixed number of months. If you are a Medway student, then each of your dependants need to show 680 per month for a fixed number of months The amount of months the dependants need to demonstrate will be exactly the same amount of months as shown by the student. See the section on tuition fees and living expenses in this guide for guidance on how to calculate this. You should remember that the maximum amount that ever needs to be shown is 9 months. This is because there is an upper limit of 9 months funds which needs to be shown. Examples 1 x dependant of a Greenwich campus student making a visa extension application. Calculation period = 12 months from date of visa application to the end date of study 9 x 845 = x dependants of a Medway campus student making a visa extension application. Calculation period = 16 months from date of visa application to the end date of study 9 x 680 x 2 = x dependants of an Avery Hill campus student making a visa extension application. Calculation period = 4 months from date of visa application to the end date of study 4 x 845 x 3 = What if my dependants are outside the UK and I want them to come to join me whilst I am studying? If your dependant/s are currently overseas and you want them to come to the UK to join you, you can speak to the ISAS team for advice about this. Also, see our information about visas for dependants at Page 11 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

13 Submitting your visa application to the Home Office (UKVI) Where is the application form? The Tier 4 application is filled in online, via the gov.uk website. Follow the links to apply from here: We will explain to you about the application process in more detail at the Tier 4 visa workshop. Finding the correct can be rather confusing, so ask us to help you if you cannot find it. Filling in the online Tier 4 application Although the application is called the online application, you still need to submit the paper documents listed in this guide to the Home Office after you fill in the online form either by post or in person. It is not possible to submit the documents electronically. To fill in the Tier 4 online application, you will need to create a password, user name and memorable word. Once you have registered, you can go in and out of your application form as many times as you like, so you don t need to complete the form within one sitting. After you have filled in the form and made the payment for the visa application fee with your bank card, you will be presented with a pdf document on the screen which is called a cover sheet. This is a document which is a few pages in length with a barcode on the front page. You will be instructed to print this cover sheet pdf document and sign it. It is then necessary to submit this printed document with all of your other documents to the Home Office. Sending the application by post ( Standard Service ): 439 You need to post your documents to the Home Office after completing the Tier 4 online application and paying the fee online. It s necessary to post the documents within 15 days of submitting the form online. We strongly recommend that you send your application by Royal Mail Special Delivery. We also recommend that you keep your own back-up copies of all the documents you submit with the application. The date of the visa application is the date you pay the application fee online and print your cover sheet. Your application is not valid unless you have posted your documents within the deadline (see above). Making the application in Person ( Premium Service ): 839 If you need your application to be processed quickly, then you can apply in person. Most people doing this get a decision on their application on the day of the appointment. After that, it will take approximately one week for your BRP / biometric id card (the visa) to be delivered your address. When you fill in the Tier 4 online application, you will be able book your appointment at the same time as completing the application form but only when you get to the final stages of the form. The official date of your application is the date that you submit the online application and pay the fee online. Page 12 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015

14 Links Home Office website, visas & immigration area: Official Home Office / UKVI website Home Office website, Tier 4 (General) area: Home Office / UKVI web page with links to Tier 4 application forms and policy documents ISAS International Student Advice Service: Immigration advice from the University of Greenwich ISAS International Student Advice Service contact: isas@gre.ac.uk Contact details for our service UKCISA information about making a Tier 4 application: Students/Immigration-/Making-a-Tier-4-General-application-in-the-UK/ Highly recommended website with very good Tier 4 information at this link Page 13 Tier 4 application Guide November 2015