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Visa compliance – your responsibilities as an international student at DMU

Sections on this page:


Regulations

All students are advised to familiarise themselves with the below regulations. You can find out more about the full General Regulations by visiting our student regulations and policies page.

  1. Your term time address must be within 40 miles of campus.

    DMU address proximity policy

    University policy (Chapter 1, 2.18) states your term time address must be within 40 miles of campus.

    2.18 Student Route visa Students who declare a term-time address outside of a 40-mile radius, or that are believed to have declared an address at which they do not genuinely reside in during term time will have their registration cancelled and the University will notify UKVI of a withdrawal of Student Route sponsorship for that Student

    If you do not genuinely live within 40 miles of the university, this may have an impact on your engagement on your course and result in cancellation of you visa. Please ensure that you update your mydmu app with your current, genuine, UK address and contact details.

  2. You must attend classes regularly and to a satisfactory level.

    The university monitors how you engage with your classes. If you do not attend classes regularly and to a satisfactory level, you may be dismissed from your course. The Home Office will be informed, which will result in your visa being cancelled – so it’s really important that you attend classes regularly. 

    If you need to be absent from the university, you should notify your faculty as soon as possible. If your attendance is unsatisfactory and your absence is not authorised, you may no longer be able to study the course and your visa may be cancelled.

    Find out more about our Attendance Monitoring Policy.

  3. You must pay your tuition fees on time and be responsive to communication regarding fees.

    It is important that you pay your tuition fees on time and reply to our income team, when contacted about your fees. Failure to do so may result in dismissal from your course and cancellation of your student visa. If you wish to discuss your tuition fees and payment, please contact our income team on 0116 207 8810 or by email income@dmu.ac.uk.

    Fnd out more about our International tuition fees policy.

  4. Changing your course

    If you decide to change your course, it is important that you contact your faculty in the first instance to discuss this. There may be consequences to your visa if you change your course. Therefore, you will need to request a change with your faculty and complete the necessary paperwork. A change of course request form will need to be completed by your faculty and you will need to complete a supporting statement. Your faculty will then send the form to the immigration compliance team for a final decision to be made. If the new course is similar to your original course and the course end date remains the same, you may be able to change without any consequences to your visa. However, if this is not the case, you may need to return home and apply for a new visa, before being permitted to change course.
  5. You must keep the university up-to-date regarding your studies and visa.

    It is important that you provide your current contact and address details by updating your dmu account or app.

    At points throughout your studies, the university may contact you regarding your visa. This does not mean there is anything wrong. It is usually a routine exercise to ensure our records are up to date. However, it is very important that you check your university email account regularly and respond to emails from the university regarding your studies and your visa. It is important that the university has up to date information regarding your immigration status. This is necessary for the university to meet its responsibilities as your sponsor and for you, also.

    If you have to renew your visa or passport during your stay, it is important that your new visa/passport is presented to the university as soon as possible. If this is the case, please contact immigrationcompliance@dmu.ac.uk and we will arrange a time for you to come in with your documents for scanning.

    You should also notify the university of any changes to your immigration status as soon as possible – for example if you change from a study visa to a different type of visa during your stay.

  6. Letter requests

  7. You must adhere to the expiration date of your visa when your studies have finished.

    You must leave the UK at the end of your studies before the expiry of your visa (if you have not applied to switch into another visa or extend your Student visa for further study). You should be aware that staying in the UK after your visa has expired (or after you have left or been terminated from your course of study) is illegal. You may be removed from the UK by the Home Office and be given a re-entry ban. This may prevent you from coming back to the UK in the future.

 

 


Leaving or interrupting your studies early

If you leave your course early, without completing it, the university is required to notify the Home Office. This applies whether you have withdrawn, been dismissed, or taken a period of interruption from your course. Where a student who holds a Tier 4/Student Route visa ceases to study, the university is required to report this to the Home Office and confirm that the student is no longer sponsored by the university. The university cannot sponsor you if you are not in full time attendance on your course.

  1. Curtailment or cancellation of you visa – what this means for you

    Once the university reports that you are no longer being sponsored to study at DMU, the Home Office will begin processing the cancellation of your visa. This means that they will cut short the length of time your visa is valid to 60 days after the date they notify you of this cancellation. Your original visa will not be valid after this point, even though the details of your original visa end dates will remain in your passport or on your Biometric Residence Permit card. You should not attempt to use this visa to re-enter the UK.

    Your visa being cancelled does not mean you will not be allowed to resume your course in the future. You will need a new visa to do so as the university cannot sponsor you while you are not studying at the university.

    Please note that if you leave your course early without completing it, you will not be permitted to work during the period between you leaving DMU and your visa ending (either on the original date or on the new date curtailed to 60 days)

    If your visa is cancelled, you will be required to leave the country before your revised visa expiry date. If you do not, you run the risk of becoming an over stayer and you may be banned on entering the UK in future. If you have had an application for an extension to your visa and have no further right of appeal or you are unable to make an application, you should also leave the UK to avoid an unfavourable immigration record.

    If you have been approved by your faculty to return to your course, you will need to obtain a new visa from your home country. In order to do this, you will need a new Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS). You will not be able to make your application for a new visa until three months before the date you will resume your course. You can request a new CAS by contacting immigrationcompliance@dmu.ac.uk.

