Who needs a Standard Visitor visa

Students coming to the UK to do a period of study or research lasting up to 6 months

Please be aware that there are two types of visitor visas for study i) Short-term Study visa to study English language only in the UK and ii) Standard Visitor visa to engage in study for up to 6 months in any of the activities listed below.  If you will engage in any of the activities below do not apply for a Short-term Study visa, you must instead ensure you apply for a Standard Visitor visa.  As the Short-term study visa is only for the purposes of studying English language courses, please be careful to not apply for it instead by mistake. You can study in the UK on a Standard Visitor visa as long as your academic activity fits into one of the following categories: 

• studying a course at an accredited institution (meaning one or more consecutive or concurrent programmes of study that will be completed within the validity period of the visitor permission)
• completing a period of research
• completing research tuition (for example, to learning about research)
• completing one or more elective courses linked to their overseas study, where they are studying medicine, veterinary medicine and science, or dentistry as their principal course of study equivalent to at least degree level study in the UK
• completing a study-abroad programme in the UK as part of an overseas course, where the programme is less than 6 months in length
• sitting an entrance exam
• re-sitting an examination or retaking a module
• taking an oral (viva) examination for part of a PhD qualification at a UK institution
• students on distance learning programmes who spend the majority of their course studying overseas and are coming to the UK for short periods of time for certain activities, such as induction weeks, intensive face-to-face learning, one-to-one progress checks or to sit exams or assessments.

When applying for a general Visitor visa you will need an acceptance/Visitor visa support letter from the University to submit with your application. Study Abroad students will receive this an acceptance letter from the Centre for Study Abroad, while all other students will usually receive Visitor visa support letter from their Faculty administration team at the University of Bristol. Students eligible to receive the Visitor visa at the UK border should bring the acceptance/Visitor visa support letter with them as they may get asked about the purpose of their visit to the UK. 

Students coming to study or research certain science and technology subjects at postgraduate level, will need to obtain Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) clearance before starting their course at the University of Bristol. Please visit this webpage for further information. Your UoB Faculty Office administrator should be able to confirm if you need ATAS clearance to study with us. Although Visit visa applicants may not require ATAS for their visa application, it will be a requirement of registration at the University, so we strongly advise you obtain ATAS before you apply for the Visit visa and come to the UK. 

Please familiarise yourself with other eligibility criteria (e.g. finances) on this government webpage before applying for this visa.

Obtaining a Visitor visa - visa nationals and non-visa nationals

Some nationalities can apply for this visa at the UK border (non-visa nationals) but some will need to obtain it in advance of travel (visa nationals). To check whether or not you need to apply in advance, please use this online tool. Applications in advance attract an application fee. Please see the UKCISA information for further details.

Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA)

As of 22 February 2024 if you are a national of Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates and are coming to the UK to study for 6 months or less you will need to have either an (ETA) electronic travel authorisation or a Visitor visa to enter the UK. Applications for ETA cost £10 and can be made from 01 February 2024. You can check your requirements here

There is further information about ETA available at UKCISA and on this government website including a fact sheet giving an overview of the scheme.

Full immigration rules can be found here Immigration Rules

If you travel in on an ETA please retain email evidence of the ETA as you may require this for registration purposes.

Visits for research or 'learning about research' internships

Students attending graduation ceremonies

You may need to apply for a Standard Visitor visa if you want to return to the UK for Graduation.

Please see our Graduation information for more details.

Friends and family visiting you

Friends or family who want to visit while you are in the UK can apply for a Standard Visitor visa. They cannot apply for or extend a Standard Visitor visa once they are in the UK.

Please see our Inviting your family or friends (PDF, 132kB) information sheet for more information.

Applying for a Standard Visitor visa

Apply online for Standard Visitor visa.