LSE Guide to Completing the Online Tier 4 Application Form in the UK (October 2015)

Transcription

1 International Student Immigration Service (ISIS) lse.ac.uk/isis/ LSE Guide to Completing the Online Tier 4 Application Form in the UK (October 2015) This guide is for students who are applying for their Tier 4 Student visa in the UK. It is divided into two sections: Section 1 Completing the online Tier 4 application form Section 2 Paying the Immigration Healthcare Surcharge Section 3 Sending your application to UKVI The Immigration Healthcare Surcharge and Tier 4 online form can also be used for dependants applying at the same time as a Tier 4 student and dependants who are applying separately to a Tier 4 student for example, babies born in the UK. If your dependants are applying separately we advise you to seek advice from us before completing the form. You should read the ISIS guide to applying for the Tier 4 visa before completing your application form. The ISIS guide to applying for the Tier 4 visa explains the whole application process from an LSE perspective and provides links to important sections of the Tier 4 Policy Guidance. The guide to completing the forms should not be used on its own because it does not explain the rules. Where you see a this information has been added by ISIS. New for 2015: The UKVI are piloting a priority service at a cost of 739. They aim to process priority application decisions within 10 working days from submission of the application form. You need to request to take part in the scheme and the number of applicants each day is limited to 60 from across all participating institutions. If you are interested in applying through the priority scheme, contact us for details. We do not advise students who are close to the expiry date of their visa or their latest date of registration to take rely on the priority service as we are unable to guarantee that you will be selected to take part and risk not being able to apply on time.

2 Section 1 Completing the online Tier 4 application form Selecting the correct form If you are intending to apply using a premium service appointment, you book your appointment as part of the Tier 4 online application form after paying the IHS. Do not choose the BRP (RC) or TOC appointments because these are not applications to extend your Tier 4 visa and may affect your ability to attend your studies. Go to the Home Office web pages You should now see the following screen: Choose the Extend your Visa link to find the application form Now click on the link next to How to extend your stay for the application form. Choose Start Now to take you to the following screen. On the next screen, you will be asked to provide LSE s Tier 4 Sponsor Licence Number. This is 1RRV3MMEX. You will then see the following screen:

3 Click on the link Apply to extend your visa. Choose the button at the bottom of the next screen to proceed. If you have not already created an account with UK Visas and Immigration, you will need to do this now before you are able to go any further. Creating an account with the UK Visas & Immigration To be able to submit an online application, you will need to create an account with the UK Visas and Immigration. Follow these steps to create your account: choose register to create an account with the UK Visas and Immigration. once you have registered your details with the UK Visas and Immigration, they will automatically send you an to verify your address. Choose the address you use most frequently as these details will be automatically saved on the application form. Once you have changed your password you will see the screen explaining the Tier 4 online application form again. Choose the following button to continue. Customising your Application The online form selects questions based on the answers you provide on the customisation screen. For example, if you are not applying for dependents at the same time as you, these questions will not be included in the form. Any question with a * next to it is required information and you will not be able to complete the form without answering these questions.

4 You will only have been issued with a Biometric Residence Permit if you previously applied in the UK. If your visa is a sticker in your passport choose No. Once you have completed your details choose Next. Your answers will automatically be saved. If you do not use the system for 30 minutes you will be automatically logged out and your information will not be saved. If you have to leave your computer at any time, save your answers and log out for security reasons. Completing the Form There are 11 sections of the form which you are required to complete. You can save your form at any time and come back later to complete it. We recommend that you begin completing the application form as soon as possible. If you do not access your form for 48 days you will receive an informing you that your form will be deleted. You can simply log into your account and reactivate your form. If you do not reactivate your form within 56 days all of the information will be deleted and you will need to start the application form again. The Home page shows each of the sections of the form and how much you have completed. As the picture shows, no sections of the form have been started yet.

5 When completing the form, you should provide as much information as possible that is relevant to your personal circumstances. The form also provides more guidance for some questions. Please check the guidance provided for the questions you answer. If you are unsure how to answer a question, check the guidance provided on the form. Personal Details Page When you start the Personal Details section, some of the details may already be completed on the form. Your personal details must be completed as they appear in your passport. If your personal details on your CAS statement do not match your passport, contact the team who issued the CAS to get it corrected.

