Applying for Tier 4 entry clearance from your home country

Important changes from 6 April 2012

The UKBA is increasing both the cost of applying for a Tier 4 visa and the amount of money students applying for Tier 4 visas must have available.

From 6 April 2012 the application fee for a Tier 4 visa will be £289 for the main applicant and £289 per dependant.

The amount of money that Kent students and their dependants must show in order to get a visa will increase to £800 per month for the student and £450 per dependant.

If you pay accommodation fees to the university, you will be able to deduct a maximum of £1,000 from the maintenance money you have to show when you make your application, even if you have paid more than this.

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If you are not from the UK or the European Union and you are outside the UK you need to apply for a Tier 4 visa (also known as entry clearance) before you travel to the UK to study a course which lasts longer than 6 months.

If you currently have a Tier 4 visa for a course which you have finished and you are starting a new course at a different educational institution (your Tier 4 sponsor) , you should make a new application for a Tier 4 visa using a CAS from the new Tier 4 sponsor before travelling back to the UK. You may be refused entry to the UK if you try to use your existing Tier  4 visa.

If you are coming to do a pre-sessional course, you should apply for a Tier  4 visa so that you can extend it in the UK before you start your main course.

You may also apply overseas  for a visa to continue a course that you have already started. The application forms are different from those used to extend a visa from inside the UK.

If you are starting a new course, do not apply for your visa more than 3 months before the start date, as your application will be refused if you apply to early. If you apply too late, you may miss the start of your course.

You must use forms VAF 9 and Appendix 8, which you can download from the UKBA website.

In some countries, the VAF 9 is an online form. Find out how to apply from your country. 

 

You can use our interactive forms to help you fill them in correctly and make a successful Tier 4 application. Place your cursor (mouse) over the yellow question marks to read our pop-up guidance notes.Beware! The pop-up notes do not work if you use Google Chrome as your browser.

Interactive VAF 9 form

Interactive Appendix 8

 

You should also read:

VAF 9 guidance notes and

UKBA Tier 4 Policy Guidance.

You will need a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) from the university. This will be emailed to you. You must make a Tier  visa application within 6 months of the date the CAS is issued, otherwise, it will be invalid and your visa application refused. 

 

If you are starting a new course at the University of Kent your CAS will be issued by the Admissions Office. Please note that CASes can only be issued to new students who have an unconditional offer of a place at Kent. They will be issued automatically and it should not be necessary for you to request a CAS.

If you will be returning to continue a course which you have already started at the University of Kent, you will need to request a CAS from the Student Records Office.

You will also need to provide a number of documents to support your application, unless you are considered to be a "low risk". Please refer to the list of countries in paragraphs 11 and 12 of the Tier 4 Policy guidance (07/11 version) to check if this applies to you.

If you are applying as  a national on the list of countries considered to be "low risk" , you will NOT be treated as "low risk" unless you are making your Tier 4 visa application in your home country (or in the UK, if you are extending your visa). 

Please note, that even if you are  "low risk" and not required to submit documents with your application, you MUST have them available as the UKBA may ask for them.  All applicants must submit their passport.

   

Useful information

UKBA guide to processing times outside the UK

UKBA guide to money you need to show for Tier 4

List of documents for Tier 4 Application made outside the UK