Applying for a Student visa  What happens after you have applied

UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) aim to process Student visa applications within three weeks, or within one week if you have purchased the Priority Visa Service. However, these processing times are not guaranteed and sometimes the visa application can take longer for UKVI to process.  

Your visa application may take longer to process if, for example: 

• UKVI need to contact you to ask for further information or additional documents (this is more likely if there are problems or missing details in your application form or documents).
• UKVI need to verify your supporting documents (for example, they may have tried to contact your bank or financial sponsor).
• You are invited to attend an interview.
• You have applied during the peak application period between July and September. 

UKVI will send you an email if they cannot process your application within the normal timeframe. This email will normally say that your application has not been straightforward to process. 

Find more information about visa processing times on the UK Government website.  

When UKVI have made a decision on your visa application they will contact you directly. The University is not notified when a visa is granted or refused. 

If your application is successful, you will be granted an eVisa (an online record of your immigration status). The eVisa will be valid for the full length of your stay in the UK.

When your visa is granted you will receive instructions from UKVI telling you how to create a UKVI account and get access to your eVisa before you travel to the UK. Find more information about eVisas.

You will not receive a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP). UKVI stopped issuing new BRPs on 31 October 2024 as these have been replaced by eVisas.

Get access to your eVisa and check your visa details as soon as you receive your decision.

If there is an error on your entry vignette, please contact the Visa Application Centre where you made your application to correct it before you travel.

Find out more about identifying and correcting visa errors.

Please email the Student Visa Advice team at studentvisaadvice@leeds.ac.uk if you require any further guidance or if there is an error requiring urgent correction.

If you are waiting for an update on your Student visa application, please follow these steps: 

• Double-check that you provided the correct email address in your visa application form. 
• Check your emails carefully, including your junk folder, in case UKVI have tried to contact you about your application. 
• If someone else submitted your visa application on your behalf, such as an agent or family member, ask them to check if UKVI has sent any emails about your application. 
• Ask your bank or financial sponsor if they have received a request from UKVI to verify your financial documents. 
• If you are an EU, EEA or Swiss national and have verified your identity using the UK Immigration: ID Check App, please check that you have fully completed the Evidence Upload section of the application. 

To find out how to contact UKV to ask about your pending visa application visit Contact UK Visas and Immigration. 

How we can help

If you require assistance or advice from us because your Student visa application is taking longer than expected, or if you have received a request for additional information, please complete this form to contact our Student Visa Advice team.  

If you have not had an update on your application for more than three weeks we can contact UKVI on your behalf to ask for an update. We cannot contact UKVI to ask them for an update for any other type of visa application. 

We do not have any control over visa processing times and we cannot ask UKVI to expedite a visa application.  

If you have already received an email from UKVI telling you that your application has not been straightforward to process and that they are carrying out additional checks, UKVI will not provide us with any more information and they will not give us a timescale for when they will make a decision.

If your application is refused, please email a copy of the refusal letter to the Student Visa Advice team at studentvisaadvice@leeds.ac.uk. You cannot reapply using the same CAS, as each CAS can only be used once. Please wait for our advice before making a new visa application.

You must make sure that you travel to the UK after the start date of your Student visa. If you enter the UK before the start date of your visa will not have the correct visa to begin your course. During registration, the University is required to check the date you enter the UK and confirm that you entered within the dates of your visa.

If you enter the UK via an electronic ePassport gate or the Republic of Ireland you will not pass through UK immigration control and you will not receive an entry stamp in your passport. Please retain your boarding pass and/or flight details as evidence of your date of entry to the UK.

We recommend that you do not book your flight to the UK until you have received your visa. Most visa applications are decided within 15 working days of your visa appointment; however, on occasion, there can be delays and we advise against booking a flight in advance that may need to be cancelled or rescheduled.