Time limits on study

If the course is below degree level e.g. foundation course or A-Levels, you are allowed to spend no more than 2 years on a Student visa from the age of 18. This 2-year limit does not include any time spent as a Child Student/Tier 4 (Child) when you were aged 17 years and under, Student/Tier 4 (General) when you were 16 or 17 years old or on any other non-Tier 4 or Student visa category which permits study.

If you have studied a foundation course while holding a combined Student visa for the foundation year and the main degree programme, the undergraduate degree-level time limits will apply.

If there were exceptional compelling and compassionate circumstances that either prevented you from completing the course within the time given or caused you to leave the course prematurely, this may represent an exception to the two-year time limit. For more information on this please see the "How are time limits calculated and can they be exceeded?" dropdown

As a rule, when studying at undergraduate degree level your time as a Student/Tier 4 student is limited to a maximum of five years. There are a few exceptions to this rule, some are listed below:

• You are undertaking a course in dentistry, medicine and veterinary science
• You are undertaking a course in architecture, or music at a music college that is a member of Conservatoires UK. These options are not offered at the University of Bristol
• You have completed a UK degree and are applying to complete certain professional law programmes, e.g. a law conversion course
• There were exceptional compelling and compassionate circumstances that either prevented you from completing the course within the time given or caused you to leave the course prematurely. For more information on this please see the "How are time limits calculated and can they be exceeded?" dropdown

There is no visa time limit on studying postgraduate courses at RQF level 7 and above. This includes Master's degrees, integrated undergraduate + Master's degrees (e.g. MEng and MSci), MPhil and MRes, PhD and other doctorate qualifications. 

Your time limit is calculated based on the length of visas granted to you and not duration of courses studied. The UKVI will consider how much leave you have already received to study courses as a Student/Tier 4 (General) holder and add the length of leave that you will receive if your current application is granted. Any additional time before and after any course is counted, as well as time spent outside the UK and on vacation. 

If you have previously studied in the UK, the University will assess whether or not you are likely to exceed the time limit before issuing you a CAS. It is therefore very important that you declare all the previous courses you have studied and all the Student visas you have held in your application for admission. You are also welcome to contact us to discuss the time limits prior to this stage. 

If you are a current University of Bristol student and require an academic extension that will take you over the relevant time limit, the University will not generally be able to issue you a CAS for this.

In some cases where there were exceptional compelling and compassionate circumstances that either prevented you from completing the course within the time given or caused you to leave the course prematurely, the University may be able to exceptionally issue a CAS for an extra year of study. An example of such circumstances would be a documented serious illness or injury during your studies. If this applies to you, please contact us as soon as you find out that you may need extra visa time to complete. 

If you are not eligible for another CAS, you will need to make alternative arrangements for the remainder of your studies, e.g. completing your course remotely or switching to a different immigration category (if eligible). You are also welcome to contact us to discuss the time limits prior to requesting an extension.