International Student Team

Your responsibilities under Tier 4

We are pleased to sponsor you as a student, under Tier 4. Together, we need to ensure we comply with the UK government's Tier 4 rules. This is critical, because if we fail to comply, the UK Border Agency (UKBA) may revoke your visa and downgrade or remove our sponsor licence, thus preventing us from sponsoring students.

In general, the UKBA requires us to:

  • Hold a copy of your passport and immigration documents. Therefore, you must present these documents to your College (or host department if you are a visiting student) within seven days of arriving or receiving your Biometric Residence Permit (if applied in the UK);
  • Keep up-to-date contact details (address, telephone number, mobile telephone number). Therefore, you must keep your details current on CamSIS, and with your College/host department;
  • Inform the UKBA if you do not arrive within ten days of your course start date (as stated in your CAS), giving reasons for any delay and your expected arrival date. This includes informing the UKBA if you did not arrive on the CAS issued because that visa application failed. Therefore, you must inform your College/host department if delayed and your new arrival date. You must notify us if your visa application failed and request a new CAS if you still intend to study;
  • Record your termly registration with your College (or host department if you are a visiting student) and report you immediately if you miss a contact. Therefore, you must register within seven working days of the start of each Full Term;
  • Inform the UKBA if you are absent from your studies, defer or discontinue. We receive notification of changes to your course and use these to inform the UKBA. Where changes may affect your visa, we e-mail you;
  • Inform the UKBA of any changes, e.g. you have switched out of Tier 4, your course length is reduced, you complete earlier than the course end date given in your CAS. Therefore, you must inform your College/host department of changes to your personal circumstances, for example, switching out of Tier 4. We receive notification of changes to your course and use these to inform the UKBA. Where changes may affect your visa, we e-mail you;
  • Inform the UKBA if we believe you are breaching the conditions of your leave (e.g. working over the permitted allowance).

The document below describes in more detail what you and the University must do, and within what time period, to ensure compliance. We refer to this document in much of the correspondence we have with you.

In addition, you must understand and abide by the conditions attached to your visa, which include:

  • Working restrictions: The University imposes greater work restrictions than the UKBA during term time. Therefore, you must understand the University's rules before assuming you can work.
  • No access to state benefits: This means you cannot draw on some state benefits.
  • Possible police registration: Your visa/Biometric Resident Permit will state if this is required.
  • Notifying the UKBA of changes in your personal circumstances and/or changes in your course, including changing to a new education provider.
  • Notifying the UKBA if you change your address. You can now do this online at https://contact-ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/aboutus/contact/changeAddress/update-my-details/
  • Conditions on your partner and children who enter the UK as your dependants.
  • Understanding that any time you spend in the student category will not count towards the time needed to qualify for settlement in the UK.
  • Switching to a shorter course: you must e-mail migrantreporting@ikba.gsi.gov.uk if you switch to a new course that is shorter than the course for which you were originally granted permission (paragraph 318 in Tier 4 Policy Guidance for applications made on or after 06 April 2012)

The UKBA website provides full information on conditions of your stay and changes during your stay.