Living in Leeds

We welcome colleagues and students from almost 100 different countries around the globe, contributing to our vision to be an excellent, accessible and globally engaged university.  This webpage provides information to support international colleagues on immigration matters, with some additional information about life in the UK.

Our international buddy network has been set up to support people joining the University from overseas. This network aims to make the transition to working in the UK easier by giving you the opportunity to contact a Leeds Beckett colleague who has experienced it themselves and is able to support based on their own real-life experiences. Read more about our international buddy network.

Further information regarding employment and immigration can be found on the Gov.uk website https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-visas-and-immigration.

If you made your visa application from outside of the UK, then you will need to collect your biometric residence permit (BRP) once you arrive in the UK.  More information is available here .  The Post Office branch finder shows the location of Post Offices.

Some people need to register with the police after arriving in the UK with a visa.  This will be clearly indicated on your biometric card or passport visa.  Further information (including the relevant countries) can be found on the Gov.uk website https://www.gov.uk/register-with-the-police and also on the Leeds Beckett Student hub http://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/studenthub/registering-with-the-police/ 

For your salary to be paid each month, it’s essential for you to open a UK bank account. Pay day usually falls on the 26th of the month (academic colleagues) or 16th of the month (support colleagues). We are working with Lloyds Bank International to support colleagues moving to the UK to open bank accounts here. If you would like more information about this, please contact Julia Gaskin (j.gaskin@leedsbeckett.ac.uk) and we will arrange for a member of Lloyds Bank International to get in touch with you.

This Home Office webpage gives you advice on protecting yourself from tricks and scams the Home Office are aware have affected other people with a visa. If you receive an unexpected email, telephone call or letter from someone who claims to be from the Home Office, it may not be genuine. In particular, the Home Office will never contact you to ask for money or your personal details.

As an employee of Leeds Beckett University, you can access a Leeds Credit Union savings and loan scheme through which you can save a minimum amount from your salary on a monthly basis.  Once a certain level of saving is reached you can apply for a low cost loan of up to five times the amount saved.

For further information please call 0113 2145252 or visit the Leeds Credit Union website. For an application form, please contact Payroll in Leighton G14.

Loans are also available through various banks and supermarkets.

The following Home Office webpages provide information about British citizenship and EEA permanent residence cards (in some circumstances it is possible to apply for British citizenship immediately after receiving EEA permanent residence documentation).  

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apply-for-a-permanent-residence-document-or-permanent-residence-card-form-eea-pr

https://www.gov.uk/british-citizenshiphttps://www.gov.uk/dual-citizenship

https://www.gov.uk/dual-citizenship

If you have any particular questions or simply want to talk to someone about any immigration concerns our HR Services Team would be pleased to speak to you.  We welcome your feedback on our Supporting International Colleagues web page, please email j.gaskin@leedsbeckett.ac.uk with any comments.