6 Contact Details Although it is not marked with a *, you must provide details of a telephone number because it is a required question to say which is your preferred contact number ISIS Tip! If your contact address changes whilst your application is being decided, you must inform the Home Office at If you do not tell UK Visas and Immigration that your address has changed, your documents may be returned to the wrong address and be lost. Reference Numbers If you applied outside the UK, you may have a reference number from your Visa Application Centre. If you did not receive a number you should choose No. If you have previously applied for a visa within the UK you can use one of the following numbers: The number on your acknowledgement letter The number on your biometrics invitation letter Your Case ID on your letter informing you if your visa has been granted

7 Passport or Travel Documents You must provide details of all passports you have used to travel to the UK even if it was for a reason other than study. Previous Addresses As the guidance states, you must provide all previous addresses in the UK for the past five years, even if you were only there for a short period of time. This only means addresses you were living at. It does not mean places you may have stayed whilst on a holiday. If you are required to register with the Police as a condition of your visa, the information on your application form must be the same as on your Police Registration certificate. You must check that your Police Registration Certificate is up to date before applying for your visa.

8 PBS Immigration History If your visa has already expired before you submit this application, contact ISIS immediately for advice. If you still have a valid visa, choose this option. This is asking if you applied for a visa before travelling to the UK last time. This is likely to be the last Tier 4 visa you applied for outside the UK and helps the UKVI check your immigration history. The reference number is the VAF number under the expiry date of your visa Not all visa categories allow you to switch into Tier 4 in the UK e.g. dependant visas/ visitor visas or Short-term students. Although the application form does provide an option for Other, do not assume that your visa allows you to apply for Tier 4 in the UK. Students have received refusals because they did not check this information. If you are unsure if you are able to switch into Tier 4 from the visa you currently hold, contact ISIS for advice. If you previously registered with the Police ensure you have chosen Yes for this question. If you do not select Yes the Police Registration Certificate will not appear in the list of documents you are required to send and you may be refused for not including it.

9 You must declare any previous refusals in your application. Failure to declare a refusal is highly likely to lead to a refusal and a ban on immigration applications to the UK. If you are unsure if you were rejected or refused please contact us for advice before submitting your form. Public Funds You are not eligible to claim public funds on a Tier 4 visa. This does not include your entitlement to treatment from the NHS. If you think you may have benefitted from public funds, please contact ISIS for advice. T4 Course Details All of the information you need to complete the T4 Course Details screen is on your CAS Statement. You should check your CAS Statement carefully and if any of the information is incorrect you should inform LSE to get it corrected. Reply to the address which sent you the CAS. ISIS Tip! If you are applying to extend your visa to continue on the same programme of study, you must enter the course start date must be the sponsorship start date as shown on your CAS. The Registry will have included a note about the actual course start date in the Evidence used to assess suitability section of the CAS so that you are issued the correct grant of leave. Doctorate Extension Scheme applicants Applicants who indicate that they are applying for a course at NQF Level 8 will be asked if they are applying for the Doctorate Extension Scheme. If you are applying to extend your visa to complete your PhD, you are not eligible to apply for the Doctorate Extension Scheme. If you are applying for the Doctorate Extension Scheme you must choose NQF Level 8 or the form will not give you the option to indicate you are applying for the scheme. The Postgraduate Doctor or Dentist option refers to medical practitioners.

10 You can only apply for the Doctorate Extension Scheme up to 60 days before the date you are awarded. Do not attempt to apply for the visa until you have an agreed date of award from the Research Degrees Unit. IMPORTANT: You must apply for the Doctorate Extension Scheme at least one day before the end date stated on your CAS. If you attempt to apply on the end date of your CAS, the online form will not allow you to continue because you do not have any studies left to complete. The Immigration Health Surcharge will be calculated based on the dates you provide on the application form. Whilst the application form states that you should provide the dates as stated on the CAS, this guidance was written before the introduction of the IHS and does not reflect the new system. Inputting the dates as stated on the CAS sometimes leads to under payment of the IHS. We have been advised that you should be contacted to make a top-up payment, but if you are unsure what dates to put in this section, please check with us first before submitting your application. T4 UCAS Details LSE is a Higher Education Institution UCAS is the University and Colleges Admissions Service only undergraduate students use this service Check your CAS statement to see how your English Language level has been assessed.