    If you require a new CAS for a new course or to begin your course again, please contact admissions@dmu.ac.uk.

  2. If you have successfully completed your course earlier than expected

    If you have successfully completed your course, earlier than originally stipulated on your CAS, leave is usually curtailed to the new course end date plus the additional period you were originally granted, for example one month, two or four months after the new end date, described as the 'wrap up period'. If this applies to you and you require further information, please contact the Immigration Compliance team on immigrationcompliance@dmu.ac.uk.

 


Extending your current visa

If your visa is due to expire before you complete your course, you will have to apply for an extension to your visa. You should start preparing to apply for your extension at least 3 months before your visa expires.

If the reason for extending your visa, is due to re-sits or because you have undertaken a work placement, you may be able to apply to extend your visa within the UK. In such circumstances, you can request a new CAS by contacting immigrationcompliance@dmu.ac.uk, no earlier than 3 months before your visa expires. Your request will be considered by the immigration compliance team and your faculty. Consideration will be given as to whether your attendance in the UK is required during the re-sit period. Once a decision has made, the team will contact you with a decision.

In certain circumstances, you may have to return home in order to apply for an extension to your visa. If you are extending your visa due to a deferral for example, it is likely that you will need to apply for a new visa from your home county.

Once you have your new visa you must present it to the university so that your records can be updated.


 

Biometric Residence Permit collection

If you have made your Student visa application outside the UK: when your student visa application is approved you will first be provided with a sticker in your passport that will allow you to travel to the UK.  Once you arrive in the UK you will need to collect your Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) card that will be valid for the full length of your stay in the UK. You must collect this within 10 days of arriving in the UK. The university will not normally allow you to enrol until you have collected your BRP.

When making your application you will have been given the option to collect your BRP at the local Post Office or to collect from the university.

Once you have received a decision on your application, your decision letter from UK Visas & Immigration will state the collection location of your BRP:

 

  1. Post office collection

    If you have chosen the Post Office to collect your BRP from, you will need to collect it from there. Once you have collected it, the university will need to take a copy in order to update your student record. If you are new student, you will need to bring your brp with you to your face to face registration appointment. You may not be able to register on your course, if you do not have your BRP with you.
  2. DMU collection

    If you have chosen to collect from the university, the International Registration team will contact you when it has arrived and has been processed. They will give you instructions on how to collect your BRP. New students will be able collect their BRP from DMU, during their face to face registration appointment.

When you collect your BRP, it is important that you bring have your passport and decision letter from UK Visas and Immigration with you.

 

If you have any queries regarding your BRP, please contact internationalregistration@dmu.ac.uk

 


 

Working during your studies

Many students choose to take on part-time work during their studies. As an international student, you may be permitted to undertake work. However, you must ensure that the work you do does not breach the terms of your visa.

Students who are in the UK on a Student visa, studying at degree level or above are permitted to work a maximum of 20 hours a week during term time and full-time outside term-time. You are also permitted to work full time during an approved work placement that is an assessed and integral part of your course.

For those studying below degree level this limit is 10 hours. Your visa or biometric residence permit should show whether you are permitted to work or not. You can show this to any employer who asks for proof of your eligibility to work. Please note: migrants holding a Standard visitor visa are not permitted to work at all in the UK.

It is essential that you do not exceed the permitted hours per week in term-time, whether you have lectures or not. You should check the term dates with your faculty before committing to work in excess of 20 hours (or 10 hours for those studying below degree level). You must also not undertake certain types of work. You must not:

  • be self-employed
  • be employed as a professional sportsperson or sports coach
  • be employed as an entertainer
  • take a permanent full-time job

Should you breach the terms of your visa through work, you are likely to be putting your place on your course and your immigration status in the UK at risk. The university is obliged to report any students that may be breaching the terms of their visa. You will not be able to increase the amount of time your visa permits you to work.

See . 

Proving right to work, rent or status to other government departments

  1. Right to work

    If you need to prove your right to work, you should ask your employer to use the . Once the request is received the Home Office will confirm your right to work directly to the employer to allow them to fulfil their statutory duties.

  2. Right to rent

    If you need to prove your right to rent, you can ask your landlord to use the . Once the request is received the Home Office will confirm your right to rent directly to the landlord to allow them to fulfil their statutory duties.

  3. National Insurance Number

    If you do not have a National Insurance number, you can .

  4. Proving status to other Government departments

    If the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), the NHS, a Local Authority or other government department wishes to confirm your status, they should contact Status Verification, Enquiries and Checking (SVEC) at the Home Office. They will know how to do this using existing arrangements.

  5. Registering with a GP or accessing NHS services

    Anyone can .  If you wish to access the NHS for secondary healthcare, the NHS will be able to confirm your status via established Home Office communication channels. If you are asked by the NHS, you can advise them that you are awaiting the delivery of their BRP. If the NHS wishes to confirm your status, they should contact Status Verification, Enquiries and Checking (SVEC) at the Home Office.

  6. Opening a bank account

    The decision to open a bank account is a commercial decision for the bank in question. The absence of a BRP should not impact your ability to open a bank account.