On 1 September 2007 a new Student Visitor Visa for the UK will be introduced. This is an important and positive development but member centres, agents and students need to be aware of the consequences.
For students who need a visa to enter the UK (visa nationals), the new Student Visitor visa will:
ALL students that are going to do a work placement as part of their course, or wish to work or possibly to extend their stay, will need to apply to the nearest British Diplomatic post abroad for a visa to enter the UK as a STUDENT, not as a Student Visitor. The full student visa costs £99.
It will no longer be permitted for people who enter the UK after 1 September on a Visitor visa to study while they are in the UK. (We are not expecting heavy enforcement action on this in the short term, but it is likely that this will be tightened up progressively in future.)
Link for the list of visa nationals:
The following flowchart gives the
options for students who wish to come to the UK for a course
of up to 6 months. It's been
produced by English UK (in liaison with
the Border & Immigration Agency
www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk and UKvisas
www.ukvisas.gov.uk If you intend to take
employment -- i.e. 20 hours per week part-time/full-time in
vacation periods or will be undertaking a work placement (paid
or unpaid) as part of a course of study or
you wish to seek
an extension of stay beyond your initial grant of leave,
YOU MUST OBTAIN A FULL
STUDENT ENTRY CLEARANCE at the nearest British Embassy or Consulate.
If not, as a non-visa national you may still qualify for leave to
enter as a student visitor without these entitlements or, as a visa
national, you need only apply for a student visitor visa. For more information go to Useful links