11 Maintenance (funds) Maintenance is the main area where students make mistakes and receive refusals. It is very important that you read the supporting guidance provided by the Home Office and ISIS to ensure you meet the requirements. Even if you have paid more than 1020 ( 1265 from 12/11/2015) for accommodation you will only be allowed to enter a maximum of 1020 in this box because this is the maximum you can deduct. Check the policy guidance for details Course Fees you can find the information about your course fees on your CAS Statement. If the amount you have paid is incorrect or you have made a recent payment that is not showing, request that it is updated (it can take several days or weeks for payments to show in the LSE account). If you declare that fees have been paid on your application form, but your CAS does not reflect this, your application will be refused. Whilst fees to your CAS can be added after your date of submission, you can only claim those fees that are on your CAS on the day you applied. Do you have current leave as a Tier 4 Student, as a Student or as a Postgraduate Doctor or Dentist? If you have any of these visa categories you should choose Yes. The form will use your answer to the next set of questions to calculate if you are eligible for the lower established presence level of maintenance funds. There is an error with the form which calculates that applicants switching from a nonstudent or Tier 4 visa are eligible for the established presence level of funds. If you do not currently hold a Student or Tier 4 visa, you are not eligible for the established level of funds even if you have studied more than six months of your programme. You must show the full amount of funds required for your circumstances. The form currently also advises Doctorate Extension Scheme students they may only need 1,020. This is incorrect and you must show 2,040 for your application.

12 Accommodation- You can only use money paid to LSE or University of London intercollegiate halls as evidence. This does not include: Lilian Knowles Anson and Carleton Road Urbanest Kings Cross Unite Stratford One Urbanest Westminster Bridge Are you receiving money from an official financial sponsor? - Official Financial Sponsors are Her Majesty's Government, your home government, the British Council or any international organisation, international company, university or an Independent School. LSE is an Official Financial Sponsor. LSE will state our scholarships on your CAS. Please check to see any scholarships are included. Are all of the funds in your name? If you are using your parents / legal guardians bank account for your application, you should choose No. Tier 4 General Attributes Are you being sponsored by a government or international scholarship agency or have you been sponsored by one of these bodies within the past 12 months? Check your Application If you have received official financial sponsorship in the last 12 months, you must declare this on the form. If you choose No and you have previously used a scholarship as evidence of your funding, your application may be refused. In this instance, sponsored means wholly sponsored. You must obtain an original letter from your sponsor confirming that they give you permission to remain in the UK and extend your visa. Once you have completed all of the screens, you will be given the chance to check your application. If there are errors you will see the screen below:

13 Click on the Home tab at the top of the screen to find out which sections of the form have errors. Sections with errors will be highlighted in red. Once you have completed a correction click Check Section or the form will not recognise the changes you have made When you have completed your corrections you will see the following screen: Supporting Documents This screen lists the documents you must submit to the Home Office. The screen below is for a Low Risk applicant. It does not list financial documents or educational documents because you don t need to send these at the time you apply. If you are a Low Risk applicant you must still prepare the supporting documents before submitting your application and keep them prepared in case the Home Office request them.

14 The screen below shows the documents for an applicant who is required to submit financial documents and evidence of their educational qualifications. If you were assessed on the basis of continued progress for the same course choose No for each of these options The screen below is for an applicant who is using their parents /legal guardians account as evidence of their finances.

15 The form gives you the option to provide a combination of your personal financial documents and your parents /legal guardians. Declaration The declaration screen calculates the amount of funds that the Home Office requires you to show that you have held for 28 consecutive days from the closing balance of your bank statement. If you do not have this amount of funds available to you or you do not think the amount is correct, contact us for advice.

