Complying with the conditions of your student visa
As your student visa sponsor, it is our responsibility to advise you of your visa conditions while you study at St Mary’s University. It is very important that you read and follow all of the steps below. We’re here to assist and support you, so don’t be afraid to ask us any questions. Please include your regnum and name when you email us at: studentvisas@stmarys.ac.uk.
For more information about your student visa status, see the UKCISA website.
Your engagement throughout the full academic year is monitored. You must attend all timetabled (online or face-to-face) sessions and submit all of your work on time.
Reminder: please download MySMU app.
You must record your attendance for all timetabled sessions via a unique access code, presented to you via your lecturer at the beginning of each timetabled session.
Please arrive to your class on-time and record your attendance immediately. If you do not record your attendance there will not be an accurate record.
Unexplained absences will be investigated which may put your visa sponsorship at risk.
Minimum attendance threshold requirements:
- foundation degree 85% per week.
- undergraduate and postgraduate 70% per week (You must check if your programme has a higher attendance threshold, this will depend which degree you study).
If you do not attend or fully engage with your studies, you will be at risk of being withdrawn from the University.
Throughout your studies, you must keep your UK contact details updated via the student portal.
You must update your personal email address, mobile telephone number and term-time UK address if there are any changes during your studies.
Please use the St Mary's student portal to do this.
You must inform the UKVI on certain changes to your circumstances.
- A change of address can be reported through an online form.
- A change of name, nationality, facial appearance, gender, or date of birth requires you to apply for a new biometric residence permit (BRP).
- New passport details and other relevant changes require the MCC form to be completed and posted to the UKVI.
Please read UKCISA's guide for details on reporting changes to UKVI.
You must live as close to St Mary’s University as possible. This is to enable you feel a part of the St Mary’s community and to fully engage with your studies. If you would like assistance to find accommodation please visit our accommodation pages for more information.
If your accommodation is too far away from St Mary’s University and your attendance and engagement are affected because of the distance, you are at risk of being withdrawn.
You must make every effort to live as close by to the University as possible.
Keep your travel documents in a safe place. Do not leave your home with them in case they are lost - it is expensive and time consuming to replace them, and you are unable to travel without them.
If you apply for a new visa or passport during your studies, you must update your student record via the Student Portal. We must have a copy of any new immigration documents.
If there is an error on your BRP card, such as your working conditions are incorrect or the length of your visa is too long or too short, it must be investigated and sent for correction with the Home Office.
If your BRP or passport are lost during your studies you must apply for a replacement.
For information about correcting a BRP error, or if you lose your BRP, please visit UKCISA's BRP.
Your visa conditions allow you to work a maximum of 10 or 20 hours a week during term time.
You may also be able to work more than 10 or 20 hours per week during recognised vacation periods.
Please refer to the Work During Studies FAQs for more explanations about your visa conditions.
Foundation degree and Undergraduate degree students can work more hours during recognised vacation periods as long as there are no resits or repeats to complete.
Postgraduate degree students at St Mary’s students do not have recognised vacation periods.
Postgraduate students are unable to work more hours than 20 hours in between the start and end date of your programme.
Letters are not produced at St Mary’s University to provide to employers to explain the work conditions of your visa.
Please show your employer your BRP and print a student verification letter from the student portal to prove your enrolment status and your course start and end dates.
You must not work more hours than stated on your visa, as you would be in breach of your visa conditions and your employer would be breaking the law.
Foundation degree (and below)
Term-time working hours
10 hours of work per week maximum during term-time. You must not work more hours than stated on your visa. If your visa has incorrect working hours you must have your visa corrected.
Recognised vacation periods
- Christmas break
- Easter break
- Summer break
Undergraduate degree
Term-time working hours
20 hours of work per week maximum during term-time. You must not work more hours than stated on your visa. If your visa has incorrect working hours you must have your visa corrected.
Recognised vacation periods
- Christmas break
- Easter break
- Summer break
Postgraduate degree
Term-time working hours
20 hours of work per week maximum during term-time. You must not work more hours than stated on your visa. If your visa has incorrect working hours you must have your visa corrected.
