Permission to enter – applying from outside the UK

If you are applying from your home country, you will need to complete an online application form and attend an appointment at a visa application centre. Please make sure to allow for extra time to process your application as your nearest application centre may be in another country. 

How much does the application cost?

The cost to process an application is the equivalent of £348 in local currency. This fee will not be refunded if your application is refused. You can check specific visa costs for your country on the UKVI website. Some visa application centres have a priority service which processes your application within one week. This service costs an additional £220.

You may also need to pay the Immigration Health Surcharge prior to the submission of your application.

When should I apply for my visa?

Visa processing times vary between each country and each application, so make sure you apply as early as possible to avoid missing any of your course. If you apply too late you can miss a lot of your classes and struggle to keep up with the course workload. You could even miss the final enrolment date and not be allowed to start the course at all. If time is an issue and your country has a priority service application option then you may need to use that route to ensure that you arrive for your course on time.

The earliest you can apply for your visa is six months before the start date of your course. The start date will be listed in your CAS and on your offer letter. Your CAS is valid for only six months after it is issued, so make sure you apply before the expiry date of the CAS.

What documents will I need to submit?

You will need to submit the following documents with your application. All documents must be the originals, not copies.

• Current passport(s)
• Previous passports used to travel to the UK (if applicable)
• Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) (if applicable)
• Tuberculosis (TB) test results (if applicable)
• Evidence that you have the required amount of funds available (see Maintenance funds, unless you are eligible for the differentiation arrangements)
• Documents listed in your CAS under “Evidence used to obtain offer”. This could be qualifications, certificates, transcripts and/or English language test reports (unless you are eligible for the differentiation arrangements)
• Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate (if applicable)
• Additional documents if you are including family members in your application. See our Dependants page for further details.

Documents not in English or Welsh must be accompanied by a certified translation by a professional translator/translation company. Each translation must contain:

• Confirmation from the translator that it is an accurate translation of the original document
• The date of the translation
• The full name and signature of the translator, or an authorised official of the company
• The translator’s contact details

What are the differentiation arrangements?

A visa applicant eligible for the differentiation arrangements does not need to provide evidence of their finances, their qualifications or their English language proof with their visa application. All other documents will need to be provided as normal. Please make sure that you do meet the requirements and have these documents available as UKVI could ask to see them during the application process.

This only applies to nationals of the countries listed in the Immigration Rules under “Differential evidence requirement”.

What is Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) Collection?

Once you have completed your application form you will be taken to the BRP Collection page. A BRP is proof of your right to live and study in the UK and is a document that you need to collect from a post office once you enter the UK. 

You will be asked to provide a postcode so that UKVI know which post office to send your BRP to. You can either use the postcode of where you will be living or the postcode of the University’s main address (recommended), which is ‘DE22 1GB’.

Please see Once your visa has been granted for more information on BRPs and collection.

How do I submit my documents?

As part of your application you will book an appointment at a visa application centre to submit your documents and have your biometric details (fingerprints) taken. Please be aware that you may also be contacted to attend a credibility interview as part of the application process.

Who can help me with the application?

If you have any questions about the application form, the documents you need to submit or any other visa-related questions, please email visa@derby.ac.uk.