Applying for your visa

Page last updated:
27 Feb 2024

If you are starting or continuing your academic journey with us, the first step is to find out what kind of UK visa you may need for your studies at Leeds Beckett University. Visit the UK Visas & Immigration website to find out what kind of UK visa you need.

If you have questions about your Leeds Beckett application, please contact the International Admissions office at international@leedsbeckett.ac.uk.

Applying for your visa Do you have any questions about applying for a UK Student visa? If you’re unclear on what you need to do and when, then watch our Leeds Beckett visa video to help you through the process.

Video thumbnail of Leeds Beckett website, titled "How to apply for your visa"

How to obtain your Visa

As of 5 October 2020, the Student visa route has replaced the current Tier 4 visa route under the new UK points based immigration system. You will need to prove that you have the required number of points in order to make an application for your visa. You need to have 70 points altogether; 50 of these are obtained by providing a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) number from Leeds Beckett University, 10 points come from meeting the financial requirement and the remaining 10 points comes from meeting the English language requirement.

Get your CAS Number

If you have an unconditional offer to study with us, you can now apply for a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) number. A CAS number is required for your student visa application. Download the CAS Request Form as soon as possible, and email the completed form to us. 

If you are from Nigeria or Ghana, please complete this CAS Request form

If you live in India, Nepal, Bangladesh or Sri Lanka, please complete this CAS Request form (nationals of these countries living elsewhere should use the form below).

All other nationalities, please complete this CAS Request form.

Along with your completed form you will also need to have:

  • Accepted your unconditional offer
  • Paid a minimum of 50% of your first-year tuition fees, after any scholarships have been applied (for example, with a first-year tuition fee of £14,000 and scholarship of £1000, the minimum required would be £6500 [50% of £13,000])

Please find further information on our course fees and living costs page. 

Apply for your visa

Once you have your CAS number from us, you can apply for your UK Student visa. You will need to submit your visa application within 90 days before your course start date. To apply, read all of the information on this page, then follow the instructions on the UK Visa and Immigration (UKVI) website.

International check-in on arrival in the UK

All overseas students who require immigration permission to be in the UK need to evidence this to the university on their arrival. For this purpose, the Student Immigration Advice & Compliance (SIAC) team run ‘international check-in’ to welcome our overseas students to the university and to complete the mandatory immigration document (passport & visa) checks required by the UK Government.

International check-in will take place in September and January, and you will be required to visit the SIAC team with your immigration documents.  More details about how to upload copies of your immigration documents, and where to attend international check-in depending on your circumstances, will be published in due course.

Once you have completed your online enrolment and international check-in, you will be able to collect your Campus Card.

How much money do I need to have?

 Length of Course Where you will study   Maintenance (funds needed)  Example
Nine months or less Outside of London  First year fees, plus up to £3,069 (£1,023 per calendar month of the course, three months for the 10-week pre-sessional, to cover living costs).

 Tuition fee for the course - for the 10 week pre-sessional £2,700

Student paid 100% to obtain CAS = £2,700

Outstanding tuition fee balance = £0

Living costs = £3,069* (as the course is only 10 weeks long students only need to evidence living costs for three months)

Total of funds that should be available in their account = £3,069

More than nine months (one academic year) Outside of London  First year fees, plus £9,207 (£1,023 per calendar month of the course, up to a total 9 months, to cover living costs)

Undergraduate Example:

Tuition fees for first year of study (not including any discount) = £14,000

Student has paid 50% to obtain CAS = £7,000

Outstanding tuition fee balance = £7,000

Living Costs = £9,207*

Total of funds that should be available in their account = £23,207

Postgraduate Example:

Tuition fees for first year of study (not including any discount) = £15,000

Student has paid 50% to obtain CAS = £7,500

Outstanding tuition fee balance = £7,500

Living costs = £9,207*

Total of funds that should be available in their account = £24,207

*if you paid the full amount of accommodation fees for your Leeds Beckett University accommodation then, a maximum of £1,265 can be deducted from your living cost total.

Please check our course fees and living costs page to ensure you have the most up-to-date information relating to the costs above. 

Did you know?

Working in the UK after study

You may be able to stay in the UK and work after graduation. The Graduate Immigration route will be available to international students who have completed a university degree with a track record of compliance, and who have valid student visa or student permission at the time of application. 

Successful applicants on this route at Bachelor’s or Master’s level will be able to stay in the UK and work, or look for work, at any skill level for two years. Doctoral students will be able to stay for three years.

Graduates will be able to apply to the Skilled Worker route from within the UK once they have found a suitable job.

More Information on Visas

From 6 April 2015 all students applying for visas in order to study in the UK for six months or longer must pay an Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) to enable them to access any National Health Service (NHS) services. For further information please refer to the following links:

As part of the Student visa application process the Home Office has introduced credibility interviews. As part of your visa application you may be required to attend an online interview where you will be asked a series of questions about your intended course and study destination in the UK. We highly recommend that you prepare for these interviews in advance so that you are confident in answering any questions about your intention to study in the UK. To help with this we have provided some points that you should consider when preparing for a credibility interview.

 

Students applying from outside of the European Economic Area (EEA) for study in certain subject areas will need to apply for an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate before they can study in the UK. These can include both taught and research postgraduate courses, and are predominantly in subject areas such as science, engineering and medical subject areas.

When you receive an offer for your course of study, it will be stated on your offer letter if your course requires ATAS.

Courses requiring an ATAS certificate

To find out whether your course of study requires an ATAS certificate, you will first need to know the CAH3 code for that course. If you are a new student, this should be stated on your offer letter.

A full list of CAH3 codes which require an ATAS certificate can be found on the ATAS webpages.

If you do require an ATAS certificate it is important that you do not make an immigration application before you have your ATAS certificate as your application will be refused. Remember, you must obtain an ATAS certificate before you begin your studies if you need to have immigration permissions including all Student visa routes.

There is no additional charge for the ATAS certificate but the application process can take up to 30 working days. You can find more detail about the ATAS and application on ATAS website: online application system.

If you think your course/research may require ATAS and you have not received any information regarding the CAH3 code for your course please contact International Admissions office at international@leedsbeckett.ac.uk.

The application process for ATAS certificates is completely online. When your application is granted, you will be emailed your certificate. Your certificate will be valid for six months. If you change your course of study, university or need to apply for more time as a student, you will need to apply for ATAS again.

Further information can be found on the UK Government website.