Recognised vacation periods
No recognised vacation periods at postgraduate level.
Postgraduate degree students at St Mary’s students do not have recognised vacation periods.
Postgraduate students are unable to work more hours than 20 in between the start and end date of your programme.
As a Postgraduate student, when you submit your final piece of work at the end of the programme and there are no re-sits or repeats to complete, you are then permitted to work more hours in the last 4 months of your visa called ‘extant leave’.
Letters for employers?
Letters are not produced by St Mary’s University to provide to employers to explain the work conditions of your visa. Please show your employer your BRP and print a student verification letter from the student portal to prove your enrolment status.
Become a student ambassador
Why not work as a student ambassador? Enthusiastic students are required to assist St Mary's with recruitment events.
National insurance number
If you find work, you will pay tax and National Insurance contributions on your earnings. For information about obtaining a National Insurance Number, please visit the UK government’s national insurance web pages.
Types of work not permitted
You cannot be self-employed, run a business, or work as a professional sportsperson, including a sports coach. In addition, you cannot be employed as an entertainer. You may not hold a permanent full-time job while studying.
UKCISA
Please visit the UKCISA's pages on working in the UK.
Some courses include work placement opportunities.
If you are completing a work placement as part of your course, you can also work 10 or 20 hours per week during term-time in a different job as stated on your BRP.
Your work placement details must be reported to the Home Office. Most work placements are arranged via the workplace learning team.
You will require a letter to provide to your employer before you can start working at the company that explains your visa requirements.
Whilst on your placement your engagement and/or progress will be monitored. If you do not attend your placement as planned because of unauthorised absences, you are at risk of being withdrawn from St Mary’s University.
If your have any questions about work placements and your visa conditions please contact studentvisas@stmarys.ac.uk
Any changes to your studies are likely to have implications to your visa. For example:
- Changing your course
- Withdraw/leave of absence
- Repeat or resit exams
- Transfer of university
- Change of immigration status
Once you have completed enrolment, please contact studentvisas@stmarys.ac.uk with any questions about making any changes to your studies.
Once you have agreed for changes to be made via your Course Lead and the visa team, you will be able to request the necessary changes via the student portal.
The Schengen Visa Scheme allows those who wish to visit certain countries within the European Economic Area (EEA) (and Switzerland) to travel between these countries using only one visa. You should contact the Embassy in London of the country or countries you wish to visit.
The countries are: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland.
You will require a No Objection letter to apply for a Schengen visa. Once you are an enrolled student, you will be able to request a No Objection letter from the visa team. You should only travel during suitable breaks in studies.
More information about how to apply can be found at: UKCISA’s Schengen web pages.
If you are an international student new to the UK you are advised to open a bank account in the UK. This is the safest and most effective way of managing your money. If you intend to take up part-time employment you will find that your employer will want to pay your salary into a UK account.
Basic bank account
This should allow you to pay in and take out money and you are normally provided with a cash-point (ATM) card or debit card to enable you to draw money out. Basic accounts do not offer any form of credit, so you will not be given an overdraft facility or credit card.
You should be able to open a basic account with any of the main UK banks without making a payment or with a minimum of £1. However, you may be offered a more flexible account if you are able to pay in a substantial amount.
There are several useful websites you can visit that will give you information on the types of account that are available to you. It is worth doing some research as you might find that some banks will be more flexible with the type of account they will offer you or the proof of identity that is required.
You will need to find out if the bank will offer you either:
- a cash card
- a debit card
- an overdraft facility
- regular statements
- telephone banking
- internet banking.
You should also check whether:
- money can be transferred from abroad
- you are able to make direct debit payments
- any outstanding balance at the end of your studies can be transferred back to your bank in your own country, if required
- there are any account charges and if so, how much?
When you have this information you can make a decision about which bank you would like to open an account with. Most of the main UK banks have a local branch within 15 minutes walking distance from St Mary's.
