Dear Student,
We’re looking forward to welcoming you to King’s.
To ensure you’re ready for the start of term, please read the following important information about coming to the UK on a Student visa.
- Before you travel to the UK: Ensuring you’ve completed your Student visa, checking your Student visa for errors and find out about eVisas and visa vignettes
- Entering the UK: Arriving during your visa’s validity, keeping proof of your entry date and what to do if you’re arriving late
Before you travel to the UK
Before you travel to the UK, make sure your Student visa has been issued and its start date has begun. Travelling to the UK too early, or without a valid visa, means you’ll enter as a Standard Visitor and won’t be able to enrol at King’s.
You must complete your Student visa application before travelling as it cannot be finalised once you’ve arrived in the UK.
Once your Student visa is approved, you will be issued an eVisa, which allows you to enter the UK. You can check your visa details, including the start date, on the GOV.UK website.
In some cases, you may also receive a visa vignette (a visa sticker in your passport), which is valid for 90 days. This is used for your first entry to the UK only. After that, your eVisa will serve as proof of your immigration status and for any future travel.
Important to know: the UKVI is phasing out vignettes, so you may receive only an eVisa. Your decision letter will confirm this.
Check your Student visa for any mistakes as soon as you receive it. For more details, read our article Checking your Student visa for errors on Student Services Online, the quickest and easiest way to find information about student life at King’s.
As you get ready to arrive in the UK, make sure to read our article I need to travel to the UK.
Entering the UK
You must enter the UK during the validity of your eVisa to be eligible to enrol at King’s.
Depending on your nationality, you’ll either enter the UK through an eGate (electronic gates) or by speaking to a Border Force officer.
Important to know: you must keep evidence of your arrival date (such as an entry stamp, boarding pass or flight ticket) as you’ll need to provide it to successfully complete the Right to Study check as part of your enrolment at King’s.
If exceptional circumstances mean you’re unable to be in London and ready to attend your in-person classes by the start of teaching, you need to let your faculty know as soon as possible. See our article What should I do if I am arriving late? for further information.
Finally, if you have any further questions, please get in touch with us. We wish you the best of luck with your studies!
Best wishes,
King's Visa Compliance Team
