What to do when you receive your Student route visa?

The student route will be open from 5 October 2020 for applications from EEA nationals which are made outside of the UK. The student route will extend to EEA nationals coming to the UK from 1 January 2021 to study a course which meets the requirements of the route.  Immigration permission will be given in an electronic format.

For non-EEA nationals your visa will be issued as a vignette (sticker) in your passport and will only be valid for 30 days.  You must enter the UK on, or after, the ‘valid from’ date printed on the vignette in your passport but within the 90 day period.

If you do not travel to the UK during this 90 day period then your vignette will expire and you will need to apply for another 90-day vignette if you still wish to travel to the UK. For more information on what to do in this situation please go to the UKCISA website. Your 90-day vignette will be accompanied by a letter. You must read this and keep it safe.

On arrival in the UK nationals of some countries are permitted to enter using the eGates. If you’re a Student route visa holder and you’re from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea or the USA and your passport has a ‘chip’ then you can use the eGates. However, if you’re a national of one of the countries listed above and you’re 16 or 17 years of age you must be accompanied by an adult in order to use the eGates. Please do not use the eGates if you’re a short-term student and need to apply for entry clearance – join the queue to see a Border Force Officer instead.   Guide to faster travel through the UK border

If you are not eligible to use the eGates you should join the queue to speak to a Border Force Officer and be able to demonstrate that you can speak English at the correct level. You should also have paper (not electronic) documents related to your studies, your finances and your accommodation in Glasgow. Check that they have put a date stamp on your entry clearance.

You must collect a biometric residence permit (BRP) from a post office within 90 days of arriving in the UK. When you complete your visa application the form will give you a choice of post offices from which to collect your BRP. The form will select these post offices based on the addresses you provide on your application, that is the address where you will be living and the address Student route sponsor. If neither of the suggested post offices are convenient for you then you have the option to enter a third postcode and select a different post office. Please ask the Conservatoire for further advice on BRP collection if required.

The letter that accompanies your 90-day vignette will contain the details of the post office that you selected. If you change your mind and would like to collect your BRP from a different post office then you will have to pay a fee. You do not have to make an appointment at the post office but you must take your 90-day vignette and your letter with you. If you do not collect your BRP within 90 days of arriving in the UK you may have to pay a fine and/or your visa may be cancelled.

The Conservatoire is permitted to allow its students to matriculate (register/enrol) using their 90-day vignette and letter. However, if you choose to do this you will need to show the Conservatoire your BRP before your vignette expires. Ideally, you should collect your BRP before matriculation if you are able to.  Please do not break quarantine restrictions in order to collect your BRP.

For further, more detailed, guidance on BRPs please see the Home Office guidance

What to check when you receive your Student route Biometric Residence Permit(BRP?)

It is essential that you check that that the details on your visa (or 90-day vignette and accompanying letter) are correct.

  • your name and date of birth
  • that you are a Student route student
  • the Sponsor Licence Number (SLN) of the institution that you intend to study at
  • that the start and end dates of the permission are correct
  • work conditions (see how many hours a week can I work?)

If any of this information is incorrect, ask for it to be changed immediately, before you travel to the UK. If there is no time for the error to be corrected before you travel, ask the entry clearance post for advice.

If your visa ends too soon, or if your work conditions are stricter than they should be, or if you have a condition to register with the police when you should not, you can ask for these errors to be corrected before you travel. Alternatively, you can travel to the UK and then request a correction of the visa error later. You can ask the staff in the International and Student Experience Team to submit a request for a correction on your behalf. See BRP and visa problems

Police registration

The police registration scheme ended on 4 August 2022.

You no longer need to register with the UK police after you:

  • arrive in the UK, if you applied for a visa from outside the UK
  • get permission to stay longer, if you’re already in the UK

For further information please go to the Home Office website.

What happens if your passport or BRP is lost or stolen

If your passport or BRP is lost or stolen you must make sure that you report it to the police and UKVI as soon as possible. You can do so via the form here. You will need to apply for a replacement within three months of the loss or theft. In the first instance please go to the UKCISA website for further information. Please also see Pauline McCluskey for further support.

If you need any further advice after you have received your visa then please contact international@rcs.ac.uk