Proof of identity
You will need some or all of the following documents (depending on the bank requirements) to be able to open an account:
- your passport, with student visa if appropriate
- your national photo ID card if you are from an EU country
- a letter of introduction from St Mary's, giving details of your course and confirming your overseas and UK address. You can request this from the e:Vision Portal.
- a copy of your rental agreement
- utility bills (gas, electricity, phone etc) with your name on it
Please ensure you take all the necessary documentation with you when you go to open an account.
You may need to wait for 2 weeks or more before your account is fully functional so you will need to ensure that you have enough cash or travellers cheques to last you until your account is set up.
Direct debit payments
If you set up a direct debit with St Mary's in order to pay tuition fees or accommodation fees, you must ensure that you have enough money in your account on the agreed payment dates.
If the direct debit amount is more than the money you have in your account, the bank will refuse to make the payment and will charge you about £30 - £40 every time the payment is declined. St Mary's will also charge you for declined payments.
Local banks
Please see the list below of some of the main banks which are located in Twickenham, close to St Mary's. There are also branches in Teddington, Kingston & Richmond which are also close to the University. You may also wish to consider using an online bank, such as Monzo or Revolut.
- Barclays Bank plc
2 York Street, Twickenham, Middlesex
Telephone: +44 (0) 845 755 5555
- HSBC plc
2 London Road, Twickenham, Middlesex
Telephone: +44 (0) 845 740 4404
- Lloyds TSB
17 Heath Road, Twickenham, Middlesex
Telephone: +44 (0) 845 300 0000
- NatWest plc
25 King Street, Twickenham, Middlesex
Telephone: +44 (0) 845 610 1202
- Santander
1 King Street, Twickenham, Middlesex
Telephone: +44 (0) 845 765 4321
Useful websites
To work in the UK you need a National Insurance Number. National Insurance is a type of UK taxation. When allocated a National Insurance Number this will be a number unique to you.
To get a National Insurance Number you need to wait until you are in the UK to apply.
How to apply
To apply for a number you will have to call the JobCentre Plus application line:
0345 600 0643 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm)
They may ask you to attend an interview. More information of getting a National Insurance number can be found on the Gov.uk website.
Useful websites
UKCISA
UK Government website
National Health Service
The UK's National Health Service is often referred to as the NHS. The NHS provides treatment through a range of services from Accident and Emergency centres to Local GP (General Practitioner) doctor's surgeries. Some services are free and some are paid for.
If you are studying with St Mary's University on a student visa on a full-time course that is longer than 6 months, you will be asked to pay the immigration health surcharge. Paying this surcharge will qualify you to receive NHS treatment from the beginning of your stay on the same basis as anyone who is ordinarily resident in the UK. EU students can use a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) to access NHS care until the end of the Brexit transition period, when the situation may change. UKCISA will update its healthcare guidance for EU students as more information is finalised.
If you are entitled to NHS treatment, these services will be free of charge:
- consulting a GP and most other GP services (e.g. visiting a clinic)
- treatment in a hospital (both emergency and non-emergency treatment).
You may need to pay for:
- medicines prescribed by your GP
- some GP services (e.g. vaccinations for travel, getting a sickness certificate) - ask your GP for details of costs
- dental treatment
- optical treatment.
Accessing Healthcare
Your General Practioner, or GP, is your primary doctor. When you arrive in the UK, you should register with a GP surgery (i.e., a doctor's office) as soon as possible. The York Medical Practice and Cross Deep Surgery are the two closest surgeries to the St Mary's campus. If you are living elsewhere in London, you can find a local doctor on the NHS website.
How do I register for these services?
Once you've decided which GP you'd like to use, follow the instructions on their website to register as a patient. You will need to fill in a few forms, and you may need to visit them in person to complete your enrolment.
Private Healthcare
Students not eligible for NHS treatment are advised to ensure their insurance policies cover healthcare during their stay or get private medical health insurance so that they can access healthcare when needed.
The UKCISA website has information on private medical insurance for international students.