16 Getting your application checked by ISIS If you want ISIS to check your application, do not confirm that you agree to the declaration or click Next. Once you have done this you will not be able to make any changes to your form. If you have agreed to this and there are errors on your form you will need to delete this version of the form and start again. To get your application form checked you can: attend a Tier 4 briefing workshop (if scheduled we run workshops more frequently in August to October) Request an appointment (subject to availability) Before your appointment you must: complete as much of the form as possible; prepare your supporting documents to be checked. You must submit your application before your current visa expires or the day before your course end date on your CAS for Doctorate Extension Scheme students. Don t forget if you have agreed to the declaration and paid for your application you have now submitted a Tier 4 (General) application to the UK Visas and Immigration. If you realise that you have made an error at this point or your documents are not ready, contact ISIS immediately for advice. When you have completed your application and had it checked, you should agree to the declaration and choose Next. You will then be advised that you need access to a printer to be able to print your application form. Note: Before you choose what type of application to make you will reach a 'Print warning' page, which asks if you have access to a printer. If you do not have access to a printer, it is possible to save your draft as a PDF document. We recommend that you print a copy of your application form for your records. Section 2 Paying the Immigration Healthcare Surcharge The surcharge costs 150 per year for Tier 4 students and their dependants. However, it is calculated on the basis of the length of leave you will be granted not the length of your course. The calculation is more suited to applications for initial visas, rather than students requiring extensions midprogramme or applying for the Tier 4 DES visa. Therefore, the amount it shows may not be sufficient for your circumstances. If you are extending your visa after registering for your programme, please contact us for advice on the amount of surcharge you will need to pay. Information on the Immigration Healthcare Surcharge can be found on the Arriving in the UK web pages of the UKVI website. We advise that you read all of the sections before paying the surcharge. Paying the surcharge Once you have ticked the declaration on the application form, you will be directed to the new Immigration Health Surcharge payment screen. You should choose to proceed with your application. The information on the summary screen is taken from the visa application form and cannot be amended at this point. If there are any mistakes, you will need to start a new application form to be able to pay the IHS.

17 The course start and end dates can no longer be amended to ensure that you pay the correct amount of IHS. If you realise these are incorrect, you will need to start a new application form to pay the IHS. There is an issue where the period of sponsorship on the CAS is less than one month. Please contact ISIS for advice if you are only sponsored for a short period or are applying for the Doctorate Extension Scheme. Please check the dates on your CAS carefully. Once you have clicked on Save and continue you will see the following screen: You will then be taken to a declaration: You will then be taken to payment summary page.

18 The Payment Summary screen advises you how much surcharge you are required to pay. Once you have paid this, you will be sent an with your Immigration Health Surcharge number. Please keep this for your records, but your IHS number should also be shown on the application coversheet. If you have not paid the full amount of surcharge required because the form has miscalculated the amount, we have been advised that the Home Office will contact you to request a top-up payment. You should ensure you make this top-up payment or your visa application may be returned as invalid or refused. Section 3 Sending your application to UK Visas and Immigration You are now given the option to send your application by post (Standard Service) or book an appointment at a Public Enquiry Office (Premium Service). Premium Service If you have chosen a Premium Service appointment, you will see the next screen. ISIS Tip! To give you the maximum number of options try combinations of the different Public Enquiry Offices and only type 2015 into the date range fields. You can go to any Public Enquiry Office in the UK for your appointment. You must attend an appointment within 45 working days of submitting your application but we do not advise you wait this long. IMPORTANT: If you choose to book a Premium Service appointment, 100 of the application fee will be the cost of booking your appointment. If you do not attend your appointment, UK Visas and Immigration will keep the 100. Once you have submitted your application, you have a live application in place. You can arrange an appointment after the expiry date of your visa. However, we recommend you try to attend an appointment before your visa expires.

19 Public Enquiry Offices may not consider applications from students who have not submitted an in-time application (before your visa expires). If you have become an overstayer, please contact ISIS immediately for advice. You should not travel outside the UK if you have an application in place and have booked an appointment. Paying for your application Payment is made through WorldPay online. Once you have completed the payment process you will be given a WorldPay reference number. You will also receive an confirming that the payment has been made. Application cover sheet When you have paid for your application, you will be given a four page, application cover sheet. This confirms the following information: Your application number provided under the bar code; Your personal details; Your application details including the date of submission; Payment details; A list of the supporting documents you are expected to include when you attend your appointment/submit your supporting documents to the Home Office. Print two copies of the application cover sheet. Submit one with your supporting documents and use the other as evidence you have submitted an application. Don t forget to sign the declaration! Posting your application If you have chosen the standard application, UK Visas and Immigration provides guidance on the final page of your application cover sheet about how and where to submit your documents. ISIS Tip! During the peak period, applications will be dealt with at two locations. You must send your supporting documents to the address shown on your application coversheet. Even if a friend has a different address, you must refer to your own application coversheet. We strongly recommend that you: take a photocopy of all the documents you are submitting to the Home Office; send your supporting documents by Special Delivery from the Post Office and keep a record of the tracking number. Contacting ISIS If you have any questions about the online application you can contact ISIS through our web query form.