International deposit refund policy

Tuition fee deposit

What is it?

• International students (`Students’) who need a student visa to study in the UK must pay a tuition fee deposit of £8,000 (the ‘deposit’) to secure a place on their chosen programme of study at St Mary’s University and meet all entry requirements as outlined in the offer letter to study on the programme.

• Students who are hoping to enrol onto PGCE Secondary Science (Physics) with QTS and are eligible for the UK government teaching bursary must pay a tuition fee deposit of £4,000.

  Do I have to pay the deposit?

• The list of Students set out (a) – (d) below in this section may be exempt from paying the deposit, subject to providing evidence of such exemption unless applying to selected postgraduate courses with limited availability or PGCE Secondary Science (Physics) or PGCE Secondary Modern Foreign Languages:
  • Students studying on a Study Abroad programme or applicable St Mary’s partnership pathways where the partner institution is responsible for payment of the Students tuition fees.
  • Students receiving US Federal Aid (evidence must be provided).
  • Students receiving full tuition fee sponsorship by a regulated government body, the British Council, approved international organisation, approved international company, University or a UK independent school (evidence must be provided).
  • Students not requiring a student route visa to study in the UK.

Refund of the deposit

• The deposit is non-transferable and non-refundable (unless subject to the below) and will be off-set against the Student’s first-year tuition fee.
• St Mary’s University may only refund the deposit in the following circumstances:

100% refund of the deposit

• The Student will receive a full refund of the deposit amount in the following circumstances:
  • The Student does not meet all the conditions in their offer letter (whether conditional or unconditional offer is made);
    or
  • The Student requests the return of their deposit in writing by e-mailing internationaladmissions@stmarys.ac.uk (see 10 below) within 14 days from the date of receipt of the deposit to St Mary’s University under The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013;
    or
  • St Mary’s University cancels the programme;
    or
  • The Student has their Visa refused on any ground EXCEPT fraudulence;
    or
  • Exceptional circumstances as set out below.

Partial refund of the deposit

• St Mary’s will retain 25% of the deposit paid and refund the remaining 75% in the following circumstances:
  • The Student decides to withdraw from the programme at any point after meeting all the conditions set out in their offer letter.
  • Student requests a refund after the 14 - day cooling off period (set out in 5 (ii) above) has expired.

No refund of the deposit

• The Student will not be entitled to either a full refund or partial refund of the deposit in the following circumstances:
  • The Student has enrolled and attended their first lecture or seminar whether in person or remotely.
  • Any withdrawal caused by the Student breaching UKVI Regulations, including all cases of dishonesty and fraud at any stage of the visa application.
  • The Student has had their visa refused and the reason for refusal is fraudulence.

Please note: If a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) has been issued by St Mary’s, a £50.00 administration fee will be deducted from any refund request (unless the programme is cancelled by the University).

Exceptional circumstances

• Refunds may be made in exceptional circumstances. Examples of exceptional circumstances include (but are not limited to);
  • a serious illness
  • a death in the immediate family
  • breach of contract on the part of the University
  • impact of natural disaster.

Documentary proof of such circumstances may be required. Any decision to make a full or partial refund in exceptional circumstances is entirely at the discretion of the University.

Deposit due date

• Please refer to your offer letter sent by e-mail for further information.

Refund process

• Requests for refunds should be made by emailing internationaladmissions@stmarys.ac.uk, you will then be requested to provide evidence of payment and supporting documents.
• Refunds will be made in British Pound Sterling (GBP). International refunds can take up to 30 working days to process.
• St Mary’s University is not able to refund any shortfalls due to exchange rate fluctuations, or offer compensation for any bank or other charges incurred.
• St Mary’s University refund policy is that all credit or debit card refunds are issued back to the original credit or debit card (source) used when the initial desposit payment was made. The University may request supporting documentation such as a remittance advice and/or bank statement.
• Refunds for domestic and international bank transfers are made via our domestic BACS or international payment mechanism. St Mary’s University is not liable for any variance due to foreign exchange rate fluctuations.